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Unread 11-02-2010, 11:28
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FRC #2177 (The Robettes)
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Re: Possible self-righting systems

The best strategy - a low center of gravity. If you keep your CG low, it becomes much harder to tip. The real risk of tipping over is the bumps - putting your robot at a 45 degree angle increases that risk... but you'll only tip if your CG ends up on the wrong side of the bottom-most wheels when on the bump. Keep the CG low, and you'll prevent this from happening in most cases. The odd-ball cases where you can still tip basically include bouncing when going over the bump at high speeds. Momentum will be your enemy here - when you come down the other side of the bump, your back could have enough momentum to carry it off the bump and shift your CG too far forward, making your robot do a forward flip.

Our plan: low CG, and good driver training.