need ideas for light weight materials
 

i need ideas for a light weight materials for controller backpack that would be used for a demos.

Re: need ideas for light weight materials
 

Are you looking to make some sort of control board that one can wear to drive your robot(s)?

The first thing that comes to mind would be a marching drum harness. Something like this. I don't know what they make these out of or how much they weigh, but drumline members use these constantly throughout the season, they must not be too heavy.

Re: need ideas for light weight materials
 

if you design your control board right and are nice, the marching band might even let you borrow one for a few days. Results, of course, may vary.

Re: need ideas for light weight materials
 

When 1293 pressed Ockham into parade service, we poked two holes in the control board and stuck a rope through them. The board was constrained rotationally by the gut of the driver. (We would usually lock the arm in the up position with visegrips or something similar, leaving the driver just to drive.)

Re: need ideas for light weight materials
 

If you are going for the drum harness method I would use a snare/tenor harness(both have "J" hooks on them) and find a way to put eye-bolts near the shoulder rests for straps down to the far side of the control board.

Re: need ideas for light weight materials
 

no, im looking to make one that is portable and is light weight to wear on my back. the only thing you would see is the controller and the anitenia and the eletronics would be hidden in teh back-pack.

Re: need ideas for light weight materials
 

One light weight material that has recently caught my eye is Garolite, as G-10 and G-9 have strength equal to 6061 aluminum. Or if that seems too expensive, good quality plywood will work very well.

Re: need ideas for light weight materials
 

What you might want if you are considering a marching band harness is specifically a tenor harness. You can easily modify your current operator's console to fit it very easily, as you will only need to mount your operator's console to the part that the tenors mount onto.

Here are some good reliable ones that Yamaha sells. These are not specifically tenor harnesses but you can navigate and find them. Link.

I recommend These are what our drumline uses.

Pavan.

Re: need ideas for light weight materials
 

Maybe if you describe exactly what you want to make, we can be a little more helpful. Is the controller a joystick? an Xbox controller? something else? Are you looking for materials to strap something to you, or are you looking for something more along the lines of materials for a board to bolt the electronics to that can slip into an already made backpack?

Re: need ideas for light weight materials
 

I tested this and it works; A large enough cigar box can hold an OI, chicklet and a vex battery. This can easily fit in a standard backpack with an antenna. Then you use an xbox controller to drive.

Re: need ideas for light weight materials
 

its a joystick with a couple of switches. im looking for materials to strap the electronics to that woiuld then slip into a backpack.

Re: need ideas for light weight materials
 

If you don't like using premade stuff and you really want to make something yourself, you can always bend something up out of 1/16" or 1/8" (overkill) lexan and use it for your electronics.

Have to say the cigar box sounds a lot better though! much more james bondish... :cool:

-q

Re: need ideas for light weight materials
 

ok, thanks for the idea.

Re: need ideas for light weight materials
 

You could just buy one of these, they are made to be used with IFI radio equipment for battlebot applications.