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Unread 02-06-2016, 23:42
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Richard Wallace Richard Wallace is offline
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Re: Physics of a Ballbot

Cool idea!

Your ballbot is like the classic "inverted pendulum" problem, with the pendulum allowed to fall in any direction.

Two general thoughts on stabilizing the inverted pendulum:

1) correcting torque required increases as the pendulum leans further from vertical

2) stabilizing is easier if the pendulum is taller and heavier; this is so because height increases the moment of inertia, so that the pendulum leans away from vertical more slowly

So, to determine the torque needed, you must first decide how tall and heavy robot will be, and how far from vertical it will be able to lean without falling.
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Richard Wallace

Mentor since 2011 for FRC 3620 Average Joes (St. Joseph, Michigan)
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since 2003

I believe in intuition and inspiration. Imagination is more important than knowledge. For knowledge is limited, whereas imagination embraces the entire world, stimulating progress, giving birth to evolution. It is, strictly speaking, a real factor in scientific research.
(Cosmic Religion : With Other Opinions and Aphorisms (1931) by Albert Einstein, p. 97)

Last edited by Richard Wallace : 02-06-2016 at 23:45.
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