Withholding Allowance

[EricLeifermann]

Originally Posted by Michael Corsetto

Depending on how this all shakes out, we may build four robots next year. Bag two and practice with two.

Robot breaks? No problem! Get the second robot inspected and keep playing!

I recommend FIRST sets a 150lb weight limit for all contents of the "bag".

-Mike

Better yet save your money and time and lets just get rid of Bag and Tag and call it even.

[Michael Corsetto]

Originally Posted by EricLeifermann

Better yet save your money and time and lets just get rid of Bag and Tag and call it even.

That would take us down from 4 robots to 2 robots in 2017, which would be a huge relief!

Now if only we could cut the number of 2017 FIRST Championships in half as well...

-Mike

[marshall]

Originally Posted by Michael Corsetto

That would take us down from 4 robots to 2 robots in 2017, which would be a huge relief!

Now if only we could cut the number of 2017 FIRST Championships in half as well...

-Mike

Well we might need 8 robots in that case...

[EricDrost]

Originally Posted by marshall

Well we might need 8 robots in that case...

Register a team in a north region and a team in a south region and win both half championships!

[KJaget]

Originally Posted by EricDrost

Register a team in a north region and a team in a south region and win both half championships!

I'll hold you personally responsible if Marshall tries to get the rest of us mentors on board with this idea [/angry old man fist shaking]

[marshall]

Originally Posted by KJaget

I'll hold you personally responsible if Marshall tries to get the rest of us mentors on board with this idea [/angry old man fist shaking]

Operation hydra-corn is go!

[Libby K]

Originally Posted by marshall

Operation hydra-corn is go!

We'll use your address, you use ours?
#TeamUnither

[PayneTrain]

Originally Posted by Libby K

We'll use your address, you use ours?
#TeamUnither

#teamtether

[Libby K]

Originally Posted by PayneTrain

#teamtether

That's a REALLY long tether...

[dodar]

Originally Posted by Libby K

That's a REALLY long tether...

#TeamExtensionCords

[BigJ]

It's only about $114,500 of ethernet cable (by quick googling 'bulk ethernet cable' standards)

[marshall]

Originally Posted by BigJ

It's only about $114,500 of ethernet cable (by quick googling 'bulk ethernet cable' standards)

Sadly out of spec for a single cable but we can throw in some repeaters.

[GeeTwo]

Originally Posted by BigJ

It's only about $114,500 of ethernet cable (by quick googling 'bulk ethernet cable' standards)

No matter how you do the math, it makes more sense to outsource the tether to an ISP at each end. I wonder if we could get the ISP(s) to sponsor #teamvirtual ...

[Keefe2471]

FRC is a tough challenge that causes wear and tear on robots over the course of the 3-4 competitions that some teams attend. I personally think that teams that have the resources to build a practice bot that is complete and finished enough to compete with their "real" robot also have the skills and know how to design a robot that doesn't break.

There are already rules that make sure the weight of all configurations sum to 120 pounds, so you can't bag different configurations without having issues. Also, any design that has enough fragility to warrant an entire robot worth of spares isn't going to do well. Even if you had unlimited weight to bring in, FRC is a game of attrition as much as anything else. The real competition in this game occurs during eliminations, and it's not likely you can replace entire mechanisms on your robot in a 5 min timeout.

Also, what about open bag time? Is there any limit on what goes on and comes off the robot during that time? If not, what prevents a team from bagging their spare robot in the open bag time before a district event? I could care less about how many spare parts each team brings in personally. I think that issues with upgrade parts are more of a challenge for FIRST to regulate and have the potential to exaggerate the differences between teams that have resources and those that do not, not spares of the same robot that was finished in the six weeks.

[meg]

Originally Posted by Keefe2471

Also, what about open bag time? Is there any limit on what goes on and comes off the robot during that time?

For open bag time for districts: If the parts are COTS, no limit. If they are not but were manufactured during the open bag time, then they can go on. If they were manufactured before the open bag time, they count towards the 30 lbs withholding allowance on an honors system to verify.