Robotics "Hitchhiker's Guide"

[dez250]

Originally Posted by mechanicalbrain

Yeah i heard a couple of people talking about this. If anyone wants to start a group to make one i would love to contribute.

Linked on the main page of ChiefDelphi.com, www.FIRSTWiki.org

[mechanicalbrain]

Originally Posted by dez250

Linked on the main page of ChiefDelphi.com, www.FIRSTWiki.org

Yeah but thats not guite a hichhiker guide. Also it would be nice to add a crisis wiki where people can add suggestions for specific areas (like wiring or making carbon fiber rods ect...) and ask for help. This has been talked about before and it would be nice to combine the two ideas and actually make one.

[MrRogersRedux]

Thanks everyone for all the suggestions.

I've been to the FIRSTwiki a few times, but the thing is that if you're completely new to the world of robotics (i.e. you barely know a typical FIRST robot's anatomy and parts), you have a really hard time finding topics that'll help you. My idea was to create more of a centralized guide of the basics, a place where if you want to quickly get through the basic aspects of things like pneumatics or programming, you could easily go through a few important threads really quickly. A few specialized subforums here have that, and there are a number of very informative white papers, but it can be hard to get around for a total noob, and not everything's there. A good "Hitchhiker's Guide to Robotics" could make tenderfoots like me into semi-knowledgeable roboteers quicker and easier than through searching blindly.

Also, thanks for pointing out the MOE website, that's an interesting comparison to the way my team runs the building season.

And yeah, it can be ANY towel

[NoodleKnight]

If I did start one, who here would be willing to put in some useful knowledge?
I think the general concept is to touch every important aspect of FIRST robotics then give a link to a more complicated/thorough FIRSTwiki article or anything that may help.

[Joe Matt]

Originally Posted by NoodleKnight

If I did start one, who here would be willing to put in some useful knowledge?
I think the general concept is to touch every important aspect of FIRST robotics then give a link to a more complicated/thorough FIRSTwiki article or anything that may help.

And perhaps put it in a portable form?

[MrRogersRedux]

I agree with you completely, NoodleKnight, that sounds just like what I was thinking of. If I can find any stuff in the archives s I go through them, I'll help out. Maybe after everything is gathered, we can set up a PDF of the basics as a type of hand-out. We need people to suggest good threads or sites for the info, though.

[NoodleKnight]

Sure. I originally intended it to be on the FIRSTwiki so that everyone could contribute and edit it on a continual basis.
Although it would be really nice to have it in packet form, I guess you can just print the webpages out
I'll try formatting the wiki articles to be printer friendly, but if not I'll figure something out.

[mechanicalbrain]

We can use the numerous white pages on CD (with permission of course). I have some good basic tips for begining electrical systems that even experienced teams tend to overlook.

[NoodleKnight]

Alright, I started one: The Hitchhikers Guide To Robotics
I added some temporary stuff, I'll work more on it later once I clean my room. I can't even see my floor anymore.
I would be happy if others could contribute a little bit of useful information, just try to be brief and cover most important aspects. Then follow it up with a link to a more detailed page if you like.

[OZ_341]

The information about FIRST is so rich and diverse that it is hard to have just one source.
Team 341 "Miss Daisy" has a DVD/CD Set called "Team in a Box" that we can send you for free. Just click on the "Team in a Box" banner at www.team341.com and place your order. Hope this helps in your search for the essentials of FIRST.

Al Ostrow
Team 341

[phrontist]

FIRSTwiki was created for this very purpose, please contribute!

Hey look somebody actually started a node!

[KenWittlief]

seems like we are duplicating a lot of work that has already been done.

The FIRST website has information on how to start new teams, and there are publications on how to use the pnuematics, how to use the controllers, how to fund teams....

shouldnt this information really be kept on the official FIRST website, possibly with links to usefull documents that individual teams or engineering associations have put together?

One of the keys of engineering is knowing what has already been done, and not using up your time and resources duplicating someone elses work.

[mechanicalbrain]

Originally Posted by KenWittlief

seems like we are duplicating a lot of work that has already been done.

The FIRST website has information on how to start new teams, and there are publications on how to use the pnuematics, how to use the controllers, how to fund teams....

shouldnt this information really be kept on the official FIRST website, possibly with links to usefull documents that individual teams or engineering associations have put together?

One of the keys of engineering is knowing what has already been done, and not using up your time and resources duplicating someone elses work.

No offense to FIRST but their guides have a very detached look on the work i do. I think that we should create one with a personal touch and more in depth advice. Ive found i do things that are extremely useful that you wont find in any of the guides they have and then again while they have things that would be useful to do with a robot that is larger or runs longer is completely redundant with our robots. I think that something written by the people who actually do this and constantly think about it would be extremely useful to beginning students.

[dez250]

Originally Posted by mechanicalbrain

No offense to FIRST but their guides have a very detached look on the work i do. I think that we should create one with a personal touch and more in depth advice. Ive found i do things that are extremely useful that you wont find in any of the guides they have and then again while they have things that would be useful to do with a robot that is larger or runs longer is completely redundant with our robots. I think that something written by the people who actually do this and constantly think about it would be extremely useful to beginning students.

Please see my post 2 above yours. All the resources i listed have been compiled and presented by professional and reliable FIRST students and mentors, not necessarily FIRST themselves. If you have done something and think it will be useful write it up to a White Paper and upload it to ChiefDelphi.com.

[EricH]

Ken and dez raise a good point that the stuff is out there. However, I have been on a team for three years and around FIRST for far longer, and I have not really known where this kind of thing is. I see a pneumatics document around our build area and it's like "Where'd this come from?" I hear of various supplemental materials for the manual and I wonder what this is and where.
If we have some sort of guide that can answer most basic questions and includes where the information came from--as NoodleKnight is starting--I think that everyone will have an easier time because the veterans can refer rookies to the guide--and go there themselves. Hey, if the current manual is listed, it becomes one of a very few places where you could individually learn the basics in one (admittedly long) session.