At worlds in Detroit, during a match, our controller was not connecting to our robot along with another alliance partner. The FTA did not realize that there was an issue for a while. As soon as he did, he came over and reset something so that our controllers started connecting again. Due to us not being able to bang on glass, we were unable to alert the FTA in a timely manner that something was wrong with our robot. Is there anything else we can do to alert an FTA that is not aware of an issue? If not, what are some suggestions for future ways to alert an FTA of such issues?
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Walk to the edge of the player station and throw a cargo at the FTA. It’ll get their attention.
In all seriousness, send someone as close to FTA as possible on the player station and get their attention that way.
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A bug thumbs down will get their attention, the field volunteers check if any team is thumbs down and will inform the FTA.
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It helps if said someone knows how to make an ear-splitting whistle. (It’s a skill worth learning; comes in handy in many situations).
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While id also be suggesting this, ive been on the end where the FTA’s missed it and started the match without us. Seriously frustrating.
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Also for future reference he most likely just pressed F1 which refreshes the controller connections.
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Thumbs downs are also a little less effective when the sandstorm is down unfortunately. One of the big downsides of sandstorm in my opinion.
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The field volunteers check and show thumbs down to the FTA, the FTA has to wait for thumbs up from the sandstorm rollers too.
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Reminder that the first instance of an H15 violation is only a verbal warning. If you need to get the FTA’s attention just once over an event, it should be fine.
H16. Don’t bang on the glass. Team members may never strike or hit the PLAYER STATION plastic windows.
Violation: Verbal warning. If subsequent violations, YELLOW CARD.
During one champs match, we applied some forceful knocks to the glass to get the FTA’s attention. Additionally, our entire drive team was gesturing for the FTA once we had some volunteer attention. We did not receive a verbal warning from the referees in this instance. YMMV.
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At TVR, the head ref told us we should wave our arms dramatically. If the curtains were down, step into the player station because you are not allowed to be there at the start of the match.
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Go to the human player station on the scoring table side of the field (where you’re visible) and get the attention of the ref on that end. They’re very close to the human player station and can much more easily get the attention of the FTA by simply walking over to them at the scoring table. It also gets official notice of something being wrong, so even if the match starts you have good grounds for a replay later on.
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I would say, Evaluate the issue. If it warrants needing an FTA and he is not responding to you, then bang the crap out of the glass. If the HR gets mad, tell him that the FTA needs to pay better attention.
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I hope this is a joke. There’s no circumstance in which one should ever “bang the crap out of the glass,” even if they are struggling to get the FTA’s attention. Also, that “justification” is plainly rude and I doubt most refs will allow you any kind of leniency after you rudely criticize one of their fellow volunteers. That was a joke, right?
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Pretty sure the original question here was about during a match. A thumbs down during a match probably won’t draw attention quickly.
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I remember this being posted in another thread a while back, and the legality/ethics of this are questionable, but if you need them to not start the match, unplugging your driver station laptop will prevent them from starting the match temporarily.
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Probably the better option, That or pressing your E-Stop.
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Pressing your e-stop could very easily just make you e-stopped for the whole match, since it requires a robot restart.
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I never meant this as a rude or mean thing. If I was at a job that required me to be paying attention at all times or someone could be hurt or killed, Wouldn’t you want me being alert at all times?
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It’s against the rules to bang on the glass this year for very important safety reasons regarding the sandstorm blinds. Not only is banging on it irresponsible, but can cause someone to get hurt.
The FTAs usually check each alliance before a thumbs-up to start the match. If an issue comes up after that, get your human player on the scoring table side to signal the FTAs attention, since we’re usually checking around that area while starting the match since we can’t see past the sandstorm blinds. At worst, you’ll get the attention of a nearby field reset person / scorer / ref.
For something like a Joystick fault, you can unplug your Ethernet until the FTA comes and sees you, since that bars the start match button from being pressed (just don’t abuse this for minor problems, of course). But please, DO NOT E-Stop your robot, E-Stops are sticky and require a lot more effort to clear.
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This instance happened during a match not before