How bad would it be to use a dog gear as a brake?

[Joe G.]

Originally Posted by AdamHeard

You might have trouble disengaging it under load if the external load (another robot pushing) isn't removed.

This is the idea. The other idea I had was to use a disc brake disc brake with a mechanical caliper, but the dog gear solution would be a lot simpler and more compact

I can confirm that this will happen, and you probably dont want it to. In 2014 we used a dog gear to disengage a ratchet which prevented backdrive of our shooter winch. The dog would get stuck in normal operation, and needed to be pulsed forwards each shot to eliminate the frictional force preventing disengagement. This isnt as easy to do with a drivetrain. The dog will hold you still no problem, but you may be stuck that way if you're not careful.

I saw a lot of incredibly simple friction brakes on elevators last year (basically just pistons with traction material on the tip forced against a moving part), and a similar system would avoid this problem.