Posted by P.J. Baker at 03/19/2001 1:19 PM EST
Engineer on team #177, Bobcat Robotics, from South Windsor High School and International Fuel Cells.
In Reply to: EVERYONE, ANSWER THIS PLEASE!!!
Posted by Rob DeCotiis on 03/18/2001 1:50 PM EST:
I uploaded a picture to the gallery to help answer your request. This year, we are using the two drill motors to power all four wheels with tank style steering. If you get the gearing right, there is plenty of power available and the steering isn't as bad as everyone makes it out to be.
I posted the picture of our frame and motor mounts to illustrate how I would go about planning for next season. GET FAMILIAR WITH 80/20!! (or some other "industrial erector set"

If you make some motor mounts that can just bolt in, you'll be able to experiment with a number of different drive set ups in a very short amount of time. When you're set on what you want, you can build your machine out of 80/20 or weld up a frame with your desired layout if weight is a concern.
This year, we were able to use 80/20 for the entire frame. Once we had all of the pieces cut, it was possible for myself and one student to assemble the complete frame from its components in a little more than an hour. This meant a lot more sleep for all of us this year. I can't imagine that we'll go back to the old way unless they take this stuff out of the additional materials list.
Follow the link below to see a picture of the completed fram 80/20 frame (sans drill motors and wheels). Stop by our pit in Florida and we'll gladly give you a more in depth tour of the machine.
P.J. Baker
Team #177