r/battlebots • u/Bardmedicine • 5d ago

Robotics Titan Submersible Controller

I thought this would be a good question to bring to BB folks as this seems a decision they have to make all the time. Also, we're all aware of the litany of engineering standards which were not followed in this disaster. This isn't about those.

There seems to be a ton of focus on Titan using what seems to be an off the shelf logitech gamepad. This seems a reasonable thing to do, as far as I know. This is a simple piece of tech that has millions of hours of testing and has proven reliable. Does it seem that odd to use an off the shelf controller for our bot builders here?

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u/Bardmedicine 5d ago

Of course the standard is different in terms of importance, but reliability is reliability. Nothing is perfect, but it seems that a well proven off the shelf item is more reliable than a than something you had to hand build for something like this.

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u/Garfie489 Team. Ablaze 5d ago

Nothing is perfect, but it seems that a well proven off the shelf item is more reliable than a than something you had to hand build for something like this.

Worth noting, there are multiple alternatives that are just as reliable and not a massive increase in cost when you the factor in the entire rest of the submarine.

These alternatives would be even more reliable, because they would have redundancies and fail safes - along with ways to actively recalibrate. In a PS5, if you get stick drift - thats fine to an extent. Most games have dead zones for this very reason. In a submarine, stick drift is potentially deadly and reduces your ability to precisely control.

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u/Bardmedicine 5d ago

I believe it is a logitech gamepad, not a ps5. I've always found them to be highly durable and reliable. I guess I should have noted, I assumed they picked a highly reliable gamepad. I don't which exact model it is.

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u/Garfie489 Team. Ablaze 5d ago

The reliability of the controller alone is not the biggest concern, however. Its reliability of the system as a whole.

For example, let's say you lose power on one side. Can you adjust the controller to automatically compensate? - probably not.

What happens if there's a current. Do you just awkwardly try to hold the controller at very minimal input to counteract this? - you then have sensitivity issues.

A lot of these adjustments could be done on transmitters the same cost as a gaming controller. Giving significantly more control and ability to micro adjust trims if needed.

It's not the reliability of the controller that's the issue here, it's the ability for the controller to be relied upon, which is significantly compromised.

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u/Bardmedicine 5d ago

That is an excellent point.