Minibot

[EricH]

Originally Posted by ThePeracha

I hope they allow it. I mean, they probably didn't anticipate this but I hope they see the innovation here and allow.

That's not something you want to say. There are a number of folks who saw a major rule change in 2002, when tape measures could not be used for a particular part of the robot until a GDC member saw innovation and allowed the use of tape measures for that part...

...at a competition...

...Making all the people who'd done it right the first time really, really mad.

At this point, it's not clear whether it is or is not legal. I'd figure that by Tuesday or Wednesday, when the first Update comes out, we'll know for certain.

[TJ Cawley]

are servos allowed to be used on the minibot?

[EricH]

Originally Posted by TJ Cawley

are servos allowed to be used on the minibot?

Are they on the list in <R92>? If so, yes. If not, no.

[Duke461]

The following items are the only permitted materials for use on the MINIBOTS:
A. TETRIX components,
B. no more than two motors (PN W739083),
C. exactly one 12V rechargeable NiMH battery pack identical to those supplied in the FTC kit of parts (PN W739057)
D. No more than one HiTechnic DC motor controllers,
E. No more than one NXT controller with the Bluetooth functionality disabled,
F. Polycarbonate,
G. Polycarbonate glue,
H. Aluminum sheet, 90° angle, u-channel, tube, bar,
I. rivets,
J. non-metallic rope or cord,
K. wire nuts,
L. cable ties,
M. limit switches,
N. no more than two common household light switches,
O. wire of appropriate gauge (see Rule <R40>),
P. non-slip pad,
Q. PVC or CPVC pipe,
R. PVC cement or cleaner,
S. Mechanical hardware (i.e. screws, bolts, etc) ,
T. Loctite or similar thread-locking product,
U. Rubber bands,
V. Surgical tubing,
W. Electrical tape and shrink tubing,
X. PWM extension cables,
Y. Universal security clips to hold the PWM connectors together,
Z. Hook and loop fastener (may not be used as tape), and
AA. Magnets.

[SashaKuznetsov]

Hey guys with no rules or video cause site's down, here you go: http://rcrobotics.org/2011-game-manual/
^rules
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cSc8FWfJQlU
^animation

[SashaKuznetsov]

[quote=Duke461;993678]
U. Rubber bands,
V. Surgical tubing,

^Hey guys, those of you asking about springs, you make something like that out of these and I'll give you a medal.

[Sean Raia]

[quote=SashaKuznetsov;993683]

Originally Posted by SashaKuznetsov1

U. Rubber bands,
V. Surgical tubing,

^Hey guys, those of you asking about springs, you make something like that out of these and I'll give you a medal.

Who says the spring mechanism needs to be built into the minibot?

Edit: My team had the exact same idea as the original poster of the thread. If it is legal in any way, i'm sure we (and many other teams) will go for it.

[SashaKuznetsov]

[quote=Sean Raia;993699]

Originally Posted by SashaKuznetsov

Who says the spring mechanism needs to be built into the minibot?

Edit: My team had the exact same idea as the original poster of the thread. If it is legal in any way, i'm sure we (and many other teams) will go for it.

Watch you do, if the spring is still connected to the minibot once it crosses deployment line, you're sunk.

HOSTBOTS may not contact their ALLIANCE’S MINIBOT once it has climbed above the DEPLOYMENT LINE.

That's a very small window of firing room. You would probably have to put something in place to stop your spring after a point.

[Djur]

[quote=SashaKuznetsov;993683]

Originally Posted by Duke461

U. Rubber bands,
V. Surgical tubing,

^Hey guys, those of you asking about springs, you make something like that out of these and I'll give you a medal.

Forget that, I'd go for AA. Magnets. That'll be fun to see.

[dexo568]

In the rules, it says we're allowed to use TETRIX parts. Does that include NXT sensors, as they're a part of the FTC BOM? It would make sense, as otherwise the NXT controller would be useless. And if not, what sensors can we use for the minibot?

[Randy Picolet]

"MINIBOT RACE – a competition in which MINIBOTS are DEPLOYED, climb the TOWER, and TRIGGER the TARGET. The MINIBOT RACE begins at the start of the END GAME."

"MINIBOT – an autonomous vehicle designed and built to perform specific tasks when competing in the 2011 competition LogoMotion. The MINIBOT must obviously follow a design approach intended to play the 2011 FRC END GAME and must be compliant with all MINIBOT rules defined in Section 3.4.14."

It's a climbing race using autonomous vehicles. Deployment is "positioning on" the tower/pole. As soon as its positioned, it is autonomous, and applying any momentum from the HOST would violate that. No rule change required in my mind. Seems quite a reach to interpret this as launching inactive mass (whether on the pole or not), and if it (repeatedly, intentionally) falls back down uncontrolled, you'll undoubtedly get flagged/disqualified, if you even pass inspection...

[RandAlThor]

[quote=Djur;993872]

Originally Posted by SashaKuznetsov

Forget that, I'd go for AA. Magnets. That'll be fun to see.

Does this include electromagnets?

If so, maybe people can use the magnets to walk up the pole

[Djur]

[quote=RandAlThor;994090]

Originally Posted by Djur

Does this include electromagnets?

If so, maybe people can use the magnets to walk up the pole

Maybe magnetic wheels?

[Erik Huang]

I believe you can only have 1 minibot.

[EricH]

Originally Posted by Erik Huang

I believe you can only have 1 minibot.

Can you cite a rule? I couldn't find one or a combination.