The Q&A is closed for the 2021-2022 season. Any rule changes or clarifications pertaining to the 2022 VEX Robotics World Championship will be included in the April 5 Game Manual Update. Teams attending VEX Worlds who wish to pre-submit questions for the driver's meeting should have received a contact form via email; if not, please contact your REC Foundation Team Engagement Manager for more information.
If your team is rescuing a robot from Corral that has control of a ball (let's say the last ball left in the corral), by rule the ball will be removed from the field, in essence "clearing" the corral." Does the corral count as cleared? For argument sake let's also say it is very obvious that the robot needs rescued and it is not a strategy being used to score higher.
Thanks,
Please review the Q&A Usage Guidelines before posting, specifically point 3, "Quote the applicable rule from the latest version of the manual in your question".
Rule G18 reads as follows:
<G18> Handling the Robot mid-match is only allowed under certain circumstances. If a Robot goes completely outside the playing Field, gets stuck, tips over, or otherwise requires assistance, the Team’s Drivers may retrieve & reset the Robot. To do so, they must:
Signal the Referee by placing their VEX IQ Controller on the ground. (Or table, if the field is elevated.
Remove any Balls being controlled by the Robot from the Field. i. In the context of this rule, “controlled” implies that the Robot was manipulating the Ball, and not simply touching it. For example, if the Ball moves with the Robot either vertically or while turning, then the Robot is “controlling” the Ball.
Place the Robot back into a Starting Position which does not have any Balls in it. If no “empty” Starting Positions are available, then any Balls in the Starting Position where the Robot is being placed must be removed from the Field.
Note: If the Drivers cannot reach the Robot due to the Robot being in the center of the Field, the Drivers may ask the Head Referee to pick up the Robot and hand it to the Drivers for placement. according to the conditions above.
The definition of Cleared reads as follows:
Cleared - A Starting Corral status. A Starting Corral is considered Cleared at the end of a Match if no Balls are contacting the Floor inside of the Starting Corral. Referees can check any Balls in question by sliding a piece of paper between the Ball and the Floor.
It is worth noting that per these two definitions, if a Robot is "controlling" a Ball such that it was no longer contacting the Floor, then the Starting Corral was already considered Cleared.
Either way - removing a Robot / Balls from the field in line with G18 should always be the same interaction/process, regardless of where the Robot is coming from. To answer your specific question, yes, the Starting Corral would be considered Cleared.