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Unread 02-04-2013, 00:42
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Mechanical Engineer
AKA: Craig Boezwinkle
FRC #2811 (StormBots)
Team Role: Mentor
 
Join Date: Oct 2008
Rookie Year: 2009
Location: Chicago, IL
Posts: 217
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Re: Supershifters and Mechanum wheels

Quote:
Originally Posted by Jeffy View Post
I build bots with a philosophy that if you can't line it up with a tank drive and a few minutes of practice then your mechanism is broken and not your drive train.
Solid philosophy.

In the past few years we have used both AWD robots with traction wheels and robots with mecanum drives. The team has tended to favor mecanum for its alleged maneuverability strengths. I think this is a bit of a fallacy, as we haven't been able to drive or align the mecanum robot any better than the AWD versions.

Building a mecanum robot is a great learning experience from a build and a programming standpoint but don't expect a huge boost in driver performance. It isn't as maneuverable as it looks on paper.