Dallas Convention Center To Host 2009 VEX Robotics Competition World Championship

[IndySam]

Originally Posted by BrentJ

That is great as Vex is a really great competition.

I am glad New Zealand is doing Vex before FRC in 2009 because it gives a chance for students to learn the basics of robot building when mistakes don't matter so much. Once they have learnt the basics on the Vex they can apply the ideas on a bigger scale with better understanding.

The one thing I hope is maybe in a few years they may be able to bring the Vex and FRC competitions closer together in date maybe FRC the first week Vex the next week.

It would be good for overseas teams to keep the cost down. So if they qualify for one competition but not the other they can still go and watch.

Wow don't say that to the kids on our two Vex teams who have worked very hard on their robots. It means just as much to them as the students on our FRC team.

[BrentJ]

Originally Posted by IndySam

Wow don't say that to the kids on our two Vex teams who have worked very hard on their robots. It means just as much to them as the students on our FRC team.

I didn't mean to cause offence.

I agree Vex is just as important as FRC.

I mean't more from a safety / ease of assembly point of view.
For an example we stripped a plastic gear which didn't cause a safety hazard and was cheap to replace. But if this was on an FRC there could have been consequences also the cost would have been higher.

Also with the Vex since you use all standard parts if something you try out doesn't work you don't loose much in terms of cost because you can just reuse the part. But in FRC you custom make a part it doesn't work you are stuck with a waste of materials.

Vex having a longer timeline also means that students can try out more ideas to see if they work. On FRC because of the build time if an idea is not likely to work then the mentors have to step in and suggest the time might be better spent on a different approach. But with Vex you can let them build it and prove / disprove their ideas.

I agree a well designed Vex robot is just as important as a well designed FRC one. But for people who haven't built robots before I think Vex is a great starting ground that will give them confidence to work on a FRC robot.

I also think that a Vex World championship title is a worthwhile goal to aim for in its own right.

When our new school year starts in late January there will be a big push on Vex to get ready for our March regional.

So in case I have offended anyone again I'll just say " Both Vex and FRC are great concepts in their own right but they also compliment each other".

[Pavan Dave]

Nobody in their right minds has any authority, and I don't care if you're Dean Kamen, Bill Gates, or any other notable figure, to belittle any other robotics program.

Who are you to say an FRC gear that costs $10 is more than a VEX gear that costs $5? I know FRC and VEX teams that work with generous budges and others that barely have enough to make bases and compete.

What's wrong with a standardized set of parts? I know that in FIRST you CAN get standardized parts and create a good robot out of them. And in reality THOSE parts that are simple, readily available, are the ones that make for the shortest down times as opposed to having tons of custom machined parts.

And there are many statements to chop up and clarify but using the search function would be much more efficient.

You might be able to compare apples and oranges because they're both fruits, but you can't compare an apple to my Toyota Camry... It just doesn't work.

Its not about the robot, its about what the person on the other end of the robot gets from building the robot. And I can honestly say I've seen more inspiration in EARLY, GEAR, and FLL from little kids and Legos** than I have from people who have driven and won competitions with FRC robots.

Pavan

**LEGO Bricks. Big deal.

[BrentJ]

Originally Posted by Pavan Dave

Nobody in their right minds has any authority, and I don't care if you're Dean Kamen, Bill Gates, or any other notable figure, to belittle any other robotics program.

Who are you to say an FRC gear that costs $10 is more than a VEX gear that costs $5? I know FRC and VEX teams that work with generous budges and others that barely have enough to make bases and compete.

What's wrong with a standardized set of parts? I know that in FIRST you CAN get standardized parts and create a good robot out of them. And in reality THOSE parts that are simple, readily available, are the ones that make for the shortest down times as opposed to having tons of custom machined parts.

And there are many statements to chop up and clarify but using the search function would be much more efficient.

You might be able to compare apples and oranges because they're both fruits, but you can't compare an apple to my Toyota Camry... It just doesn't work.

Its not about the robot, its about what the person on the other end of the robot gets from building the robot. And I can honestly say I've seen more inspiration in EARLY, GEAR, and FLL from little kids and Legos** than I have from people who have driven and won competitions with FRC robots.

Pavan

**LEGO Bricks. Big deal.

Pavan

I am not sure if your post is directly aimed at what I said.
If it is, I think you have misunderstood my comments.

I wasn't saying that FRC parts are better then Vex parts, I was stating that for people learning Vex parts maybe safer then having a FRC metal part break. Also a lot of FRC robots use custom gears that have to be remade if broken compared to an off the shelf Vex part.

Also I have no problem with a standardised set of parts it is what I like about Vex. I think at times it takes more ingenuity to make a robot out of standard parts then custom ones. I also think the FRC KOP is a good idea as well.

To finish as I stated before I believe both Vex and FRC are equally valuable competitions.