1) We break the mechanical subteam into three groups, one for drivetrain and two for scoring mechanisms. Four students per group seems about optimum, with two experienced students paired with two newcomers. We try to have a mechanical mentor assigned to to help each group. For instance, last year we had a driveteam group, a shooter group (which included aiming), and a ball handling group. On the first weekend, we brainstorm many ways to accomplish the game tasks, and then narrow the wide number of choices down to 2 or 3 we want to prototype. The results from prototyping are used to narrow the choices to the final concept. We strive to have prototyping completed and our Plan of Record (POR) nailed down by the end of week two. Whenever possible, we use "paper prototyping". For instance, an hour with graph paper, a circle template and a ruler were enough to show us the differences between the how a narrow and wide robot might look when traversing the bump, and the risk of each tipping over while doing so.
2) This basically comes down to having industry experience, or putting in the time to do research. Study the Andymark, Banebots, WCProducts, and Team221 websites thoroughly. Do google searches and searches through the CD archives. Download models of previous robot designs from frc-designs.com, and study how other teams have solved design problems in the past. Go to the websites of top tier teams and study the documents, photos, and robot videos they publish. When you go to competitions, take the time to crawl around and really study how other robots are built. Take pictures and notes to remind yourself of all the good ideas you find. It's this willingness to "do the work" that makes a great engineer.
3) This question actually is very important, because you can get hurt if things go badly. First, the thing you are spinning needs to have a bit of shaft exposed you can clamp the drill chuck onto. When you chuck onto it, be sure you don't chuck into a keyway. Finally, if the drill you are using has a clutch brake that stops the chuck when you let off the trigger, be very very careful. See my post here:
http://www.chiefdelphi.com/forums/sh...t=drill+safety