Cutting corners (on the robot!)

[Jon Stratis]

Every year teams like to push the limits with sizing... one of the nice things about the old sizing box was that it kept teams from pushing them too much. Of course, that was also the bad thing, as every robot absolutely had to fit inside the box.

Now with the frame perimeter rule introduced last year, it's a lot easier to get people compliant if they're just a little over. For anything up to a 1/4", you don't really need to cut off a corner... simple rounding all of the corners a little bit is usually enough to get you there, which still leaving each corner as something a normal observer would call a corner and not a side.

That said, as an inspector if I had a team show up where they made a clear decision to cut off a corner (to the point where I can easily define two corners and a side where the single corner used to be) to make the size requirement but still treated it as a rectangular robot for the bumpers, I would be a little annoyed. And an annoyed inspector is a thorough inspector!

Also be aware of R26:

BUMPERS must be supported by the structure/frame of the ROBOT (see Figure 4-10). To be considered supported, a minimum of ½ in. at each end of the BUMPER must be backed by the FRAME PERIMETER. Additionally, any gap between the backing material and the frame

Emphasis mine. Clipping the corner of the frame perimeter but still using a right angle for your bumpers would leave at least part of the end of the bumper unsupported, and the way I read the rule support has to exist from the edge of the bumper inwards at least 1/2".