The Override pin is not a uniform-diameter cylinder. It tapers along its length, with a wide base ring, a narrow neck, and a wider mid-section. An intake design that assumes a single "pin diameter" will fail the moment a pin enters in a different orientation.
| Pin dimension | Inches | mm | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Total height | 6.50 | 165.0 | Glossary agrees |
| Height of lower (base) section | 2.93 | 74.5 | From Figure A5 |
| Height of upper (top) section | 3.02 | 76.8 | From Figure A5 |
| Height of base ring | 0.64 | 16.2 | Bottom flare; sits on field |
| Maximum (base) outer diameter | 3.16 | 80.3 | Widest point |
| Mid-section diameter | 2.35 | 59.6 | The "cylindrical" portion |
| Narrowest neck diameter | 1.40 | 35.6 | Where two halves meet |
Cups are conical — wider at the rim (top) than at the base. They sit either gray-side-up or clear-side-up depending on which alliance loaded them.
| Cup dimension | Inches | mm | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Total height | 6.48 | 164.5 | Glossary says ~6.5″ (close enough) |
| Rim outer diameter (top) | 3.16 | 80.2 | Widest point. Glossary says 3.15″ |
| Base diameter | 2.32 | 59.0 | Stable footprint |
| Pin (max) | Pin (min) | Cup (rim) | Cup (base) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Diameter | 3.16″ | 1.40″ | 3.16″ | 2.32″ |
| Height | 6.50″ | 6.50″ | 6.48″ | 6.48″ |
| Goal type | Height (inches) | mm |
|---|---|---|
| Alliance-colored goal (4 of these) | 3.25 | 82.5 |
| Short neutral goal (4 of these) | 5.77 | 146.5 |
| Tall center goal (1 of this) | 8.77 | 222.7 |
An arm or lift must reach all three heights cleanly while holding a pin or cup. The 8.77″ tall center goal is the demanding one — combined with the 6.5″ tall element, your release height needs to be roughly 15″ clear.
For a pinch-point intake with two opposing wheels (each of diameter D, axles spaced S apart), the gap between wheel surfaces is:
Set the Gap to be ~25–40% smaller than the element diameter at the contact zone. That gives the flex wheel enough compression to grip without crushing.
The pin's mid-section is its longest cylindrical region (about 3 inches tall). Targeting the mid-section as the contact zone is reliable.
Both sizes work geometrically. The choice between them comes down to:
Cups have a 3.16″ rim OD and 2.32″ base OD. A pinch-point intake sized for the pin mid-section (1.65″ gap with 3″ wheels) will not swallow the cup — the cup's base alone is wider than the gap.
Three options for accommodating cups:
Two flex wheels rotate inward on either side of an element, compressing it as it enters. Element gets pinned against the intake floor or against opposing wheels.
Override fit: good for pins (mid-section is the natural contact zone). Workable for cups if the gap is opened. Single most common V5RC intake pattern.
Watts: 1 motor for both wheels (gear-coupled) — ~11W in the 88W R10a budget.
Trade-off: only handles one element at a time once gripped (actually beneficial for SG6 — possession is capped at 1 pin + 1 cup).
An arm-mounted claw closes around the element from above. Active (motor + pneumatics) or passive (rubber band + lift trigger).
Override fit: handles pins and cups equally well because both are 6.5″ tall and roughly 3″ max diameter. The top of the element is what gets grabbed.
Watts: 1 motor for the claw + arm motors. ~11W if motorized; 0W if pneumatic.
Trade-off: approach trajectory matters more than a roller pinch. The robot must be lined up over the element. Slower cycle time per piece.
A tray or hopper at the base of a lift arm. Rubber-band tensioned pivot. As the lift rises past a trigger height, the tray flips, dumping the element into a goal.
Override fit: limited. Override scoring is per-half pins/cups placed in goals — one element per match-load. A tray-tip mechanism that dumps multiple elements is over-built for the 1+1 possession cap. Useful pattern from past games (Tipping Point, In the Zone) where you carried 5+ rings/cubes; less so here.
Watts: 0W (passive) — nothing wasted, nothing earned.
Trade-off: mechanism complexity and weight for a benefit Override doesn't reward.
A sprung flap that lets elements enter under the lift arm but not exit. As the arm rises, gravity pulls the element inward; on release, it slides into the goal.
Override fit: excellent for cups (geometry rolls them naturally). Workable for pins (taper helps them slide in base-first).
Watts: 0W.
Trade-off: requires an active grip mechanism elsewhere on the lift to actually score, otherwise the element just falls out during transport.
Two opposed flywheels that grab and shoot or fling. Common in Spin Up / Over Under era for game-piece launching.
Override fit: not relevant. Override pins/cups are placed by hand or by precision arm into goals; there's no scoring opportunity that involves projectile motion.
The Spartan V1 hero bot uses pattern 1 (side-roller pinch) with a configurable gap that handles both pins and cups. See Spartan Hero Bot for the as-designed mechanism. For V2 polish, see override-secondary-mechanisms.
At match start, all pins are placed in known orientations (standing, on platform, etc. — see Field Overview, page 9 of manual). During the match, pins can end up in arbitrary orientations: kicked over, tipped at angles, propped against a goal, partially fallen.
Your intake design has to make a choice: handle one orientation reliably and refuse the others (waste cycles), or handle all three at lower reliability per attempt.
Per SG6, your robot can possess at most 1 pin + 1 cup at any time. That changes intake design priorities:
| Pattern | Pin handling | Cup handling | Watts | Build complexity | Best fit |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Side-roller pinch | Excellent (mid-section compress) | Workable with wider gap | ~11W (1 motor) | Medium | V1 hero bot — balanced reliability |
| Top-down claw | Good (grabs top section) | Excellent (grabs rim) | 0–11W | Medium-high | Teams prioritizing cup work |
| Passive flip tray | Possible | Possible | 0W | High | Skip for Override (over-engineered) |
| Flap/ramp passive | Workable (taper helps) | Excellent (rolls naturally) | 0W | Low | V1 simple, requires separate grip elsewhere |
| Flywheel | N/A | N/A | ~22W (2 motors) | High | Skip — not Override-relevant |
Your robot has 88W total per R10a, with 55W reserved for Subsystem 1 (drivetrain) per R11a. That leaves 33W for everything else: arm/lift, intake, secondary mechanisms.
Rough budget for a typical V1 build:
Total typical: 66–88W. The intake choice can swing this 0–11W depending on whether you go pneumatic or motorized.
If you're starting from zero:
This is roughly the configuration the V1 hero bot is built around. See Spartan Hero Bot for the as-designed CAD and parts list.