Robot in 3 Days : Feedback

[Steven Donow]

Originally Posted by Pault

A lot of people are requesting that they go more into the design process, but I'm not too sure that is a great idea. Remember that they are building a robot in 3 days, so for them the general design phase is probably about 1 day long. There is no way that you could hold a proper discussion with things like weighted objective tables and solid, methodical analyzation of the game, plus prototyping in that type of time frame. These guys are experienced mentors who know enough about FRC to look at the game and figure out the MCC without too much difficulty or mulling over how things will play out. And that is perfectly fine for their purposes, but do we really want them to set this example for inexperienced teams?

This is part of what I was trying to say at the end of my post; the value in adding this depends on the game compared to previous games. Scoringwise, 2013 was very similar to 2012. I'd even argue that there are similarities with 2011 also.

Now, a game like 2008 where there were a relatively larger amount of ways to score goals (lapbots, laps while holding trackball, sending trackball over rack; ie. a much grey-er area as to what the MCC is) could see value in going more into analysis. Also, my limited knowledge of strategy towards 2004 and 2005 makes me feel like those are the types of games that would see benefits in this.

[DampRobot]

I'd love to see a more in depth analysis about what kind of strategies this type of robot would employ in a match. IE, how many points actual drivers could score in a practice match, how it would play around defense (including a bot actually playing defense on it), etc.

As everyone else has said already, fantastic job, and I'm really excited that it will be continuing next year.

[cmrnpizzo14]

I like the idea of documenting strategies but I hope that it encourages more designs besides your final one. It was fantastic how many teams elevated their play this year by using the RI3D design but I felt at times that competitions were slightly over-saturated with bots like yours.

I would have loved to see more teams really nail the 50 pt. climb (not that it was easy) or more niche style robots like the fanbot. I like a bit more variety than constant cycling I guess.

What you did last year was phenomenal and if you end up stuck and can't figure out a good idea of what to do differently then don't hesitate to just fall back on what you did last year. It gave so many teams a taste of success that they hadn't experienced before. That is the epitome of inspiration. Great job, keep it up this year.

[Mark Sheridan]

I like the way it is, if any thing there needs to be more exposure. If the video links can sent out in a FIRST email, then that would be the biggest improvement.

[raptaconehs]

It would be pretty cool if you guys took suggestions from teams after 3 days and prototyped them. As some teams may not have the resources necessary to prototype a lot of the designs they think of.

[Connerd]

Our team has been doing practice and preseason challenges to get ready for the 2014 season. One problem we've been running into during our design process is the fact that many, myself included, love to design and prototype by putting metal together. Our mentor reminds us that using time on activities such as drawing, CADing, and simple planning saves soooo much time.
Maybe, instead of telling us your whole design process, you could try to drive home the engineering method, of analysis, planning, prototyping, building, fixing, and such.
On the other hand, thanks for doing Ri3d last year. You made what was a big and daunting rookie year into something I'll remember for the rest of my life.

[swwrobotics]

I'm crying. The fact that you're doing robot in 3 days this year is enough of an improvement. But maybe this year include more about the preparation that went into getting everything for the robot.

[Invictus3593]

You guys helped out SO many teams this past year, including ours and I look forward to seeing it happen again.

I would definitely like to second the notion(s) of showing more of the design/brainstorming process. I know that when we were rookies, design was something we didn't exactly know how to effectively do and I think watching you guys do it would give other rookies an idea of how it's supposed to go and how to rule out options that would take away from the overall quality of their bot.

[Navid Shafa]

Originally Posted by Tom Line

Andrew, I attribute the extremely high level of play we saw out of rookies in 2013 directly to your efforts. We saw robots using your concepts at every regional we attended.

I definitely think it's a useful tool for raising the overall level of competition. It hopefully helps rookie teams identify simple and effective systems that allow them to play the game at a competitive level.

I also think it's an extremely helpful tool for Veterans. It's being produced at a critical time when many teams are still going over rules, discussing strategy and identifying goals. I think seeing refined prototypes and concepts interact with the game pieces is something that everyone can benefit from. Last year, I felt it was really helpful to see how size and storage space would play a factor in the game.

I'll definitely tune in again. My only feedback would be to have an overlay on the stream. Often the view is of people working, without any talking. I understand they are pressed for time, but if somebody tunes in, it would be nice to know what component(s) they are currently working on. Or where they are in the overall process. It wouldn't have to be much, something simple like "Working on Collector Parts" or "Assembling Lifter Assembly".

Thanks for doing what you do!

[Tom Line]

Robot in 3 days provided us a baseline of where everyone would be. It also gave us confidence that when a particular mechanism didn't work, we'd have a fallback that was already proven. You guys were the prototypers for all of FIRST.

I'd like to see you live-stream the whole thing with audio. Most streaming sites allow replays so people could watch the entire thing at their leisure.

[Siri]

Originally Posted by Libby K

FIRST tends not to promote non-official media - if only for the principle of fairness. Why give someone's show a free promotion when there are others? Sadly, it means that some community resources are well-kept secrets.

I think ri3d is a really interesting take on the FIRST challenge. Excited to see all the different media that'll be happening this season. Documenting the build season and design process is starting to catch on, and I'm a big fan.

On the topic of accessing a broader audience, I have no idea what they'd say, but Ri3D might consider reaching out to Andy and Mark. It's still not FIRST-wide, but their mailing list probably spreads past active CD viewers. They sent blasts out this year listing off-season events, so there's some precedent for unofficial promotions. Similarly check in with the Senior Mentor network--they tend to know where the struggling rookies are in their area.

I agree that broader access would be the biggest way to improve impact. Everything else last year was great (not that some suggestions here aren't also good), and I think it really is the biggest widespread competitive boost since the kitbot. Absolutely awesome job guys. You're really doing a huge service to the community.

[cmrnpizzo14]

Could you possibly set up a Vine account for this? I know many tests that we do rarely last 7 seconds. You could post one showing wheels moving, a frisbee being fired, the lift working, etc... It would be a quick and easy way to release information in between the actual video updates that you guys do.

[Joe Ross]

Right now, Robot in 3 Days is a powerful marketing tool to showcase the rapid prototyping products made by iR3 Creative Engineering and the other sponsors. With the robot done in 3 days, teams can see all the cool products used, and still have time to purchase them and use them to prototype their robot this year. If a delayed release was done, teams wouldn't have chance to design those products into the current year's robot.

[wilsonmw04]

Originally Posted by Andrew Rudolph

Officially we are doing Robot in 3 Days again in 2014. More details to come on that later.

We want to know what you liked, disliked, want to see and any other feedback you can offer to us. Either post here, hit us up on Facebook, or tweet us @robotin3days

32 Days till Ri3d and a new season of FRC!

Greetings,

I think you are doing a great service for FRC and FIRST in general. My question for you is: what can we do to help you out this year? Let me know and folks will bend over backwards to help you out.

[ttldomination]

Originally Posted by Andrew Rudolph

We want to know what you liked, disliked, want to see and any other feedback you can offer to us. Either post here, hit us up on Facebook, or tweet us @robotin3days

So, having never really seen something like Ri3D happen, it's hard for me to provide good criticism. Last year, there really wasn't anything that made me go, "I wish they had done that differently."

Personally, I'd like to see more of the process. I loved the occasional videos, but if you want to, you could do a lot more to bring people into the process.

Consider bringing on board a media manager that will spend three days documenting, logging, and releasing more regular videos. It may very well be over the top, but a log of what you guys are thinking every 2-3 hours would be helpful, and it would let people in FRC not only follow along, but even provide some feedback.

Just a thought,
- Sunny G.