[OCCRA]: Reusing former robot chassis?

[SWIM]

Looking at the robots this year, I got a strange sense of deja-vu...

Are teams permitted to enter robot bases from previous seasons this year? I was under the impression that the rule allowing that was made obsolete by the introduction of the C-Base kit frame. In fact, this year's rulebook states:

Originally Posted by RB1

The robots for the 2009 OCCRA competition must be built entirely during the period of time starting at Kickoff 2009 and ending at the 2008 county championships. No parts on a robot are allowed if they were fabricated before this time...

It further states that;

Originally Posted by RB1

Structural material may be re-used to save expenses

but the way I understand it, that just means that individual pieces of metal that you have laying around can be reused, but they have to be removed from their component assemblies before you can incorporate them into the new robot. For instance, using a 20" long piece of square tube you just took off an old bot would be fair game, but reusing a bunch of c-base bolted together wouldn't be in the spirit of the rules.

Am I missing something here?

[Mike Martus]

Teams are encouraged to read all the rules and to have a adult team leader and a student leader sign a fairness form that covers this issue. Without detailed pictures of every past robot knowing violations is difficult.

Remember.... we provided an IFI "Kit Bot" to be re-used. This is why we left the size consistent with last year. Additionally we provided teams with Andy Mark tough Boxes and CIM motors and expect them to be used in years to come. Add to that the controls system in a box and other re-usable parts and some units may look the same or have the same basic flair as the year before.

The game and Kit committee members are careful to change the game enough to be a challenge but to also allow the reuse of some major parts. Last year it was football and this year Bot Basketball. This game change has driven a majority of robots to be different in a major way in the upper structure. However mechanisms that they had designed to do a task like gear reductions from past years will re-appear because they know how to do them.

Were all parts fabricated new this year... we hope so, however the reuse of parts makes that difficult in some areas and easy in others.

Many teams will re-use wheels and as much aluminum as possible sometimes using holes already in the metal or drilling another next to it (some parts look like they were drilled to swiss cheese configuration).

I appreciate your concern and the inspectors will take a closer look next inspection.