Posted by Innovation First, Inc…
Other on team #883 from Innovation First, Inc…
Posted on 11/24/99 6:41 PM MST
Photos of the new control system are available on our web site (www.innovationfirst.com). More information will follow.
Posted by Joe Johnson. [PICTURE: SAME | NEW | HELP]
Engineer on team #47, Chief Delphi, from Pontiac Central High School and Delphi Automotive Systems.
Posted on 11/24/99 8:55 PM MST
In Reply to: New Control System Photos posted by Innovation First, Inc. on 11/24/99 6:41 PM MST:
Tony & Dave,
Cool photos.
Folks are going to LOVE these controllers.
Nothing against Eric & the gang at FIRST, but your stuff makes last year’s setup look like some crude thing someone whipped up on a bench in the middle of the night (not that you two haven’t done your fair share of work in the middle of the night 
Great Job.
Joe J.
Posted by Justin.
Other on team Blue Lightning Alum from RWU sponsored by FIRST-A-holics Anonymous.
Posted on 11/25/99 1:04 PM MST
In Reply to: New Control System Photos posted by Innovation First, Inc. on 11/24/99 6:41 PM MST:
Hello Everyone,
Well I am very impressed…and excited by those pics. Hopefully over my Xmas break I’ll get to spend a little time at the PSNH hops tinkering all those nice new toys. And the fact that we will own all that fun stuff is a nice thing as well…hmmm I wonder if I could hook that up to my car…okay in any case it all looks pretty sweet.
I also wanted to say that my quite reliable sources on Blue Lightning have informed me that there will be a Blue Lightning this year.
-Justin
Posted by Joe Johnson. [PICTURE: SAME | NEW | HELP]
Engineer on team #47, Chief Delphi, from Pontiac Central High School and Delphi Automotive Systems.
Posted on 11/25/99 6:32 PM MST
In Reply to: Pics + Blue Lightning posted by Justin on 11/25/99 1:04 PM MST:
Okay. Glad to here that Blue Lightening is IN.
Now if only someone will tell me that Plymouth North & Entegy have decided to re-enlist again in 2000…
See you in 2000.
Joe J.
Posted by Nate Smith.
Other on team #66, GM Powertrain/Ypsilanti HS/Willow Run HS, from Eastern Michigan University and GM Powertrain.
Posted on 11/29/99 6:59 AM MST
In Reply to: New Control System Photos posted by Innovation First, Inc. on 11/24/99 6:41 PM MST:
sweet!
I like it already, and I haven’t even gotten my hands on it yet…just a few comments on things that I noticed:
-
Separate tether and radio connections: No more tether adaptor!!!
-
Competition jack and ‘Disabled’ light: does this mean that rounds don’t start and stop by cutting power anymore?
-
No ‘Channel’ selector on robot end…only determined by team number?
-
Feedback from robot finally! Now the only problem is, which 2 pwms, 2 relays, and 3 switches do we show?
Just my thoughts right now…I’m sure I’ll have more when I actually get my hands on the thing…in only 40 days, according to the countdown here! See everybody in Ypsilanti!
Nate
T66 - GM Powertrain & Willow Run HS
2000 Great Lakes Regional Event Volunteer
Posted by Mike.
Student on team #175, Buzz, from Enrico Fermi High School and UTC - Hamilton Standard Space Systems.
Posted on 11/29/99 10:40 AM MST
In Reply to: Re: New Control System Photos posted by Nate Smith on 11/29/99 6:59 AM MST:
I aggree I love the new system. If you really analyze the controller you will notice the capablity for 16 PWMs and 8 Relays. Feedback looks like it will be limited on the transmitter, but I would not have a driver read an LED of something that says ‘Relay 5’ in the heat of battle. Hopefully this will be resolved with the port that says dashboard, and when I think of a dashboard I think of visual feedback. I beleive that we will not be using frequencies to play matches, just team numbers. However I am a bit skeptical about the team number thing because that doesn’t mean another team might ‘accidently’ change to your team number and sabotage you… It looks like the only way to avoid this is to take one of the radio modems from us.
Overall, I think the new system will make for a great addition and finally give the electronics and software people more to do.
Mike
Team #175 - Buzz
: sweet!
: I like it already, and I haven’t even gotten my hands on it yet…just a few comments on things that I noticed:
: - Separate tether and radio connections: No more tether adaptor!!!
: - Competition jack and ‘Disabled’ light: does this mean that rounds don’t start and stop by cutting power anymore?
: - No ‘Channel’ selector on robot end…only determined by team number?
: - Feedback from robot finally! Now the only problem is, which 2 pwms, 2 relays, and 3 switches do we show?
: Just my thoughts right now…I’m sure I’ll have more when I actually get my hands on the thing…in only 40 days, according to the countdown here! See everybody in Ypsilanti!
: Nate
: T66 - GM Powertrain & Willow Run HS
: 2000 Great Lakes Regional Event Volunteer
Posted by Joe Johnson. [PICTURE: SAME | NEW | HELP]
Engineer on team #47, Chief Delphi, from Pontiac Central High School and Delphi Automotive Systems.
Posted on 11/29/99 1:56 PM MST
In Reply to: Re: New Control System Photos posted by Mike on 11/29/99 10:40 AM MST:
Good detective work.
Much of what you say agrees with the spy info I have. Many of your questions have been addressed.
I wish I could share more, but I have been sworn to secrecy.
What I can say is that I think InnovationFIRST deserves a STANDING OVATION.
They have really hit a home run with the new controller (imho).
To InnovationFIRST and the 2000 competition.
Joe J.
Posted by Thomas A. Frank. [PICTURE: SAME | NEW | HELP]
Engineer on team #121, The Islanders/Rhode Warrior, from Middletown (RI) High School and Naval Undersea Warfare Center.
Posted on 11/30/99 9:13 AM MST
In Reply to: Re: New Control System Photos posted by Mike on 11/29/99 10:40 AM MST:
Hello All;
From the looks of the hardware in the photos (gotta love labels!), I’d say we have a wonderful year ahead of us.
I wonder how much additional controllers are going to cost? I have work projects that could use a good remote control…
Notice ‘SPIKE’, the new relay modules. Finally, truly distributed power control.
This is going to be great.
TAF
Posted by Joe Johnson. [PICTURE: SAME | NEW | HELP]
Engineer on team #47, Chief Delphi, from Pontiac Central High School and Delphi Automotive Systems.
Posted on 11/30/99 11:25 AM MST
In Reply to: Re: New Control System Photos posted by Thomas A. Frank on 11/30/99 9:13 AM MST:
Tom,
And the Dashboard is rumored to be EXTREMELY cool. Basically teams can plug in a PC running a Visual Basic program (from FIRST? or Homebrew? I have not been able to discover) and learn all kinds of stuff about their robot (PWM states, switch positions, feedback pots, etc).
It is almost like they were READING all those messages you and I posted last year, Tom
Can’t wait for 2000.
Joe J.
Posted by Nate Smith.
Other on team #66, GM Powertrain/Ypsilanti HS/Willow Run HS, from Eastern Michigan University and GM Powertrain.
Posted on 11/30/99 4:33 PM MST
In Reply to: And the Dashboard is to DIE for… posted by Joe Johnson on 11/30/99 11:25 AM MST:
Joe,
Question for you…do you know if this is something that we can use during the round itself, or just for testing? I just figured that was where we had to hook up our switches now…just use the extra ‘Port X’ connections instead?
(Side note now)...It will also be interesting to see how this new system changes the way that we get data to our own Stamp programs....maybe not at all...maybe a LOT...who knows...
Nate
Posted by Joe Johnson. [PICTURE: SAME | NEW | HELP]
Engineer on team #47, Chief Delphi, from Pontiac Central High School and Delphi Automotive Systems.
Posted on 11/30/99 6:30 PM MST
In Reply to: Re: And the Dashboard is to DIE for… posted by Nate Smith on 11/30/99 4:33 PM MST:
I don’t know if FIRST is thinking about letting us have laptops up on the field with us or not.
I would guess not, at least until 2001 or so when we have all had a the time to generate some really cool applications.
Can you imaging tieing in an amination of our robot with a sensor port?
I think we could really have some cool visual feedback of robot states: Hands open, hands closed, Arm Position, Wheel speeds, etc.
The sky is the limit!!!
Can’t wait for the operating instructions.
By the way, Dave & Tony (InnovationFIRST folks), have you written that user manual yet?
I’ll bet a Coke to a Case you haven’t!!!
Don’t go to sleep yet, boys, there’s plenty of work that needs doing
See you both Friday at the Chief Delphi Invitational.
Joe J.
Posted by Andy Grady. [PICTURE: SAME | NEW | HELP]
Coach on team #42, P.A.R.T.S, from Alvirne High School and Daniel Webster College.
Posted on 12/1/99 3:23 PM MST
In Reply to: Don’t know… posted by Joe Johnson on 11/30/99 6:30 PM MST:
Alot of what you say involves feedback from the robot, do you think that there may be a way to communicate with it using the laptops, for instance make a program that could be used to take the place of the project box and switches that we used to have? Either way, I like the look of the controls so far and I am looking forward to exploring their capabilities.
Have a good one,
Andy Grady, DWC/Alvirne
Posted by Joe Johnson. [PICTURE: SAME | NEW | HELP]
Engineer on team #47, Chief Delphi, from Pontiac Central High School and Delphi Automotive Systems.
Posted on 12/1/99 6:55 PM MST
In Reply to: Re: Don’t know… posted by Andy Grady on 12/1/99 3:23 PM MST:
Is the Dashboard a two way port? This may be possible. Don’t know for sure.
Perhaps even the entire operator interface box could be ‘simulated’ in code on a laptop. The big question then would be the radio I guess.
What I do know is the guys from InnovationFIRST have thought of a LOT of cool stuff that FIRST folks are really going to like.
I suppose that they have plans for much of what we are talking about, even if it is not in the firmware shipped to the teams in 2000.
Again, STANDING OVATION for InnovationFIRST.
Joe J.
Posted by Thomas A. Frank.
Engineer on team #121, The Islanders/Rhode Warrior, from Middletown (RI) High School and Naval Undersea Warfare Center.
Posted on 12/1/99 5:06 PM MST
In Reply to: And the Dashboard is to DIE for… posted by Joe Johnson on 11/30/99 11:25 AM MST:
: It is almost like they were READING all those messages you and I posted last year, Tom
You think? Customer feedback being taken seriously? What a concept! It sure seems like they too a goodly number of the ideas floated around here to heart.
: Can’t wait for 2000.
Same here. I wonder if they’ll have the controllers done before Christmas, or if Eric and Co. will be chained to their desks at FIRST through the holiday weekend?
Of course, knowing FIRST, all the development is being done on laptops, so that when the power goes out on New Years Eve, they can keep right one working…since I can easily imagine the ‘default’ code being downloaded into the controllers on Jan 7th…or being emailed to us on Jan 10th.
TAF
Posted by Joe Johnson. [PICTURE: SAME | NEW | HELP]
Engineer on team #47, Chief Delphi, from Pontiac Central High School and Delphi Automotive Systems.
Posted on 12/1/99 7:04 PM MST
In Reply to: Re: And the Dashboard is to DIE for… posted by Thomas A. Frank on 12/1/99 5:06 PM MST:
Tom,
InnovationFIRST is farther ahead than you suspect.
Our Chief Delphi Invitational will use theBeta’s of the 2000 controller this Saturday.
Yes I have touched them! – but I was not allowed to code them 
See the photo attached.
Cross you fingers that they actually WORK or else we will have a bunch of unhappy teams this weekend.
Joe J.
Posted by Justin.
Other on team Blue Lightning Alum from RWU sponsored by FIRST-A-holics Anonymous.
Posted on 12/1/99 7:23 PM MST
In Reply to: And the Dashboard is to DIE for… posted by Joe Johnson on 11/30/99 11:25 AM MST:
Hello All,
This whole conversation about these new control boxes is really starting to ROCK. I thought I had seen some cool stuff in my four years of FIRST but it sounds as tho InovationFIRST is here to say that that was nothing. Especially with all this talk of laptops and 3D displays…just WOW is all I have to say. Can’t wait to go visit Blue Lightning over my Holiday break and get my hands dirty in some of this stuff
Rock on InovationFIRST.
Justin
Posted by Thomas A. Frank. [PICTURE: SAME | NEW | HELP]
Engineer on team #121, The Islanders/Rhode Warrior, from Middletown (RI) High School and Naval Undersea Warfare Center.
Posted on 11/30/99 9:13 AM MST
In Reply to: Re: New Control System Photos posted by Mike on 11/29/99 10:40 AM MST:
Hello All;
From the looks of the hardware in the photos (gotta love labels!), I’d say we have a wonderful year ahead of us.
I wonder how much additional controllers are going to cost? I have work projects that could use a good remote control…
Notice ‘SPIKE’, the new relay modules. Finally, truly distributed power control.
This is going to be great.
TAF
Posted by Kyle.
Student on team #192, Gunn Robotics Team, from Gunn High School and Sun Microsystems, Xerox PARC, and Nortel Networks.
Posted on 12/3/99 6:32 PM MST
In Reply to: New Control System Photos posted by Innovation First, Inc. on 11/24/99 6:41 PM MST:
Couple things:
-
Does anyone know why FIRST is in a rush to horde back all the old control systems? There are rumors of course, but any real answers?
-
Does anyone know how long InnovationFirst has been developing this new control system, and or if they’ve been tested thoroughly? i’ve heard rumors about this, but i won’t go into them at this point…
The new control system looks awesome! i can’t wait till we get the kit!!!
-Kyle
Posted by Austin Martus.
Other on team #47 from son of pchs coach.
Posted on 12/3/99 8:02 PM MST
In Reply to: Re: New Control System Photos posted by Kyle on 12/3/99 6:32 PM MST:
i know that they will be tested throughly at the chieafdelphi invitational, because if you havent noticed in other messages Joe got beta versions of the controllers to use in the invitational
austin