Queuer guide

Communicate with teams instantly by just tapping a button.

The basics

FRC Queue is a communication & queue management app that provides teams with more information than ever. It will empower you to create the best queuing experience possible at your next event.

As a lead queuer, you will have access to the management interfaces within the app for your event. These pages control what teams see on the external facing dashboard and when they are notified to queue for their matches.

This page is a quick reference for using FRC Queue at an event. The best way to familiarize yourself with the system is to try a demo. If you prefer a long-form step-by-step guide with screenshots, check out this unofficial queuing guide published by FIRST in Texas.

Register an event

To use FRC Queue at an event, the lead queuer must register the event at least a week before the event start date. Check with the local leadership and FTA of the event before registering. Tap the "Queuer login" button in the top right to fill out the short event registration form and to view the list of events which you have registered.

Registrations are processed on a rolling basis. You'll receive an email once this process is complete.

Try a demo

You can create a demo event in FRC Queue to experience the system end-to-end before you use it at a real event. Log in using the button in the top right and then tap "Try it out!"

Want to start over? Return to the queuer dashboard and tap "Reset demo event" to restore it back to its original state. Occasionally all demo events will be reset so they can take advantage of new features.

Required hardware

Some venues require two queuers to check in teams (e.g. red & blue). In this case, two mobile devices with field-side internet connectivity are required.

Queuer interfaces are optimized for tablet-sized screens, but are functional on phones as well.

Work with event organizers to arrange field-side Wi-Fi. If Wi-Fi is unavailable, consider these alternatives:

If a reliable internet connection is not available near the field, using FRC Queue is not possible.
Poor cellular service in pits

SMS notifications are only one feature of FRC Queue that can be disabled on the "Settings" page if the venue does not support it. You can still use the queue management features and the team facing dashboard without distributing team handouts. FRC Queue can be combined with traditional communication methods whenever necessary.

Tasks

The tasks panel is always available on the main queuing dashboard by tapping the megaphone icon. It provides step-by-step contextual guidance on using FRC Queue during events. Start here and complete each blue task in order to queue the entire event using FRC Queue.

Below are all the tasks you will encounter during an event for your reference.

Introductory

Team handouts

The handouts can be printed immediately, or you can "Save as PDF" in order to transfer this file to another device.

An optional flyer is generated for pit admin as the last page. If they receive any questions from teams, they can refer to this flyer.

Practice

Qualifications

On the dashboard, each match will have up to one applicable action that can be tapped to progress the queuing process.

  1. Queue now: Advance the state of this match to "Queue now". If the 📢 icon is displayed, all teams in this match will be notified via SMS and/or Slack.
  2. On deck: Advance the state of this match to "On deck". If the 📢 icon is displayed, any non-checked-in teams will be notified via SMS and/or Slack.
  3. On field: Advance the state of this match to "On field". This should be tapped as soon as the previous match is complete and the field reset signal is given, i.e. when this match is allowed on the field to set up.
  4. Queue first matches: Advance the state of this match to "On deck" and the next match to "Queue now". This will be the primary action you take when queuing begins for a block of matches. If the 📢 icon is displayed, any teams in this and the next match will be notified via SMS and/or Slack.
  5. Advance queue: Advance the state of this match and up to the next 2 matches. This will be the primary action you take in the midst of queuing matches. Other actions will only be needed when queuing begins or ends for a block of matches. If the 📢 icon is displayed, any teams in the next two matches will be notified via SMS and/or Slack.

Only one match can be in each of the "Queue now" and "On deck" states at the same time.

The cycle time is configurable from the "Settings" page. This value is used to estimate queue times for matches that are displayed to teams, so update it as necessary to match the target cycle time of the field.

Once a team arrives at the field, tap their team number on the dashboard to mark them as checked-in. Tap again to cycle the status to "human only" if the team has not yet arrived with their robot.

Long walks between pits and field

In some venues pits are very far away from the arena (e.g. the world championship). If the time to walk from the furthest pit to the field is longer than one cycle time (7.5 minutes by default), turn on the "Enable queuing extra match" setting on the "Settings" page. This will allow you to have two matches in the "Queueing now" state at one time.

Match replays

Schedule a match replay by selecting the "Replay match..." option in the actions menu on the "Matches" management page. Optionally, a notification can be sent to all teams in the affected match notifying them of the replay.

Alliance selection

Playoffs

Event complete

After the event, please file Github issues for any bugs or difficulties you encountered. If you have any feature requests that would improve the team or queuer experience, please submit those as well!