IFI Web Site

[ChuckDickerson]

I don’t pretend to KNOW any of the behind the scenes dealings between FIRST and IFI or any other supplier. What I have “heard” and “pieced together” is that IFI was somewhat blindsided about the new FRC controller and the FTC platform. I was lead to believe that IFI heard about it just like everyone else. Of course FIRST has the right to choose or drop any supplier they want at any time for whatever reason they want, however, if it is true that FIRST didn’t bother to clue IFI in I might be inclined to consider that a bit un-GP. I don’t think Innovation First is primarily in business to make robotics parts for FIRST teams. They make their money on rack systems, etc. They have however, been a long time supporter of FIRST because they can and believe in the goals and mission of FIRST. They probably don’t make much if anything off of FIRST and the teams they support but I am sure they have more than a trivial manufacturing investment in equipment and time to produce FIRST specific stuff whether it is control systems or chassis parts or wheels. Did FIRST throw IFI a bone after all these years of loyal support by including a Victor and a couple of Spikes in the KoP this year? I don’t know. Will we be getting additional Victors and Spikes in January? I don’t know but I doubt it. I want to think and hope that I have all of my assumptions wrong and that what I have “heard” is just rumor not fact. Whatever the truth is I can understand IFI might be a bit miffed and thus is one of the reasons they have gone out and started their own VEX competition to compete with FTC. Of course the Victors are being phased out for the newer/better/fancier/larger/heavier Jaguars but I find it unusual that after all these years of getting 4 Spikes in the KoP we only got 2 this year. Sure, we won’t need them to operate pneumatic solenoids but in the past we have had plenty of motors that we could easily run on a 20A Spike that didn’t need variable speed control. Come January we will all know if the KitBot is in the KoP or if it has been replaced with something new and better or nothing at all. As they say, time will tell, but if someone really knows the facts between the IFI/FIRST “divorce” please share. I truly hope I have it all wrong. As for this thread not going down a productive path I didn’t mean to stir up a hornets nest, however, I also think it isn’t always counter productive to go against the tide sort of speak. I now fear this thread might turn into one of those “Never say anything negative about FIRST at all costs” threads and if it degrades to that level hopefully some moderator will just step in a close it.