I went to BotFest and Robodojo a couple of weekends ago, so it's time for an event log! This one will cover some general remarks followed by a Robodojo report, as I'm waiting for BotFest footage to be uploaded first before I write up that event.
Robodojo footage here:
https://youtu.be/YvnPG7cjgX4
So I decided it would be a good idea to go to two events on consecutive days - BotFest 4 on Saturday followed by Robodojo on Sunday. And I had a great time!
Here is the lineup pre-events - Runtime Exception, Percussive Maintenance 4 and PLAPIAPLCOM. Each bot had a anti-horizontal spinner and anti-overhead configuration, but the anti-overhead configurations were not needed (though there was a potential overhead saw bot at BotFest that worried me!).
===== General Remarks =====
This was the first time I'd been in an arena for ~18 months, the last being Robodojo back in February 2020. It was great catching up with everyone at the events. Typically, I don't do too well at events, and with a full team of untested (in combat) robots, I didn't know how I would do. But against all my expectations, I ended up with an overall positive win/loss ratio at each event! I came away from BotFest with 7/5, and Robodojo 5/4.
BotFest was done with 8 round robin heats, with the best performing bot from each heat going into a single elimination bracket. Robodojo ended up being 4 rounds where each robot fount in a 1v1 with another. The was one bot that unfortunately could not compete, so each of my bots got a bye in the first 3 rounds (not included in the win/loss count).
===== Runtime Exception =====
At Robodojo, Runtime picked up 1 win and 2 losses. It first fought against Crumbs!, which was also present at BotFest. I think it was originally a lifter but due to damage at BotFest it was only a pusher here. After a bit of back-and-forth fighting the ground game, I managed to get under Crumbs! and flip it, followed by a good push towards the pit, and managed to flip it over the barrier.
Its next fight was against Botlerone, a triangluar drum spinner, but unfortunately had been experiencing problems all day and so couldn't fight.
In round 3, it fought the new version of Rammstein. You can see in this fight in particular I had trouble controlling Runtime, so I didn't get many opportunities, and the fight ended with me ricocheting off Rammstein into the pit.
In the final round, Runtime fought Stewie. I managed to get one good flip on Stewie that nearly threw it into the pit, but he managed to escape and pit me.
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Overall, I am happy with the design of Runtime Exception, I just need to make some minor tweaks. I want to get some BBB ESCs with braking to help reduce oversteering - the fast BBB motors plus 30mm wheels results in a very twitchy (and reasonably fast) robot. I could also move the wheels back so it doesn't beach itself on a flip, but it didn't seem to affect me much in fights.
===== Percussive Maintenance 4 =====
At Robodojo, PM4 came away with 2 wins and 1 loss. It first got a bye against Botlerone.
Its second fight was against Crackers. The improved reliability of the weapon mechanism results in a persistent hammer like Blacksmith, as I got many swings of the hammer in. The fight was a fairly long back and forth until I managed to corral Crackers into the pit (hammering it all the while).
PM4 next fought Crumbs!. Again, the improved reliability of the weapon allowed me to get many hits in. Unfortunately, I couldn't control Crumbs! very well and I got pitted with about a minute left on the clock.
Finally, it fought Baby Dead Bod, another BotFest participant that was a powerful horizontal spinner. I attached the aluminium armour package, but laziness/design flaw meant that each panel was only held in with two screws, which resulted in Baby Dead Bod ripping the lower screw out and spinning the left cheek around so it blocked my axe from firing. It got VERY close to taking out the KingMax servo, as it also blew through the bracket right next to it. Luckily for me, I managed to keep the remaining right cheek in the way for the most part, until it gyroed itself into the pit.
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Again, I am happy with how PM4 is shaping up. I have an axe bot that is controllable, persistent with its axe, and reliably self-rights. I just need to acutally fasten the aluminium with more screws (the mount points are there but I didn't think I'd need them...).
===== PLAPIAPLCOM =====
This is the one I really want to talk about, as it's been occupying my thoughts since it was first built. I really wanted to prove to myself that I could make the mechanum wheels viable after seeing the potential of them in Error 404, and I feel vindicated by its performance over this weekend, managing 2/1 at both events.
The larger arena at Robodojo really let me show off the manoeuvrability of PLAPIAPLCOM. The first fight was against Ant Crackers, where I started off strong by flipping it over. However, a loose wheel meant that it fell off during a pushing match, unbalancing PLAPIAPLCOM and forcing me to drive diagonally. It also meant my forks were no longer scraping the floor, so I struggled to get under Crackers. At one point, Crackers nearly pitted me but I managed to get out of it by flipping him back over. Eventually, it managed to take advantage of my missing wheel and push me into the pit. The wheel issue was simply solved by adding a blob of hot glue to the end of the shaft (I probably should have done this from the start...).
The second fight was against Rammstein. I managed to get a few grabs with my lifter, but couldn't quite manoeuvre it into the pit. At one point, it managed to shove PLAPIAPLCOM quickly across the arena, but the pit guard prevented me from going in. Eventually I managed to get Rammstein stranded on its side, propped up against a wall.
PLAPIAPLCOM then got a bye against Botlerone.
The final fight was against Ant Smash, a vertical spinner. I was unsure of how I would do, as none of the armour configurations are particularly effective against vertical spinners. I attached the side polycarbonate panels in the hope that they would take the sting out of hits and save the wheels, but left the forks on. Luckily, I managed to get under it and flip it, preventing it from getting damaging uppercuts, and the polycarbonate panels stopped the blade before it could touch the wheels. Atfer a bit of back and forth, I got it into the pit.
During the fight, one of the rollers came off the wheel. It looks like the blob of hot glue that I had used to secure the brass rod wasn't very good. I'll probably need to check all the other wheels to make sure they're done up properly.
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I am very pleased with the progress I've made with mechanum wheels since the harebrained idea from 2019. It is definitely a viable option, and I actually think it's faster than all my other bots because of the wider diameter of the wheels compared to my other bots. Now I just need to get used to using the strafing more effectively.
===== Future Plans =====
I am very happy with the current ant team. Aside from minor tweaks to the designs and printing off more spare parts, I think my focus will be on getting a beetle together. It's essentially a scaled up version of PLAPIAPLCOM! If all goes to plan, it should be ready to hopefully take with me to RoboNerd. The next event after that I believe is Robodojo 26th September, which is a beetle/ant combined event.