Sorry to bother you with YET ANOTHER <SG4> question, but there is controversy around here about the rule that we want to clear up for our State Championship this Sunday.
There are two scenarios in question:
A robot on its own Hanging Zone starting tile has 3 buckyballs, and while repositioning the human leans the robot toward the Middle Zone so that when the robot dispenses the 3 buckyballs, they are scored in the Middle Zone. The robot dispenses the buckyballs using its own motors; the only aid the human contact gave it was leaning it, which I see as a legal reorientation of the robot.
The robot is again on its own Hanging Zone starting tile with 3 buckyballs, and this time the human leans the robot such that when the robot dispenses the buckyballs, they fall into its alliance partner robot and the partner takes them elsewhere. The robot again dispensed the buckyballs with its own motors.
THE QUESTION:
Would either of these scenarios be considered “controlling the robot via human contact or creating motions that lead to scoring?”
If the leaning of the Robot is aiding the Robot in Scoring the BuckyBalls, this would be considered creating a motion that leads to Scoring, and thus illegal. This determination will be made by the Referees.
If you need a ruling in advance of a Sunday tournament, it’s probably a good idea to post your question prior to 11:30pm on Friday night.