pic: 141's Robot stacking side view
 

Do my eyes deceive me, or is that a high-traction castor on the front of the robot?

It looks like team 60 tread, but I could be mistaken...

Looks nice. Though it also seems like you are stuck with stacking boxes only in one position and are not able to orrient them if they aren't in the correct position. However, I like the design and wish you the best of luck.:)

see you guys at west michigan...and good luck.

As a matter of fact those are high traction casters on the front, and we have our ways of orienting totes. Also the suction cup works very effectively on the hpde surface.

is that a toilet plunger?

Huh?
 

Why?
Maybe I'm just missing something... What is the point of a high-traction caster? What benefit does it give you?

If we dont have the high traction casters then the casters end up running sideways instead of running forward. When we added the traction it allowed us to travel more easily on the ramp and it also made the casters orient themselves much better. That thing on the back is an 8 inch suction cup...