One of my kids asked if, instead of pushing a button on the robot brain or touch LED sensor, he could press a button on the controller to cycle to the next portion of the programming skills run.
We’ve combed through the RSC rules, and cannot find anything that disallows use of a controller during the Programming Challenge.
We have found this:
Could the VIQC controller count as a sensor?
Absent any further guidance, I would not allow a team to do this at an event I was head reffing. I think describing the controller as a “sensor” is quite a stretch.
If the concern is accidentally nudging the robot while touching it to start the program, a common thing to do is to put a touch LED near the top of the robot, so you don’t have to reach into the robot to press a button on the brain, and have the routine start when that sensor is touched. The touch LED doesn’t really require any force to activate it, so doing this will make it much less likely to nudge the robot when starting a programing skills routine.
I agree with you, and we do have a touch LED on top.
The suggestion was to use a push button on the controller, not the joysticks at all.
It’s hard to just lightly tap a sensor when you’re eight or eleven and super excited
But, as we’ve seen from the ruling about positioning of game pieces during PSC runs, I’ll not assume anything from the GDC going forward.
I’ve posted an official Q&A, I don’t expect an answer before our event Saturday (it’s running about a month behind as it is). Unless they say otherwise, we’ll err on the side of caution and use the touch LED.
Answered by definitions in the regular rules section:
Programming Skills Match - An Autonomous period that is…
Autonomous - …The Robot is operating without input from a VEX IQ Controller.