Which direction is up after a robot has rotated? <SG3> <SG10>

[Oliver_W]

Hi Karthik,

<SG3> A Robot may not expand beyond a volume of 18 inches wide by 18 inches long by 18 inches tall at any point during the Match, with the exception of the allowance listed in <SG10>. Minor violations of this rule that do not affect the match will result in a warning. Egregious (match affecting) offenses will result in a Disqualification. Teams that receive multiple warnings may also receive a Disqualification at the head referee’s discretion.

<SG10> Robots may expand beyond their normal maximum perimeter of 18” by 18” only while completely within the volume of the Climbing Zone. Robots may expand above the 18” height limit while completely within the volume of the Climbing Zone and with less than thirty seconds (0:30) left in the Match.

Minor violations of this rule that do not affect the match will result in a warning. Egregious (match affecting) offenses will result in a Disqualification. Teams that receive multiple warnings may also receive a Disqualification at the head referee’s discretion. Any Alliance with a Robot that has expanded illegally will not be eligible for Elevation points.

In this thread:

Answered: and Expansion by Rotation

You said:

If a Robot has multiple stable configurations on a flat field, none of these configurations can exceed the 18" x 18" x 18" size restriction.

In general, the virtual “box” that surrounds your Robot will translate/rotate with the Robot. This way if your Robot rotates to climb a ramp, for example, there would be no violation of the expansion rule.

If a robot has rotated from its starting configuration about an axis parallel to the field surface (in a way that forces its imaginary 18” cube to rotate with it to keep the robot in size) then which direction is the ‘18" height limit’ measured in? Does the ‘height’ direction rotate with the imaginary cube?

EDIT: our team talked a bit about how this could easily get complicated. One way that would be relatively simple to enforce would be to make the sizing requirement that the robot has to EITHER fit completely within an 18" cube that can rotate OR be completely within a 2’ x 2’ x 18" cuboid that sits so that it completely covers the Climbing zone. The cuboid would be able to move up and down, but not move horizontally or rotate.