Predicitions For The Rest Of Us

[Joe Matt]

With the recent scrimmages at DC and other places, we now figured out how the game will work more. Now, we have Mr. Car Nack, but I want to know, what's your predicitions for this year? What will be good? What will be bad? Here's mine:

-Only those who can hang exclusively at the beginning will hang.
-10pt balls will make life easier
-There will be many high scoring matches and lots of low socring ones too
-Multiplyer balls will decide the game during the finals
-The biggest headache this year will be the mobile goals

[Gui Cavalcanti]

I don't think the mobile goals will be doing much of anything. Here are my predictions:

- The little red balls will turn the playing field into a minefield. Those with "add-on" (not integral to chassis) ball herding designs will either fail completely or not herd enough balls to be worth it.

- There will be many matches in which the autonomous balls will not be touched, either through lack of autonomous programs or lack of interest.

- Those who hang well will be few, and those who hang quickly will be fewer. Those 50 points are going to really matter.

- The 12" platform and surrounding 6" level will be a battlefield for those who choose to start hanging from the platforms

Originally Posted by Gui Cavalcanti

I don't think the mobile goals will be doing much of anything.

Ill correct that for you:

After they are pressed up against one of the openings on the player station to block them, the mobile goals wont be doing much of anything...

[JP_1163]

Predictions after a mini-tournament held in SD last Saturday.

1. Hangers get lots of oohs and aaahs

2. Everyone likes to get complimented for their hanger design but climbing stairs causes bots to fall down and not get up

3. The large 2x ball is hard to maneuver without being dislodged

4. Ball herders will have the floor to themselves while the hangers bang at the summit

5. He who hangs first hangs best. the devil will take the hindmost

6. Mobile goals will be a factor and 1 goal cannot block 2 ports of entry

7. If a part can break or a bot can go boom its better to do it now than at the big show!

[Andrew]

1. A robot that can reliably take the 6" steps against opposition and hang will win regionals/nationals.

2. No robot that "caps" as its primary strategy will make it into the finals in any regional or nationals.

3. No robot with 12.5" wheels will make it into finals in any regional or nationals.

4. 75% of all robots with 12.5" wheels will have a badly degraded drive system by the end of the first regional.

5. Scouting will be more important this year than any other year. Every strategy (except for the one in #1 above) has a hole in it. Proper planning (even by a box on wheels) can negate almost any strategy.

6. Because hanging is so devastating, those teams who can do it will need to find a way to get onto the middle platform in autonomy. Otherwise, they will have to get onto the platform against active opposition.

7. Over 50% of all matches will have one or more robots on their sides/backs before the end of the match.

[Joel Glidden]

Going out on a limb here...

Prediction: Things will get broken.

[Rich Wong]

4. REFEREES WILL HAVE THEIR HANDS FULL!
3. In some games, there will be more penalty flags than balls on the floor.
2. Ball popping maybe common and a crowd pleaser!
1. 13 inch ball travelling at 10m/s becomes lethal to robots

[Stephen Kowski]

two things that will decide the game...small balls & being able to hang imho.....2X will have an effect, but not a huge one.....

[Craig]

What is the big problem with 12.5" wheels? Why will no robots with such wheels be succesful or have degraded drive systems? Is it merely because these wheels ride up on the small balls? Please elaborate

[Andrew]

Originally Posted by Craig

What is the big problem with 12.5" wheels? Why will no robots with such wheels be succesful or have degraded drive systems? Is it merely because these wheels ride up on the small balls? Please elaborate

The 12.5" wheels offer a bigger lever arm than most teams are used to. This will potentially allow larger forces to be transferred up the line to the remainder of the drive system than the smaller wheels. This will result in either very big currents through the motor windings or excessive stresses in drive system parts. Both will lead to rapid degradation of drive systems.

Also, the high ground clearance with most 12.5" wheel teams will result in high centering on balls or make the robots easy to push around. Further, by raising center of gravity, robots with the 12.5" wheels will be more likely to tip over when approaching the 6" step.

Teams which have anticipated these issues can design around them.

[Craig]

Thanks for that follow up Andrew. We sure found out the hard way that the larger wheels do transfer an increased amount of torque through the drive system. After stripping one of our nylon gears we upgraded to steel gears all around. Hopefully this upgrade and our unique lowrider design will overcome the 12.5" wheels of doom!! Thanks, again

[Jon Anderson]

-2X will be vastly underrated
-Purple balls will be overrated
-Hanging will win most games
-Defense will not win
-OOB will be the greatest alliance.

[David66]

Originally Posted by Andrew

The 12.5" wheels offer a bigger lever arm than most teams are used to. This will potentially allow larger forces to be transferred up the line to the remainder of the drive system than the smaller wheels. This will result in either very big currents through the motor windings or excessive stresses in drive system parts. Both will lead to rapid degradation of drive systems.

Rapid degredation? We have driven on our 12.5 wheels more in the preseason than they will probably ever get driven in the competition season...no issues thus far...i uess it will be a problem if you didnt plan for it...

[Greg Perkins]

all i say is i hope first has some ladders to remove robots from that bar.

[Munkaboo]

Originally Posted by Greg Perkins

all i say is i hope first has some ladders to remove robots from that bar.

They lower the bar