Cover on the airlock area?

[Chris Fultz]

is there a cover over the airlock area? can a robot dump rocks into it from the top, or do they ahve to go through the front?

[Jherbie53]

6.2.4
FUELING PORTS
The corner between the Alliance Station Wall and the Guardrail System includes the AIR LOCK and the FUELING PORT. The FUELING PORT is a 48-inch wide by 19-inch tall opening in the Alliance Station Wall through which the GAME PICES can exit from the CRATER. Protecting this opening is the AIR LOCK, which is constructed of 1-1/2-inch diameter steel pipe, welded to a 1/4-inch base plate that is attached to the carpet. The AIR LOCK is oriented at a 35-degree angle between the Guardrail System and the Alliance Station Wall. The purpose of the AIR LOCK is to prevent ROBOTS, in whole or in part, from passing through the FUELING PORT and contacting any team members. It also helps prevent ROBOTS from getting trapped in the corners of the CRATER.

I believe that the airlock is open on top. There is nothing describing that it is. Of course I haven't looked at any official field drawings.

[Elgin Clock]

No covers:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/2242118...7611844292070/

[pfreivald]

That's tremendously strange. I was pouring over both pictures and CAD drawings trying to find out the answer to this very question. With no top to the airlock, what is the point of the lower, harder-to-use little windows?

I don't really get it, and that has made me worried that I'm missing something. I plan to ask on the Q&A, just to double-triple check this.

Patrick

[Ironstorm]

To keep sliding robots away from the hp's hands I would guess

[EricH]

Originally Posted by Ironstorm

To keep sliding robots away from the hp's hands I would guess

Yes. Also to make corner pinning harder, and to aid in field reuse. (That's right, I'm pretty sure that is a reason.)

[dlavery]

Originally Posted by pfreivald

That's tremendously strange. I was pouring over both pictures and CAD drawings trying to find out the answer to this very question. With no top to the airlock, what is the point of the lower, harder-to-use little windows?

I don't really get it, and that has made me worried that I'm missing something. I plan to ask on the Q&A, just to double-triple check this.

Patrick

The airlock structure is there to keep robots from sliding into the corner and getting stuck in an acute corner, as mentioned in Chapter 6 of the Manual. It is that simple.

-dave



.

[pfreivald]

Thanks, Dave. That simplifies things dramatically!

Well, except for the faux ice. And the non-expansion. And the trailer.

Patrick

[JB987]

Originally Posted by pfreivald

That's tremendously strange. I was pouring over both pictures and CAD drawings trying to find out the answer to this very question. With no top to the airlock, what is the point of the lower, harder-to-use little windows?

I don't really get it, and that has made me worried that I'm missing something. I plan to ask on the Q&A, just to double-triple check this.

Patrick

The lower pass through allows for a simple push through which doesn't require any lifting/dumping/shooting action that may be hard for some teams to engineer and build...

[Ian Curtis]

Originally Posted by pfreivald

That's tremendously strange. I was pouring over both pictures and CAD drawings trying to find out the answer to this very question. With no top to the airlock, what is the point of the lower, harder-to-use little windows?

I don't really get it, and that has made me worried that I'm missing something. I plan to ask on the Q&A, just to double-triple check this.

Patrick

I imagine its purpose is threefold:

1. As Ironstorm has already pointed out, it protects human fingers from being squished, especially in a year where robot controllability is at all time low.

2. It takes away the 90 degree corners in the field, making it less likely that robots will be jack knifed in a corner unable to get out, and making it harder for robots to corner each other.

3. It makes the challenge of designing a delivery mechanism more interesting.