[Peter Matteson]

My team has been around since 1995 and we have done quite a bit of refining and improving the basic design of the telescoping arm in that time. Our eveolutionary changes reflect the KOP changes that have taken place over time as well as rule changes.

1996: 177 introduces the first telescoping arm on the Hexorcist. It was a monocoque sheetmetal construction with the "inner arm" being stationary and attached to the shoulder. The outer arm glides over the inner arm on custom linear slides made from HDPE. The slides start out at the top and bottom of the arm and move closer together as the arm extends. The extension is driven by window tape, a plastic that appears like the edge of a piece of film. The shoulder was powered by a van door motor driving a 45 chain sprocket on a solid steel axle. This was a high shoulder robot using the super structure to create a reduction with chain to drive the shoulder.

1997: Same as 96.

1998: Same as 96 & 97 but we also created the roller claw that year, in parallel to 45.
http://www.chiefdelphi.com/media/photos/13367
http://www.chiefdelphi.com/media/photos/22601

1999: Same as 96-98 but we had the Gerber Grabber as an end effector.

2001: The first year we went from monocoque construction to 1/8" wall Al box for easier manufacture. We also had 2 van door motors on the shoulder, a globe powered extension (first year I know what motor we used), and a globe powered wrist. The total arm extended around 13 feet. First year we used #35 chain to drive the shoulder. This arm was also a low shoulder designed to swing either direction and go under barriers.
http://www.chiefdelphi.com/media/photos/12342
http://www.chiefdelphi.com/media/photos/12339
http://www.chiefdelphi.com/media/photos/12347
http://www.chiefdelphi.com/media/photos/12558

2003: A copy of 2001 but with a a CIM powered shoulder and a COTS gearbox, this was the first year we could purchase this type of item.
http://www.chiefdelphi.com/media/photos/15124
http://www.chiefdelphi.com/media/photos/14983

2005: Same as 2001 & 2003 but a high shoulder and with a COTS automotive winch gearbox powered by to FPs.

2007: The first year expansion rules were in place which caused us to go with a vertical extension instead of extendeing the arm. We changed the slide material to delrin for the first time. We ditched the window tape for extension because it no longer in the kit and used #25 chain. The extension was a banebots motor and so was the shoulder which was a COTS worm drive gearbox.
http://www.chiefdelphi.com/media/photos/28221
http://www.chiefdelphi.com/media/photos/28222

2008: We reversed which part of the arm was stationary and which part moved by making the outer arm stationary. We also went to a hollow, large OD tube of 4130 for the shoulder to save weight and improve strength.
http://www.chiefdelphi.com/media/photos/30533

2011: 1st year we counterbalanced the arm with a gas spring. We went to a pnuematic extension.
http://www.chiefdelphi.com/media/photos/37064

And just because I found it in my photo search some CD notables as students...
http://www.chiefdelphi.com/media/photos/12112