[FTC]: Tank Treads keep jumping the sprockets!

[trycatch]

Greetings all :) Hope everyone is having a good season!

I'm an FTC mentor for a team that's doing tank treads for the first time. We're at a point that we can drive forward and backward pretty well, but turning is causing us a lot of grief - when we turn, the tracks are jamming on / jumping the sprockets. We have *very* grippy treads, so it seems like maybe we're getting too much lateral force while turning and it's making the tracks get forced sideways? My hardware experience is extremely limited, so I'm not sure what to try anymore. :/

[Andrew Rudolph]

Maybe some pictures or videos might help us figure out what you can do.

[DavisDad]

Greetings all :) ...the tracks are jamming on / jumping the sprockets...

We started with the basic "PushBot" wheel design and are working in parallel on using the VEX P/N 276-2168 (http://www.vexrobotics.com/276-2168.html). The treads are in the design stage, but here are the issues we're anticipating:

Climbing the "mountain" requires high traction inserts to engage with the churros
The tank tread design requires that the treads must slip laterally(side-to-side) for turning and pivoting on the tiles. The "stickiness" of the tiles forces the tread to ride up over the drive and idler sprockets
The tension on the tread/sprocket/idlers must be tight enough to prevent treads from riding over the sprocket teeth. Think of a loose bicycle chain slipping off the sprocket.

We are paying very close attention to how we configure and mount the sprockets and idler wheels. We're designing an adjustable tensioner mount for the rear sprocket. We're also looking at guides at the sprockets to prevent the tread from riding over the sprocket teeth.