
29-05-2014, 10:20
|
 |
IT'S THE BUMP N' DUMP
AKA: Evan Grove
 FRC #4536 (The Minutebots)
Team Role: Mentor
|
|
Join Date: Apr 2013
Rookie Year: 2011
Location: Minneapolis, MN
Posts: 657
|
|
|
Re: LEDs
Any type of LEDs, technically, are legal. It's up to your team how far you want to go with it. Yes, LEDs are fun ( I should know) Yes, they will make you more noticeable on the field, and they make your robot more exciting for the general public. However, you have to know the ins and outs of lights before you start working with them.
- Power consumption: You have to calculate how much power your lights will draw. Too many lights can cause your batteries to drain quickly, resulting in reduced performance in-match. Before going wild with lights like my team did last year, we made certain that all those lights would be within our power budget. It's usually pretty easy to calculate the consumption of your lights, since many manufacturers specify the current draw of their strips by the meter.
- Control: If you want to do RGBLEDs, you have to know how they are controlled. There are two typed of RGB strips, classified as analog and digital. Analog strips can only show one color, across the whole strip. This type is the cheapest, and often comes with an IR controller. You can't use this controller on the robot, you'd have to design one that runs through the robot control system. Digital strips can do patterns and the like, but they are significantly more complicated to control. They typically are controlled with an arduino or RP, and can require custom code libraries.
- Gameplay: If your lights are too disruptive or too bright, you might get penalties as a result of your lights. You don't want your lights blinding the drivers, as there is a rule about this, and if they are "disruptive" in any way, some pickier referees might call you out.
__________________
FRCDesigns Contributor | "There is only one corner of the universe you can be certain of improving, and that's your own self." -Aldous Huxley
2012-2016 | FRC Team 2338: Gear it Forward
2013 Wisconsin Regional Winner 2014 Midwest Regional Finalist 2015 Midwest Regional Chairman's Award, Finalist, Archimedes Division Champion, IRI Semifinalist 2016 Midwest Regional Chairman's Award, Finalist, Archimedes Division Gracious Professionalism Award, R2OC Winner
2015 | FTC Team 10266: Mach Speed
2015 Highland Park Qualifier Winner, Motivate Award
2017-???? | FRC Team 4536: The Minutebots
Thanks to the alliances and friends I've made along the way: 33 74 107 111 167 171 234 548 1023 1089 1323 1625 1675 1732 1756 2064 2077 2122 2202 2358 2451 2512 2826 3936 3996 4039 4085 4241 5006 5401 5568 5847 5934
|