alliances

FIRST General Forum
1

Posted by Austin Martus, Other on team #47 from son of pchs coach.

Posted on 4/26/99 7:00 PM MST

What FIRST should have done is come up with a way of in the qualifying you get points for what you’ve (your own team) has done instead or something like that. cause if you get stuck(paired) with a robot that is not very good(dont move or get on puck or anything) then youre screwed and have to do everything by you self which makes it 2 on 1 and really hard to get a lot of points and only have alliances(score for both) in the final rounds, but this would have to happen at the beginning of the year cause the building of a robot would depend on something like this

or some kind of rule like this

just a thought

also to make the finals more accurate to have a double elimination finals but the draw back is it takes much more time

2

Posted by Daniel, Student on team #192, Gunn Robotics Team, from Henry M Gunn Senior High School and NASA Ames.

Posted on 4/26/99 7:45 PM MST

In Reply to: alliances posted by Austin Martus on 4/26/99 7:00 PM MST:

I think you make a very good point, but I also think there’s a much better solution to the problem. See, by scoring individually it kills the strategy. Both robots suddenly have to be high scorers. Nobody would ever want to play a defensive match. Or even let their partner take care of any of the points. In fact, I could see it getting to the point where a partner is practically fighting with its ALLY over the floppies. Individual scoring wouldn’t work.

Statistically, the most proven way to eliminate chance and luck is increasing the trials. More matches were needed. A team who gets a good partner and perhaps gets a 540 round (or something close to it) will essentially be guaranteed a place in the finals. Whether they deserve it or not. This is not right. More matches are needed. Period.

Whether this means more arenas, or merely a longer competition, I think this is a more valid solution to a very valid problem. What do you think?

-Daniel

3

Posted by Joe Johnson, Engineer on team #47, Chief Delphi, from Pontiac Central High School and Delphi Automotive Systems.

Posted on 4/26/99 8:14 PM MST

In Reply to: Valid problem. Valid solution? posted by Daniel on 4/26/99 7:45 PM MST:

I can’t confirm it, but I have heard that one team at the Nationals was literally a box with wheels. No motors, no wires, not even a battery or control box!

Is this right?

Teams that had to be paired with this team had no chance of scoring more than 180 points and most likely would even have a hard time doing that against any two 1/2 way decent teams.

I know of teams that had 0 partners out of 6 get on the puck, while they got on the puck every time in addition to getting the 2 point doubler every time. Others had the exact opposite.

I am not complaining, I am just pointing out that the luck of the draw played a bigger role than ever in determining the top 16 teams.

The picking of alliance partners leveled this out in many cases, but there are cases like the TRW team (and Boston Edison/Plymouth North and others), where things didn’t really work out so very well.

I don’t really have a solution, but I think that this is a topic that there should be open discussion about.

What do you think?

Joe J.

4

Posted by Chris, Coach on team #308, Walled Lake Monster, from Walled Lake Schools and TRW Automotive Electronics.

Posted on 4/26/99 9:34 PM MST

In Reply to: a box with wheels posted by Joe Johnson on 4/26/99 8:14 PM MST:

I have to reply to this one because our team was mentioned.

Yes, there was a team that was a box on wheels. And wouldn’t you know it, they were our partners in one match. In fact, we were in 7th place going in to that match and needless to say we weren’t 7th coming out. However, I am proud to say that we won that match (like all of our other matches :slight_smile: ).

-Chris

: I can’t confirm it, but I have heard that one team at the Nationals was literally a box with wheels. No motors, no wires, not even a battery or control box!

: Is this right?

: Teams that had to be paired with this team had no chance of scoring more than 180 points and most likely would even have a hard time doing that against any two 1/2 way decent teams.

: I know of teams that had 0 partners out of 6 get on the puck, while they got on the puck every time in addition to getting the 2 point doubler every time. Others had the exact opposite.

: I am not complaining, I am just pointing out that the luck of the draw played a bigger role than ever in determining the top 16 teams.

: The picking of alliance partners leveled this out in many cases, but there are cases like the TRW team (and Boston Edison/Plymouth North and others), where things didn’t really work out so very well.

: I don’t really have a solution, but I think that this is a topic that there should be open discussion about.

: What do you think?

: Joe J.

5

Posted by Chris, Coach on team #308, Walled Lake Monster, from Walled Lake Schools and TRW Automotive Electronics.

Posted on 4/26/99 10:12 PM MST

In Reply to: Re: a box with wheels posted by Chris on 4/26/99 9:34 PM MST:

I have to add something. The box with wheels did have a control box and it could move around. Although when we played with them they blew a fuse and we were on our own.

-Chris

: I have to reply to this one because our team was mentioned.

: Yes, there was a team that was a box on wheels. And wouldn’t you know it, they were our partners in one match. In fact, we were in 7th place going in to that match and needless to say we weren’t 7th coming out. However, I am proud to say that we won that match (like all of our other matches :slight_smile: ).

: -Chris

:
: : I can’t confirm it, but I have heard that one team at the Nationals was literally a box with wheels. No motors, no wires, not even a battery or control box!

: : Is this right?

: : Teams that had to be paired with this team had no chance of scoring more than 180 points and most likely would even have a hard time doing that against any two 1/2 way decent teams.

: : I know of teams that had 0 partners out of 6 get on the puck, while they got on the puck every time in addition to getting the 2 point doubler every time. Others had the exact opposite.

: : I am not complaining, I am just pointing out that the luck of the draw played a bigger role than ever in determining the top 16 teams.

: : The picking of alliance partners leveled this out in many cases, but there are cases like the TRW team (and Boston Edison/Plymouth North and others), where things didn’t really work out so very well.

: : I don’t really have a solution, but I think that this is a topic that there should be open discussion about.

: : What do you think?

: : Joe J.

6

Posted by Dave, Student on team #308, Walled Lake Monster, from Walled Lake Schools and TRW.

Posted on 4/27/99 5:32 PM MST

In Reply to: Re: a box with wheels posted by Chris on 4/26/99 10:12 PM MST:

Hey,

That match was most intresting, because at the end of the match, we were the only functioning robot, Husky Brigade had a chain pop off, the box blew a fuse, and the other robot was immobile and got tipped.

And for being paired with different robots that can’t do much, I know how it is on both sides of the road. At Great Lakes, we were one of those robots that couldn’t get on the puck and plagued by problems. But at nationals, we tangled with the best and came out on top, and we were occasionally paired with robots that were like us at Great Lakes. Just remember that no matter how frustrated you get because of it, the team that didn’t work right is more then likely more frustrated then you are.

I also have to agree on the thing about minuim requirments before you enter a match. Using this year as an example, have it move and somehow have a device to succesfully hold at least 1 floppy. And if a team mate doesn’t show up, I think they should have gotten their points doubled. If they get a 1 man 180 point game, doubling it would give you a 360, still not a perfect score, but a score that is more deserving if you do that good.

Dave

: I have to add something. The box with wheels did have a control box and it could move around. Although when we played with them they blew a fuse and we were on our own.

: -Chris

:
: : I have to reply to this one because our team was mentioned.

: : Yes, there was a team that was a box on wheels. And wouldn’t you know it, they were our partners in one match. In fact, we were in 7th place going in to that match and needless to say we weren’t 7th coming out. However, I am proud to say that we won that match (like all of our other matches :slight_smile: ).

: : -Chris

: :
: : : I can’t confirm it, but I have heard that one team at the Nationals was literally a box with wheels. No motors, no wires, not even a battery or control box!

: : : Is this right?

: : : Teams that had to be paired with this team had no chance of scoring more than 180 points and most likely would even have a hard time doing that against any two 1/2 way decent teams.

: : : I know of teams that had 0 partners out of 6 get on the puck, while they got on the puck every time in addition to getting the 2 point doubler every time. Others had the exact opposite.

: : : I am not complaining, I am just pointing out that the luck of the draw played a bigger role than ever in determining the top 16 teams.

: : : The picking of alliance partners leveled this out in many cases, but there are cases like the TRW team (and Boston Edison/Plymouth North and others), where things didn’t really work out so very well.

: : : I don’t really have a solution, but I think that this is a topic that there should be open discussion about.

: : : What do you think?

: : : Joe J.

7

Posted by Reuben Hintz, Student on team #53 from Eleanor Roosevelt HS.

Posted on 4/28/99 1:02 PM MST

In Reply to: Re: a box with wheels posted by Dave on 4/27/99 5:32 PM MST:

You couldn’t double the points though, because a lot of teams wouldn’t want their alliance partner to show up.
I kind of feel bad about this subject too, because well, our team’s robot didn’t do very well. We kept telling people we could get on the puck, and we kept failing. That really hurt some of our partner’s scores and made me feel really bad.

8

Posted by Dave, Student on team #308, Walled Lake Monster, from Walled Lake Schools and TRW.

Posted on 4/30/99 8:02 PM MST

In Reply to: Crappy Teams posted by Reuben Hintz on 4/28/99 1:02 PM MST:

Hey,
I don’t think that would be the case, since they could be going against 2 good robots and get swamped. With this way, it would reward the team for doing good on their own, but they still have to work hard to get a good score. To get a 360 under my system, the team would have to get all 10 floppies, push the puck against 2 teams, then climb on it against 2 teams. It would be very hard to do, let alone most teams of 2 didn’t even come close to picking up all 10 floppies.

Dave

: You couldn’t double the points though, because a lot of teams wouldn’t want their alliance partner to show up.
: I kind of feel bad about this subject too, because well, our team’s robot didn’t do very well. We kept telling people we could get on the puck, and we kept failing. That really hurt some of our partner’s scores and made me feel really bad.

9

Posted by Joe Johnson, Engineer on team #47, Chief Delphi, from Pontiac Central High School and Delphi Automotive Systems.

Posted on 4/27/99 8:15 PM MST

In Reply to: Re: a box with wheels posted by Chris on 4/26/99 10:12 PM MST:

Usually reliable sources say that this ‘robot’ was literally just a box with wheels, no battery, no rnet, no nothing.

Joe J.

10

Posted by michael bastoni of team #23, PNTA, from Plymouth North High School sponsored by Boston Edison Co.

Posted on 4/28/99 8:07 PM MST

In Reply to: not even a battery posted by Joe Johnson on 4/27/99 8:15 PM MST:

Battery yes
Rnet yes
Speed controller yes (but no capacitors on them)
Control box yes

BUT NO MOTORS…

11

Posted by Sean Kim, Student on team #115 from Monta Vista High School.

Posted on 4/26/99 11:24 PM MST

In Reply to: a box with wheels posted by Joe Johnson on 4/26/99 8:14 PM MST:

Um…box with the wheel can PUSH the puck…right?
it’s better than having ONLY the human player as the partner…

kison

12

Posted by Mike King, Other on team #88, TJ², from Bridgewater Raynham and Johnson & Johnson Professional.

Posted on 4/27/99 4:37 PM MST

In Reply to: Re: a box with wheels posted by Sean Kim on 4/26/99 11:24 PM MST:

: Um…box with the wheel can PUSH the puck…right?
: it’s better than having ONLY the human player as the partner…

: kison

Some teams didn’t even have the human player.

Mike

13

Posted by Joe Johnson, Engineer on team #47, Chief Delphi, from Pontiac Central High School and Delphi Automotive Systems.

Posted on 4/27/99 8:32 PM MST

In Reply to: Re: a box with wheels posted by Sean Kim on 4/26/99 11:24 PM MST:

Listen to me…

It was a box with wheels. It did not have even a single motor, nor a single wire, nor any other means of doing anything!

If I put a screw out there and claim it is a robot, would that make it a robot?

The IDEA of a box with wheels being a participant at the NATIONALS next to all the teams that that put in 1000’s of hours making a robot is insulting.

Is this in the long-term interest of FIRST? I don’t think so…

Joe J.

14

Posted by Chris, Coach on team #308, Walled Lake Monster, from Walled Lake Schools and TRW Automotive Electronics.

Posted on 4/28/99 10:26 AM MST

In Reply to: it had no MOTORS! posted by Joe Johnson on 4/27/99 8:32 PM MST:

Does anyone know what team number this robot was? The robot that I saw was a plywood box with wheels, but all of the motors, RNET, and the battery were inside the plywood box. They lifted a lid to put the RNET in. I saw this robot move in another match, but it died in our match. Are you sure this isn’t the robot you’re thinking of Joe? Maybe they blew a fuse when you saw them like they did in our match?

I would like to make sure we’re not thinking of different robots. I only saw one in the pits that was a box with wheels and it was the one we played with. Also, the robot I’m talking about has a ‘No Smoking’ sign on it.

-Chris

: Listen to me…

: It was a box with wheels. It did not have even a single motor, nor a single wire, nor any other means of doing anything!

: If I put a screw out there and claim it is a robot, would that make it a robot?

: The IDEA of a box with wheels being a participant at the NATIONALS next to all the teams that that put in 1000’s of hours making a robot is insulting.

: Is this in the long-term interest of FIRST? I don’t think so…

: Joe J.

15

Posted by michael bastoni of team #23, PNTA, from Plymouth North High School sponsored by Boston Edison Co.

Posted on 4/28/99 8:04 PM MST

In Reply to: Re: it had no MOTORS! posted by Chris on 4/28/99 10:26 AM MST:

By the time we played it…it had no motors…they were ‘reworking it’ and could not get them back in time for the match…
Really no one could have…

Do you folks remember the year most of MIT’s robot did not show up in NH
At least they had the good sense not to enter it (as I remember)…

And really…I’m not trying to beat up a team but I am trying to make a point…and I think
you’d have to be dead to have missed this point…

So let’s forgive and forget this team’s number…let’s make sure
this never happens again…

And if we kept the game the same for 4-5 years…we all would have more time to make our
robots work better…what about the rookie NASCAR teams…c’mon
guys…this thing about the rookie teams is a weak argument…WE WERE ALL ROOKIES ONCE.

And I’m betting you’ll never forget the thrill and mixed emotions that
filled that rookie year…So don’t cry for the rookies…they will have all year
to watch the game, visit teams and plan their strategy…IT WILL BE A DISTINCT ADVANTAGE
to entering rookie teams…

Be good out there in Robot Nation…

16

Posted by Gary Fernandes, Engineer on team #88, TJ2, from Bridgewater Raynham Reg. and Johnson & Johnson.

Posted on 4/29/99 4:11 PM MST

In Reply to: Trust me posted by michael bastoni on 4/28/99 8:04 PM MST:

What a tough year it has been FIRST really gave us a challenge. I posted a letter last year about having A / B teams at the nationals. Mike you didn’t like the idea last year how does it sound to you for next year.

The top 50% of the teams at the regional pay in the A league at the nationals. For the finals the top 16 teams pick one of their alliance partners from the top 16 B league teams. This gives the teams playing in the B league something to go for.
I hope that everyone responds to my idea. Add your point of view trust me the FIRST gods are reading along with us.

I want to take my hat off to FIRST they did a really great job this year. The interaction between teams because of the alliance system I really enjoyed. Keep up the good work and try to take it easy on use next year so we can do FIRST and still have a life.

17

Posted by Andrew Trax, Coach on team #180, S.P.A.M., from Southfork,Martin Co. High and UTC.

Posted on 4/27/99 3:56 AM MST

In Reply to: a box with wheels posted by Joe Johnson on 4/26/99 8:14 PM MST:

Yup, we were partnered with them in our last match. They could drive
but veeery, veeery slowly. The strategy used was for us to move the puck
to a corner and have the box block it. Then we passed all the floppies
to our human player, loaded our basket (8 floppies - 8 feet) then tried
to get back on the puck. It was our lowest score (48)and only our
second lose. Not too shabbby.

Mrs. T.

18

Posted by Andrew Trax, Coach on team #180, S.P.A.M., from Southfork,Martin Co. High and UTC.

Posted on 4/27/99 3:56 AM MST

In Reply to: a box with wheels posted by Joe Johnson on 4/26/99 8:14 PM MST:

Yup, we were partnered with them in our last match. They could drive
but veeery, veeery slowly. The strategy used was for us to move the puck
to a corner and have the box block it. Then we passed all the floppies
to our human player, loaded our basket (8 floppies - 8 feet) then tried
to get back on the puck. It was our lowest score (48)and only our
second lose. Not too shabbby.

Mrs. T.

19

Posted by michael bastoni of team #23, PNTA, from Plymouth North High School sponsored by Boston Edison Co.

Posted on 4/27/99 5:27 PM MST

In Reply to: a box with wheels posted by Joe Johnson on 4/26/99 8:14 PM MST:

Sometimes in real life we allied with (metaphorical) plywood boxes…And I don’t like
it any better…but at least I can do something about it…

By the time we played them they were only a plywood box with wheels.
They did not have motors in the box at that time…they were immobile…rocklike,
very similar to last years placebo… just wires a control box
and some speed controllers…

Now I hate to be a jerk…a complainer, a whiner etc…and I suppose I should just
shut up…but…I want to share a thought and pose some questions.

What are we doing here in the National Robotic Competition, I mean what is really going on
and what messages are we trying to send
and what behaviors are we trying to re-enforce in kids?

If we are simply saying to kids that ANY attempt at this sport is valid,
That any effort you make to simply show up at the nationals is cool, and that it’s
really only just fun and games, and that there is really absolutely no
reasonable expectation of winning, and there are not recognizable standards
and it’s not about education or skill development and we should all just look the other way
in situations like this…then so be it…but there are easier ways to
cop this attitude.

I am so darn tired of being told by the man in denim that this is not about education,
but rather about inspiration…well who is inspired by a plywood box with wheels ?
None of our teenagers were very impressed.

Let’s look at gracious professionalism…the gracious professionalism shown by six
different teams who played with the plywood box is admirable…but the fact
that some adult advisor somewhere would allow and worse encourage his team to
attend the nationals and severely compromise six other teams is not gracious professionalism by any means.
It could possibly be seen as a selfish act by someone who paid 4000 dollars and
did not make the necessary commitment…but because they spent so much money felt entitled
to their moment on stage…at the expense of some dedicated and hard working people who
‘did their homework’…

I encourage my students to search for the truth in many ways…one way is to extrapolate
a given condition…let’s ask ourselves a question…Would the FIRST National
Robotics Competition, and the students who participate, be better off, or worse off, if all the teams showed up with
OBVIOUSLY ill prepared machines…that is if we all had plywood boxes with wheels?
Based on your answer, you can draw your own conclusions.

Do you think the plywood box on wheels will appear on the 99 TV production video…
Time will tell…but don’t count on it.

How many of you would knowingly enter an inadequate machine in a competition
knowing that your presence would severly compromise some hardworking folks ?
I don’t see alot of hands raised on that one…

OK The wrap up…

Problems like the plywood box are the result of changing the game every year.
They are ‘Bugs’ in the alpha version of the game…we could change this…
We could make things better every year, not worse, by keeping the game the same for 4-6 years
at a time…the competitions would get increasingly more competitive and the
recruitment of teams would be much enhanced not to mention the fact that some of
your colleagues at work might want to come and help out if it means not losing their wife, job and ski week
…and if you are getting red in the face
over this…chill out…you can’t know until you try…

So…

We agree that anybody can play…and no matter how hard some of you work to build a competetive robot,
it really does not matter in the end because were all equal under the rules of FIRST…I’m on board for that (not)

Or we try to develop a game that we can live with for awhile and that we
can massage into something educational, and equitable and something viewed as
a real robot sport…something we can try to be better at over time…
something that does not require heroism to participate in…something others won’t be afraid
to participate in…

And in finishing I ask for a response to this question…

Who among you are ready and willing to debug this game…produce the
beta version or maybe even the 1.0 release…and play it again next year?
Or do you want another alpha version with the same bugs and problems we have every year???

What say all you wonderful students, mentors and teachers…?

Mr.B

20

Posted by Dave, Student on team #308, Walled Lake Monster, from Walled Lake Schools and TRW.

Posted on 4/27/99 6:00 PM MST

In Reply to: Re: a box with wheels posted by michael bastoni on 4/27/99 5:27 PM MST:

Hey,

I have to say is that I agree and disagre with you on many points, espically with the point that it’s all out for blood and not for fun. I know no matter how hard you try, there are going to be teams that are out for blood, but going into nationals, my team nor I had any clue what our robot could do, and I made a commitment to myself that I would have fun no matter what happened.

I know that a plywood box on wheels isn’t very inspiring, but there are other robots like them that were plagued by problems, just like my team was at regionals. If everyone who didn’t think their robot was going to do good or that they couldn’t win didn’t come, there would be no competition, just a bunch of really good teams fighting each other. I’m not going to rip into the team with the plywood box, maybe they had unknown circumstances come up that we just don’t know about. In my opinion, going to nationals is a reward for everyone for the time that they put in.

For the 99 TV production video, I think that they should show a couple of those matches. They don’t block hockey games because one of the teams stinks, and it shows that all the robots that compete aren’t all god-like, but that there are mortal robots and that you don’t have to compete with the big teams to goto nationals.

To keep the same game but change it every year does have it’s good points and bad points. The bad points being that some team out there will start early and get an advantage, even if the game changes slightly every year. It’s not that hard to adapt a half built robot for changing plans. The good points would be that it will eventually get everyone better at. The problem with that is that the rookie teams would get smoked by the teams that have been playing the game for several years. You’d also start to see robots that look very alike. If they repeat this years game, there would be alot more pole grabbers and other gadgets that made certin teams unique. One idea would be to repeat the game every couple of years, say 4 years, so that no student plays the same game twice. This would allow for tweaking of the rules to make the game more fair and still keep a varaity going.

In all, I think that things will change if teams are paired up again next year. And hey, only 8 months until we find out our next game :slight_smile:

Dave

: Sometimes in real life we allied with (metaphorical) plywood boxes…And I don’t like
: it any better…but at least I can do something about it…

: By the time we played them they were only a plywood box with wheels.
: They did not have motors in the box at that time…they were immobile…rocklike,
: very similar to last years placebo… just wires a control box
: and some speed controllers…

: Now I hate to be a jerk…a complainer, a whiner etc…and I suppose I should just
: shut up…but…I want to share a thought and pose some questions.

: What are we doing here in the National Robotic Competition, I mean what is really going on
: and what messages are we trying to send
: and what behaviors are we trying to re-enforce in kids?

: If we are simply saying to kids that ANY attempt at this sport is valid,
: That any effort you make to simply show up at the nationals is cool, and that it’s
: really only just fun and games, and that there is really absolutely no
: reasonable expectation of winning, and there are not recognizable standards
: and it’s not about education or skill development and we should all just look the other way
: in situations like this…then so be it…but there are easier ways to
: cop this attitude.

: I am so darn tired of being told by the man in denim that this is not about education,
: but rather about inspiration…well who is inspired by a plywood box with wheels ?
: None of our teenagers were very impressed.

: Let’s look at gracious professionalism…the gracious professionalism shown by six
: different teams who played with the plywood box is admirable…but the fact
: that some adult advisor somewhere would allow and worse encourage his team to
: attend the nationals and severely compromise six other teams is not gracious professionalism by any means.
: It could possibly be seen as a selfish act by someone who paid 4000 dollars and
: did not make the necessary commitment…but because they spent so much money felt entitled
: to their moment on stage…at the expense of some dedicated and hard working people who
: ‘did their homework’…

: I encourage my students to search for the truth in many ways…one way is to extrapolate
: a given condition…let’s ask ourselves a question…Would the FIRST National
: Robotics Competition, and the students who participate, be better off, or worse off, if all the teams showed up with
: OBVIOUSLY ill prepared machines…that is if we all had plywood boxes with wheels?
: Based on your answer, you can draw your own conclusions.

: Do you think the plywood box on wheels will appear on the 99 TV production video…
: Time will tell…but don’t count on it.

: How many of you would knowingly enter an inadequate machine in a competition
: knowing that your presence would severly compromise some hardworking folks ?
: I don’t see alot of hands raised on that one…

: OK The wrap up…

: Problems like the plywood box are the result of changing the game every year.
: They are ‘Bugs’ in the alpha version of the game…we could change this…
: We could make things better every year, not worse, by keeping the game the same for 4-6 years
: at a time…the competitions would get increasingly more competitive and the
: recruitment of teams would be much enhanced not to mention the fact that some of
: your colleagues at work might want to come and help out if it means not losing their wife, job and ski week
: …and if you are getting red in the face
: over this…chill out…you can’t know until you try…

: So…

: We agree that anybody can play…and no matter how hard some of you work to build a competetive robot,
: it really does not matter in the end because were all equal under the rules of FIRST…I’m on board for that (not)

: Or we try to develop a game that we can live with for awhile and that we
: can massage into something educational, and equitable and something viewed as
: a real robot sport…something we can try to be better at over time…
: something that does not require heroism to participate in…something others won’t be afraid
: to participate in…

: And in finishing I ask for a response to this question…

: Who among you are ready and willing to debug this game…produce the
: beta version or maybe even the 1.0 release…and play it again next year?
: Or do you want another alpha version with the same bugs and problems we have every year???

: What say all you wonderful students, mentors and teachers…?

:
: Mr.B