As the FTC-Iowa Championship gets closer, we’d like to share some important information with you. Please share this entire email with your team; all team members/coaches/mentors are responsible for all of the information in this document.
1. Location:
· The Iowa Memorial Union (IMU) is located on The University of Iowa Campus in Iowa City
· In "Attachments mentioned in e-mail.pdf" has a map of campus.
2. Parking
·Short-term parking (for robot unloading) will be available next to the IMU along Madison Street. The meters will be hooded, but please keep in mind, this is short-term parking (i.e. less than 10 minutes.)
·Long-term parking (greater than 10 minutes) will be available at two locations:
o No-Charge Parking will be in the Hancher Parking lot, on the West Side of the Iowa River. There is a pedestrian bridge that connects Hancher parking lot to the IMU area. Busses and large vans are encouraged to park at Hancher.
o Charged Parking is available at the IMU Parking Ramp, directly across Madison Street from the IMU. The rate is nearly $1.00/hr.
3. Consent Forms: FIRST & University of Iowa
All FTC Coaches, mentors, volunteers and students attending the FTC-Iowa Championship are required to complete two consent forms: one for FIRST and the second is for The University of Iowa. The forms, located at the end of this document, must be signed by both the student and/or a legal guardian if the student is under the age of 18 at the time of the competition. Please save yourself time and headache and complete this paperwork completed before you arrive.
If your team attended a scrimmage this season, and your student/mentors/coaches completed a FIRST consent form, they will not have to submit another copy. However, a University of Iowa consent form must be submitted.
Blank copies of these consent forms are located in "Attachments mentioned in e-mail.pdf"
4. Safety
Everyone is required to wear safety glasses in the pit area, around the practice field and around the playing fields. Teams are required to bring their own safety glasses for their members, coaches, mentors and visitors. Additionally, please make sure you wear closed-toe shoes at all times of the day. We will be enforcing and monitoring these safety items.
Other safety items:
·Power tools are not allowed in the Iowa Memorial Union. Teams may bring battery powered screwdrivers, as long as they are not used to drill or to grind.
·Soldering, gluing or brazing methods are not allowed in the FTC-Iowa Championship. Teams may do them outside of the building.
·Please review section 3.4 of the “Get Over It” Game Manual.
5. Security
Teams should never leave anything of value unattended at the FTC-Iowa Championship. For added protection, it is recommended that teams use security locks/cables to attach computers to a large object such as a table. Please label all robot batteries, battery chargers, controllers, etc. with your team number. Turn-in lost & found items to the Information Desk in the Pit Area. We are not responsible for lost or stolen items.
6. Site Layout
We will be using multiple rooms at the IMU and it can be confusing. A map of the IMU facility is attached; please take some time to become familiar with the layout of the building and where the events will be occurring.
Please note: many of the events will take place on different levels of the IMU building. Please factor in time and use caution when using the elevators and/or the stairs.
7. What should we bring?
Mandatory Equipment List
·Laptop computer with a battery that can power the unit for at least 20 minutes. Teams will be able to use their laptops while in the pit areas.
·Samantha Module – Please review the proper Samantha mounting instructions prior to the competition.
·USB A-B cable to connect the computer to the NXT
·Safety glasses – Anyone in the Pit Area, must wear safety glasses at all times.
·Closed toed shoes
·Power strip and power extension cable
·A printed copy of the “Get Over It” Game Manual
·Hand-tools to perform maintenance/repairs on your robot between matches.
Recommended Equipment List:
- Disposable or individually chargeable “AA” batteries for the NXT to backup your primary NXT battery
- One or more spare 12V TETRIX batteries
- Spare fuses for the external battery pack
- Robot box or cart to transport robot, computer and tools between the pit area and the playing fields
What not to bring:
Please do not bring your teams' router. This will cause interference with the router/network we have set up and you will be asked to turn it off.
8. Team Check-in
Team check-in will occur in the Hubbard Commons Entrance of the IMU. There will be signs posted to help you direct you to team check-in.
·Friday Evening: Teams are required to check-in and be inspected on Friday, Feb. 25. Team check-in will be available from 1:30pm-8:00pm. The pits will be open until 9:00pm on Friday, February 25. Food will be available, for purchase in the River Room from 4:30pm-6:30pm. All teams must be checked-in by 8:00pm on Friday, February 26.
·Saturday Morning: On Saturday, teams will need to re-check in between 7:00am-7:30am.
·Each team has an assigned inspection times (hardware) and an assigned judging time. (See page 8) Teams who make additional modifications on their robots, may need to do a brief re-inspection on Saturday morning.
·Teams will turn in their engineering notebooks at the time of check-in, as this will enable the judges to review the materials before the beginning of the judging sessions. They will be returned to your team after the judging has concluded.
·Teams will also be expected to turn in Consent Forms when they check in. (See item #5.)
9. Teams will receive an information packet at check-in. Please review this packet thoroughly in the event that it contains some last minute changes to schedules, procedures, etc.
10. Divisions
For the 2011 FTC-Iowa Championship, teams will be divided into Divisions. Please see "Team times.pdf"
11. Engineering Notebook
·If your team is keeping an electronic notebook, please remember to print all pages, prior to coming to the event. Printers will not be available to your team.
·When your team checks-in, they will receive a set of “award stickers”, which will not damage the pages of the engineering notebook. These stickers will help the judges during their deliberation time.
Please place the sticker on the page which best exemplifies the criteria for the following awards:
--> Motivate Award
--> Connect Award
--> Rockwell Collins Innovate Award
--> PTC Design Award
--> Think Award
Teams will need to submit their engineering notebook on Friday evening. In the East Lobby, between rooms #179 & #181, will be a staffed table for teams to turn in their notebooks. Notebooks must be turned in by Friday after your team has been inspected. Notebooks must be submitted no later than 8:00pm.
·For more information about the engineering notebook, please review Section 5.0 of the “Get Over It” Game Manual
12. Pit Area
·Each team will be provided a 10’x10’ area to use as their “pit” space. These will be located on the 2nd of the IMU. (see attached map)
·Due to the nature of the flooring, in the pit area, we request that any work that is likely to create significant dust or debris (like drilling) should be performed on the “Pit Work Area”, which will be located near the Pit Administration desk. Any work likely to cause sparks (dremel work) or strong odors (gluing), will need to be done outside of the IMU.
·Teams may bring battery powered screwdrivers, as long as they are not used to drill or grind.
·Please do not remove the numbers from your pit area, as they help the judges, queuing staff, and other event officials find you.
·Experienced teams suggest bringing a tub or trash bag for storing coats, as there is no coat check available.
·You are more than welcome to bring items (eg: team pins/flare) to exchange with other teams.
·Power will be provided at each of the pit areas. Please check your power source upon arrival and contact the Pit Administration Desk if something is not working.
13. Practice Field
We will have a practice field set up for teams and are waiting for their matches and/or judging times. This will be located in the 2nd Floor Ballroom Foyer area (see map). We will have a sign-up sheet near the practice field. Please be considerate of others while using this field. Everyone near the practice area must wear safety glasses; including spectators, coaches and players.
14. Robot Inspection Schedule
Teams are assigned times for robot hardware inspection and robot software inspection.
Please arrive early for each of these activities; teams missing their appointment times may not pass inspection prior to their first scheduled qualification match.
- Robot Hardware Inspection: Robot Hardware inspections will be performed in Rooms #181 or #179, depending on your team’s division. Teams are assigned a time and an inspection station. Please arrive early for your “appointment” and bring the following items:
- Robot
- Samantha Module (installed)
- NXT (installed)
- External battery (installed)
- Robot inspection list
- One or two students who are familiar with the robot
- A maximum of three team members, please.
- Robot Software Inspection: Robot Software inspections will be performed in the same rooms as Hardware Inspection. Your team will go immediately to Software Inspection after Hardware Inspection. (If you do not pass Hardware Inspection, please continue to Software Inspection, prior to being re-inspected with Hardware.)
- The three person drive team. (Three team members max!)
- Field Inspection: Field inspections will be performed in the Main Lounge of the IMU. During these inspections, robots will be tested to see if they can connect to the field’s wireless communication system, via their Samantha Module.
The field inspections will occur immediately following the software inspections.
- After passing all three inspections (Hardware, Software, and Field) you will receive a colored dot to put on your robot. Please put this directly on the white team sticker that was placed on your bot when you checked-in for Hardware Inspections.
- YOUR ROBOT MUST PASS INSPECTIONS IN ORDER TO COMPETE.
15. Judging Information
Each team is assigned a 10-minute slot for formal judging (example: 8:05-8:15am).
Formal judging is an important part of the competition. Teams must attend their designate judging session. Teams should bring their robots to the judging session. Teams should have a brief presentation to begin the discussion. The remainder of the time will be spent answering questions from the judges.
At least 10 minutes prior to your teams’ designated judging time, your team must check-in with the judging crew on 3rd floor, in the Big Ten Lobby (see IMU map). Please do not enter the judging rooms until your team is instructed to do so. Each interview will end 10 minutes after they begin. Please keep in mind, teams arriving late for their interviews will not receive additional time.
All members of the team should attend the judging session; it is not required for coaches to be in attendance. Coaches are encouraged to attend, but they are not required to attend the judging session. Coaches should be silent observers, unless a judge addresses a question to the coach.
Spectators and video cameras are not allowed in the judging rooms.
Please keep in mind: this is the time for the students to show off their accomplishments to the judges.
16. Coaches & Driver’s Meeting
The Drivers/Coaches meeting will cover Referee and FTA expectations of teams during their time on the competitions fields. During this meeting, all aspects of what is expected of the drive team, student coaches, adult coaches, mentors and spectators, while your team is competing on the fields at the Iowa Championship.
This meeting is mandatory for the student drivers and student coaches.
It will be at 10:15 in the Bijou Theatre on 1st Floor.
17. Opening Ceremony
The Opening Ceremony will start at 10:45am in the Main Ballroom of the IMU. It will last approximately 30 minutes. All teams and spectators are encouraged to attend the opening ceremony. The pits will not be open during the Opening Ceremony.
18. Robot Match Procedure
On Saturday, at 7:30am, after all of the teams have re-checked-in, we will generate the match schedule for the qualification matches. (This will be distributed to the teams via the Pit Administration Desk.) Please designate one person, on your team, to monitor match progress on the playing fields. Match times are estimates; we will progress through matches as quickly as we can. If we are ahead of schedule, we will not wait for the scheduled start time: we will start as soon as the teams and robots are ready.
A few things to keep in mind:
·Before Arriving at the Championship: Please review section 3.6 “Event Day Overview” of the Game Manual.
·In the Pit Area:
o NXT has an “auto sleep” mode for inactivity. Please disable or turn off this function.
o Disable the sleep mode on the computer.
o Charge your batteries as much as possible.
· In the Queuing Area:
o Report to the queuing area on time, even if you are having technical problems. Technical help will be available in the queuing areas if teams are having trouble with this connection.
o Arrive in the queuing area for your assigned playing field 10 minutes prior to the start of the match ahead of yours.
o We will be running two fields, for each division. Odd numbered matches will be played on Field #1 and even numbered matches will be played on field #2. Therefore, if your team is participating in match #10, arrive in the queuing area in the Main Ballroom five minutes before the start of Match #8.
o Queuing areas will have power strips for team use.
o Pay attention to the action on your assigned playing field. Move to the alliance station at the playing field as soon as teams from the previous match clear the playing field.
o Make sure your Samantha is connected and working.
· On the Playing Field:
o Red Alliance robots are placed on the field first.
o Blue Alliance robots are placed on the field after the red alliance robots are on the field.
o Perform the following checks (as a minimum) each time your robot is placed on the playing field: 1. Pre-load batons; 2. Turn on the switch for the external battery; 3. Select and execute the autonomous program on the NXT.
o Pay attention to the instructions from the referees and the game announcer. Delays will occur if teams do not respond to their instructions.
o Each set of fields will have a central FCS Operator.
o The game announcer will start the autonomous and tele-op portions of the match with a countdown: “3-2-1 Go!” The FCS operator will then click on the FTC start/resume match button on “Go!”
o Drivers may pick-up their Logitech Controllers when instructed by the referees/FTA or game announcer, typically after the autonomous period has been scored.
o Pay attention to the referees and the game announcer so that we can start the tele-op portion of the match without delay.
o Referees will announce when teams may remove their robots from the playing fields. Please clear the area as quickly as possible so that teams for the next match can set up.
o Return alliance flags to the queuing area.
19. Matches Line-Up
Once again, the match schedule will be generated around 7:30am, once all of the teams have checked-in.
- Matches Immediately After Opening Ceremony: The first set of matches (Matches #1) for each division, will start immediately following the conclusion of the Opening Ceremony (11:15am). The teams for Match #1 will need to be queued up during Opening Ceremony. (This will be 8 teams.) Members of the drive teams, for these eight teams, will be watching the opening ceremonies from the sidelines near the playing fields. Teams will connect to the wireless network while the Get Over It! game animation is being projected on the screen at the end of the Opening Ceremony. The first match will start immediately following the end of the game animation.
Teams participating in matches #2 & #3, please report to the queuing areas in the Main Lounge by 11:00am. Teams will establish their WiFi connections at the end of the Opening Ceremony. These teams may watch the Opening Ceremony from the bleachers.
- Volunteer Break: We will be having a brief break for volunteers on the field from 12:30pm-1:30pm. Teams participating in the first two matches after the Volunteer Break need to report to the playing field by 1:15pm so that we can start the match at 1:30pm. Teams participating in the third or fourth matches after the break need to report to the queuing area at 1:25pm.
20. Media Pass
The area around the playing fields can and will be very congested. In order to prevent over-congestion, each team will receive one “media pass”. We will only allow those people with the “driver” buttons (2) or “coach” buttons (1) to be near the playing fields. All other team members must be in the stands or in the Pit area.
Each field will have designated security to enforce these restrictions. If you do not have a media pass, a driver button or a coach button, please do not attempt to get near the fields.
21. Dining
The River Room dining facility, located on the IMU’s 1st Floor, will be open on Saturday, from 7:00am-6:00pm for teams, coaches, and spectators. Teams are responsible for their own meals.
Teams are welcome to bring in their own food. However, food cannot be consumed in the pit area.
22. Alliance Selection & Elimination Matches
All teams will be able to participate in at least five qualifying matches. After they have concluded, this will begin the Alliance Selection Process for the Elimination Matches. Elimination Matches will begin 15 minutes after the Alliance Selection has taken place. Please review sections 3.6.7 and 3.6.8 of the Get Over It! Game Manual. Please keep in mind, it may be confusing, but the volunteers will help your team through the process.
23. Get Over It! Concluding Ceremony
The Concluding Ceremony will start a few minutes after the completion of the Finalist Matches, at approximately 6:15pm. The Judged Awards, trophies, and medallions will be during this ceremony.
24. “Gracious Professionalism”
The FTC-Iowa Championship is an exciting day. A key way to make this day successful is to remember the FIRST Credo: “Gracious Professionalism”. Please review section 1.4 of the Get Over It! Game Manual about Gracious Professionalism.
The volunteers have worked very hard to make the FTC-Iowa Championship event a good event. Please remember to respect the volunteers and thank them for their time.
Don't hesitate to send an email FTC.Iowa@gmail.com if you have questions. My cell phone number is (319) 244-8561 in the event you need to talk to me Friday or Saturday.
Thanks and see you on Friday, February 25th!
Rebecca Whitaker & FTC-Iowa Planning team
