Teamwork Strategy for Scoring

[Rick Wagner]

Originally Posted by thefro526

... We'd make sure that both of our Human Players on either end have at least one Super Cell engaged by the last 30 seconds of the match and that our robot has 5 or more balls ready to be scored. Then in the final 30 seconds we'd wait for a robot to go anywhere close to one of our human players on either end and try to pin them in front of the airlock with the help of one of our teammates. The instant those final 20 seconds come around our human player would then have to lob a single Super Cell over the wall into your opponents trailer which is incredibly easy. At this time we'd score any balls we have in our possession and so would our team mate. If timed correctly the robots would only have to be stationary for 5-10 seconds at the most but we'd have the opportunity to score 20 or more points. ...

That's exactly what I've been thinking for a winning alliance strategy. Our scouting team will be looking for empty cell runners (it will take the full 100 seconds available for one robot to deliver the four empty cells) as well as attack 'bots (shooters or dumpers). We have a shooter bot that can pick up moon rocks from the regolith and believe that the winning alliance will have two attack 'bots and one empty cell runner.

[rjmah]

What do you think the perfect empty cell runner looks like? It could have bin that is exactly at the outpost height but probably better to have a efficient ball harvester that will always get the dropped cell. It should shoot or dump into the airlock. Pushing the balls through the airlock is not efficient and prone to having the empty cell stolen by the opposing alliance.

Blocking the outpost will also be a strategy, preventing access to the empty cells. The best defense against this is to have the outpost retain as many moon rocks as possible. In fact, the outpost should only take shots that are easy shots at the beginning. At the end game, most robots will try to be mid-field to avoid the super cells and should be easy targets.

[Rick Wagner]

Originally Posted by rjmah

What do you think the perfect empty cell runner looks like?

I'm not sure what it would look like, but it will be specialized to run empty cells quickly with no chance of losing one to the opposition. It should run four empty cells in less than 100 seconds. That will cover approximately 120 feet in that time (three and a half round trips) with time for picking up and dropping off empty cells. I don't think it should pick them up from the floor because of the chance of an opponent 'bot swooping in, bumping, and stealing. It must be a positive holding mechanism that operates quickly because the runner 'bot will be an easy target while sitting still.

[pontiacdude210]

Yeah, most teams are building a scoreing robot this year, so any cell-runners will be highly prized and grabbed up quickly in the final rounds.

[Redskins1666]

I realize that the human player will have a very hard chance of scoring, but the limits that the human has the robot has also. The aim for FIRST is to show kids about engineering and science. Yes, the pinning idea will score you major points, but where is the engineering in only making a chassis that has a lot of resistance?

[Vikesrock]

Originally Posted by Redskins1666

I realize that the human player will have a very hard chance of scoring, but the limits that the human has the robot has also. The aim for FIRST is to show kids about engineering and science. Yes, the pinning idea will score you major points, but where is the engineering in only making a chassis that has a lot of resistance?

There is a ton of engineering that would have to go into a robot designed to pin other robots. In order to be able to reliably pin other robots you will likely need either more maneuverability, more force or both. Getting either of those two aspects in a robot this year is quite difficult and will require significant engineering (optimized drive system, propeller/fan propulsion, or other unique robot components). Your team may feel that it is not inspirational to design a robot with such a "vanilla" function, but many teams see the elegance in selecting a strategic niche of the game and designing a robot that can fulfill that role.

[Rick Wagner]

Originally Posted by Vikesrock

There is a ton of engineering that would have to go into a robot designed to pin other robots. In order to be able to reliably pin other robots you will likely need either more maneuverability, more force or both. Getting either of those two aspects in a robot this year is quite difficult and will require significant engineering (optimized drive system, propeller/fan propulsion, or other unique robot components). Your team may feel that it is not inspirational to design a robot with such a "vanilla" function, but many teams see the elegance in selecting a strategic niche of the game and designing a robot that can fulfill that role.

Well said. Crab drives are very difficult engineering feats, with non-trivial control system problems to solve. A crab drive 'bot may be the best to apprehend and push another robot this year. And nobody suggests you wouldn't want to fill the victim's trailer while you're pushing him, either.

Coordinating a teamwork strategy within an alliance presents its own challenges that will task the leadership, social, and organizational skills of your team. FIRST is about math, science, and engineering, but it's also about a lot of other things, including management, leadership, cooperation, and teamwork.