Re: IRI 2012: Robots to See
 

As your next door neighbors we'd really like if you would come over and give us some pointers on sheet metal - it was our first year venturing into pure sheet constuction, and any insight is accepted.

Re: IRI 2012: Robots to See
 

I would echo 2826. Beautiful robot.

Re: IRI 2012: Robots to See
 

3940 is a beautifully simple bot. It's a rookie team that built within their means and their designs have helped many of us Indiana (and possibly some Michigan teams) this season. How often do you get to the end of build season and you have to add 20+ lbs of dead weight to your robot to equal everyone else. Plus it's purple :)

Re: IRI 2012: Robots to See
 

I would suggest asking 3310 about their drive train fix they made at their first regional this past year

Re: IRI 2012: Robots to See
 

We tried hard to raise the money to go but we just could not do it. 25 had to bow out. My money is on 341 go get them daisy.

Re: IRI 2012: Robots to See
 

We (503) have a pretty cool octo-mecanum drivetrain, it allows us to switch from mecanums to traction wheels and back with the push of a button.

Re: IRI 2012: Robots to See
 

1741 has a similar drive train. Maybe we can compare notes at IRI!

Re: IRI 2012: Robots to See
 

After seeing this today, I really wish I was able to check out 829.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YGk3N...H9Lx5gWZbvg%3D

Re: IRI 2012: Robots to See
 

Sorry I'm so late (been on vacation), but I would be remiss if I didn't correct you here, and pass the compliments to Team 111 for (I think) actually doing what you described.

I wish we had a turret, but we don't. The fact that our shooter sits on a sprocket is apparently very deceiving to people. (Up close, the lack of chain or a motor and the presence of wires running between the teeth are dead giveaways) The shooter retains that sprocket because it works as a base plate just as well as anything else, and nobody could see any reason to replace it after the rotating turret idea was abandoned (at a competition nonetheless). For the rest of the competition season, the shooter sat on its sprocket, on its bearing, with a humble bolt scratched into--not even drilled through!--the mounting bracket to keep the whole assembly facing straight. After the World Championship, we retired the bearing and replaced it with 1x1 tube to maintain the same height, but the sprocket lives on!

To correct the rest of what you said, the real purpose of the bands is to increase firing rate, not maintain consistency (but we do have consistency measures). These are also a product of the post-build season, because the original plan called for the ball to be carried against a curved plate for something like 90 degrees by a dinky little Vex motor. You could take a nap between shots. The bands significantly shorten the distance the ball contacts those Vex wheels, effectively extending the shooter wheels downward.

P.S. I'm sorry for all the side notes and surprised that our shooter would get mention (even false mention) over all others.
P.P.S. I'm also sorry that your correction is incorrect.