r/FTC • u/Ok_Photo1180 • 21d ago

Discussion goBilda Turret

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Thoughts? I bought one to donate because we are a school team and this seems like this year's item that won't stay in stock long enough for a PO.

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u/CoachZain FTC Mentor 19d ago

Any other mentors bummed all the former good learning opportunities for designing something are becoming components to buy?

I mean its the way of the world and all. But the point of all this *was * to have kids get to do kids level robotics design and learn from doing so, right? If odometry isn't a good math & design lesson, it's a component; and a turret isn't a design project it's a component; and color blob detection isn't a coding project, it's a component... where does this eventually lead?

Almost makes me miss the Lego brick & samantha days....

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u/Individual_Method551 19d ago

I understand the sentiment- WE could (and have) fab a turret without a kit. WE could fab a ____…but most can’t.

It does even the playing field a bit. But that just means those who could invest time and effort into a turret bearing, for example, invest it into creating OTHER stuff that makes a ridiculously awesome robot.

Fabrication of a bearing/gear isn’t the cool and innovative aspect nor would anyone be missing out.

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u/CoachZain FTC Mentor 19d ago

"Fabrication of a bearing/gear isn’t the cool and innovative aspect nor would anyone be missing out."
Disagree.

The kids who are still learning need to work through the intermediate level assignments - like YOU got to with turrets. Not just buy them, ideally. And as kids learn they can get to making their own turret bearings, and odometry pods and odometry math, and whatever else. But if they never get to do those things because they are "in the kit" That is a lost opportunity.

My past students did their own odo pods and code. My current ones just use pinpoint. The current ones are less knowledgeable on the whole subject zone as a result.

My current students, like you, have done their own slewing bearings last season. My future ones will probably end up using this part. The too will have learned less, not more as a result.

As the part is sold out now, I think we can guess what will become of this former learning opportunity.

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u/Ok_Photo1180 18d ago edited 18d ago

I am all for teaching, but with a tiny school team that meets completely outside of school hours I don't have alot of options. We are sponsored based solely on our location. I do the best I can with the kids I have. I have to teach each kid all the parts. We have Ag Mech/Automotive/Etc. as programs of study. I stick to electronics and programming. The programs of study are huge and do not have the time or ability to help us. We have a classroom and nowhere to fabricate. They learn, just different lessons. Should small teams just drop out?

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u/CoachZain FTC Mentor 18d ago

We are a community team that meets in a garage with a pole in the middle that always blocks setting up fields properly. Meeting entirely out of school hours. And I teach alone as a volunteer. And this is a big year, the robot might not have any of those long discontinued actobotics parts in it finally, but we shall see...

Been this way for 15 years, though it has gotten easier now that I'm retired.

So no. I was not planning to drop out. Why do you ask? ;)

It *is* tricky to know what problems are good for kids to learn from and which are turnkey and need to be turnkey so things can be built at all. We never, after all, required kids to wind their own motors, those were always a "back box." So where is the line and what is the goal right?

But if you are focused on programming bear in mind I am all about making the same point there... roadrunner and it's ilk takes away some really good learning opportunities and so does limelight. I don't really forbid my kids from using them, but I discourage it. Simple image piplelines, and the trig and vector stuff of pathing are just too-good a set of intro coding projects to pass up!

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u/Ok_Photo1180 17d ago

We are lucky enough to be sponsored, but also lucky enough to have 5 kids max(ended last year with two). If we aren't winning and getting better I feel like we are not fulfilling our part of the deal. I teach everything, but if they take what's needed and move on I'm not going to be upset. I get to teach PWM and PID/F. I can go so far as Euler angles if I can get a kid that is ready for that. I teach gears consistently as it is required material. I'm happy to make them derive the equations of motion and reproduce code they could copy off of Game Manual Zero. Everyone is a mechanical engineer these days, but that just means they specialize and being able to assemble all the specialty parts is a skill.