Chapter 3: Running and Scoring Robot Skills Matches
Lesson 2: Robot Skills Scoring
Learning Objectives
- Describe the purpose of Skills Stop Time.
- Identify that a team must opt in to Skills Stop Time before the match begins.
- Identify valid ways a Robot Skills Match may be ended early.
In a Robot Skills Match, a team has one minute to score as many points as possible. Sometimes a team finishes its run before the minute is up. Rather than waiting for the clock to expire, the team may end the match early by recording a Skills Stop Time.
A Skills Stop Time does not change a team's score. Its only purpose is to serve as a tiebreaker in the Robot Skills rankings. When two teams finish an event with the same score, the team that completed the run in less time is ranked higher.
Before continuing, read rule <RSC8> in the Robot Skills section of the current VEX IQ Robotics Competition Level Up Game Manual.
Opting In
A team cannot decide to use a Skills Stop Time after the match has started. To use one, the team must opt in by verbally confirming with the Referee before the match begins. A team that does not opt in beforehand loses the option for that match and receives a default Skills Stop Time of 0.
This conversation should also identify which Drive Team Member will give the stop signal — only a Driver for that match may end it early. If a team runs several Robot Skills Matches back to back, it must reconfirm its Skills Stop Time choice before each match; opting in once does not carry over.
For referees, the opt-in fits naturally into the pre-match routine, alongside confirming the robot's starting position and the correct use of the Preload (Yellow Bean Bag)..
Ending the Match Early
A team ends its match early with a stop signal that the Driver and the Scorekeeper Referee agree on before the match begins. To be valid, the signal must be both verbal and visual, so a referee can clearly recognize it — for example, the Driver crossing their arms in an "X" while saying "Stop!", or placing the VEX IQ Controller on the floor while saying "Done!" It helps if the Driver gives a heads-up as they approach the stop,, such as counting down "3-2-1-stop."
The match ends early at the moment the robot and Bean Bags have come to rest and the designated Driver gives the agreed signal. That moment sets the recorded time: if a Tournament Manager display is being used, record the time it shows in whole seconds; if a manual timer counts down more precisely, round the time up to the nearest second (for example, a timer reading 25.2 seconds is recorded as 26). Any question about a Skills Stop Time should be reviewed and settled immediately after the match.