After last year's competition we spent part of the summer developing a new drive transmission design for our robot ED. The drive features a 1:4 ratio between low and high gears, 250rpm and 1000rpm peak power output speeds, up to 65 ft-lbs of torqe, uses the Bosch and Chiaphua motors found in the 2002 kit of parts, and an 8-millisecond response time to shift gears. The prinicpal feature is that the design can be constructed with hand tools, a lathe, and a mill. No CNC, wire EDM, castings, or carbon-carbon componsite construction capabilities are required (hopefully putting it within the reach of most teams)! We play-tested Version 1.0 of the drive system at the Maryland State Fair competition at the end of the summer, and refined Version 2.0 during the fall.
Rather than keep it as a secret, we are making the design available to any teams that want it. It is posted in the
White Papers Section. Download it, build it, improve on it, or just look at the pretty pictures - it's all up to you. All we ask is that you let us know about any feedback, and if you do improve on the design, please post your improvements so the entire FIRST community may benefit and improve their capabilities. In the mean time, we are off thinking about Version 3.0 for the 2003 season...
-dave