Technologies I’d like to see in a new control system:
1) Integrated disable/autonomous dongle. No team should be without one, but there’s a lot of things that can go terribly wrong with the ones we build ourselves (frying the OI processor, bad soldering jobs keeping the robot from disabling, a short triggering autonomous, etc.). My ideal setup would be putting a Big Red Button for disabling the robot and a covered switch for enabling autonomous operation right on the OI itself. If everyone’s running the same dongle, every team member on every team in FRC will know what to hit to stop a robot in an emergency.
2) Secure connectors for cables. Vex robots already get RJ11 jacks for their radio and tether ports–what’s stopping us from sticking the same on the motor controllers and RC? As a bonus, you’re far more likely to find a handset cable in a hurry than a PWM cable.
3) The return of some sort of large, bright, visible-from-four-sides flashing light. Require teams to have a patch of Velcro and two spade connectors from the kit handy for the light, hand it out in the queue and take it back after the match. The flags, though cheap and modestly effective at showing alliance color, don’t seem to impart the same “GET THE HECK AWAY FROM THIS THING, IT’S TURNED ON!” attribute as even the brighter IFI lights. Speaking of lights…
4) Red LEDs are fine, green LEDs are fine, but do something about yellow LEDs. If I’m checking an RC to make sure it’s functioning, I can easily tell the red lights and the non-red lights. But discerning the blinking yellow lights from the blinking green lights takes more time. Maybe it’s just me.
Other than the new control system, I’m largely fine with the level of technology in the KOP as it stands. Some refinements would be nice, but overall it’s fine for me as it sits.
There are, however, a few other areas where things could be improved. I’m stretching the definition of “technology” here, but I think it’s the best place:
1) Be more specific about team numbers on robots. We all know 4" high, 3/4" stroke, but sometimes that still results in numbers that are less-than-great in their visibility. Compare the numbers in this picture with the numbers in this picture. Both were to the satisfaction of the inspectors at the Palmetto Regional, but one is clearly easier to read. Granted, the inspectors could hold a team back until they made theirs more distinctive, but some examples in the manual of what should and should not be done here would probably be helpful to teams.
2) Change out the flags. Ringing issues aside, the flags tend to go projectile a little much–and as an inspector, the flag holder is definitely on my Top Five Things I Despise Inspecting for the simple reason that it is often the one thing holding a team from passing. Yes, it should be in place when they ship. Yes, it should be easy to inspect. Somehow, though, it is a thorn in the side for both the teams (who have to listen to me say they can’t pass yet) and for myself (who has to listen to the teams gripe about how they can’t pass yet, then invariably pass their flag holder thirty seconds before their first match). There has to be a better way.
The idea in my mind is to require a large trading card holder mounted upright on the top of each robot–let them extend beyond the maximum height like the flags currently do, and give teams an inch at the bottom to modify for their mounting needs. They’re durable, easy to mount, and run about 40 cents each in quantity 100 for a good-sized one. Get to the queue, get a slip of (laminated) paper, slip it in the toploader. Get a yellow card? Get the slip with a yellow stripe. Done.
3) Steal the NASA Field’s clock and put it on each FRC field. The white tape on the clock LED sign this year was a step in the right direction, but the rack still could block the view at times. A nice big one off to the side of the field would all but eliminate such problems for all time.
I’ll think of more, I’m sure.