Quote:
Originally Posted by Daniel_LaFleur
To me, this sounded like if he just added 2 more powered wheels would it be better. The answer to this is just adding 2 more of the same type of wheels, at the same level, without changing wheelbase will not assist in turning nor will it (in and of itself) give you more traction.
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Daniel,
You're correct that adding 2 more wheels at the same level won't help traction, but it will help with turning. It won't help as much as a pair of lowered wheels to shorten the wheelbase, but assuming equal weight distribution on all six wheels, then each wheel has 33% less weight on it than a 4wd configuration and will be 33% easier to scrub sideways. Assuming the robot turns about the midpoint of your two center wheels, you still have only 4 wheels scrubbing but now with 33% less weight. So the robot is theoretically at least 33% easier to turn. That's not counting gains in the torque the middle wheels put out since they're operating under static friction instead of dynamic friction. So adding 2 more wheels certainly does help turning a little.
I'll admit the above all happens in the land of point masses and spherical chickens, but I don't think reality is THAT far off in this case.