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Polycarbonate/Plexiglass Ruling
I was looking through the game manual for this year's competition and I couldn't find anything about the amount of polycarbonate/plexiglass you are allowed to use
Is there a rule on how much you can use? If so, how much? |
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edit: ^^^ also the $4000 robot budget limit, and the $400/part limit |
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A solid block of polycarbonate would cost less than an equivalent block of 7075 aluminum, I think. We can ask Poohbear.
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Ok learn from our mistakes!! DO NOT use Plexiglass as an electronics board! We had ours made of Plexiglass last year, and by the end of our third time on the field, it was falling apart. By the time eliminations came around, we were on the field with an electronics board held together mostly by duct tape. Poly carbonate is definitely the better choice.
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Also, since nobody explicitly stated what will go wrong: Lexan basically doesn't shatter. They use specific compositions of it for bulletproof "glass" for this reason. You can even cold-bend the stuff (though I wouldn't generally recommend it) and depending on the use it can be fine. Acrylic on the other hand... well, drop it or hit it with something or try to bend it and see what happens. It shatters. Something into sharp shards. A quite undesirable characteristic for robots. So, polycarbonate, Lexan, or Makrolon are generally good for robot use. Acrylic, Plexiglas, Acrylite, Lucite or Perspex = bad news. To reiterate everyone else: Make sure what you are using is polycarbonate and not acrylic or it may very well literally shatter your dreams. |
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According to midwest steel supply, a 24"x24"x2" plate of 7075 regularly costs $440 and weighs in at 116lbs. |
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To restate what others have already said.
Plexiglass is a brand name of acrylic. Lexan is a brand name of polycarbonate. They both have their advantages, but acrylic is brittle compared to polycarbonate.. You should avoid using for shields and structural partc. It is nice for fish tanks if we ever have a water game. One easy test to tell acrylic from poly. Hit a piece hard against a table top. If it cracks or shatters it is probably acrylic. Wear your safety glasses. So in the robot world. Lexan=polycarbonate=good. Plexiglass=acrylic=bad. |
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#teamglass |
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Transparent Aluminum?
http://www.ubergizmo.com/2015/11/transparent-aluminum/ although this is really alumina based glass instead of silica based glass Probably not the same stuff as on Star Trek lol |
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btw: this means all the aluminum you own is literally covered in sapphire. |
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Several entries had no text other than "TOXIC FUMES, DO NOT CUT." |
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It also cuts like crap, though, so it's sort of immaterial. |
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Also doesn't cut well. |
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Cut Kydex on laser, created chlorine gas. 0/10 would not recommend. Edit: forgot to add it causes every steel part in your laser to rust. So yeah, don't cut PVC. |
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We borrowed our list from http://atxhackerspace.org/wiki/Laser...HESE_MATERIALS |
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Waterjets cut all of these materials pretty well with no fumes.
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It was really nice to work for a waterjet maker back when I was on 1318. our 2009 robot was made all of waterjet polycarbonate sheet (which was recylced from a building demolition!) Our 2008 robot had a waterjet 1/4" titanium sheet as the only frame element. everything just bolted right to it. it also has infinite rotation swerve drives using waterjet copper sheet for custom slop rings. |
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Not sure about the Wazer. |
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As exciting as waterjets are, my team has found huge success with desktop CNC routers. They are relatively cheap, relatively intuitive to use, and cut softer materials like wood and polycarb very easily, and are advertised to cut aluminum if you know what your doing.
We use a Shapeoko 3 XL with DeWalt Router and it's become our new favorite tool. It has a build volume of 33" by 17", and comes with very easy to use software. Our XL version is about $1,600, abut you can scale up(XXL 33" by 33") or down(Standard 16" by 16"). Feel free to pm me if your skeptical, on the fence about buying one, or just want to know more! :D |
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I have also done an experiment for a non-FRC related group of kids. I took two identically sized pieces of polycarbonate and acrylic plastic (about 2" by 12"). (Fun note: polycarbonate is easy to cut with woodworking power tools like miter saws. Acrylic, I scored with a knife and snapped.) To the eye, other than the cross section, both pieces look very similar. Then I folded the polycarbonate in half like a sheet of paper. You end up with a nice 90-degree bend. Then I tried the same with the acrylic, and it shatters into pieces (wear gloves). Insert your favourite object lesson here about things looking the same but being very different inside, don't judge inward strength by outward appearances, looking OK on the outside but handling stress and pressure very differently on the inside, etc. |
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