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Originally Posted by Joe Johnson
Wire: I use RED & BLACK for the power IN side of the Talon/Victor and WHITE & BLUE for the power OUT side. To simplify things, I use 12g for all high current applications (no worrying about the extra weight - it isn't that much and it gets the job done).
How much 12g wire of each color should I have on hand to be sure I don't run out?
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For the power IN side of things, you really shouldn't need too much - you want the motor controllers close to the PDB anyways. Based on the past few robots we've built, 20ft would probably be enough for multiple seasons!
For the power OUT side of things, though, it's highly design dependent. If you end up building a forklift/elevator, you could need 10-20ft just to get from one controller to one motor! I would probably plan for 100ft, with the knowledge that it'll probably end up being more than you need.
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Connectors: The EEs on the team are not FIRSTers. They don't like Anderson Power Pole Connectors for motor applications. I am inclined to have them use Andersons anyway since they are a popular choice among FIRSTers.
Two questions? Should I use Anderson Power Poles or not? If so, how many terminals and how many Red, Black, White and Blue housings should I have on hand?
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We love the Power Poles. While you may not unplug them a lot at competition, they do make wiring the robot a lot easier in some cases. We always put them between the electrical board and the actual robot. That way the board is completely removable quickly and easily - it helps avoid getting metal shavings on the board! We also put them between any components that are designed to be removable - for example, in Rebound Rumble our shooter was removable. Having it wired separately made testing a lot easier - we could run it into a battery (through an old drill modified to plug into a robot battery and provide variable output to a pair of Power Poles) to run the shooter manually for testing. Having the power poles also means we can easily disconnect mechanisms during testing. Depending on design, this can be a big advantage - you can stick your head into someplace knowing the mechanism next to your nose isn't going to move, giving you a better view of a different mechanism that's having problems.
If they have better connectors they would prefer to use, I'd say go for it! Just because the FIRST community has mostly settled on one particular connector type doesn't mean it's the best, and it doesn't mean we won't love to see other types that might be better. They can change our minds!
As for quantity/color... Get a variety of colors and use them to color code your wires based on applications. For example, all the wires going to your shooter could be blue, going to the floor picker could be green, going to the drive train could be red, going to the climber could be orange, etc. Remember, if you put them in place once between a motor and a motor controller, you'll need 4 connectors (2 for each lead, one from the controller, one from the motor). So as a base guess, I would say 4x the number of motors you anticipate would be the minimum you would need.