Quote:
Originally Posted by gabrielau23
@Lil' Lavery
So if there is an arm this year, the design MUST balance the arm if we plan to use FP motors, correct?
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Not necessarily, but I certainly would suggest it. Balancing an arm would be a relatively simple and elegant solution to avoiding stalling a motor and opening yourself up to lower power motors.
The way that you'd typically stall an FP motor in an arm design would either stem from you under-gearing the motor or trying to hold the arm at a certain elevation. You can avoid the first issue with proper gearing. The latter can be avoided a number of ways. Balancing the arm would work. Using a transmission that doesn't backdrive easily, such as one incorporating anti-backdrive pins (DeWalt drill transmissions) or worm gears, would also work. A ratcheting joint could also do the trick, though you'd need to figure out a way to release the pawl in order to lower the arm. Or you could simply operate the arm to avoid the situation in the first place.