Answered: Non-functional Arduino

[Eric_J]

I was wondering if having an Arduino microcontroller on a high school vex robot to play sounds effects queued by the cortex through a serial cable would count as non-functional decoration? If this is legal, what would be the legal way to power it?

Rule R7.D
Teams may add non-functional decorations provided that these do not affect the robot
performance in any significant way or affect the outcome of the match. These decorations must
be in the spirit of the competition. Inspectors will have final say in what is considered
“nonfunctional”.
i. Anodizing and painting of parts would be considered a legal nonfunctional decoration
ii. Any guards or decals must be backed by legal materials that provide the same functionality.
i.e. If your robot has a giant decal that prevents Scoring Objects from falling out of the robot,
the decal must be backed by VEX material that also prevents the Scoring Objects from
falling out.
iii. If using the VEX speaker (Part #276-1504), the chosen audio must not be distracting and
must be in good taste. The Head Inspector and Head Referee will make the final decision on
the appropriateness of the audio

[Karthik]

@536C

I was wondering if having an Arduino microcontroller on a high school vex robot to play sounds effects queued by the cortex through a serial cable would count as non-functional decoration? If this is legal, what would be the legal way to power it?

No, this would not be legal.