Spring Question

[Lake Orion]

Can we use air springs?

[Mike Martus]

Help me. What are air springs? Is that like a sky hook or muffler bearings?????

[Lake Orion]

a air spring is a tube that it is a clylinder with a compressed spring inside of it. it comes out in a very slow rate. can hold about 24 lbs before starting to retract.

[Jim Meyer]

Gas springs can be found on pg. 226 of the 2001 SPI catalog or on some automotive hoods and trunks. Many FIRST teams use the compression type to counterballance arms or sliders (including Chief Delphi 2 yrs ago). I have not been able to find them at Home Depot or Lowes, but that doesn't mean they're not there.

How about allowing us to use screen door return springs? They are nicely packaged with adjustable gass damping, fairly cheap and widely available.

Thanks,

Jim Meyer

[Mike Martus]

Some teams are confusing the OCCRA competition to the Chief Delphi Invitational. Gas shocks are not a legal kit part for OCCRA.

The definition of spring is:

A coil of wire or flat band (constant force) that stores energy as it is stretched and returns to its origional shape when force is diminished.

A door closing "Air Spring" is really a pneumatic part and is not a approved part for the pneumatics kit.

You description of the "Air Spring" makes it an illegal part and cannot be used. Gas struts are not legal kit parts for OCCRA.

[Mike McIntyre]

The kit contains spring-retracted, single-acting cylinders: I suppose a team could legally make their own gas spring but adjustments might be tricky...