With the game being released only a few months ago, I know it’s probably too soon to tell but with regards to the trap door idea. Is it necessary?
I generally think a good driver will just be able to shoot opposing teams balls out when they are at the top of the indexer to position their color on top. I’ve seen a ton of this on the vrc change up simulation game within the skills runs being released and tournament film.
Also with complications that may come with the door being pushed back unwantedly, I could see this causing some problems early on for teams this year.
I personally predict that trapdoors will not be necessary to be competitive but can be a nice boost to robot performance similar to cube locks last season.
Although a driver could do this, a well made trapdoor just alleviates the need to think about this and allows the driver to better observe other things going on in the field something that will be very important this game with the tic tac toe element.
I think this could be something to consider not bothering with early season as a not well tuned trapdoor could be a hindrance as opposed to a benefit.
You should prioritize other things like good build quality, but once you reach a certain level, then having a trapdoor will give an advantage. You shouldn’t obsess over it and pour all of your time into it, but it’s definitely a good thing to think about.
I think trapdoors will not be necessary ever, like cube locks last year, but as the season progresses they will be more and more helpful in giving you a competitive edge.
It’ll be especially helpful in driver/programming skills. You don’t have to worry about what colour ball is next if the wrong ones are tossed behind you.
Personally, while they may not be needed, I do believe they give you a strong tactical advantage. Easily cycling out your opponents points can help you secure a lead. And of course it will definitely help with speed and efficiency, making skills much easier.
I think if you have the skill to do it, I would, but if your still learning, start with the basic snail and then later upgrade when you think you’re ready. It will be helpful, but not worth biting off more than you could chew.
I think it’ll be really useful in programming skills given the amount of movements needed to cycle out balls without a trap door. In programming, the less movements the better
Ours works very well, we also have a hoarding system with that. Unless yours is easy to use or automatic using vision/color sensor, you probably won’t use it very much.
It works very well, we decided to hoard 2 so that we don’t have to worry about momentary possession in most cases. It could easily change to 3 if we wanted it to. Cycling is pretty easy on our bot with the trap door, I would imagine it having an automatic trapdoor makes it 10x better. The hardest part of making it automatic is getting timing right with cycle speed and sensor placement (edited for more detail)
Consistency will all depend on sensor placement, sensitivity, and overall build quality of your mechanism. Just because someone else can make it perfectly, doesn’t mean it’s easy. In my first couple years I tricked myself into thinking, “if they can do it then why can’t I?” This led to quite a few sub-par builds because I was copying and following what others did.
I’d go through the full design process to see which ways work for you. Some are using another motor, and some are sharing with another subsystem. Some are folding inwards, others outwards. A lot of it will come down to what your team is capable of building, coding and driving with, and not what someone else did.
Not to say using someone else’s idea is bad, sometimes it’s the best overall option. You just need to go through a design process to decide what works best for YOU.
Agreed, how well it will work depends on your build and sensor placement. We have gone through 3 designs and our current bot is probably our final. I agree with what you said, you can’t just slap on a trapdoor it has to flow with the rest of your build.