[joeweber]

The rods are pivot points only and do not move or flex. A base of the main part of the robot will be attached to the rods. The rods are only showed to tie the two halves together. The rods only need to be long enough to go from the base through the drive units to allow for the pivot. When built we would limit the amount of pivot needed for any ramps required. We could also connect pneumatics to lock down the suspension for any long reaching manipulator. View http://www.chiefdelphi.com/media/photos/31755 to get a better understanding of how the base would attach to the rods. One half of the drive unit has slots to alow for the movement of the suspension. If you look close at the drowing you can see the slot and hole.