842's Ball Sucker

[Paul Copioli]

Originally Posted by sdcantrell56

I hate to say it but I am under the impression that 148/217 is probably carrying the ball by a very small amount most of the time. In order to truly have the ball wedged like that the ball would need to come off the floor a small amount. I have also heard from some people who have prototyped these systems who echo the same findings. If they are not carrying then I'm truly impressed but otherwise teams should be very careful when creating these pinching systems.

The referees at Finger Lakes were on their hands and knees checking out our system. They even pulled us (and 188) to the practice field to prove it to them. When we proved that the ball never leaves the ground when driving around the flat part of the field, they agreed.

We never got a penalty for carrying the entire regional. Even in the finals when we were the front zone scorer, the refs at both goals were always watching our robot to make sure we never lifted the ball. again, no penalties.

It is possible, but is very difficult to do. After each match we had to check the geometry because if it changes just slightly, you won't grab the ball.

And how we go up the scoring ramp without lifting the ball is our little secret...