Future Projects

[DrSuess2]

• [ ] Manual robot control screen
• [ ] IR demo shooting autonomous program
• [ ] Navix sensor thingy
• [ ] Gyro code
• [ ] Gyro straight
• [ ] Drive tracker
• [ ] Multidriver Config
• [ ] Vuforia
• [ ] Font on robot driver app
• [ ] Manual control on robot controller
• [ ] Make Robot an interface
• [ ] Scoring App
• [x] Investigate lag
• [x] Change robot sounds
• [x] Path builder
• [x] Incorrect autonomous timing
• [x] Summer Chaos Software

[NoahAndrews]

With the drive/path tracker, an easy option is just to take a bunch of pictures and lay them on top of each other.

[NoahAndrews]

https://www.reddit.com/r/FTC/comments/5txmuy/help_teleop_latency/?st=iz5r9dj1&sh=2ebf1625

[NoahAndrews]

https://www.reddit.com/r/FTC/comments/5tqu1r/help_strafing_straight_with_the_gyroscope/?st=izh6owha&sh=7a229d73

[NoahAndrews]

https://github.com/lasarobotics/ftclibrary

[NoahAndrews]

We had also talked about wiring up our beacons like OOTB did. Here's a guide that should help us avoid their issues if we do that: BeaconBoardProtections.pdf

And another guide, this one written by an FTC mentor: ESDProtectionLightBeacon2017.pdf

And a helpful discussion on Reddit

And some further information that was posted on the FTA forum:

Hi FTAs and CSAs

During the 2016-2017 season, we have received reports of issues with the AndyMark light bars. AndyMark has done a fair amount of testing and have identified some areas of concern that the FTC community should be aware of:

1. AndyMark recommends the use of quality (Duracell) 9V alkaline batteries to power the light beacons. In their testing, the 9V batteries provided a smooth (not spikey) input voltage for the light bars. These batteries have a limited life (only 3 or 4 hours) and should be changed at least once during a competition day. However, a quality 9V battery is their recommend power source for the beacons.

2. Some users (including the engineers at FIRST) have powered their light bars using the 12V Tetrix/Matrix robot batteries. AndyMark did some testing with a 12V battery. They said that if a user combines the 12V battery with long cable lengths that connect the battery to the light bar, the input voltage to the light bar could be very spikey and cause problems. Spikey input voltages seem to tax the voltage regulator on the light bar and could cause it to overheat and shutdown. If you are using a 12V battery, AndyMark recommends that you do not use a long lead to connect the battery to the light bar.

3. AndyMark investigated the use of a 12V AC Power adapter (that plugs into the AC wall outlet and provides a 12V DC output) to power the LightBar. In their testing, AndyMark discovered that some "12V DC" adapters actually output a much higher voltage (they claim they measured one that put out 17V DC) which will cause problems with the light bar. The second issue that they found is that some power adapters provided very noisy power signals, with spikes in the output power. This caused problems with the AndyMark light bar. AndyMark recommends that if a user wants to use an AC Power Adapter to power their light bar, they should select an adapter that provides 7VDC at 1A to the light bar. They also recommend that the user install a 10 uF capacitor across the input connector to help filter spikes on the input voltage.

4. ESD is an issue with the light bars. As robots slide across the SoftTiles, they build up charge. When the bots touch the light bar buttons, an ESD event can occur and a discharge between the robot and the light bar could cause problems with the light bar. AndyMark recommends bending the input leads and using dielectric grease (commonly available in automotive stores) to mitigate the risk of an electrostatic discharge (ESD) event damaging the light bar buttons. AndyMark also recommends that if you suspect that your light bar has been damaged by an ESD event, you can use a voltmeter to measure the voltage across the connectors for the light bar buttons. Normally, in the unpressed state, the voltage should measure 5V across the button leads. If the circuit has been damaged, the voltage might read 0V or 0.5V when the button is unpressed.

AndyMark has summarized their recommendations in the following document (see attached).

Some users have also reported good results using anti-static spray on the SoftTiles to reduce the risk of an ESD event. FIRST recommends industrial strenght antistatic spray such as ZERO Charge Anti-stat or Staticide to reduce the risk of a damaging ESD event (see FTC Scrimmage Guide for details, http://www.firstinspires.org/sites/default/files/uploads/resource_library/ftc/scrimmage-guide.pdf).

Tom