pic: 3216 Swerve

[asid61]

Okay, so I have a few questions and suggestions for you:
1. Why do you need the encoder to have a 1:1 ratio? You can still tell if the wheels are out of alignment, and realistically it would be better to just have some way of keeping them in line for calibration mechanically, with something such as surgical tubing between the axis of the wheels. I think 1640 had something on keeping modules in line on their Swerve Central site.

2. Is this a shifting design? If not, you are almost certainly using way too many gears and pulleys. You can probably cull almost every gear by using a sprocket reduction to the wheel. For example, using a 10t #25 sprocket on the shaft with the bevel gear and a 42t #25 sprocket on the 4" wheel (I assume it's 4 inches) will net you around 18fps adjusted, and you can lower that via a single pulley reduction going from CIM to turning module. Less gears means cheaper and less complex.

3. Mount the encoder to the end of the versaplanetary and save yourself some time. I think Western Digital sells 10mm shaft absolute encoders, so you can drill out the 1/4"-20 tap on the end of the shaft and add a set screw.

4. Is the center of the turning module, looking down from the top, equidistant from both of the sides that mount the swerve module? That way you don't need to worry about module orientation when putting it on a chassis, and programming becomes a bit easier.

5. How thick are the top and bottom plates, and why? Just curious.

6. You don't need to use roller bearings for turning the module. Bushings can support tons of weight at low rpms, which you are running at anyway. Even a thick plastic bushing on the top plate can provide a strong interface. Ball bearings will work fine, but I think a flanged bushing would work better so you don't need to depend on a press fit or put a lot of axial load on ball bearings.

7. What bevel// miter gears are you running? I've never found a good place to get them cheaply at other then Vex, and the Vex bevel gears are pretty large.

8. How much does this weigh? If it weighs more than 8-9lbs, you need to rethink weight distribution. It's definitely possible to get it lower than that.

Overall, it looks very slick. I like the bearing mount on the top of the module. I hope your team can build a swerve!