Spring loaded Pneumatic piston

[Al Skierkiewicz]

Originally Posted by Tristan Lall

Of course, the robot must still satisfy safety rules with regard to energy storage, and the spring in a single-action cylinder will be inspected as such. That shouldn't be a major obstacle, however—lots of teams use springs.

Tristan,
I was thinking along the same lines but this does need a little more research.

For those reading this thread, I know stored energy is going to a big concern during inspections. Springs, surgical tubing and pneumatics are all going to be used to direct the ball. Safety in the use of these devices is going to be of prime importance. Be sure you have the ability to release energy before leaving the field as in previous years and follow this...

<R01> Energy used by FRC ROBOTS, (i.e., stored at the start of a MATCH), shall come only from the following sources:
A. Electrical energy derived from the onboard 12V battery (see Rule <R40> for specifications and further details).
B. Compressed air stored in the pneumatic system, stored at a maximum pressure of 120 PSI in no more than four Clippard Instruments tanks. Extraneous lengths of pneumatic tubing shall not be used to increase the storage capacity of the air storage system.
C. A change in the altitude of the ROBOT center of gravity.
D. Storage achieved by deformation of ROBOT parts.

Teams must be very careful when incorporating springs or other items to store energy on their ROBOT by means of part or material deformation. A ROBOT may be rejected at inspection if, in the judgment of the inspector, such items are unsafe