Lifting mecanisms

[Vikesrock]

Originally Posted by qwertyuiop[]\

2foot long 2in bore pneumatic cylinder

60 psi * 1in radius * 3.14 ~ 188 lbs of lifting.

problem solved. if u already have a pneumatics system in place on your robot or can afford the weight. i can see a lift in the sub second range (with enough accumulators on the robot)

It's not nearly that simple...

The air usage of such a cylinder is a huge issue. Also, retraction force is less than that theoretical value, and if your robot is dragging up the tower you may need to provide more force than you expect. Also with that short of a throw you need to make sure to keep the robot pretty level to get it all above 21"

This is not to say it can't be done (I really, really hope it can), just that there may be more to it than first glance would suggest.