[Official 2008 Game Design] New Technology Discussions

[Tottanka]

I would suggest in improvement is sensors, especially the gyro. In aim high we had some trouble with it, as it restarted its values tozero every time it the robot hit something, or justt bumped. I believe adding some sort of an anti-shock system to the sensors will solve this.

More ideas:
*possability for 2 CMUcam on a robot, ofcourse if it could help the game. (one camera tracking two lights isn't always that good).
*A camera that transports image to the driver.
*Omni wheels included in kit (or cheeper to be ordered).
*A cahnge in the custom chasis provided, or more aluminum profiles included in the kit, so we have sevral options of designing the cahsis, withot having to find out-of-kit parts.
*USB-chicklet included in kit of parts.

[Billfred]

One thing I'd love to see in the manual: allow some media equipment to be attached to robots at the discretion of the lead inspector or FTA (or someone else, if the GDC feels it appropriate), even if it falls outside the regular bounds of the rules.

The production crew or FIRST-badged media would work with a team and the aforementioned authorities to mount the equipment in a manner that is safe, functional, and doesn't impart any particular competitive advantage. Wireless cameras would still require FIRST Engineering's approval.

I'd be inclined to allow such mounting outside of the weight limit, as I doubt anyone could mount anything bigger than a Mini DV camera to the satisfaction of everyone (and those things weigh little compared to batteries and bumpers), but feel free to change that if it actually makes more of a difference than I think it does. In any event, I'd argue that the value of getting footage that excites TV viewers or the folks at the events outweighs the fact that the zoom on the camera uses a non-kit motor.

[Billfred]

Okay, double post I know (but I can't edit the last one).

One more request on the new control system: screw terminals. I forgot about it until seeing an 2004-vintage picture of the RC of that era--but I now vividly remember having to yank everything off our RC to let the IFI rep at Palmetto re-solder the spade connector. (Tom is the man.)

Granted, screws can come loose--but they're more easily replaced than a spade connector as it is.

[Scott L.]

1. I liked the arena cameras from AIM High that counted the balls as they went through the lower goals. Maybe for 2008 we could have game peices that were scored this same way, or maybe through RFID.
2. Using the CMU camera having the robot score a particular color game peice during autonomous for a bonus, where the color is sent to the robot from the compition port at the start of the round.
3. Ultrasonic distance sensors would be nice to measure distances to a goal or other objects in the arena.