Parameter of the Robot base
 

How big can the parameter of the robot be?
And how far outside of the frame can the arms extend.
And can you start a match with the arms already extended?

Re: Parameter of the Robot base
 

There is no rule that dictates how large any extension can be or how large your robot may be on the field excluding a height limit of 78 inches tall. That being said, while in transport, there is a specified volume that the robot must fit within as per R3:
You have up to one minute to set up your robot on the field before a match. All of these points should be considered when designing your robot, and specifically the extensions beyond the frame perimeter and how the robot will fit into the transport configuration.
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Re: Parameter of the Robot base
 

As per R3:

"The ROBOT must be able to be arranged into a TRANSPORT CONFIGURATION with dimensions which do not exceed 28 in wide, 42 in long, and 78 in tall"

This means that there are no specific rules for the frame dimensions, but it is unlikely that you will be able to reduce the size of your frame in under a minute so the frame limitations would likely be 28 in by 48 in. (Although technically, you might be able to tilt the robot on it's side for transportation. It depends on if the coordinate system of the "28 in wide, 42 in long, and 78 in tall" is relative to the floor or to the robot's orientation. I would strongly encourage you to check in the Q &A forum before running with this idea)

There are no rules during the competition that say how far away from the frame area that a mechanism can extend in the match. Once again, I would be sure though that whatever mechanisms you build will be able to fold up to fit into the

Re: Parameter of the Robot base
 

Don't want to be a jerk but please ::rtm::

Re: Parameter of the Robot base
 

THanks To you all for the help, We built the robot in a square using 31in wide bu 32 inch long. Our drive train uses four motors, three wheels on each side. We were thinking about going with the OMNIWHEELS. What is special about them?

Re: Parameter of the Robot base
 

Omni wheels have a set of rollers perpendicular to the front of the wheel. This allows them to have sideways and forward movement, that doesn't require turning. You can put the wheels in an orientation like this:
| |
--
| |
The wheel(s) in the center can drive the robot sideways, because the rollers on the side wheel allow perpendicular movement. Considering that your center of mass is directly over the center wheels, this style of drive (referred to as slide or H - drive) is capable of excellent omni directional maneuvering.

Re: Parameter of the Robot base
 

Hold up a minute. If your robot is 31" x 32", you will need to have some method of losing 3" or so for transport.

As far as omniwheels, they allow very easy sideways movement. You REALLY want traction wheels of some form, though omniwheels may be useful on the corners IFF the center wheel is not dropped.

Re: Parameter of the Robot base
 

Omni wheels are good for extra maneuverability, but as Eric said, you do want traction wheels (at least the center wheels) on your robot.

Simbotics has a really good resource on a lot of different types of drivetrains, I'd suggest taking a look here: http://www.simbotics.org/resources/m...rain-selection


Mackenzie Glaser
Team 1261

Re: Parameter of the Robot base
 

The learning curve for FRC is steep and long. It may be of benefit for your team to find a more established team in your area who can meet with your team. A few hours of in-person meetings can bring you up to speed with the basics much faster than asking many basic questions here. They can also identify holes in your knowledge better than the people posting here. You can then come back and ask more specific questions.

Re: Parameter of the Robot base
 

So we made the standard long chassis and are fully up and running. We have our mechanism designed but with our chassis 32" long do we have to have our arms upright at the beginning in transport to stay under 42"???

Re: Parameter of the Robot base
 

Yes. There is no concept of a frame perimeter this year, only that the entire robot fits within that bounding box for the transport configuration. Note that you can carry the robot onto the field and unfold the arms before the start of the match.

Re: Parameter of the Robot base
 

The other restriction that many seem to miss is G7-C - that the starting configuration can not be in either the AUTOZONE, nor the LANDFILL ZONE. There are already questions in the Q&A if the space above the zones are included in the restriction.

Re: Parameter of the Robot base
 

Or, if you want to be slick, have the robot unfold its own arms during autonomous.

Re: Parameter of the Robot base
 

Yeah, before you do anything else, you guys need to fix this or you'll be in for quite a surprise at competition.

Unless you are going to get really complicated, one dimension of your frame has to be under 28".

Re: Parameter of the Robot base
 

Actually, you needn't get overly complicated to have your frame length and width >28".

Re: Parameter of the Robot base
 

I'm assuming they'll want the height of their robot to be over 42" tall, which I guess is not totally necessary. Regardless, I don't see why they would be unable to trim three inches. Having to severely limit your robot's transport configuration height probably isn't worth it over something like this that could be remedied and would allow much mroe flexibility later in the build process. I mean, its only what, day 6?

Re: Parameter of the Robot base
 

Not that big.------->See the video.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FeVghhvw9dQ

And...Not that big either...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vAiwLRGsNrE

Note: Please read ALL of the 2015 FRC rules before designing & building a Robot.::rtm::

We want you to be able to play the game when arriving at the competitions, instead of having to help you rebuild it there (If we can all avoid it, OK?).:eek:

Please see The Rules, Robot Section; R3 & R4 for Transport Size & Wt. constraints. There are other rules that apply this year also (such as there is no on the field width X length constraint as long as it fits within the transport size...pits to the field, through doors, gates, etc....though there is a Max. height limit, both on, or off the field, and you must be able to setup and break down reasonably on the field within 1 minute or less, and everything must fit into that transport box size limitation for transport throughout the venue). So reading all the rules is very important...Stop building, start reading OK?:cool: