Before reviewing these changes, please take a look at this other post that discusses the RCJ Rescue rule changes that also applies to RCJ Rescue Line. Here are the specific Line changes for the 2025 rules:
RULE CHANGES
B.1) Speed Bump Dimensions
The maximum allowable dimensions for speed bumps are set at 30 cm in width and 30 cm in length. The maximum height of the speed bumps shall remain 1 cm. Intersections are possible to be on speed bumps.
B.2) Ramp Scoring
Ramp points will be awarded for each individual ramp tile instead of for the entire ramp.
Please let us know your feedback as soon as possible as we want to release the official final rules in the upcoming months.
Best,
Diego Garza Rodriguez on behalf of the 2025 RCJ Rescue Committee
"…The maximum allowable dimensions for speed bumps are set at 30 cm in width and 30 cm in length. . So, a whole tile may be considered as speed bump?
About Ramp:
Can the field have consecutive ramps… ie… there is no flat landing tile at all in-between the two ramps.
Regarding the ramp: Assuming you are referring to an ascending ramp directly following a descending one or vice versa, no this is not possible. See the current rule for ramps 2.7.4 “The ramp will be scored when the robot reaches the horizontal tile at the upper level after an ascending ramp or the horizontal tile at the bottom level after a descending ramp”. This implies that there will be a horizontal tile after each ramp. (So a clarification as in the post about Maze rule changes (C.2) is not required)
It is possible though that there is a “long” ramp, e.g., consisting of 2 or more ascending ramp tiles. This was already possible in previous years. (2.7.3) Only the scoring would change slightly as described by Diego’s post.
@Dieguinilombrin you will need to specify whether the ramp tiles are scored one by one when reaching a certain part of a “long” ramp or only when the full ramp has been completed successfully. Sounds good overall though. Looking forward to the new possibilities for speed bumps
"…The maximum allowable dimensions for speed bumps are set at 30 cm in width and 30 cm in length. . So, a whole tile may be considered as speed bump?
Correct! The goal of this rule change is to allow stacking a tile on top of another tile for the field design, awarding the speed bump points for properly navigating this bump in the field.
About Ramp:
Can the field have consecutive ramps… ie… there is no flat landing tile at all in-between the two ramps.
Correct! Just as the previous rules, there can be consecutive ramps without flat landing tile at all. For reference, it is the rule 2.7.3. The problem that we saw were teams making a lot of progress (like 2/3 tiles of progress) and then falling before completing the last tile of the ramp. We expect that making this change help the teams to score more points if they are able to traverse some of the ramp.
2.7.3. More than one tile may be used to build one ramp up or down. Despite the number of tiles used in the construction, the ramp will be scored as one ramp as it takes from one level to another.
The reason we decided to explicitly clarify the rule is that in 2024 rules you could experience something like this:
I know, it is taking it to the edge of the rule, so we prefered to explicitly call it out on these year’s changes
I consider the same rule of reaching a tile will apply with the ramps, more than half of the robot is in the next tile and is successfully following the line.
One question on the “speed bump” or “elevated tile”. Will it be specified in the rules whether the tile acting as speed bump have chamfered edges or not? Thanks
Considering these are speedbumps, the same previous rules about speedbumps applies, which means, the speed bump can have any shape or form as long as it is fixed to the floor and does not exceed 1 cm in height. Therefore, the tile acting as a speed bump might or might not have chamfered edges.
Hello.
I want to ask a question and an confirmation.
1: Regarding speed bumps
If speed bumps are formed by stacking tiles, is there a guarantee that their sides will be coloured white and have a black line printed on? (2024 Rules 2.5.1)
I asked this because I think that generally the sides of tiles are not white.
2: The relationship between the ramp score and an obstacle
I understand that the ramp score is given by each next tile reached, just like any other hazards.
In addition, the 2024 rules allow obstacles to be placed on the ramp.
I think these two create a specific situation where the ramp score cannot be earned.
If an obstacle is placed on a ramp tile like an illustration, the robot will start to avoid the obstacle before it reaches the next tile (with an obstacle).
Therefore teams cannot earn the point for ramp tile in front of the obstacle tile.
I also think that this problem is even more pronounced for robots that use non-contact sensors such as ultrasonic sensors to detect obstacles. (because it starts avoiding further ahead of the obstacle).
How would you deal with this?
Hello Diego
Thank you for sharing the outline of the new rules.
In Rescue Line Rules 2024 4.6.6
(SDVR) = Ă— 1.4 per successful rescue of the dead victim if both living victims have already been successfully evacuated.
→ (SDVR) = × 1.4 per successful rescue of the dead victim.
Since the evacuation point for living victims and dead victims are now separate, I would like SDVR to be 1.4 if the rescue of a dead victim is successful, regardless of the order in which they are rescued.
