Power Bumpers

[EricH]

Originally Posted by ubermeister

Would it be legal to move the bumpers in and out on the robot to provide propulsion off walls and other robots? The robot would have to be built slightly smaller so that they do not extend outside the box, but as long as they are properly and securly supported they seem legal.

<R08>
P. BUMPERS must be mounted to the ROBOT within the BUMPER ZONE, and must remain there. The BUMPERS must not be articulated or designed to move outside of the BUMPER ZONE.

This clause of <R08> is vague, and I interpret it meaning that you can articulate your bumpers, so long as they remain inside the bumper zone. The bumper zone can be determined with the bumpers fully extended, and they can be retracted during competition.

This definitely needs to be clarified in Q&A, unless I am missing other rules or teams have asked this question in the past. Otherwise, it seems power bumpers (especially precharged pneumatics) would provide a good amount of force. Has anybody tried this or thought about it before?

Try parts M and N of that rule, taken together or separately. (Part N limits the extension of the bumpers to very little room; Part M specifies that the robot frame must be supporting the bumper backing.)

Also see Part L and the parts governing attachment and weight.