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The Competition Field

The competition field is where all matches are played, but there are many things to know about how it operates.

Most information you will ever need will be covered at the driver meeting, which will happen the morning before qualification matches start. However, I will cover some of it here.

Calibration

Before qualification matches, there will be dedicated "field calibration" time.

ALWAYS use this time for camera calibration. Lighting is always different at each event, it is very noticeable and can impact robot performance.

You will have no other time to do this, so unless you want to frantically calibrate cameras at the driver station before your first match, make it your top priority.

Driver Stations & Connectivity

Before a match, you will plug the driver station laptop into FMS ethernet, which will allow the FMS to control the FRC Driver Station software. There are also outlets to charge the driver station laptop if needed.

Make sure you follow driver station preparation checklist to mitigate any potential connectivity issues.

Driver Station Display

At the top left of your driver station, there is a display that will tell you your connectivity status. During the match, this display will change to display information such as the match time, score, and other game-specific info (the drive coach should be looking at this, the large display has a small amount of lag).

These are the possible display messages and their meanings (as far as I remember, I don't see documentation anywhere):

Message Meaning Possible Fix
Connect PC Connect the Driver Station laptop Replug the DS ethernet in
No DS Laptop connected, FRC Driver Station software not detected Restart FRC Driver Station and replug ethernet
No Radio Laptop and DS Software connected, robot radio not connected to FMS Wait, get FTA if persists
No RIO Laptop, DS, and Radio connected, booted RoboRIO not detected by radio Wait, get FTA if persists
Ready Driver Station, robot, and radio are connected properly

If you ever have a connectivity or robot issue before a match, visibly put your thumb down. An FTA will come to assist you, and the match will not start until the issue is handled.

Apollo's Connectivity Routine

Because of the many issues I've faced with FRC robots and software, my personal sequence before each match was as follows:

  1. Put robot on the field and make sure it's aligned properly for autonomous.
  2. Close FRC Driver Station (for clean boot, I've had issues where the robot doesn't enable at all or e-stops unless restarted).
  3. Close NetworkTables viewer (Elastic, Glass, Shuffleboard, etc. Sometimes info persists from past boots and doesn't select properly).
  4. Plug laptop into FMS ethernet.
  5. Open FRC Driver Station.
  6. Make sure controllers are connected with the correct IDs, and press a few buttons to make sure they show input.
  7. Make sure robot is connected (look at the driver station display for status and fixes if needed).
  8. Restart robot code (the first boot can sometimes have issues).
  9. Open NetworkTables viewer while robot code restarts (ensures proper selection).
  10. When connected, select autonomous routine (make sure there is a green check mark next to the chooser box, a red X means it's not selected properly).
  11. Stand behind the white line and wait for the match to start.

Again, if there are any issues when setting things up for match play, or the robot isn't set up yet, visibly display a thumbs down for the field staff.

The FMS

The FMS, or Field Management System, is what controls matches at competition.

Volunteers called FTAs (First Technical Advisors) control the FMS and oversee robot and driver station connectivity. You can ask them for help before a match if needed, but sometimes they may go to you if they see a problem.

More details can be found at the docs.