Redirecting with an inclined top

[RC Dawson]

The ball should return to the playing field in the same general area. One estimate I read from a team that attended the Manchester Kick Off was four feet from the base of the tower. Of course, it's a bit of a scatter plot, but even so, the ball return is ON THE CENTER LINE. If part of a single robot is on or across the center line, no other robot from that alliance can be on or across the line at the same time. Parking and redirecting...being incredibly passive...seems ineffective and would cut the playing surface available to the rest of the alliance in half!

If the top doesn't move and a robot simply drives underneath the ball return at the right time to redirect the ball...it seems fair to me.

The whole deal about touching or crossing the center line certainly influences strategy.

Thanks for all the replies.

[James Tonthat]

Originally Posted by RC Dawson

The ball should return to the playing field in the same general area. One estimate I read from a team that attended the Manchester Kick Off was four feet from the base of the tower. Of course, it's a bit of a scatter plot, but even so, the ball return is ON THE CENTER LINE. If part of a single robot is on or across the center line, no other robot from that alliance can be on or across the line at the same time. Parking and redirecting...being incredibly passive...seems ineffective and would cut the playing surface available to the rest of the alliance in half!

If the top doesn't move and a robot simply drives underneath the ball return at the right time to redirect the ball...it seems fair to me.

The whole deal about touching or crossing the center line certainly influences strategy.

Thanks for all the replies.

Where does this centerline stuff come from, did I read the wrong rulebook or miss it?

[Team 2811]

I wonder... hmmmm...

[RC Dawson]

Ah! No 2 alliance bots can be in an opponent's ZONE at the same time. We misinterpreted the zone definition...even though it's pretty clear in the diagram. Sorry for the confusion. The center line cannot be entirely crossed during autonomous mode, but that's where it ends.

[GaryVoshol]

Originally Posted by RC Dawson

If part of a single robot is on or across the center line, no other robot from that alliance can be on or across the line at the same time.

Where do you get this? The center line is for placement at the start. No robot can completely cross the center line in auto period. No other rules reference the center line that I can find.