Ramp BOM
 

Does anyone know where I can get a BOM for the ramp or on what page I can find it in the manual? Thanks!

http://www.usfirst.org/robotics/2003/docs.htm

If you can't find it there, it's not anywhere and it probably won't be. You're best option is to look at diagram and try and fudge it. I believe they announced that there were only 2 suppliers for the mesh.

Dave also gave some hints on alternatives for the mesh.

hmmm
 

at novi, they said it would cost up to like 3-4 grand, and they were going to post cheaper suggestions on the first website. keep checking for updates

Re: hmmm
 

You mean "no ve"? I mean, that's what woodie called it!

well the alternatives i believe were plywood....and as far as I can tell that isnt going to help you much to simulate anything.

Found it!....kinda
 

On page 2-3 of the game manual, there is a short description on what the ramp is made of, but nothing specific on the quantities. Page 17 has the specs on the wire mesh, white tape, carpet, retroreflective tape, container, HDPE and where to get all these things. That's about all the help that FIRST if going to give us to build the ramp, unless they post the BOM in the next update, hopefully.

The ramp is 18 feet across. 7'9" from the beginning of the ramp to the platform ON THE GROUND. the platform is 2 feet high. there are slight specs on the website.

For specifics on the demensions of the ramp, there is a nice CAD drawing od the field and it's compenents included in the rule book (similar to the ones they have released in previous years).

Cheaper Field Components
 

Better check those measurements again, remember measure twice cut once.

For the Phoenix Kit-off the metal portions of the field - Platforms and Ramps - were constructed out of wood. We used the proper quoted materials for the platform tops and grating material for the ramps and used plywood for the vertical sides of the ramps where FIRST had Lexan. Cost of material to build, not including labor was $1100.00.

well, lets see---to build the ramp, say in plywood, you would need this much stuff:

Surface:

8 sheets 4 X 8 Plywood (probably 1 inch thick)
At roughly $16 a piece (I'm probably WAY off... haven't been to the hardware store) $128

Vertical Wood Struts (8 ft 2X40) to support the large ramp pieces- you'd probably need one every two feet... that would come out to 16 of them (gotta support the top of the bridge too).... they are like 6 bucks apiece... so $98

Horizontal wood struts (12 ft 2X4) you'd probably only need 6 of these... say, roughly $8 each--- $48

Posts to hold up the top--- you'd probably want 4X4, 2 ft long. say one every 4 ft on each side--- that's 8 of them. 16 ft. so two 8 ft 4X4's. say another $20.

THEN you need a couple huge boxes of screws (or nails, or bolts or whatever)... so add in $30.

add it all together, you can make just the ramp for---- roughly $324

that is probably an underestimate. and it's only the basic ramp-no polycarbonite sides, no field, no borders, no player stations.....

good luck building!

wow ok plywood won't give you an accurate idea of how your robot will drive on that wire mesh ramp.....maybe if you cut out 1" X 1" holes in everyone portion of it it might work, but I doubt then it could support much....this wire mesh and plywood are two entirely different surfaces with two entirely different textures...good luck :/

This is exactly what I am looking for! Thank so much for your help!!

I wouldnt build a rampo without the wire mesh and HDPE. TO make it cheaper, you could easily build only 1 or 2 of the 4 sections of the ramp. Making it even cheaper, use a 1/4" sheet of HDPE backed by 1/4" plywood, and use plwood instead of lexan sides, along with wooden framing. I can't think of any way to make it cheaper without removing vital surfaces.


Cory

Need field CAD drawing
 

Does anybody have an electronic copy of the field CAD drawing included with the hardcopy rule book? Maybe it's on the CD??? We're waiting for our kits to arrive and the 'field layout' PDF file that FIRST posted just isn't enough to guide construction. We try to have the field hardware constructed in the first couple of days... if we have to wait for our kit to arrive, we're just that much further behind! Aargh!

Thanks for any help!

Ron

At the San Jose remote kickoff, I saw some people looking at a blueprint of the field; I thought that that might be included in our kit. Apparently not -- but now I know that such a blueprint exists.