Ozo Orbit

No penalty points will be assessed if Ozo leaves the field and does not stop at the location marked "Destination 2".

These markers have a reversable tip.

Before filling the tip, open the marker and see if it is the chisel end.  If it is the bullet end, pull it out and reinsert it correctly (you can do it after, but it is messy).

Watch this video to learn how to fill the tip with ink. 

You may use either.  And both will be available at the competition.   We are still learning the differences between them.  

What we have noticed so far: it seems that the robot code executes more smoothly at times in Blockly. However, the Editor will allow the team to see which blocks of code are actively executing, which can be handy for debugging a program.  The organization of the various blocks doesn't seem to be exactly the same in both, which may be problematic if you are switching between them. 

We won't know if the program glitches during the competition. 

We will have tested the challenge field, and will be making substantial efforts to minimize the chance of glitches happening due to field design.

The Editor platform is a relatively new release, which seems to have some upgrades compared to Blockly.   One significant difference is the ability to show which block of code is actively executing.  This is very helpful for understanding if your code is doing what you expected.

As the season progresses, we intend to publish more training resources that will help teams practice and understand the types of challenges they should be prepared to solve at competition.

There is no requirement to follow the lines on the mat.  

No, there is no penalty. 

We will not be looking at student code unless there is a need to break a tie.

Students will not be allowed to modify the competition field other than by adding color-code stickers in certain zones.

In our experience, the type of failure described is due to inconsistent line boundaries at the corner.   Teams should review the materials which discuss what corners are tolerated by the robot vs. not.

Further, the competition field will be created by printing precise digital images, and will be tested before being finalized to screen for potential problems such as this.

If choosing to compete in Zone 1A using color codes at the tournament, students will be provided sheets of color codes like those in the Quick Start Kit.  Those codes have the name of the code printed along with the colors, like this:

Color Code example

No.  Our intention is that students will use stickers to add color codes to a line on the competition mat.  Those color code stickers will be included in the Quick Start Kit, and for sale separately if teams need more for practice.