pic: Offseason 8W Tank Drive

[asid61]

Originally Posted by Michael Hill

You can go even thinner. We're experimenting with 0.050" 2024-T3 this offseason, and it should actually be stronger than .090" 5052-H32. We get this added strength by not drilling lightening holes. Your robot is really only as strong as the smallest cross-sectional area (in tension and compression). So by eliminating lightening holes, the smallest cross-sectional area ends up where the axle holes are. It ends up almost the same weight, but almost twice as strong (ballparking, of course).

Is 2024 easy to bend?

[Michael Hill]

Originally Posted by asid61

Is 2024 easy to bend?

We use a 0.125" bend radius. It's a bit tighter than aviation requires, but it's good enough for FRC, especially if you bend against the grain. We've reached the limit of our brake, but fortunately it's big enough for a robot.

[asid61]

Originally Posted by Michael Hill

We use a 0.125" bend radius. It's a bit tighter than aviation requires, but it's good enough for FRC, especially if you bend against the grain. We've reached the limit of our brake, but fortunately it's big enough for a robot.

Oh, very good then. I was worried the stiffness would make the bend radius unusable. I'll have to ask our sheet metal guy if he can do 2024.

[Knufire]

Here's the current revision of the drive. The only main differences are the lightened bellypan and less aggressive pocketing on the front/back rail. Any last tips? I've debated elongating the top end rail flanges and possibly putting another flange down the back as 971 does.

Another change (not shown) is changing the outer gearbox bearings from round to hex. This allows the intermediate shafts to be pulled out without having to disassemble the outer drive rail.

[JesseK]

Hmm, 971's bellypan extends to the outer rails. They also have plates on the top of the rails for added strength. Have you considered doing this with your design, at least in the middle of the rails?

I'm no ME, but the proximity of the 4 rivets without any other support raises an eyebrow. The likelyhood of the sheet metal shearing or holes elongating (making the drive not square) seems pretty high.

[Knufire]

Originally Posted by JesseK

Hmm, 971's bellypan extends to the outer rails. They also have plates on the top of the rails for added strength. Have you considered doing this with your design, at least in the middle of the rails?

I'm no ME, but the proximity of the 4 rivets without any other support raises an eyebrow. The likelyhood of the sheet metal shearing or holes elongating (making the drive not square) seems pretty high.

I had a version where the bellypan extended to the frame perimeter. Since the wheels pairs are so close together and the chain hangs below the button of the frame, by the time you have wheel and chain clearance cutouts, you only have the middle section underneath the gearbox left, which makes it significantly harder to access the gearbox.



I've often done two rivets on a diagonal in a 1" square, but not 4. That I pretty much copied from the VexPro Drive in a Day, which I believe is bolted together. I'll definitely consider that.

The dead axles and gearbox shafts should help transfer the load from the outside drive rail to the inside drive rail on a hard side impact. Also, the plan for superstructure mounting is a 2"x1" box crossbar, which should help as well. I'm thinking about ways to mount the bumper that would increase the strength of the frame, as 33 does.