Rookie Electrical Questions

[Pavan Dave]

To answer all of your questions and even more please click on the following link:
http://first.wpi.edu/2007CON_Wiring_...rkiewicz.pd f

That link is a presentation to help teach/show all rookies how the electronics should be done, or at least gives examples to be used as a guideline for your own robot.

Enjoy!

[Ziaholic]

Originally Posted by keen101

Yes, a disable/autonomous switch comes in handy. I think the wiring diagram is on the IFI site.

I was not aware you could buy one though.

Here's a link to the IFI website's circuit diagram ... CLICKY

[maltz1881]

http://www.team1322.org/electrical.htm

This is a great place to start after you read the manuel. One of our mentors is a master electrican and he expects perfection on the board. He should actually be part of an inspection crew. Good luck and have a great time this year!

[dlavery]

Originally Posted by Al Skierkiewicz

So that no one will be confused...
The no duct tape rule comes from on high and is not part of the robot rules. It is a well known and long held belief that Dean does not want duct tape to appear on FIRST robots. Other adhesive backed materials will be evaluated per the rules by your inspectors.

Sorry to contradict Al, but this one needs to be emphasized: the ONLY official rules are the ones published by FIRST. There are no "secret" or "hidden" rules. If it does not say it in the manual, it isn't a rule. The idea that "you can't have duct tape anywhere on the robot because Dean doesn't like it, and that is all the justification we need" is an urban legend that needs to be killed immediately. If inspectors are enforcing this legend, then they need to be - politely and respectfully - informed that they are in error and their belief in the "rule" is incorrect.

-dave

[team1203 4life]

Originally Posted by lukevanoort

That is not true:
(Emphasis mine)

You may want to bring a printout of this rule with you though, it is very possible to get inspectors who don't know the rules very well (I've had it happen at least twice). Also, based off of the posts on CD, tape-related rules seem to be the most inconsistently enforced of the inspection rules.

whatever in 2006 some referee made us take the ducttape lables off of our robot

[lukevanoort]

Originally Posted by team1203 4life

whatever in 2006 some referee made us take the ducttape lables off of our robot

I'm not debating that that happened. In 2005 our inspector at the Championship made us rewire all our Victor fans because we had wired them per IFI's instructions, which was a practice s/he objected to (The electronics were massive rats nest after that little adventure). We've had a pair inspectors spend quite a while examining a FP gearbox while consulting back and forth with each other to determine if a little shaving/sanding in order to mount it was legal (when the rules clearly stated we could do pretty much whatever we wanted with the gearbox). It is best to go into an inspection knowing the rules very well, rule knowledge varies from inspector to inspector; all you can be certain of is that you know that you built your robot to the rules, and have the evidence to prove it.

[Ryan O]

big advice: Use as little wire as possible, plan out what will go where ASAP, and integrate it well into your design. finding out you need to run cable to the top of a 8ft lift in week 5 is not fun...

[BQuennell]

One thing you can use instead of duct tape that looks quite good is what we used to label our PWM's is label tape then covered in clear shrinkwrap. We never had any complaints on it and it makes it quite visible to what cable it is.

[Al Skierkiewicz]

Originally Posted by dlavery

The idea that "you can't have duct tape anywhere on the robot because Dean doesn't like it, and that is all the justification we need" is an urban legend that needs to be killed immediately. If inspectors are enforcing this legend, then they need to be - politely and respectfully - informed that they are in error and their belief in the "rule" is incorrect.

-dave

I stand guilty but now corrected.

[anonymoose]

Originally Posted by BQuennell

One thing you can use instead of duct tape that looks quite good is what we used to label our PWM's is label tape then covered in clear shrinkwrap. We never had any complaints on it and it makes it quite visible to what cable it is.

Just to clarify this further, Shrinkwrap is not an adhesive at all. Just a Substance that shrinks with very high heats. It is technicly just a tube that shirnks. So Yea.

[DevilsTech99]

im new this year too and really the best thing to do is read through the rules and make sure you understand them and also listen to your mentors, you can learn alot from them