Breakaway Discussion

[dodar]

well would having the air already inside the pistons add that much more weight?

[EricH]

Originally Posted by dodar

well would having the air already inside the pistons add that much more weight?

You'd be surprised. I've seen robots a couple pounds over drain their tanks and suddenly be right on the limit.

[dodar]

Well i dont mean inside the tanks i mean actually in the pistons but anyways, how big were the tanks?

[johnr]

Lets see. Six robots + 12 team members + refs + one gate + 2 teams waiting to come in = a very crowded mid field at end of game. I think by second comp they will let teams push their bots over bumps at end of game.

[Bill_B]

Originally Posted by johnr

Lets see. Six robots + 12 team members + refs + one gate + 2 teams waiting to come in = a very crowded mid field at end of game. I think by second comp they will let teams push their bots over bumps at end of game.

presuming all six robots are bonused on towers? mid field has two gates right? I'm sure some susp/elev'd 'bots will be accessible in the other field sections.

[EricH]

Originally Posted by Bill_B

presuming all six robots are bonused on towers? mid field has two gates right? I'm sure some susp/elev'd 'bots will be accessible in the other field sections.

There are only 5 gates on the field. The scorers kind of hate having robot traffic come right in front of their table (might have something to do with a cable cover that typically runs from the table to the field).

[Wayne Doenges]

Why couldn't they make it worth while to hang? Like say....15 points for hanging from the bar and 10 points for hanging from another bot.

[JHSmentor]

Originally Posted by johnr

Lets see. Six robots + 12 team members + refs + one gate + 2 teams waiting to come in = a very crowded mid field at end of game. I think by second comp they will let teams push their bots over bumps at end of game.

I don't believe that there is any restriction to which side of the tower the robot is hangng from - or whether they are hanging from the top bar or the verticle bars for that matter.

at least I have not seen any stipulation for either case.

[dlavery]

Originally Posted by JHSmentor

I don't believe that there is any restriction to which side of the tower the robot is hangng from - or whether they are hanging from the top bar or the verticle bars for that matter.

at least I have not seen any stipulation for either case.

You might want to go back and read The Manual again (particularly The Game section and the rules in the "30's"). Very carefully.

Just a gentle reminder that not being aware of rules such as the one that covers this topic is an almost guaranteed way of making mistakes during a competition. Mistakes that can cost you - and your alliance partners - a match when you can least afford it. Last year, I saw many matches where teams made simple and completely avoidable mistakes. Human Players did things like putting their hands through the port in the shield, and collected enough penalties to lose a match, just because they didn't read the rules and find out that they were not supposed to do that.

-dave



.

[JHSmentor]

Originally Posted by dlavery

You might want to go back and read The Manual again (particularly The Game section and the rules in the "30's"). Very carefully.

Just a gentle reminder that not being aware of rules such as the one that covers this topic is an almost guaranteed way of making mistakes during a competition. Mistakes that can cost you - and your alliance partners - a match when you can least afford it. Last year, I saw many matches where teams made simple and completely avoidable mistakes. Human Players did things like putting their hands through the port in the shield, and collected enough penalties to lose a match, just because they didn't read the rules and find out that they were not supposed to do that.

-dave



.

Hmm - I see. you are specifically referring to G31: Robots may not contact the Ball Return or the Return Bars. I read this several times but it doesn't make complete sense unless you look at how the Tower is built and how the parts of it are labeled.

Still - if you were on the Alliance Zone side of the tower - you could still use the vertical tower bars to grab onto - just not the Return Bars portion of the tower. I don't see too many teams trying this but I could be wrong.

[2945Robotics]

Ok, Our team has been having troubles locating the exact dimensions of the target. The manual says that it has a 42" diameter and each ring is 4". however, one of the PDFs on the FIRST site said the dimensions were 38" diameter with two 2.5" rings and one 5" ring. Does anyone else have this problem and do you know the answer?

[GaryVoshol]

Originally Posted by 2945Robotics

Ok, Our team has been having troubles locating the exact dimensions of the target. The manual says that it has a 42" diameter and each ring is 4". however, one of the PDFs on the FIRST site said the dimensions were 38" diameter with two 2.5" rings and one 5" ring. Does anyone else have this problem and do you know the answer?

Have you seen Team Update #2?

[2945Robotics]

Originally Posted by GaryVoshol

Have you seen Team Update #2?

thanks, that helps tremendously

[johnr]

You might want to think about re-inforceing your bumpers to take a hit from above. Just saw 120 pounds of bot coming down a bump. Looks scary. If your bot is passing by at the wrong time , i could see some bumpers getting sheared off.

[johnr]

I understand the answer to the question the way it is written, http://forums.usfirst.org/showthread.php?t=13940 , but are you not able to change robot size if you are in touch with tower? Also understanding that you are not protected during this change. What, maybe i don't understand gdc answer. Can anybody clear this up for me?