Quote:
Originally Posted by Vikesrock
For the teams that have driven arms with the FP through the gearbox, have you run into any issues with heat? Specifically when you are holding the arm at a set position (up in the air). I know the FPs are cooled by fan blades that spin when the motor spins, so it seems to me that heat may be a problem when the motor is exerting torque but not spinning.
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Yes, heat can be a problem if you use FP motors to hold an arm in position. If your motors are operating close to stall when doing so, you can fry the motor in about 30 seconds. I had some problems with this last year. You can solve this in a couple of ways: use more gearing, or use 2 FP motors and gearboxes. Either one of these methods will reduce the workload of your motor, and make it less likely to heat up. You can also use a worm gear so your joint won't backdrive, though this requires building a custom gearbox, and not using the FP gearbox in the kit.