[FTC]: FTC Competition kits are here...

Other FIRST Tech Challenge
#1

Woo Hoo…

Unpacked my FTC Competition kit today.

Lots of bits and pieces…

Best news… the Split Axle clamps are GONE, replaced by a new piece that’s called an Axle Hub. It looks like the Motor Hub (shaft adapter), but with a smaller hole to fit an axle (has a larger setscrew).

Also in this kit is a new plastic piece that protects the tabs on the motor from breakage.

The Omni wheel is neat, but yet to see how well it will work on the spongy mat. Only 2 come in the kit, so if you want twin wheels for smoother running, get out the Credit Card :slight_smile:

Other than this, there seem to be larger quantities of some of the key parts… eg: gears, angle brackets, screws etc.

And the new sensor is… oops running out of ink… can’t spoil the surprize…

Phil.

#2

Does it translate to “infrareday etectorday”?

#3

By jove I think he’s got it.

More of a tracker too.

Phil.

#4

hahaha. Would you mind posting pictures of some of these new parts? Recently our FTC team decided to indefinitely end operations in order to compete in VRC, but my interest has not abated. :smiley:

#5

Really? :ahh:

I thought it was THIS

#6

You do mean an infrared sensor, right?
Oh well, Dosen’t the sonar sensor detect distance as well though?

#7

What is this competition kit you are speaking about? Is this the same thing we received last year with tweaks?

#8

Phil,
Did you get a whole new kit or just the upgrade?
Jon T

#9

The new parts are in the brand new kit only. The Challenge Kit is the software and the sensor for this year’s game. New parts include tube plugs, axle hubs, improved battery leads, and omni wheels. :cool:

#10

Has anyone seen a itemized parts list? The students would like to inventory our kit.

I was a little disappointed we didn’t get a NXT rechargeable battery and charger.

Andy

#11

Got the full kit. Plus I just ordered some extra Omni wheels right off the bat.

After all the demos, presentations, and traning sessions, our hardware is looking a bit worse for wear. Purchasing a full kit is the cheapest way to get a BUNCH of spares. Plus you can never have enough NXT’s :slight_smile:

I agree about the charger… I hadn’t noticed that it didn’t have a rechargable battery pack included.

The Infrared sensor is actaully an IR direction finder. (IR Seeker II)
It has 5 detectors that provide 9 detection beams (when you include the small overlap zones).

As has been stated elsewhere… PITSCO sells a small IR emitting ball that they use for Robo-Soccer. It’s a good way to experiemnt with the sensor if you can’t wait to find out what it’s real purpose is.

There was also talk about new Gears and Chains on one of the flyers that came in the box… didn’t see them last time I was on LEGO store.

#12

Here are some pictures… sorry for the low quality…
You can find the picture of the omni wheels on Pitsco website.

Phil, are you coming the the MD FTC Kickoff?

Jeff T.
Maryland.

Axle Hub and Tube Plug.jpg

Motor Cable.jpg
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Axle Hub and Tube Plug.jpg
Motor Cable.jpg
b4c3a1ad48d99fff1e5f401a250aad1284578bcb.jpeg588×712 38.1 KB

#13

Hi Jeff.

Sorry, no, we won’t be at kickoff in La Plata. We WILL be there in spirit though, as the team watches on the big-sceen at our GEARS facility.

We’re eager to get brainstorming and try out some of the new components and new LabVIEW environment.

Phil.

#14

Must get mine A.S.A.P.

Not too fond of a new axle hub - how is it? I did actually like the old ones quite a bit, any news if we’ll be able to use the old ones?

Can’t wait to see what FIRST does with these:
http://parts.ftcrobots.com/store/detail.aspx?CategoryID=163&by=9&ID=6370&c=1&t=0&l=0

http://parts.ftcrobots.com/store/detail.aspx?CategoryID=163&by=9&ID=6379&c=1&t=0&l=0

#15

Hmmm… Strange… I haven’t gotten ours yet.

BasicXMan: Did it come directly from PITSCO/Lego Education or did it come from Spectrum? Also, when did you place the order for the full kit?

Paul Tan.

#16

Any word as to whether there are improvements in the LabView/Encoder/Motor Controller/Battery Voltage arena?

#17

Hi Jon.

Yes, there have been many improvements.

In fact there has been a general re-do of the whole NXT and FTC interface.

The NXT side of things has been setup to make the transition from debug to deployment very easy… eg: test code when tethered (with high speed onscreen diagnostics), then download for final operation. The NXT Terminal is NOT required for downloading any more.

The HiTechnic interfaces are now part of the NXT module (menu) and have this same debugging capability. They have also been re-written for single or multiple motor/servo control.

The Encoder based controls have also been openned up to provide the ability to do blocking or non-blocking calls ie: wait for move to complete, or return immediately but return later to check if the move is complete.

I haven’t had enough time to do extensive encoder testing to see if the occasional glitch problem is gone, but time will tell.

Also, the templates now include a vi to monitor/display the battery voltages and provide audio cues as to enable/disable state changes as well as loss of telemetry.

Looking forward to some fun code.

Check out the various documents I’ve posted on www.ni.com/first to get a taste.

#18

Hi Phil,
I see you answered my next question on the ni site: how to use the ps2 controller rathar than a computer. I look forward to reading that.
Jon

#19