A strategy note: Tipped robots

[Faith]

Tipped robots are annoying to everyone, although they may or may not benefit your alliance.

BUT... Unless you are in an elimination match, or a REALLY REALLY intense/close match that you are completely set on trying to win as though it was the finals, if you have the ability to pick up another robot, I would do it.
For starters - more scoring will happen afterwards
- it is a really nice thing to do
- the team will be happy that you saved their robot, 6 weeks of work, from possible destruction, and you will probably make new friends always good to have lots of fun
- what teams out there, scouting around, could possibly overlook a team that helped another team up? It means you aren't in it just for the win, but for the experience. It means you're probably a fun team to work with. It means your robot is pretty awesome, because it has the ability to right an 120lb tipped robot.

[jgannon]

Originally Posted by Plooshiska

the team will be happy that you saved their robot, 6 weeks of work, from possible destruction

On the other hand, if somebody tried to pick up my robot without asking permission and managed to damage it more in the process, I would expect them to be DQed pursuant to <G37c>. I appreciate the thought and the opportunity to rejoin the match, but you have to expect to catch flak if something goes wrong.

[Travis Hoffman]

So if a tipped robot blocks all passage, and an opponent bumps them gently to pass, does the tipped bot get penalized for failing to yield within six seconds?

Talk about adding insult to injury....

P.S. I do not believe the refs would ever call it this way. The wording of the rules <G38>, <G40>, and <G41> *almost* makes the above situation plausible, though.

[jgannon]

Originally Posted by Travis Hoffman

I do not believe the refs would ever call it this way.

The 72" rule was called when you were tipped last year. The offsides rule was called even if you were tipped in 2006. I fully expect that a robot that falls down and blocks off the lane will potentially be flagged for both the 80" rule and the impeding traffic rule, unless there is an update that said something to the contrary. But yes, insult to injury.

Originally Posted by Otaku

So just help out a fellow FIRSTer if you see 'em tipped.

I still can't help but think that we'd all be more than a little upset if a well-meaning opponent gutted our pneumatics or wiring by sticking their gripper into our robot. It may seem like the graciously professional thing to do, but manipulating a robot that you are not familiar with is potentially very dangerous, and I wouldn't hesitate to flag a team that caused damage by doing so.

[artdutra04]

Originally Posted by jgannon

The 72" rule was called when you were tipped last year. The offsides rule was called even if you were tipped in 2006. I fully expect that a robot that falls down and blocks off the lane will potentially be flagged for both the 80" rule and the impeding traffic rule, unless there is an update that said something to the contrary. But yes, insult to injury.

In 2006, if you hit the E-Stop button before you were considered off-sides, you would not have been given a penalty and your alliance would not have been required to have a backbot.