pic: FRC294 Prototype base almost done

[AdamHeard]

Originally Posted by Lil' Lavery

Quite astounding, great work. I particularly like the chain route. Any reason why 3 of the chain idlers are sprockets and 2 are just rollers? Why not make all 5 rollers (making the general assumption that the rollers are lighter)? What thickness are the walls? What thickness are the walls of the channel on the cross-supports?
Also is there any way to reverse the direction of the CIM mounts to move the wires to the inside of the robot?
Outstanding work though. Looks like a well-designed drive base.

Hmmm..... don't know where to start.

Well, originally it was one idler (on the tensioner) because It was easier to cantilever the tensioner and that worked better with an idler. Now that I think, We could've put a roller on the shoulder bolt just as easy. The idler below the transmission was just added because I forgot to check to see if the chain clears the shifters (doh). So, it was easier just to use an idler on hand.

Wall thickness on the 3/8" plate is 1/16". Same as what 687 and us ran last year. The tubing is 1/8" wall.

We could of reversed the CIMs (and still can, you can see the mounting holes for them [well, actually its for a AM planetary, but a CIM fits too] on the rear transmission), but we didn't want to cantilever them with the plastic plates. We also like the space it saves on the inside of the robot. The wires will be routed, tied down nicely, and covered to prevent any robot from entangling with them. You may not be able to tell from the picture, but they are about 2" from the edge of the robot.

Thanks for the feedback, it's all ways appreciated.