[cbale2000]

You have the problem of something breaking or falling off with any drive system, last year it was treads, this year wheels but we think that we have taken necessary precautions to eliminate, or at least minimize the chances of that happening.


The center wheel is offset but only VERY slightly, the other wheels still grip the carpet (though, granted not as well). We have done the same thing with all of our tread drives in the past so there really isn't much difference in terms of functionality.




We're using 4 CIM motors to power it (2 on each side) as well as a two-speed transmission that we've cooked up especially for it.

It should be able to climb a ramp as well as any other robot with tank treads (Assuming their ramp isn't made with slippery lexan or something; then it might be a bit more difficult).

If a wheel breaks, it is VERY easy to pull off and replace (takes about 20 seconds), the gears are a bit harder and require pulling off the side panel but it's no more complicated than replacing a tread on one of our previous robots.



Some time within the next week we hope to have it wired and running, if and when that happens I'll post a video of it for you all to see.