2026 TRI Rule Changes

Texas Robotics Invitational 2026 will use the FRC 2026 Rebuilt rules except where noted below. Please send any questions to TRI@Spectrum3847.org.

1. Event Rule Changes

E108 *Some things don’t belong at events. Do not bring or use the following:

A. skateboards
B. ‘hoverboards’
C. drones
D. bottled gas tanks (e.g. helium)
E. noisy devices or noisemakers, such as floor stompers, whistles and/or air horns
F. walkie-talkies
G. scooters, except for those used for accommodations
H. Full Face Mascots

E406 *No Tall Ladders allowed

No Ladders with more than 3 steps or taller than 5ft are allowed to be used by team at any point for any reason at the Event.

{% hint style=“info” icon=“whistle” %} This is a rule for TRI. Using tall ladders is an unnecessary safety risk especially with the density of people at an FRC Competition. {% endhint %}

E802 *Pit person limit during Ceremonies is 5

~~No more than 5 team members may be in the pits during Ceremonies outside of Playoff MATCHES.~~

{% hint style=“info” icon=“whistle” %} This rule is never enforced, and so shouldn’t be in the rules {% endhint %}

2. Field Marking Changes

There are no Field Marking Changes for the 2026 TRI.

3. Driveteams

6.2 DRIVE TEAM

A DRIVE TEAM is a set of up to 5 people from the same FIRST Robotics Competition team responsible for team performance for a specific MATCH. There are 4 specific roles on a DRIVE TEAM which ALLIANCES can use to assist ROBOTS with REBUILT.

Role	Description	Max./ DRIVE TEAM	Criteria
COACH	a guide or advisor	2	any team member, must wear “COACH” button
DRIVER HUMAN PLAYER	an operator and controller of the ROBOT a SCORING ELEMENT manager	3	STUDENT, must wear a “DRIVE TEAM” button

Role

Description

Max./ DRIVE TEAM

Criteria

COACH

a guide or advisor

any team member, must wear “COACH”
button

DRIVER

HUMAN PLAYER

an operator and controller
of the ROBOT

a SCORING ELEMENT
manager

STUDENT, must wear a “DRIVE TEAM”
button

{% hint style=“info” icon=“whistle” %} Combined TECHNICIAN and COACH count. A team may have up to 2 Coaches. {% endhint %}

6.3.1 DRIVETEAMS

DRIVE TEAMS prepare for a MATCH by staging in the appropriate areas, according to their role on the DRIVE TEAM, and by identifying themselves accordingly. DRIVE TEAM starting conditions are listed below, and a DRIVE TEAM obstructing or delaying any of the conditions is at risk of violating G301.

A. only DRIVE TEAM members assigned to the upcoming MATCH are present,
B. for QUALIFICATION and PLAYOFF MATCHES only DRIVE TEAM members whose ROBOTS have passed initial, complete Inspection are present,
C. any number of HUMAN PLAYERS are staged in their OUTPOST AREAS,
D. HUMAN PLAYERS not included in C or D, DRIVERS, and COACHES are in their ALLIANCE AREA and behind the HUMAN STARTING LINE,
F. DRIVE TEAM members clearly display their designated buttons above their waists (COACH - “Coach”, DRIVERS and HUMAN PLAYERS - “Drive Team”
G. if a Playoff MATCH, the ALLIANCE CAPTAIN clearly displays their designated ALLIANCE CAPTAIN identifier (e.g. hat or armband).

{% hint style=“info” icon=“whistle” %} Removed reference to TECHNICIAN. {% endhint %}

4. Ranking Points

Ranking Point	Requirements	Ranking Points Awarded
ENERGIZE RP	150 FUEL scored in an active HUB	1
SUPERCHARGED RP	400 FUEL scored in an active HUB	1
TRAVERSAL RP	50 TOWER points	1
Win	completing a MATCH with more MATCH points than your opponent	3
Tie	completing a MATCH with the same number of MATCH points as your opponent	1

5. Game Rule Updates

{% hint style=“info” icon=“whistle” %} All Yellow and Red Cards are now at the discretion of the Head Referee. Minor non-match-affecting incidents will be given warnings before cards are given. Teams will not be punished for field staff giving them directions such as entering the field. {% endhint %}

6.6.1 YELLOW and RED CARDS

In addition to rule violations explicitly listed throughout this document, YELLOW CARDS and RED CARDS are used in FIRST Robotics Competition to address team and

ROBOT behavior that does not align with the mission, values, and culture of FIRST.

The Head REFEREE may assign a YELLOW CARD as a warning, or a RED CARD for egregious behavior inappropriate at a FIRST Robotics Competition event.

If an action resulting in the assignment of a YELLOW or RED CARD is determined to be the result of an ARENA FAULT, per section 10.2, the CARD will be rescinded.

If the Head REFEREE assess that an interaction that resulted in a YELLOW or RED CARD was non-intentional, or as a result of normal gameplay, the CARD will be rescinded.

Q101. Be reasonable with the Head Referee.

Most situations will likely only require one or two people to talk with the Head Referee. Still, we aren’t going to institute a rule that doesn’t allow other drive team members (including adult drive coaches) to provide information or listen to the conversations. Please be mindful that the Head Referee makes the final decision on calls but may be advised by other referees and the Event Director (who replaces HQ at off-season events). Also, please remember that G212 is a rule, and the Head referee may give YELLOW or RED CARDS for any interactions that are deemed to be egregious. We are all working for the inspiration of our students. Be polite, reasonable, and respectful; we will all have a great event.

{% hint style=“info” icon=“whistle” %} The original Q101 causes more issues than it solves and is often not enforced to the letter of the rule. We trust our volunteers and teams to be reasonable and act in good faith to get the best outcome for everyone involved. {% endhint %}

G207 Don’t abuse ARENA access

A team member (except DRIVERS, HUMAN PLAYERS, and COACHES) granted access to restricted areas in and around the ARENA (e.g. via Media badges, Volunteer position, etc.) may not assist or use signaling devices during the MATCH.

Event Staff shall not communicate with TEAMS about rule violations or gameplay concerns during a MATCH. The only exceptions are for immediate safety issues or for FTAs, FTAAs, or CSAs diagnosing technical problems.

{% hint style=“info” icon=“whistle” %} This rule is intended to prevent distractions during MATCH play, to prevent a DRIVE TEAM member from distracting a REFEREE, and to ensure consistent communication across all TEAMS and MATCHES. TEAMS may address any rule-related questions or concerns with the Head REFEREE once the MATCH has concluded. Violations by Event Staff associated with teams in that match with the intent to cause an arena fault will quickly escalate to a G211 violation.

The bar for “immediate safety issues” are human or robot actions that are considered situations in which a ROBOT should be DISABLED and/or the MATCH should be STOPPED. Examples include but are not limited to:

HUMAN PLAYER and enabled ROBOT contacting the same SCORING ELEMENT at the same time
HUMAN PLAYER entering the FIELD during the MATCH
A ROBOT becomes stuck on the FIELD barrier in a way that could damage itself or the FIELD
A ROBOT is repeatedly slamming into the FIELD perimeter or DRIVER STATION walls in a dangerous manner {% endhint %}

G408 Don’t catch FUEL.

A ROBOT may not do either of the following with FUEL released by the HUB unless
and until that FUEL contacts anything else besides that ROBOT or FUEL CONTROLLED by that ROBOT:

A. gain greater than MOMENTARY CONTROL of FUEL, or
B. push or redirect FUEL to a desired location or in a preferred direction. A ROBOT is in CONTROL of a SCORING ELEMENT if the SCORING ELEMENT is fully supported by or stuck in, on, or under the ROBOT.

{% hint style=“info” icon=“whistle” %} G408 violations are mostly inconsequential. The intent of the change is to avoid random fouls against teams that accidentally, and unintentionally happen to catch one or two balls. Attempting to take advantage of this change will quickly escalate to G211. {% endhint %}

G415 *Stay out of other ROBOTS.

A ROBOT with BUMPERS completely outside of their ALLIANCE ZONE may not damage or functionally impair an opponent ROBOT by initiating contact, either directly or transitively via a SCORING ELEMENT CONTROLLED by the ROBOT:

A. inside the vertical projection of an opponent’s ROBOT PERIMETER, or
B. with the opponent’s BUMPER backing or mounting.

Exceptions to this rule:

C. Contact between the ROBOT’S BUMPERS or COMPONENTS inside the ROBOT PERIMETER and COMPONENTS inside an opening of an opponent’s BUMPERS or in the space above the
BUMPER opening
D. Damage or functional impairment because of contact with a tipped-over opponent ROBOT
E. A ROBOT that is not in violation of G403 making contact with an opponent ROBOT during AUTO
F. Damage that appears to the REFEREE as cosmetic only
G. Damage to unprotected control systems components
H. incidental, low-velocity collisions

FIRST Robotics Competition can be a full-contact competition and may include rigorous game play. While this rule aims to limit severe damage to ROBOTS, teams should design their ROBOTS to be robust.

Examples for this rule include, but are not limited to:

A. A ROBOT leaves an arm extended and hits an opponent ROBOT inside their ROBOT PERIMETER in the NEUTRAL ZONE. No damage is seen so no violation is assigned.
B. A RED ROBOT in their ALLIANCE ZONE hits a BLUE ROBOT inside their ROBOT PERIMETER. As this occurred inside the RED ALLIANCE ZONE, no violation is assigned.
C. A ROBOT leaves an arm extended, spins around to change course, and
unintentionally hits and damages a COMPONENT inside the ROBOT PERIMETER of a nearby opponent ROBOT in the NEUTRAL ZONE. This would result in a MAJOR FOUL + YELLOW CARD.
D. A ROBOT, in the process of trying to quickly reverse direction, tips up on a single pair of wheels, lands atop an opponent ROBOT in the NEUTRAL ZONE, and damages a COMPONENT inside that opponent’s ROBOT PERIMETER. This would result in a MAJOR FOUL + YELLOW CARD.
E. Accidentally opening an opponent’s relief valve in the NEUTRAL ZONE such that the opponent’s air pressure drops and they can no longer use their intake. This is seen as functionally impairing the ROBOT so would result in a MAJOR FOUL + YELLOW CARD.
~~F. Accidentally powering off an opponent ROBOT in the NEUTRAL ZONE. This is seen as functionally impairing the ROBOT and results in a MAJOR FOUL + RED CARD as the ROBOT is no longer able to drive.~~

At the conclusion of the MATCH, the Head REFEREE may elect to visually inspect a ROBOT to confirm violations of this rule made during a MATCH and remove the violation if the damage cannot be verified.

For the purposes of this rule, “initiating contact” is a judgement call as to which ROBOT(s) in any interaction were responsible for the contact occurring based on direction of travel and relative speeds of both ROBOTS. Generally, for a ROBOT to have initiated contact, at minimum they have to be both moving towards the opponent ROBOT and have reasonable possibility to have avoided the contact.

In a collision, it’s possible for both ROBOTS to initiate contact.

“Unable to drive” means that because of the incident, for approximately ~20+ seconds, the DRIVER can no longer drive to a desired location in a reasonable time (generally). For example, if a ROBOT can only move in circles, or can only move extremely slowly, the ROBOT is considered unable to drive.

The exception in G415-C effectively means that ROBOTS with BUMPER gaps are at their own risk regarding damaging contact in these areas.

{% hint style=“info” icon=“whistle” %} “Reasonable posibility to avoid contact” should be a really high bar. We understand that teams run different Driveteams than in-season, so we cannot expect all drivers to have the same ability to avoid contact. Extreme Recklessness, and/or repeated instances of damaging other robots will be escalated to the Event Director. {% endhint %}

G416. *This isn’t combat robotics.

A ROBOT may not intentionally and/or recklessly damage or functionally impair an opponent ROBOT.

Exceptions to this rule:

A. Unprotected control systems components being damaged are an exception to this rule.
B. incidental, low-velocity collisions

The intent of this rule is to cover situations where a ROBOT intentionally and/or recklessly, as perceived by the REFEREE, damages another ROBOT anywhere on the FIELD.

Situations where a REFEREE is likely to infer are intentional and would be a violation if they caused damage include, but are not limited to:

A. A ROBOT REPEATEDLY smashing into an opponent ROBOT intake.
B. A ROBOT REPEATEDLY hitting another ROBOT with their extension. Examples that would be reckless and would be a violation if they cause damage, include, but are not limited to:
C. A ROBOT driving at high speed, across the FIELD, rams into an opponent ROBOT with their extension.
D. A ROBOT rams into an opponent with their extension REPEATEDLY.
E. A ROBOT violently driving into an opponent that is already firmly against a FIELD element.

Examples that are not reckless include, but are not limited to:

F. A ROBOT making REPEATED BUMPER to BUMPER contact with an opponent.
G. A ROBOT driving at high speed makes BUMPER to BUMPER contact with an opponent.
H. A red ROBOT is driving around and picking up FUEL in the NEUTRAL ZONE with an extension out. Blue ROBOT is playing defense and moves into their path at the last second resulting in a collision. The red ROBOT is not considered reckless and there is no call because the red ROBOT did not have an opportunity to avoid the contact.
I. A red ROBOT is travelling slowly and picking up FUEL in the NEUTRAL ZONE with an extension out. A blue ROBOT races towards the red ROBOT such that the red ROBOT’s extension contacts the blue ROBOT causing damage. The red ROBOT is not considered reckless and there is no call because the blue ROBOT initiated the contact because the blue ROBOT was travelling much faster.

At the conclusion of the MATCH, the Head REFEREE may elect to visually inspect a ROBOT to confirm violations of this rule made during a MATCH and remove the violation if the damage cannot be verified.

“Unable to drive” means that because of the incident, for approximately ~20+ seconds, the DRIVER can no longer drive to a desired location in a reasonable time (generally). For example, if a ROBOT can only move in circles, or can only move extremely slowly, the ROBOT is considered unable to drive.

Due to the prevalence of FUEL around the FIELD during gameplay, it is highly unlikely that a REFEREE could determine if an interaction causing an opponent ROBOT to be “beached” on FUEL is intentional versus regular defensive play.

{% hint style=“info” icon=“whistle” %} For G415 and G416, Robots attempting to “play the game” will get the benefit of the doubt. In cases where referees are forced to make a judgment call regarding a destructive interaction between robots or an interaction that results in a questionable rules violation, the referees will err on the side of robots attempting to “play the game“ regardless of the side of the field the interaction occurs.

FIRST Robotics Competition can be a full-contact competition and may include rigorous game play. While this rule aims to limit severe damage to ROBOTS, teams should design their ROBOTS to be robust. {% endhint %}

G426. COACHES and other teams: hands off the controls.

A ROBOT shall be operated solely by that team’s DRIVERS and/or HUMAN PLAYERS.

{% hint style=“info” icon=“whistle” %} Coaches may touch the driver station laptop to diagnose a problem with the robot but may not directly contact any controllers or operate the robot in any way. {% endhint %}

6. Inspection Rules

+5 pounds weight allowance and no formal inspections.

{% hint style=“info” icon=“whistle” %} This allows repairs and minor modifications without major work to maintain 115 lbs. Robots may weigh up to 120 lbs. We also won’t have inspections at this event; event staff may ask you to make modifications if your robot doesn’t meet the FRC robot rules. {% endhint %}

7. Alliance Selection

If we have more than 32 teams, The standard championship subdivision-level alliance selection process, including the four robots per alliance rules outlined in the game manual, will be used. 1-8, 8-1, 1-8
If we have fewer than 32 teams. We will use the standard 3-team alliance format from district/regional events.
At the beginning of Alliance Selection, the Emcee will ask if any teams would like to withdraw from Alliance Selection. Any teams wishing not to play can withdraw at this time. After Alliance #8 has made its first pick, teams are no longer allowed to decline invitations, and all further picks will be automatically accepted.

8. Video Review

Given that the technology allows it (the video system doesn’t go down, etc.), there will be a video review process.

Each Alliance is allowed one challenge/review in the playoffs. The alliance captain will be provided a video review coupon.
Video review coupons must be given to the head ref within 2 minutes after scores are posted for that match to be reviewed.
Only match-affecting calls and yellow/red cards can be reviewed.
The score or lack of score being reviewed must be significant enough to affect the match’s outcome. The Head Referee can choose not to review any call they do not believe will change the match’s outcome.
Video evidence must be indisputable to change a call. The point is to receive credit for a missed score, not to debate further a close call on which a referee already used their best judgment. The Head Referee’s decision is final after a review.
Only the head referee will use the event-provided video during a video review. Referees will not review any other video footage, including camcorders, phones, or tablets not provided by the event.
At their discretion, the Head Referee may choose to review any ruling throughout the event. Please do not ask for a video review at any time other than giving the referee your alliance’s video review coupon during the playoffs. All other requests will not be granted.

{% hint style=“info” icon=“camcorder” %} We don’t plan on ever having this happen, but we want to provide the best event possible to teams; a video review of other situations may allow us to do this. {% endhint %}

9. Soft Time Cap

We will institute a soft time cap during the event to allow teams to leave in a reasonable amount of time if there are match delays. At the discretion of the event organizers, if the Finals start after 6 p.m. Central Time, we will move to a “Best of 1” elimination format instead of the usual “Best 2 of 3” format.