AndyMark transmissions at IRI

[Madison]

Okay, so -- inquiring minds want to know -- were they there and who has pictures?

[sanddrag]

Yes, they were there. I did not take pictures. Basically, it has the same mounting setup as the AM single speed and a similar housing too. It has 1/4" aluminum side plates. Instead of the sprockets inside, it has a small gear. There is one additional shaft with a larger gear making it perfect to direct drive a wheel. The shifting setup is a bit different too. The servo mount is very robust and looks like a good setup.

[Madison]

It seems like Andy and Mark have made all the changes we were considering making on our own. I can't wait to see the changes and see if they'll work with our drivetrain. I'd sure be happy to avoid making the modifications required by the NBD arrangement, especially given that relative indifference provided by its two highest ratios.

[chris31]

If anyone has pictures I would appreciate it if they posted them. I am curious as to what they look like.

[Chris Fultz]

I saw them and they look really bad.
Heavy plates, thin gears, unreliable shifting.
I am not sure what Andy and MArk are thinking on this one.
I don't think any teams should use them in 2008.

HOWEVER, Team 234 will volunteer to use these "unproven" devices in 2008 and then report back to the other 1500 FIRST teams on how they do. Then, maybe you can consider them for 2009.

I know, I know, this is a big sacrifice for us to take, but we are willing to do this as a sign of true Gracious Professionalism.
It just seems like the right thing to do.

[Richard Wallace]

Originally Posted by Chris Fultz

I saw them and they look really bad.
Heavy plates, thin gears, unreliable shifting.
I am not sure what Andy and MArk are thinking on this one.
I don't think any teams should use them in 2008.

HOWEVER, Team 234 will volunteer to use these "unproven" devices in 2008 and then report back to the other 1500 FIRST teams on how they do. Then, maybe you can consider them for 2009.

I know, I know, this is a big sacrifice for us to take, but we are willing to do this as a sign of true Gracious Professionalism.
It just seems like the right thing to do.

Nice try, Chris.

However, I think in the interest of statistically valid engineering test results, 931 will graciously undertake the same experiment.

[chris31]

Originally Posted by Richard

Nice try, Chris.

However, I think in the interest of statistically valid engineering test results, 931 will graciously undertake the same experiment.

Haha, I was thinking the same thing. We would be more than willing to test them for AM before they sell them

But seriously, does anyone who went have pictures for those of us across the country who would like to see?

I'm very curious as to how these gearboxes have been improved.

[AdamHeard]

Originally Posted by 114ManualLabor

But seriously, does anyone who went have pictures for those of us across the country who would like to see?

I'm very curious as to how these gearboxes have been improved.

They sound to be rather inspired by how team 45 used the GEN 2s this year.

Originally Posted by AdamHeard

They sound to be rather inspired by how team 45 used the GEN 2s this year.

For those of us out of the loop, how would 45's shifters differ from the stock Gen2's?

[AdamHeard]

From this thread (and in person at champs);

The drive base is somewhat modular. The guts of the drive module in the middle is an AM Shifter. We removed the sprockets, and added a gear and another reduction to the shaft that drives the middle wheel. Essentially, it's a direct-drive AM Shifter.

On the ends are wheel modules. These simply hold an axle for the outside wheels of the 6wd. Chains from the drive module axle power the axles on the wheel modules. We've got a neat-o sprocket/hub that works very well for this.

Since we have these "modules"... we have some options. We really like the 6wd setup, but if we had to do something else, we could.

Andy B.

It's similar to the gearboxes the "west coast drive" 4/22/60/254/968/980 have used over the years. I guess this opens up AM shifters to a whole new market.

You'd have to ask Andy or Mark to be sure, but I bet that's where the idea to expand the design came from.

EDIT: I have a question for AM as well... Is the output shaft supported well enough such that you could bolt the transmission to the frame, and mount a wheel on the output shaft that is cantilevered?

[sanddrag]

Originally Posted by AdamHeard

It's similar to the gearboxes the "west coast drive" 4/22/60/254/968/980 have used over the years.

Similar yes, but with considerable differences. The 968/254 transmissions 06 and 07 transmissions feature larger gears for more reduction as opposed to an additional stage. Also, the 4/22/980/60 gearbox is a mesh shifting style; completely different. I suppose you were referring to the way they all face mount which is similar, yes.

Originally Posted by AdamHeard

EDIT: I have a question for AM as well... Is the output shaft supported well enough such that you could bolt the transmission to the frame, and mount a wheel on the output shaft that is cantilevered?

From what I saw this would be possible, although I am not sure if the output shaft I saw would be long enough to do so.

[eshteyn]

Originally Posted by Richard

Nice try, Chris.

However, I think in the interest of statistically valid engineering test results, 931 will graciously undertake the same experiment.

team 375 will gladly put the transmissions to the test, we will test drive components them using an SUV


No i am not joking!!

[AdamHeard]

Originally Posted by sanddrag

Similar yes, but with considerable differences. The 968/254 transmissions 06 and 07 transmissions feature larger gears for more reduction as opposed to an additional stage. Also, the 4/22/980/60 gearbox is a mesh shifting style; completely different. I suppose you were referring to the way they all face mount which is similar, yes.

From what I saw this would be possible, although I am not sure if the output shaft I saw would be long enough to do so.

I knew someone would call me on that... I was referring more to the concept/function than the internal workings.

[Cory]

Originally Posted by 114ManualLabor

But seriously, does anyone who went have pictures for those of us across the country who would like to see?

I'm very curious as to how these gearboxes have been improved.

The sideplates are now aluminum instead of steel. They no longer have the mounting flanges. Teams will have to either fabricate their own, or bolt them through the face of the transmission to a frame member.

They are also fully enclosed.

They will come standard with the option to either use servos or pneumatics to shift, as well as an encoder.

An extra stage of gearing is added to allow direct drive. As previously mentioned, I'm not sure that the output shaft is long enough to mount a wheel and sprockets on it.

Andy said that if you don't wish to direct drive, you can remove the third stage of gearing, and purchase an extended intermediate shaft from them (that would become the output shaft) and use them exactly like the Gen 2 shifter.

I wouldn't say that functionally they look drastically different. They just have some minor tweaks that make them more versatile, IMO.