Number of RoboCoaches

[BenB]

I was wondering if we are allowed to have 2 robocoaches. I vagly remember in the game example a kickoff they mentioned you could have two controls. Does that mean you can have two robocoaches from your team or does that mean another robocoach from your alliance must control your robot.

[nparikh]

The rules state that you can only have one RoboCoach. I don't remember where now, I'll have to look for it.

[jgannon]

In the kickoff, they alluded to the fact that you could use a robocoach from another team on your alliance to help in hybrid. If you look at the definition of ROBOCOACH in section 7 of the manual, it is quite clear that you are only allowed one robocoach per team.

[Jon Stratis]

From team update #3:

Finally, we would like to address the issue of “sharing” the command opportunities
between RoboCoaches. Each team has one RoboCoach. With three teams on an
Alliance, that means three RoboCoaches per Alliance. It is permissible, presuming
that all the teams on the Alliance agree, that a RoboCoach could send messages to
more than one Robot in the Alliance. Likewise, a Robot could receive messages
from more than one RoboCoach. The requirements that each RoboCoach send no
more than four types of messages, and that each Robot respond to no more than
four types of messages, all would remain in effect. But the four messages sent by
the RoboCoach could be sent to multiple Robots. Each Robot can only respond to
four unique message types. But those messages can source from multiple
RoboCoaches.
For example, consider the case where two RoboCoaches on the Red Alliance were
both using the same type of Signaling Device, and two Robots on the Red Alliance
were both programmed to respond in the same way to the same four received
messages. In this situation, the two RoboCoaches could send “Message #2” to a
Robot and provide information that would help the Robot make its way around the
Track. This would be permitted, and might be an excellent partnership opportunity
for the teams within the Alliance.

So, each team can have one and only one robocoach, but you may enlist your alliance partner's robocoaches as well. Note in the second paragraph that they imply that, if you are coordinating with your alliance partners, the actions that both robots perform must be the same for the same signal. So, for example, if button one for robotared was "drive forward", if you use that button for robotbred, it must also mean "drive forward" or one robocoach can't use the command for both robots.