Problems with Victor 884

[Alex Dinsmoor]

Originally Posted by Don Rotolo

We completed out Out of The Box test last night, with one Jaguar and one Victor connected - both worked fine (with the effects Joe noted) with no changes to the OTB code.

Did you use the new Victor that came with the kit, or an older one from a previous year?

Originally Posted by Al Skierkiewicz

Alex,
Normally I suggest that speed controllers be mounted near the motors they are controlling to minimize the wire runs. There is nothing in the picture to prevent you from using perf stock or a piece of lexan on the uprights across the back of the robot. Then you can mount the controllers vertically on that. Since the Jaguars have mounting holes in the sides, you can use threaded standoffs to elevate every other one and using the standoffs, rotate the elevated controllers 90 degrees to allow you to stagger them and fit more in the space. That way, no fans are occluded and the wiring is spaced out. Also, mounting the controllers so that they are front to back rather than side to side, works well too. This allows them to be mounted next to each other and touching. The wiring works better that way as well and the only drawback is getting the PWM cables attached. In your actual robot, don't forget to mark your wires and controllers. You can get 3M wirk marking tape from Digikey. It is expensive (about $30 for a dispenser with all 10 EIA colors) but is well worth it when you are trouble shooting.

All of these are really good ideas, I will be sure to pass these along to my mentor! I'm glad we used zip ties to attach all of the components of our electrical board, now no one can make to big of a fuss if we decide to rearrange the board.