Battery
 

Hi, our team was wondering if the battery had to be in a up right postion on the robot or could it be at a side or an angle? We could not find anything in the manual.

Thanks for any help!::safety::

Re: Battery
 

There is no orientation rule. There is however somewhere a rule that defines how long the battery wires to breaker can be before they count as official weight. (1ft i think?)
-Duke

Re: Battery
 

Ok thank you so much!!

Re: Battery
 

Out of curiostity do you know if we can have rope lights on our bots? like those xmas lights in a tube?

Re: Battery
 

[R03-A], and 12" does in fact equal 1'. Note that this isn't the length to breaker, however; it's the length to the Anderson connector.

With respect to rope lights, I'd say those fall under Non-Functional Decoration and suggest looking at those rules.

Re: Battery
 

In reply to battery orientation there are two aspects to take into account for a correct answer here, battery specs and robot rules.
For the battery specs, because it is an AGM battery, you can place the batteries in any orientation and not have a diminished performance because of the orientation. As for the game and robot rules, there are no rules to restrict you from placing the battery in any orientation on you robot, but i will give you the following recommendations for best performance on the robot.

• Do not place tension on the anderson half connects wires. Make sure there is enough slack where you do not have taught cables.
• While not having taught cables, you still want the minimal amount of 6# wire connecting to the battery to reduce resistance.
• Do not orientate the robot where the top of the battery is blocked. There are vents for the cells under the top cover, blocking these can result in cell failure or battery rupture.
• Do not leave exposed lugs or have the battery able to short between the lugs on your robot. Meaning do not place the battery where it can shift and contact exposed metal.
• Many teams like to either velcro or ziptie the Anderson half connectors together during the match. This is a good practice so the connectors will not just disconnect during a match.
• Always make sure the battery is mounted in place on the robot where it can not shift or be ejected during rough game play.

Also a couple good practices to prolong the life and performance of the batteries are:

• Do not carry the batteries by the cables. This will put overstrain on the lugs and can cause cell failure.
• Always charge in a well vented area.
• Do not use alligator clips to charge with. Splice in Anderson quick connectors onto the charger to minimize wear and damage to the terminals on the battery half of the Anderson quick connectors.
• Insulate all areas where connections are made, including the terminal hardware.
• Always check battery terminal hardware and cables before use. Never use a battery with loose or improperly connected hardware to it.
• Always use a smart charger to charge these batteries with, so overcharging does not occur.

Obviously these are not all inclusive lists but good practices with respect to the battery.

Re: Battery
 

You can, just make sure to abide by [R05] and [R08] (i.e. don't put them on a shiny disco ball).

Re: Battery
 

For the same reason, don't install the battery upside down. Any other direction (upright, on its side, flat) is fine.

Re: Battery
 

If one reads the manufacturer's sheet on this battery it would lead to believe that you can mount and use the battery in any orientation. I would suggest that upside down is a bad idea because you can't see the insulation that should cover the terminals and you can't see if the terminals are under stress. Please remember that the metal terminal that is sticking out of the red and black plastic on your battery is simply soldered to a round terminal inside the battery. Any stress can damage or break this connection. This is not a repairable fault. While the batteries we use are AGM and theoretically have the acid impregnated in a glass mat, I recommend that teams do not charge them upside down. This is just good practice to prevent some of the problems already listed.

Re: Battery
 

I believe so, Last year we had leds, in our back panel of lexan. I would check the rules for sure. but make sure that it wont get caught in any moving parts or other robots for that matter.


-Thomas

Re: Battery
 

Gel and AGM are different technologies.

Re: Battery
 

Whoops, thank you for pointing out the typo, updated.

Re: Battery
 

Everyone knows not to put the battery in upside down. All the electrons will fall out when you disconnect it. Or is that what that AndyMark plastic plug is for?

Re: Battery
 

Actually its not far from the truth.. in 2010 our battery was installed with a downward slope (Terminals downward made the cable connection run much shorter) Well lo and behold after one match we noticed something that looked little damp in the battery carrier after removing the battery... Very carefully we checked with a little bit of baking soda and yup the battery had leaked. From that point on batteries are always right side up. Having a leaky battery is not something you want to deal with during competition.

Re: Battery
 

I wouldn't stress a few extra inches of #6 wire to make for better mounting. 1000' of #6 wire has a resistance 0.3951 ohms. Even at a 50 amp draw, 6' of #6 gauge wire has less than 0.25 volts drop. I'm not saying be wasteful by any means, just that if you need an extra inch or two to make a better robot, it's worth taking it. Go here to play with values to see what your losses will be:
http://genuinedealz.com/voltage-drop.html

-Mike