By the 2024 FRC build season, we were ready to step up our game. We had the machining capability, strong understanding of our swerve modules, and one clear objective: get game pieces onto the scoring shelf faster than everyone else.
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Unconventional Strategy
While many teams played it safe with traditional heavy telescoping arms, we took a different route and built a flipper to launch game pieces. The concept sounded simple, but the execution became a full engineering puzzle in consistency, control, and repeatability.
Mechanical System
We used a high-ratio gearbox around 90:1 to balance torque and speed for predictable shot behavior. Weight was the biggest enemy, so we machined aggressive pocketing and lightning patterns into the arm to strip unnecessary mass and reduce inertia.
Controls + Vision
To make the shooter useful in real matches, we integrated an AprilTag vision pipeline. Treating tags like field-reference markers let us estimate robot pose and align release angles with much better consistency.
Tuning and Testing
Dialing in accuracy was a grind. We saw plenty of unpredictable shots early on, and release timing became more of an art than a science. Iteration after iteration, we tuned timing, approach behavior, and launch parameters until performance stabilized.
Competition Outcome
At the Idaho Regional, the creative approach paid off and we earned recognition for the design. The Pancake Flipper proved that unconventional ideas can become competitive advantages when you commit to testing and refinement.
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