On board shock datalogger?

[Blue_Mist]

Originally Posted by MadgeTech

Hello all,
... If someone can point me in the direction of the rules you are referring to, I can see what we can do to make this comply with the letter and spirit of the law...

That would be wonderful! It would be nice if the options are legal by FIRST. The manual for the 2007 game is http://www.usfirst.org/community/frc...t.aspx?id=4094, but the robot requirements change every year, even if it's just a little bit. The basic thing to change would be the battery; it would be really nice to be able to run the Shock101 off of another electrical source. Our robots always run on a 12-volt lead-acid non-spillable battery. The season is only 19 days away! Thank you for your interest, and you might gain an entirely new group of eager customers (my friend wants to go into marketing, and we both are Girl Scouts, so I know...)! FIRSTers love new gadgets... and old gadgets, too.

[EricVanWyk]

Wow. That is customer service if I've ever seen it. I usually have to hound a company to get any sort of information out of them.

PLEASE take this opportunity, gather as much data as possible and share it with the community. It would be fantastic for all the FIRST students to be able to sit in physics class and have a good feel for what 1g of vibration really is.

Enjoy!

[Al Skierkiewicz]

Chuck and Eric,
I for one would like to see what data these recorders would bring to the competition. I will agree with Chris and Don above, if approved for use, they cannot be used for robot control, and should be included in weight.
However, the data may prove invaluable and I for one would recommend (if asked) that FIRST allow Madgetech to install devices on random robots of their choosing, at some of the regionals. If this co-operation were to be allowed, I would think the official rules might be bent to allow the devices to be installed on these random robots.

[MadgeTech]

"The basic thing to change would be the battery; it would be really nice to be able to run the Shock101 off of another electrical source. Our robots always run on a 12-volt lead-acid non-spillable battery"

I checked with the engineer who designed our shock loggers, and he says they can take a 12V power input. The thing is that lead acid batteries, when fully charged are closer to 13.6V. Technically, this is about 0.1V over the limit, however, there are also some diodes in line (about 0.2V drop) so this should work.

I will reply to any other specific questions as they arise.

-Eric

[MadgeTech]

OK, I read some of the rules, and it looks like FIRST is trying to encourage the use of Commercially available Off-The-Shelf technology (COTS), while at the same time limiting the amount anyone can spend on such equipment to make things fair.

From the 2007 rules, here are the sections I found useful:

Section 8: The Robot

8.2: Definitions.

Our shock logger falls under the category of COTS
As a company, MadgeTech can be considered a VENDOR

8.3.4.2: Additional Parts and Materials Rules

Part of the purpose of the FIRST Robotics Competition is to provide team members with the
experience of conceptualizing, designing and constructing their own solution to the challenge
posed by the game. This must be a consideration when obtaining MECHANISMS and COTS
items as additional parts to use on the ROBOT.
This intent is clearly met when a team obtains a MECHANISM or COTS items that was designed
for non-FIRST other than robotic competition purposes, and then modifies or alters it to provide
functionality for the ROBOT.

R51: The total cost of all non-Kit Of Parts items must not exceed $3,500.00 USD. No individual item shall have a value of over $400.00. The total cost of components purchased in bulk
may exceed $400.00 USD as long as the cost of an individual component does not exceed
$400.00.


The list price of a stock Shock101 is $599; we have in the past offered an educational discount of 25% off list which brings the price down to $449.25. Bulk discounts apply to purchases of 5 or more units, and we can also lease the loggers for a smaller fee.

[MadgeTech]

Hi all,
The new 2008 rules have been released, and as far as I can tell, the section on COTS parts remains unchanged from 2007 (listed in my last post).

Visit the following link and choose Section 8 on ROBOT for details.

http://www.usfirst.org/community/frc...nt.aspx?id=452