VEXpro 2017

[DRow]

https://content.vexrobotics.com/vexpro/images/VersaPlanetaryv2.png

Announcing the VersaPlanetary v2! This updated design is now held together with screws that install on the "back" (motor side) of the housing. This means that the gearbox can be disassembled to change gearsets without removing the gearbox output from the robot. Bosses have been added to the sides of the gearbox so when it is side-mounted you can "crank down" on the mounting screws without accidentally misaligning a ring-gear stage.

Note: The v1 & v2 input and output blocks cannot be mixed and matched - A v2 input block must be used with a v2 output block. Ring gears and gear kits are compatible between v1 & v2

In addition, base VersaPlanetary kits now include an optional pilot ring that will allow users to pilot the VersaPlanetary on a 0.75" hole, instead of relying on screw clearances to locate the gearbox. The plastic motor mounting plates now pilot on the input block.

The VersaPlanetary v2 is in stock now! Be sure to order yours now to prepare for the upcoming season. Check out this link for more information: http://www.vexrobotics.com/vexpro/motion/gearboxes/versaplanetary.html

[AdamHeard]

These look like some nice tweaks to make the Versaplanets even better.

Are there any other new products this year?

[billbo911]

https://content.vexrobotics.com/vexpro/images/VersaPlanetaryv2.png

Announcing the VersaPlanetary v2! This updated design is now held together with screws that install on the "back" (motor side) of the housing. The VersaPlanetary v2 assembly is now held together with screws that install on the "back" (motor side) of the housing. This means that the gearbox can be disassembled to change gearsets without removing the gearbox output from the robot. Bosses have been added to the sides of the gearbox so when it is side-mounted you can "crank down" on the mounting screws without accidentally misaligning a ring-gear stage.

Note: The v1 & v2 input and output blocks cannot be mixed and matched - A v2 input block must be used with a v2 output block. Ring gears and gear kits are compatible between v1 & v2

In addition, base VersaPlanetary kits now include an optional pilot ring that will allow users to pilot the VersaPlanetary on a 0.75" hole, instead of relying on screw clearances to locate the gearbox. The plastic motor mounting plates now pilot on the input block.

The VersaPlanetary v2 is in stock now! Be sure to order yours now to prepare for the upcoming season. Check out this link for more information: http://www.vexrobotics.com/vexpro/motion/gearboxes/versaplanetary.html

Just when you though it couldn't get better.....

[ClockworkGold]

Very nice addition to an already solid product line! Fingers crossed for more additions before Steamworks

[cad321]

And to think I just bought the now v1 versa planetaries last week. Oh well. Time to stock up on new parts again. Very nice tweaks to the already great product line.

[Brandon Holley]

Solid improvements! Nice job Vex team.

-Brando

[sportzkrazzy]

Why did they get rid of the headphone jack though? =p

[Nuttyman54]

Good Stuff!

Am I correct that the changes are all maintenance and assembly related and the are no changes to load ratings, etc?

[Jon Stratis]

How do the new mounting screws work with the larger motors? Different mounting plates to account for bolt access? I'm sure you guys figured it out, but it would be nice to see some pictures of the access with each of the different compatible motors attached!

[saikiranra]

It is mentioned that old and new blocks can't be mixed, but is it safe to assume we can use the old versa encoder with this?

[cad321]

It is mentioned that old and new blocks can't be mixed, but is it safe to assume we can use the old versa encoder with this?

They say that the stages are interchangeable between the two revisions. Because the versa encoder is a stage and not an input/output block, I would assume we can still use them in the v2.

[jwfoss]

These look like some nice tweaks to make the Versaplanets even better.

Are there any other new products this year?

I second that.

[frcguy]

Awesome stuff! We'll be grabbing some of these this offseason.

[Karthik]

How do the new mounting screws work with the larger motors? Different mounting plates to account for bolt access? I'm sure you guys figured it out, but it would be nice to see some pictures of the access with each of the different compatible motors attached!

Hi Jon,

I think you'll find what you're looking for in these two documents, including some handy charts to let you know exactly which screws are needed with each motor and stage combination.

VersaPlanetary v2 User Guide (http://link.vex.com/vexpro/pdf/VersaPlanetary-v2-User-Guide)
VersaPlanetary v2 Screw Guide (http://content.vexrobotics.com/vexpro/pdf/VersaPlanetary-v2-Screw-Guide-Rev2-20161103.pdf)

These documents and more can be found on the VersaPlanetary product page in the "Docs & Downloads" section.

[bdaroz]

Hi Jon,

I think you'll find what you're looking for in these two documents, including some handy charts to let you know exactly which screws are needed with each motor and stage combination.

VersaPlanetary v2 User Guide (http://link.vex.com/vexpro/pdf/VersaPlanetary-v2-User-Guide)
VersaPlanetary v2 Screw Guide (http://content.vexrobotics.com/vexpro/pdf/VersaPlanetary-v2-Screw-Guide-Rev2-20161103.pdf)

These documents and more can be found on the VersaPlanetary product page in the "Docs & Downloads" section.

Thanks Karthik,

One note - Pg 9 of the user's guide has everything called a "CIM Motor Output Shaft" in the tables, despite the different header names. (Copy-and-paste fail ;) )

[Lil' Lavery]

Do you anticipate getting any dual-motor input adapters into stock for the v2 prior to the start of build season?

[Jon Stratis]

Hi Jon,

I think you'll find what you're looking for in these two documents, including some handy charts to let you know exactly which screws are needed with each motor and stage combination.

VersaPlanetary v2 User Guide (http://link.vex.com/vexpro/pdf/VersaPlanetary-v2-User-Guide)
VersaPlanetary v2 Screw Guide (http://content.vexrobotics.com/vexpro/pdf/VersaPlanetary-v2-Screw-Guide-Rev2-20161103.pdf)

These documents and more can be found on the VersaPlanetary product page in the "Docs & Downloads" section.

Perfect, the last page of that first doc is really what I was looking for! It looks like the mounting plate for larger motors like the CIM motor have external access to the motor mounting mounting bolts, letting you remove the motor and then disassemble the gear box, while the smaller motors do it the other way around - disassemble the gear box in order to remove the motor. Clever!

Thanks!

[Munchskull]

Echoing what everyone has said, looks like very solid changes to an amazing product. My one question is, weather or not shafts will be inter changeable between the two.

[frcguy]

Echoing what everyone has said, looks like very solid changes to an amazing product. My one question is, weather or not shafts will be inter changeable between the two.

Note: The v1 & v2 input and output blocks cannot be mixed and matched - A v2 input block must be used with a v2 output block. Ring gears and gear kits are compatible between v1 & v2

I think that's what you're looking for.

[asid61]

Is the VP v2 the only new product we can expect to see from Vex this year? I had hoped for a lot of new products...

[Rob Stehlik]

Did you fix the issue with the pins coming out of the carrier plates? This is a problem on the 7:1, 9:1, and 10:1 stages. We fought this all last season, and even tried epoxy and welding with mixed results.

[Harrison.Smith]

Did you fix the issue with the pins coming out of the carrier plates? This is a problem on the 7:1, 9:1, and 10:1 stages. We fought this all last season, and even tried epoxy and welding with mixed results.

In our high load situations (drivetrain and arm movement) we welded the pins in. While all teams are not able to do that, it worked very well for us!

[Jon Jack]

Good Stuff!

Am I correct that the changes are all maintenance and assembly related and the are no changes to load ratings, etc?

Correct, the load ratings are the same as the VersaPlanetary v1.

It is mentioned that old and new blocks can't be mixed, but is it safe to assume we can use the old versa encoder with this?

Yes, the integrated encoder is compatible with the VersaPlanetary v2

Echoing what everyone has said, looks like very solid changes to an amazing product. My one question is, weather or not shafts will be inter changeable between the two.

Yes, output shafts are interchangeable between v1 and v2.

Did you fix the issue with the pins coming out of the carrier plates? This is a problem on the 7:1, 9:1, and 10:1 stages. We fought this all last season, and even tried epoxy and welding with mixed results.

Only the base kits were changed in VersaPlanetary v2.

[Mike Schreiber]

I think that's what you're looking for.

I think you're getting the block and the shaft mixed up. A lot of people don't do it, but the shaft can be removed from the output block via snap ring. This allows you to modify and reinstall.

[cbale2000]

We desperately needed this for our robot this past season. The gearbox that controlled the angle of our intake arm was assembled in such a way that the intake roller essentially had to be destroyed in order to remove the gearbox from the mechanism and then the whole subsystem had to be taken a apart and reassembled. We had been hoping to never have to replace it.

Needless to say we broke one of the 10:1 stages on our 300:1 gearbox and didn't have a functioning arm or collector for a few matches. :(

[frcguy]

I think you're getting the block and the shaft mixed up. A lot of people don't do it, but the shaft can be removed from the output block via snap ring. This allows you to modify and reinstall.


Yep. It had crossed my mind that he might have been referring to the shaft specifically but I assumed he was talking about the block assembly as most people don't mess with changing the output shaft - as you said.

[Munchskull]

Yep. It had crossed my mind that he might have been referring to the shaft specifically but I assumed he was talking about the block assembly as most people don't mess with changing the output shaft - as you said.

Nope I was talking about the shaft. My team modified the output shafts so much that I can replace them in less that a minute.

[marshall]

Nope I was talking about the shaft.

Shut yo' mouth!* :D

*There will be those who do not understand this reference to the lyrics from the theme song to a 1970's cult classic. (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shaft_(1971_film))

[Tcrump47]

These new versions for the gearboxes would of been great last season. We had our winch gearbox explode at championships would of been so much easier to fix if they were made this way. Looking forward to designing with these :)

[Lil' Lavery]

Any dates as to when the VexPro line-up will be fully restocked? Particularly looking at the WCP gearboxes.

[Andrew_L]

Particularly looking at the WCP gearboxes.

Give it a couple of weeks - I believe RC mentioned something about stock coming in within the next two to three weeks in another thread.

[Lil' Lavery]

Give it a couple of weeks - I believe RC mentioned something about stock coming in within the next two to three weeks in another thread.

We're running out of a "couple of weeks" to give.

[Andrew_L]

We're running out of a "couple of weeks" to give.

What's your deadline? I don't have any inside info, but from previous years most of the suppliers have their stock ready by early to mid December.

[GeeTwo]

What's your deadline? I don't have any inside info, but from previous years most of the suppliers have their stock ready by early to mid December.

I obviously can't speak for Sean, but we try to have most of our pre-season purchasing done before Thanksgiving, to avoid the December shipping rush. About all we have left are fasteners and metal stock.

[DRow]

Any dates as to when the VexPro line-up will be fully restocked? Particularly looking at the WCP gearboxes.

All products are in work, and we hope to have mostly everything in stock by 12/15, with all items in stock by Kickoff.

Are there any other new products this year?

We appreciate the interest in additional VEXpro items. We consider this product line to be fairly mature. While we talked about a variety of things we could do for 2017, many of these are niche products and don't make sense for us to provide. The VersaPlanetary upgrade is the biggest change for this season. There are some other small things coming out, but due to manufacturing delays we don't know exactly when they'll be available. We're sensitive to the needs of teams, and since we can't guarantee a date we decided it is probably best to just "launch them once they're available" so that no one is depending on them in their design. As these small items roll out, we'll post announcements here.