Launching the ball

[yash101]

Yeah. What if some metal snaps? There will be so much force built into the mechanism, the bot would be too dangerous for students to be around while active! I think it may be a good idea to work a little more on the design? Why not just use many small-diameter pistons, to retract quickly, and act as a team to generate a ginormous force?

[JCharlton]

Originally Posted by yash101

Yeah. What if some metal snaps? There will be so much force built into the mechanism, the bot would be too dangerous for students to be around while active!

Actually the force involved is no more than the cylinder has normally when it has reached its final position. Anything not built properly can be dangerous, cylinders no more than spinning motors.

The key advantage to this arrangement is that the air has already evacuated the other half of the cylinder leading to a faster extension. Instead of having to push 60psi air out of the chamber, that volume of air has already gone. As the cylinder extends, the remaining normal pressure air will have to leave too, slowing the cylinder perhaps as it extends.

In previous years our team has used quick exhaust valves, but I believe that those are not longer permitted. Instead the return air has to pass out the solenoid valve. Haven't read the rules in that detail yet. Pity, we used it on our 2008 catapult.

[Christopher149]

Originally Posted by JCharlton

In previous years our team has used quick exhaust valves, but I believe that those are not longer permitted. Instead the return air has to pass out the solenoid valve. Haven't read the rules in that detail yet. Pity, we used it on our 2008 catapult.

It's been a while since our team has used pneumatics, but there seems to be very little in the rules dictating how to setup the system past the last regulator.

[MrForbes]

We're not talking about a punching design. We're talking about an arm design. If you watch the video, you'll see....