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Originally Posted by MikeDubreuil
My knowledge on the controllers (which may or may not be accurate)...
Back in the day (1998 and earlier I think  )... Eric Rasmussen used to design the controllers. I believe he works for Deka, but is also a FIRST volunteer. The contollers were basicly given to you in a project box and you had to send them back to FIRST when the season was over. There was no such thing as relays, all the motors used hobby style Teken speed controllers. Programming was accomplished via a Basic Stamp.
Basicly some X-mililtary type people decided to start Innovation FIRST. You'll also notice that they design rack mount enclosures. Innovation FIRST gave us the control system we use today. Robot enthusuats drool over the stuff they make. I believe some Battlebot competitors use their stuff as well. Innovation FIRST has really done an amazing job with the control system.
... enough rambling 
EDIT:
Correction: Eric works for FIRST. Thanks John. |
A bit of a more in depth explanatioin (I think this is going to date me...), I know for a fact that the Eric-designed control system was used at least from 1997 to 1999 (I believe that was the only time period it was used; there was something else before that). The control system did have relay outputs but they were physically part of the robot controller (there was a positive lead and a negative lead on the robot controller that you connected to). Originally, variable speed applications were used with Tekin speed controllers. Unfortunately, the Tekins had a tendency to catch on fire when too high of a current was used. In 1999, Innovation FIRST came out with the Victor 883 speed controller which was used for high current applications (at the time, it was required on drill and fisher price motors and other motors could use the Tekins). The Eric-designed Robot Controller needed to be returned to FIRST after the season (you could pay a deposit and keep it until October if you wished).
I don't remember ever hearing that the IFI guys were ex-military (they maybe). I had heard that they were FIRST graduates but that's just hearsay.
Matt