Is contact with other bots allowed in areas other than the neutral platform? I am aware that interference with an opposing or allied bot’s operating mechanisms is against the rules, but if there is no physical interference or damage to said bot, are we allowed to design bots to push/pull other bots?
You can definitely push robots around, just be weary about the 5 second pin limit. I would stay clear of pulling robots as that can be considered latching to another robot and could be a DQ.
Thank you for the speedy reply, this information will be extremely helpful.
Is it allowed to push the opponent Robot contineously?
I guess this is not a battle bot game. This is performance Robot game. Hitting the opponent robot and prevent it from scoring is legal?
How many seconds Robot can hit other robot? How many times in 1minute and 45 seconds drive period?
Defense is legal but when the refs have to make a call, they are told to call it in favor of the offensive robot when in doubt.
<G14> No Trapping for more than 5 seconds. A Robot may not Trap an opposing Robot for more
than five (5) seconds during the Driver Controlled Period. A Trap is officially over once the Trapping
Robot has moved away and the Robots are separated by at least two (2) feet (approximately one [1]
foam tile). After ending a Trap, a Robot may not Trap the same Robot again for a duration of five (5)
seconds; if a Team does Trap the same Robot again, the count will resume from where it left off
when the Trapping Robot initially backed off.
trapping is defined as
A Robot status. A Robot is Trapping if it has restricted an opposing Robot into a small,
confined area of the field, approximately the size of one foam field tile or less, and has not provided
an avenue for escape. Trapping can be direct (e.g. pinning an opponent to a field perimeter wall) or
indirect (e.g. preventing a Robot from escaping from a corner of the field).
with that definition of trapping, you can probably “hit” the other robot for the entirety of the match if you aren’t confining them unless there’s a rule i missed
at the same time however, you can’t violate
<S1> If at any time the Robot operation or Team actions are deemed unsafe or have damaged any Field Elements or Game Objects, the offending Team may be Disabled and/or Disqualified at the discretion of the Head Referee.
and
<G12> Don’t destroy other Robots. But, be prepared to encounter defense
VEX Robotics Competition Turning Point is intended to be an offensive game. Teams that partake in solely defensive or destructive strategies will not have the protections implied by <G12>
also offensive robots can also technically “destroy your robot” if it is clear that it was with the intention and within the act of attempting to score
If you have a push bot that’s just trying to harass, theoretically (with negligible travel time) you can spend more than half of the 105 seconds legally trapping your opponent.
Watch this video and give your comment please. Thanks
even before watching it, I don’t doubt that there is probably excessive defense probably but as one of the hardest rules to enforce due to how much is happening on a field at one time and seeing how refs are usually parent volunteers, not trained professionals who make a living off of this, it end up being one of the looser rules.
Do I want better refs? Of course, and so does every other competitive event but at the end of the day, the refs are the one tasked with making these decisions, not random forum posters.
At 1:06 you can see the ref on the right side perform the necessary count, tell blue team to back off (i think) and then scratch his neck cuz honestly I’d be uncomfortable too if I was in that situation. It’s never fun to have to tell a team they’re DQ cuz of a rule they broke early in the match (it’s also harder to determine if it was match affecting)
The blue team bot backs off for around 4 secondsish but refs don’t stand there with stopwatches so they’re just counting on their fingers or in their head. The second engagement could rule as entanglement
Entanglement – A Robot status. A Robot is Entangled if it has grabbed, hooked, or attached to an
opposing Robot or a Field Element
which they could be dq 'd for
<G12> Don’t destroy other Robots. But, be prepared to encounter defense. Strategies aimed
solely at the destruction, damage, tipping over, or Entanglement of opposing Robots are not part of
the ethos of the VEX Robotics Competition and are not allowed. If the tipping, Entanglement, or
damage is ruled to be intentional or egregious, the offending Team may be Disqualified from that
Match. Repeated offenses could result in Disqualification from the entirety of the competition.
but this extra part to g12
VEX Robotics Competition Turning Point is an interactive game. Some incidental tipping,
Entanglement, and damage may occur as a part of normal gameplay without violation. It will
be up to the head referee’s discretion whether the interaction was incidental or intentional.
basically says it’s the refs’ decision
the contact around 2:20 is perfectly fine cuz they’re trying to get on the platform
again, none of this means or does anything. If a team is scouted out as heavily defensive, you can ask refs to keep an eye on them but at the end, the final ruling goes to whoever is reffing the event
im aware of the rule
you take that up with the head ref of the match immediately after. The forum can’t do anything
may I ask what the score was?