What Year Did FRC Switch To WiFi Controls: History of FRC Control

    FRC is a robotics competition (check out my video), where people are controlling self-made robots in a game that is chosen by FIRST. The methods of controlling the robots have changed over the years, from wired controllers at the first competition to 2.4 GHz WiFi control.  

    The first FRC competition was in 1992, and robots were controlled via a wire. The robots battled it out in a cornfield. 

Notice The Wires Source

    According to Wikipedia, the competition switched to a wireless control system in 1993. This system worked by a, “8 position joystick and a Termiflex keypad controller,” per Wikipedia. According to the 1993 Game manual, the machines were the property of FIRST after the season was over. Also, the machines had to be shipped to the competition spot via USPS.   

In the 1995 competition, the robots were controlled by a ‘custom’ remote control system. This system used a Motorola RNet radio. 

Source:1994 manual.

 

     The Motorola RNet radios were used until 1999 when FRC switched to different radio modems. From 2004 to 2008, FRC used 900 MHz radios. These robots during this time period were controlled by joysticks. 

According to Google Bard and verified by the FIRST wiki, the FIRST a 15 sec period was created in 2003. It was a 15-second period.

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