Mechanical going Electric

[Andrew Schreiber]

Originally Posted by artdutra04

.1" spacing is a walk in the park to solder. It's surface mounted (SMT) parts that are royal plain.

All it takes to solder small things is good eyesight (or a magnifying glass, which is helpful for SMT parts) and a steady hand. The latter takes some practice at clearing your mind to reduce shaking, but once you've done it enough you can chug a cup of coffee still be able to solder parts.

I can do the .1" spaced no problem the issue is that they are pads and I have never done those. I'm sure someone who were better at that sort of stuff would be able to.

[548swimmer]

Change of plans. I'm going to build my own robot completely from scratch. I was planning on using the following items:
http://www.robotmarketplace.com/products/IL-TKT1.html
http://www.robotmarketplace.com/products/IL-GMS100.html

I will also be creating a chassis myself to mount these. Beyond this, I don't know what I need. Having it R/C would be really cool, and I'm open to programming necessary. As far as only autonomous, I'm not sure that'd be a good to take on that much at once. I am open to exploring it later on though. Any guidance on specific parts or general advice would be greatly appreciated.

[JamesCH95]

Your team is old enough that you might have one, or both, of the edu-bot RCs lying around. These are good bases for smaller robot projects.

IMHO you should go with a drive train and chassis that's a little more substantial, heck for a few bucks more you can get noticeably more powerful motors: http://www.robotmarketplace.com/products/0-72001.html

As for what you'll need:

A speed controller or relay for every motor
A robot controller or R/C receiver
An R/C transmitter
A battery pack
Fuses, switches, wires, ect

[548swimmer]

Originally Posted by JamesCH95

Your team is old enough that you might have one, or both, of the edu-bot RCs lying around. These are good bases for smaller robot projects.

IMHO you should go with a drive train and chassis that's a little more substantial, heck for a few bucks more you can get noticeably more powerful motors: http://www.robotmarketplace.com/products/0-72001.html

As for what you'll need:

A speed controller or relay for every motor
A robot controller or R/C receiver
An R/C transmitter
A battery pack
Fuses, switches, wires, ect

I know that we have some of the IFI systems, is that what you're referencing?

[JamesCH95]

Originally Posted by 548swimmer

I know that we have some of the IFI systems, is that what you're referencing?

Two years, 2003 and 2004 IIRC, included a "mini" IFI RC in the KOP. One used an IFI operator interface and was called the "EduBot controller" another connected to regular R/C (Radio controller) outputs and I can't remember what it was called

Both of these are relatively small and run on 7.2V power, typical for R/C applications. Unfortunately both of these controllers have been discontinued, but you can still find some support info online if you have a PN.

[548swimmer]

Originally Posted by JamesCH95

Two years, 2003 and 2004 IIRC, included a "mini" IFI RC in the KOP. One used an IFI operator interface and was called the "EduBot controller" another connected to regular R/C (Radio controller) outputs and I can't remember what it was called

Both of these are relatively small and run on 7.2V power, typical for R/C applications. Unfortunately both of these controllers have been discontinued, but you can still find some support info online if you have a PN.

How easy would it be to just use an IFI system and scale everything up?
I could get victors from our massive supply, I'd already have the R/C interface. Then all I'd need would be motors and wheels right?

[JamesCH95]

That would be a good option, especially if you want to learn how to wire a FIRST robot