gear box with two motors

[hccsteen]

We have see pictures with two CIM motors on one gear box, what is the purpose for this setup?

[EthanMiller]

1713 is using that setup - it gets a little more oomph from the CIMS to get us over the bump. Since we're not using but one other CIM, we hit our 5 with no need for more.

[hccsteen]

We are driving three wheels on each side with one motor on one gear box per side, would it be wise to try two motors on each side?

[hccsteen]

Does using two motors to one gear box create greater or lesser load on the jaguar? Should we use the encoders on the gear box.

[apalrd]

1. The load on the jaguars is the same. You shouldn't worry about it too much. You get theoretically double output torque though; more pushing power. In theory.

2. You should probably use encoders for Autonomous programming. You probably won't need them for Teleop.

[svenw]

you will need to use an extra jaguar for each motor. It depends how your drive set up is geared. If it is geared for high speeds and you have trouble pushing or climbing up the ramp then do it (as long as you have the weight). Just drive around, and if it seems a little gutless, add a motor.

[Chris is me]

Originally Posted by apalrd

1. The load on the jaguars is the same. You shouldn't worry about it too much. You get theoretically double output torque though; more pushing power. In theory.

That's not quite right in theory.

There are two things that limit your pushing power, torque and traction. If you're limited by torque when pushing, then when pushing against immovable objects, you will draw a huge amount of current and trip circuit breakers. You can add more torque by changing gearing and / or adding motors, until you provide more torque than your wheels can ever exert. When this happens, when pushing against a wall, your wheels will slip. This is called traction limited.

Adding two motors allows your drive to become traction limited while running at higher speeds than a single motor.