Quote:
Originally Posted by Foster
Can you find all the parts to build a robot at Bed Bath and Beyond? (Hint, those stand mixers have pretty heavy duty planetary transmissions).
I like the "stand on the shoulders of giants" theory. I like that teams can build on what others have done. But I agree with techhelpbb, at some point roboteers need to be able to dig down and look at what the things are built on. In the programming world TCP is the bucket we can carry data in. And while I can design and code a UDP based system that would send 35 frames a second to the driver station the question becomes "what can I do instead of that". COTS will never replace just sitting down and thinking about the problem and put forth multiple solutions.
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I really, really want to take apart my stand mixer now...
Anyway, I think you've made a very good point. The purpose of COTS parts is to streamline the design process. Instead of spending loads of time making small, individual aspects of the robot work, COTS parts enable you to skip the tiny details and go directly to the "big picture," that is, the design of the robot itself, as opposed to the design of its gearboxes, wheels, extrusion, etc. However, it cannot be denied that custom fabricated systems, if made properly, can usually do the job better than an off-the-shelf solution. Why? Because something made custom for the specific purpose it is going to fill will inherently perform better than a more general system of the same construction quality. There's nothing wrong with COTS parts, but putting the time and effort into a really good custom mechanism will (almost) always be worth it.