Mecanum vs. Swerve Drive

[Siri]

Originally Posted by MICHAELABICK

While I've never done a swerve, I actually believe many swerves would benefit from using a tank like "mode". A tank mode is much easier to learn and is much better for long distances. You can still switch to swerve when needed, to take advantage of it's benefits(small adjustments, getting around defense, etc.)

We used to have one. It's driver-dependent (as is everything), but none of our drivers have ever wanted it, 4 having had swerve drive bases. It's not particularly useful given the rest of the controls' freedom, and while the mode itself isn't hard to learn, switching between them is a needless (and rather annoying) thought "jump". There's no inherent cognitive difficulty about driving holonomic long distances, whether opposed to other swerve maneuvers or tank.

Our drive has evolved away from "modes" more and more every year. We've found very little use in that control framework itself when it comes to swerve; not using it is one of the major reasons the drive is so cohesive now. The seamlessness is a major strength of the drivetrain. Our only 2013 mode is a radial spin for aligning the climb; everything else is like playing Call of Duty. Before, drivers would largely ignore all but 1-2 modes (plus an occasional game-specific), and none used tank.

TL;DR: do what your drivers want, but don't be surprised when swerve + modes = no.



pntbll, I moved to your new thread. Cool video!