Powerplay Offseason: 2023

Season Rules

Watch the video to understand the FIRST Tech Challenge game, POWERPLAY, for the 2023-2024 season. The detailed game manuals can be found on FIRST's official website.

Season Robots

Robot V1

Robot V1 was our very first robot, and it was a large one. The robot, being a goBILDA Strafer v5 Chassis, was 18" x 17" including wheels. This left very little room for error while driving between poles during the TeleOp (teleoperation) phase since the gap between pole junctions were 23".

It featured a single viper slide motor, mounted to a goBILDA 1120 Series 10-hole U-Channel in the center. The purpose of this viper slide was to hold a claw that would be powered by servos.

In the back, there was a 12V 3000mAh Battery  connected to a control hub, which was then connected to an Expansion Hub in turn. As this was our very first robot, its wiring was less than ideal. It was soon disassembled, as its size was far too big.

Robot V2

Robot V2 was our second robot after Robot V1, designed and built to be smaller than it with a much smaller Mecanum Drivetrain clocking in at 16" x 15" including wheels. We also planned the size to fit the robot between the junctions at a diagonal with an inch to spare (the robot's diagonal was ~21.93").

It features two viper slides, both mounted to a 8-hole U-Channel in the center. The viper slides are connected by a set of plates, which mounts the newer claw design (Claw V2).

For vision, it supports a Logitech C270 Webcam that is used to detach AprilTags through EasyOpenCV

It also has a completely redone wiring system that was more flexible. It allowed you to replace our 12V 3000mAh Batteries with one other, meaning that with a few spare batteries, we were able to be able to use a charged robot constantly. It also utilizes more zip ties to hold wires together against plates and goBILDA 1120 Series U-Channels. Since the robot's mechanical parts and structure is completely symmetrical, all motors and servos on the left side of the robot are connected to the Expansion Hub (since it is on the left side of the robot), and all motors and servos on the right side of the robot are connected to the Control Hub (since it is on the rightside of the robot). Some wiring is securely attached underneath the robot through zip ties to hide the mess of wires. All cable management has been done with preventing cable stress in mind.

Season Attachments

Claw V1

Claw V1 was our first ever claw, designed for [1st robot name], and it was powered by a singular goBILDA 2000 Series Dual Mode Speed Servo, meaning that it could comfortably be attached onto a singular viper slide. Due to the lack of proper parts, we were forced to make this makeshift design. 

The speed servo is attached to an 8mm goBILDA 8mm REX™ Shaft, which is then attached onto a goBILDA Sonic Hub. The Sonic Hub connects to the arm, which is a goBILDA Grid Plate that is connected to goBILDA Steel Flat Brackets. This claw needs gripping (like surgical tubing) to hold the cones. In addition, the screws at the top at bottom that are holding the 8mm REX™ Shaft in place cannot be completely screwed on, since that prevents the gears from moving. This means that the screws will loosen quickly after use, meaning that they need be manually tightened often.

Claw V2

Claw V2, designed for Robot V2, was powered by two goBILDA 2000 Series Dual Mode Torque Servos instead of a singular goBILDA 2000 Series Dual Mode Speed Servo. It was built to be mounted onto two viper slides. From the viper slides, a chain of 4 goBILDA Grid Plates are connected to the claw

Once we received proper parts, we were able to make our next claw, which was much simpler in design, but much more effective.

Each torque servo is attached to goBILDA 1900 series Single Servo Arm. The servo arm in turn is connected to a goBILDA 1139 Series 3 x 7 Grid Plate , which is then attached onto a goBILDA 1137 Series Steel Flat Grid Bracket. Each bracket holds the cone at two points (and since there are two brackets, 4 points at total), but since it is made out of metal and is therefore not flexible, we used some foam to grip the cones.

When moving the viper slide that holds the claw, it is important to note that if you pause or cancel between viper slide movements, it cause a rough and unclean movement. When using a preset button that automatically moves the viper slide one of 4 positions (ground junction, small junction, medium junction, and big junction) using encoders, the movement will be much more smoother. Thus, it is recommended that you use the four viper slide preset buttons if you want to move it. Also note that due to the vertical motors in the front and sensors/cameras that can be mounted onto it, the claw is forcibly closed whenever a viper slide movement command is executed to prevent it from hitting them.

another robot video.mp4

Season Wiring Diagrams