pic: 1918 Quad Drive Device

[Wayne TenBrink]

[cdm-description=photo]34748[/cdm-description]

[JesseK]

Very impressive! Definitely adding to the favorites.

[GGCO]

It looks like 1918 has created another mechanical masterpiece!

Congratulations from rookie team 3357 - The COMETS (Creating Outstanding Minds, Embracing Technology and Science).

Can't wait to see you at Traverse City!

[O'Sancheski]

i like it... especially the chain mechanism to draw the surgical tubing back... good luck this year

[GaryVoshol]

Cool. You better make it to Ypsi, because I wanna see this thing.

[LWakefield]

Here are some videos:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fcq-dfd0jNs

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YGTwp3hjVI8&feature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OoYIxYkhbEY&feature=related

Most of these are from a few weeks ago.

[waialua359]

Easier to continually "possess" the ball as your robot moves around the ball, instead of only spinning it around a pivoting robot, generally speaking.

Well done!

[nnfuller]

Would you mind explaining what you are using for a roller?

[the man]

What kind or motor are you using for the ball control, and dose the pool noodle spin fast or slow?

[Wayne TenBrink]

The green tube is a pool noodle. The spindle is a 3/4" aluminum tube powered by an FP motor thru an AM planetary gearbox and an AM Nano. It spins maybe 300 rpm without a ball in it. We discovered by accident that the noodle slips on the spindle when holding a ball. It keeps enough force on the ball to hold it and let us back up or turn, but doesn't stall out the motor when we get a good pinch between the roller, ball, and floor.

[Tyler Hicks]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YIweSfm87_0&feature=player_embedded
Robot in action

[Enigma's puzzle]

Looks like another quick NC gears robot, and you guys seemed to build another great bot. It seems like we were always chasing you guys around last year, maybe this year we will get a chance to work with you instead.

Good luck, and i cannot wait to see the "Quad drive" in action.

[hyperdude]

It looks like your ball magnet (practically the entire front of the robot, it seems -- nearly 3 feet wide) would be capable of holding two (or more) balls. What are you guys doing to prevent this? Or are you just going to fire off the balls quick enough?

[Wayne TenBrink]

It looks like your ball magnet (practically the entire front of the robot, it seems -- nearly 3 feet wide) would be capable of holding two (or more) balls. What are you guys doing to prevent this? Or are you just going to fire off the balls quick enough?

We are aware of this risk. There's room for 4 balls, actually.

If we come up on multiple balls, we plan to either kick fast or reverse the direction of the roller. We don't expect the floor to be littered with balls like last year, and we think that a wide roller/kicker will make it much easier to acquire a ball in the heat of battle. We don't need to be lined up on it - just in the general neighborhood.