Saint Louis - Day Two

Today was a very long day. The pits opened at 7:15 am and we left around 7pm.

The team had 5 scheduled matches that have a maximum time of 2 minutes and 40 seconds. But it kept us busy for almost 12 hours.

The team had a 20 minutes practice time this morning where Ian worked on the autonomous programs.

The match schedule finally came out around 9:30. Our first match was at 11:30 am.

For each match, we have one partner and two opponents. The first thing our team does is check the scounting information we have on our opponents. Do they have an autonomous program? What types of features are on their robots.

Once we have that information, we find our partner and decide on the strategy for that match. Who should have the preloaded battons? What path will we use in autonomous? Can we work together to get rolling goals on the bridge for the end game?

With the scouting and strategy worked out, about 45 minutes before the match, the volunteers come to queue the teams. It can take 5-10 minutes to get from our pit in the America's Center to the floor of the Edward Jones Dome where the matches are played.

Then there's lots of waiting around. Fortunately, there are lots of other teams also waiting around. The FTC line for the Edison field ran right beside the FLL playing fields. A couple of times, we were able to watch the Hurricanes while we were waiting in line!

The waiting time is the best opportunity our team has to actually talk with other teams. In this picture, they are posing for a picture with the mascot of another team.

Finally it's our turn to play. First, all four robots are put on the field and connected via the new WiFi system they're using this year. It's been working fairly well at tournaments, but they're have trouble with the fields at the Championship. Frequently, one or more robots loose their WiFi connection, causing the match to be restarted or replayed the next day.

Once everyone is connected, and the officials and referrees are ready, the match actually starts.

That's when the fun starts. Will our autonomous program work? What will happen in when the drive team is running the robots with remote controls?

Two of our matches had problems with the WiFi and they will have to be replayed tomorrow. Of the three matches that counted, we won one match and lost two.

The good news is that the robot is working, and the team seems to be getting better with figuring things out as the day went on.

And tomorrow is another day.

Continue reading  Friday, Day Three of the tournament.