I agree. Gyro sensor was just not consistent. A balanced robot using
odometry was always better. Color/light sensors always worked for us in the
past 4 years. No issues with any of the tables at any tournament. No
calibration was ever needed.

On Fri, Nov 9, 2018 at 10:04 AM Frank Levine <[log in to unmask]> wrote:

> My team totally gave up on the gyro - the 3* accuracy was just too
> inconsistent.  They found that with the right tires, odometry is definitely
> "better" for them.
>
> I can also confirm that shielded light sensors work pretty well.  We've
> used them every year (and will be using them this year too)
>
> -Frank
>
>
> On Fri, Nov 9, 2018 at 7:34 AM Jeff Borek <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
>
>> I agree with Skip, notably conditions will be different and mechanical
>> shielding helps.  I’d just add that what worked for my team last year (I
>> never used a formal calibration routine with my 4th and 5th graders):
>>
>> You probably can take a quick reading over black and white on a
>> competition table [port view of on the brick] on the morning of the
>> competition.  If your tournament doesn't allow you access to the table you
>> can use some time in your practice round and then make necessary changes to
>> set-points in the programs for the later rounds.
>>
>> Also probably obvious but my team found this year that is better to look
>> for white than black given the dark background of most of the mat.  [Alas]
>> they have given up on light sensor (and gyro) because they find odometry
>> "better" this year.
>>
>> On Fri, Nov 9, 2018 at 6:44 AM Skip Morrow <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
>>
>>> Yes, you should absolutely expect the lighting conditions to be
>>> different on each table you play on. Take that from experience! Now, that
>>> doesn't mean it WILL be different--just that you should EXPECT it to be
>>> different. That includes practice tables being different from the
>>> competition tables and different from your tables at home/school. There are
>>> different strategies for dealing with the variances, including mechanical
>>> (shielding), calibrations, and strategies that avoid relying on the sensor.
>>>
>>> .
>>>
>>>
>>> On Fri, Nov 9, 2018 at 5:13 AM LR <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
>>>
>>>> Experts ... We are using light sensor in our model... We are testing
>>>> under the normal household "White Day Light" lights to sense the white
>>>> color on the poster.....Will there be any color variation on the
>>>> competition ....meaning how to tackle the Reflected Light Intensity
>>>> variation from household light to the competition place lights.  Any
>>>> suggestion is appreciated.
>>>>
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