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Re: Mecanum or 6WD
We have done 6WD and mecanum, both have advantages. I do think that given the depth of the scoring zone, a mecanum drive could be a big advantage. Furthermore, while mecanum drive robots are easier to push around, I have found them to be more difficult to block. The ability to always be able to move directly away from a blocker is very nice. It makes it much more difficult to continuously block the robot.
All that said, the best drive train we have produced was probably for Rack 'N' Roll, a 6WD with omni wheels on the "front" (read: the end where the tube is dangling) and the other four wheels (aft and a little aft of center) were traction wheels. That year we geared for torque over speed, which served us pretty well. The base of our arm gave the back end a lot of traction, but the whole thing spun really close to in place.
Side note: If you choose to do a one speed mecanum system you have to give yourself enough torque. We had quite a few problems in Overdrive with motors overheating because we didn't have enough torque when strafing.
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Thank you Bad Robots for giving me the chance to coach this team.
Rookie All-Star Award: 2003 Buckeye
Engineering Inspiration Award: 2004 Pittsburgh, 2014 Crossroads
Chairman's Award: 2005 Pittsburgh, 2009 Buckeye, 2012 Queen City
Team Spirit Award: 2007 Buckeye, 2015 Queen City
Woodie Flowers Award: 2009 Buckeye
Dean's List Finalists: Phil Aufdencamp (2010), Lindsey Fox (2011), Kyle Torrico (2011), Alix Bernier (2013), Deepthi Thumuluri (2015)
Gracious Professionalism Award: 2013 Buckeye
Innovation in Controls Award: 2015 Pittsburgh
Event Finalists: 2012 CORI, 2016 Buckeye
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