pic: our octanem drive

[zinthorne]

Originally Posted by Brandon Zalinsky

We have pretty much the exact same system on our machine, with the same mecanum wheels. There are only a few differences. First, we have a 6:1 reduction to the traction wheel. Second, the auxiliary wheels are tractioned with Velcro (works incredibly well). To address this-



When we actuate the "drop drive", as we call it, down, it tips the bot forward so that we have the two traction wheels and the two mecanums not connected to them contacting the floor. There is then a function in code that drops the speed of the mecanum wheels to 1/6 of their normal speed to make sure that the mecanums and velcro wheels run at the same speed.

We used transmissions which geared it down to 8:1 and then the extra big traction wheels with the 44 tooth sprocket helped give more power too. Same as in your design, our traction wheels lifted up the back mecanems about a half an inch.
This video has some pushing, and also a great upset win in finals.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WbHHUtCGc1c

This link shows the shifting very well, and the pushing ability. You can see the front end lift up about an inch or two whenever I shift. You can also see how fast it is too.