Best wheels to not damage a gym floor

[Grüner Bambus]

Our team hopes to do demos with our Rebound Rumble robot this winter during school basketball games. We are concerned that our current choice of wheels (2 rough top, 2 omni) has the potential to leave scuff marks on the floor.

Does anyone have experience with this, and a particular type of wheel to suggest?

The only type of wheel we can't use is mecanum.

[Brian Selle]

Colsons. Lots of sizes available. Here are some options:

http://www.robotmarketplace.com/products/BPDWC10.html

http://wcproducts.net/wcp-00053/

http://wcproducts.net/wcp-00052/

[wilsonmw04]

Good thing you can't us mechanum. I was told when I started with Blue Cheese that certain robots were banned from the gym because they damaged the floor.

I've used standard AM grey wheels without issue.

[ebarker]

I've used standard AM grey wheels without issue.
Agreed with AM grey wheels.

We have also used the plastic 8" omni (http://www.andymark.com/product-p/am-0048.htm)

We work to minimize spins and perform non-aggressive driving.

[AdamHeard]

Colsons and the AM grey wheels are probably equally safe here, I'd make your decision between them purely on whatever is easier for you to adapt your current drive to.

[JesseK]

Epoxy carpet around the outside of any wheel. Save these wheels as your "gym" wheels and swap them in during pep rallies, etc. This works best with WCD variants and adaptable hubs.

Not only will the team not get in trouble for scuffing the gym floor, there's a chance the school will encourage the team to drive around in the gym.

[AdamHeard]

Epoxy carpet around the outside of any wheel. Save these wheels as your "gym" wheels and swap them in during pep rallies, etc. This works best with WCD variants and adaptable hubs.

Not only will the team not get in trouble for scuffing the gym floor, there's a chance the school will encourage the team to drive around in the gym.

Have you done this?

I could see if the wheels really rapidly slipped the surface speed and resultant friction could melt the wax a bit.

[CrazyHorse]

Lunacy wheels :D

[Lil' Lavery]

Depending on how long/aggressive you wil be driving, a few passes of gaffers tape could do the trick.

[Jeffy]

We have been able to use blue nitrile and not damage the gym floor. It should also be noted that any scuffs from meccanum wheels or the like come off in seconds with a fuzzy tennis ball on a stick.

[dcarr]

We have been able to use blue nitrile and not damage the gym floor. It should also be noted that any scuffs from meccanum wheels or the like come off in seconds with a fuzzy tennis ball on a stick.

Try convincing a paranoid basketball coach of that :P

We have mecanums on our rebound rumble bot, and while it would be great to demo at these games, it might be tricky to convince the powers that be that it's safe and harmless.

[Brandon Zalinsky]

Try convincing a paranoid basketball coach of that :P

We have mecanums on our rebound rumble bot, and while it would be great to demo at these games, it might be tricky to convince the powers that be that it's safe and harmless.

For us, if we use our mechanums slowly and don't try to drive aggressively, the floor is fine. The robots that have more damaged mechanums also tend to do more damage to the floor.

[Taylor]

I think the key thing to consider is the cleanliness of the wheel. Make sure they're free of debris that could catch and dig into the floor.
Mecanum wheels have a BUNCH of surface area that could pick up little pebbles.
2009 wheels would be the easiest to visually inspect.

[Andrew Lawrence]

Why not just cover your wheels in duct tape?

Just take it off when you're not demoing, put it back on when you are.

[Tyler Olds]

Colsons. Lots of sizes available. Here are some options:

http://www.robotmarketplace.com/products/BPDWC10.html

http://wcproducts.net/wcp-00053/

http://wcproducts.net/wcp-00052/

Colsons do not damage the floor, but they do leave lots of scuff marks that you will need to get off (nothing like a tennis ball attached to a stick).

[JesseK]

Have you done this?

I could see if the wheels really rapidly slipped the surface speed and resultant friction could melt the wax a bit.

150lbs on four 1" contact patches of tight-pile carpet could easily get around a gym, so long as the direction of the wheels mostly follows the momentum of the robot. I didn't do it with an FRC bot, but I did do it to a smaller VEX robot to chase my dog around the hardwood floors of my new house.

[Taylor]

[QUOTE=SuperNerd256;1193399]Why not just cover your wheels in duct tape?QUOTE]

Because duct tape tends to leave a nasty, sticky residue. Sean's suggestion of gaffers tape is a good one.

[dcarr]

I wanted to revisit this thread to ask - who out there has done a successful demo at a basketball game (or other similar event in a gymnasium) with their Rebound Rumble robot? What worked, what didn't? Any advice to other teams wishing to do something like this? We plan to keep our 2012 bot up and running for the possibility of doing one in January.

[279 EMPIE]

We have been doing open houses in our school gym with our robot just fine and where are using mecanum wheels (spelled that wrong)

[dcarr]

We have been doing open houses in our school gym with our robot just fine and where are using mecanum wheels (spelled that wrong)

Have you ever tried a half time show type demo? We've done open houses before but this would be the first time we'd have the 'spotlight' per say.

Is anyone else planning to try (or has tried in the past) a half-time demo of their robot?

[Jacob.B]

We just roll carpet out in the section of which we are demoing at.

[dcarr]

We just roll carpet out in the section of which we are demoing at.

Ah...carpet rolling, the bane of my existence. :D