Contrary to popular opinion..."wedge" robots are out

[David Brinza]

Originally Posted by pyro17

last year a robot from another alliance with a wedge style robot rammed our robot full speed from the side, tipping us onto our side, in finals no less! Needless to say, the refs never called either of the rule violations (tipping with a simple machine, ramming at full speed) and we did not go any further in finals. I hope this no wedge rule is enforced if it is in place.

The first portion of rule <R04> will be easy to enforce objectively and enforcement will most likely occur during robot inspection:

<R04> "Wedge” robots are not allowed. Robots must be designed so that interaction with other robots results in pushing rather than tipping or lifting. Neither offensive nor defensive wedges are allowed. All parts of a robot between 0 and 8.5 inches from the ground (the top of the bumper zone – see Rule <R35>) that might push against another robot must be within 10 degrees of vertical. Devices deployed outside the robot's footprint should be designed to avoid wedging. If a mechanism or an appendage (a ball harvester, for example) becomes a wedge that interferes with other robots, penalties, disabling, or disqualification can occur depending on the severity of the infraction.

So, robots that are designed with a wedge shape will simply not pass inspection and won't be allowed to compete. The latter portion of the rule would be an official's decision during a match. If you use a ball scoop or movable flaps to get underneath another robot, you can be penalized - or worse. This would be a subjective call - since the degree of severity needs to be determined. We'll probably will be discussing this during the competition season...