Robotic Couch made from FRC parts

[Michael Hill]

How about a mobile couch made with lawnmower parts? https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=8-2OLlDAtqs

I'm amazed at engineers'(/physics students') abilities to be lazy, yet on the go.

[GaryVoshol]

Did anyone else first read this headline as building a COACH from parts?

[nbetik]

How much did this all cost? And are these actual FRC parts from vexpro or andymark or something else? I'm considering making something similar, but right now just trying to gauge it all out.
Thanks!

[Cothron Theiss]

Originally Posted by GaryVoshol

Did anyone else first read this headline as building a COACH from parts?

Cue robot mentors vs. human mentors debate.

[Ryan_Todd]

Originally Posted by nbetik

How much did this all cost? And are these actual FRC parts from vexpro or andymark or something else?

In my experience, most of the time these kinds of contraptions are built out of old FRC parts that are (for whatever reason) no longer suitable for competition.

For example, my OmniCart used a set of old wheels/gearboxes/motors that had already been worn out from a couple years' worth of use for competitions and demos. The motor controllers were old used Victors, and were therefore bulkier and more power hungry than some of the newer motor controllers; on top of all that, the power distribution board came from a previous version of the control system and was therefore no longer legal for competition use.

Of course, all of this is not to say that you can't find any good components outside of the FRC world; knowing how powerful the Fisher-Price motors are, I once helped build a 4WD desk chair by gutting a pair of old Power Wheels ride-on toys for their drive components and throttle levers. (No video for that one, unfortunately!)

The OmniCart mentioned above also made use of an Arduino Uno to command the motor controllers, so that just goes to show that there is no shortage of different options available for doing this sort of thing.

[troy_dietz]

Originally Posted by marcusbernstein

Rumor has it it wasn't even their chair...

http://www.thebluealliance.com/match/2014calb_qm89

I was told it belonged Andrew Keisic, a 294 mentor at the time. (He now mentors for 4201, The Vitruvian Bots)