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 Organizations / Canada / rtlToronto / 6018
6017  |  6019
Subject: 
rtlToronto X: Going Downhill Fast
Newsgroups: 
lugnet.org.ca.rtltoronto
Date: 
Tue, 17 Dec 2002 17:53:06 GMT
Viewed: 
593 times
  
"Calum Tsang" <tsangc@mie.utoronto.ca> wrote in message
news:H78y2D.LvE@lugnet.com...

This is going downhill fast.

rtlToronto: Going downhill fast.


Hmmm...  you know how people suggest basic, vanilla line-following as a
robotics event?  How about offroad line-following?

rtlToronto: Steeplechase

A simple way to start would involve painting or taping a black line on
standard brown corrugated cardboard.  But the line may follow slopes of,
say, 45 degrees up, down, or transverse (wicked grin).  We could build
the course using blue tubs or phone books; make it modular, and set it
up kinda like Project X patterns; define a course by saying "start at
level 3, path goes up to level 4, turns left, descends to level 2, turns
right, crosses a 45 degree cross-slope, etc...".

As as alternative, with enough 48x48 basplates, we could use those.

Then, to make things more complicated, we could add obstacles like
walls.

Or:  imagine taking a few 48x48s, building a raised black 2 or 3 stud
wide "tape" path down the centre, a short wall around the perimeter, and
fill it with white, light and medium gray 1x1 plates from mosaics.... or
larger bricks.  Or 40 tooth technic gears.

We could list all the potential obstacles beforehand; just that people
won't know for sure how many of each, or in what order, so that sensing
your environment and reacting to it becomes more important.

IE:  Possible obstacles:

Up slopes of up to 1-in-X grade
Down slopes of up to 1-in-Y grade
Transverse slopes of up to 1-in-Z grade
Walls 4 or 6 studs thick and up to, say, 20 bricks high
   or, to make it easier, perhaps brick pyramids of 1:1 or 1:2 slope
"Gravel pits"
Turns - curved or angular, up to 90 degrees in distance D
Descending cliffs.

Or, Getting (tr)ickier:
Piles of debris blocking the route - the tape goes under.  Eg: piles of
Lego, rice, tire irons, or other clean stuff.
Trays of slippery stuff, like a mechanical grease, or water, or
whatever.
Warning signs on the route indicating what's coming next so that
adaptable bots can deploy different gears or wheel sets or wall
climbers.
Maybe slab cakes transverse across the route? Awwwwww....

The only consistency is that a clear, visible black line against a light
background traces through the whole thing, and like steeplechase, each
official obstacle is a minimum distance from the previous.


We make the course a standard width, say 32 or 48 studs.  You have to
follow the course; ie - no shortcuts across non-course areas.

If we really like head-to-head and have the resources, we could always
build 2 or more identical courses and have the race be to a flag in the
middle (no, you don't have to pick it up).

We'll probably need maximum size and *weight* rules.

Destroying the course could be ruled to be OK if we like - bulldozing
walls?

Jeff E



Message is in Reply To:
  Re: 10024 - Red Baron
 
"Calum Tsang" <tsangc@mie.utoronto.ca> wrote in message news:H78y2D.LvE@lugnet.com... (...) Build a working LEGO Intamin AG Giant-Drop* for hamsters? Whoever can drop the furthest without killing it wins? Iain * - Drop Zone (22 years ago, 17-Dec-02, to lugnet.org.ca.rtltoronto)

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