Earthwormjim's Stuff

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EpicentrE
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Re: Earthwormjim's Stuff

Post by EpicentrE »

I don't see why it wouldn't be allowed. There's plenty of Antweights that don't even have external power switches, with people needing to reach inside them to plug in/unplug a battery. As long as you're not having to put your hand next to a spinner to do it I hardly see the issue, tool or not.
Scott Fyfe-Jamieson, Captain of Epic Robotics. Champion of AWS38/41/42.
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earthwormjim
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Re: Earthwormjim's Stuff

Post by earthwormjim »

Thanks Dave! :)
I bought the 12A esc's for the Fridge, as they ran 4S. Then I put them in Fantom, to push it with the added downforce. (A bit of overkill, I know!) But they are nice units, and pretty cheap for what they are, AFAIK?
Not sure about the switch rules?? It does require an allen key to turn the robot on/off. Does this mean that is is technically illegal??
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earthwormjim
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Re: Earthwormjim's Stuff

Post by earthwormjim »

Thanks Scott. I agree. I must admit that I would probably hesitate to put one on a spinner though. But it is a nice little unobtrusive unit for a non dangerous robot.
One dilema I have been struggling with is the scoop design.
I wanted the ability to shoot forward, past an opponent, then back into them still having an effective scoop at the back to use. But by doing that, if something does get under the front, the rear scoop will beach the robot, lifting the rear wheels off the ground, rendering the whole thing un-maneuverable. I am happy to trial and error the idea, but judging by the current scoop designs, not many of which has a backwards effective scoop edge, I presume that it may be an issue. If I get time, I will make another set of scoops with a lower top edge, so that it wont beach if lifted. Any one had any design failiures with scoop shape / sizes etc??
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razerdave
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Re: Earthwormjim's Stuff

Post by razerdave »

2c) Robots must have an externally accessible way of being shut down (e.g. a power switch, removable link or battery plug).

A battery plug that can be gotten at from outside (even lifting up a flipper) counts, but I dunno about having to use a tool. I would suggest asking Gary or another member of the comitee (I am one, but I would be happy to let it slide because it's a pusher), however I would imagine they'd be ok with it providing you disarmed it (dunno how sharp the scoops or whatever are).
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Re: Earthwormjim's Stuff

Post by EpicentrE »

Dave, this is an instance where we have to make a ruling of rules vs common sense. I'd always FAR rather go with common sense.

These are Antweights. You'd have trouble causing injury to someone with Jim's robot without throwing it at them really hard, unless the scoops are razor sharp, which I doubt. Being anal about a rule that is primarily designed for safety under these circumstances is pointless.

If someone would really enforce this at an event they were running I would suggest they applied their skills to somewhere more suitable, like a managerial position in local government.
Scott Fyfe-Jamieson, Captain of Epic Robotics. Champion of AWS38/41/42.
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Re: Earthwormjim's Stuff

Post by playzooki »

Nice bot! I like the way you sort of carved 23 into the top, instead of just painting it. :)
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Re: Earthwormjim's Stuff

Post by Remote-Controlled Dave »

I CAN get to the power link inside most of mine with my hands but often use a screwdriver to pull it out for ease. I don't see the difference between this and Jim's switch really.
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earthwormjim
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Re: Earthwormjim's Stuff

Post by earthwormjim »

haz wrote:Hi Jim!
Hi Haz! :P
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terminaldamage
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Re: Earthwormjim's Stuff

Post by terminaldamage »

Depends on the interpretation of the rules too:
2c) Robots must have an externally accessible way of being shut down (e.g. a power switch, removable link or battery plug).
23 has a way of being shut down (a power switch) and the switch is accessible from the outside, you don't need to go into the robot to turn it off. Seems to conform to the rules looking at it from that angle. But at the end of the day as has been mentioned, common sense/logical judgement is the best rule to enforce.

Nice robot, has a distinctive F1 feel too it :)
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earthwormjim
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Re: Earthwormjim's Stuff

Post by earthwormjim »

Sounds good to me gentlemen.

IMHO, a spinner which needed a tool to turn it off would be unacceptable. But in a pusher is not an issue.
I think that if the need arose to clarify the rule, then it might make sense to outlaw "tool" switches altogether, otherwise we would need to specify which switches are okay for which robot, which could get over complicated.
Long live common sense! :)
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