pic: Team 330 - Beach 'Bot 2010 - "XXXII"

[IKE]

Does the arm telescope?
Elegant design guys.

[Lil' Lavery]

330 seems to have put out another simple and elegant machine. So simple, in fact, that I have no clue how it works. Can we get some pictures of the kicker? And how does it hang? Is that a accelerometer and/or gyro on the arm?

[BrendanB]

Originally Posted by Lil' Lavery

330 seems to have put out another simple and elegant machine. So simple, in fact, that I have no clue how it works. Can we get some pictures of the kicker? And how does it hang? Is that a accelerometer and/or gyro on the arm?

That looks like the ball indication light. Nice job 330! And yes, picture of the kicker would be nice.

[steelerborn]

Great Design!
very simple, cant wait to see it up close at LA.

[Rion Atkinson]

Originally Posted by BrendanB

That looks like the ball indication light. Nice job 330! And yes, picture of the kicker would be nice.

Looks more like two of the orange lights to me... Maybe they put two on this year? They can possibly kick from both sides, so both would be the front.

EDIT: Nevermind, they aren't the organge light. Right after posting this I saw the robot in a match. haha.

[Alex Dinsmoor]

How are you guys liking the pneumatic wheels? We are using the same ones and they have been wonderful!

Good luck!

[Borisdamole]

Originally Posted by Alex Dinsmoor

How are you guys liking the pneumatic wheels? We are using the same ones and they have been wonderful!

Good luck!

they have been using pneumatic tires as long as I can remember (except lunacy).... they seem to LOVE them!!!

how are these new pneumatics doing?

[robostangs548]

Your robot is bomb, good luck guys at your regionals. You guys did a great job incorporating all aspects of the game, and are one of the most consistent hangers out there. Have fun guys, and good luck.

[ShaneP]

Thanks everyone!

Does the arm telescope?

Yes, the arm telescopes. A worm-gear drives the telescoping part up and down. This is driven by a 2.5" CIM geared down about 2:1 - so it spins at roughly 2600 RPM. The entire arm assembly weighs about 10 pounds, and is removable with one set-screw to replace the arm.

Can we get some pictures of the kicker? And how does it hang? Is that a accelerometer and/or gyro on the arm?

I'll take some pictures and upload those tomorrow evening.

The hanging is very consistent and reliable. We can hang from the ground or the bump, but typically we have been hanging from the bump. We can start anywhere in the near or center zones and hang in about 15 seconds.

On the arm, those are the two indication lights that tell the drivers when a ball is captured by the roller. They come in handy when capturing balls in blind spots.

How are you guys liking the pneumatic wheels?

how are these new pneumatics doing?

The pneumatic tires have been working well for us. They are 10" diameter. They are affordable too - $7 for an assembly at Harbor Freight. We machined custom hubs to mount them to the AndyMark sprockets.

Saw you're behind the glass again Shane (although not touching the sticks )

Haha, yes, it's nice being back there again.

[MrForbes]

Beautiful robot, very well driven, the kicker is magic! I kind of got pictures of it but it's kind of a pain to attach pictures to gallery threads....

[ShaneP]

Here is a shot during assembly which shows the detail of the kicker. 3 cylinders are used. Two 3/4" bore "trigger" cylinders in the front, and one 1.5" bore cylinder in the back which supplies the major punch for center and far kicks. Just the trigger cylinders are used to fire balls in the near zone.

For center and far shots, the rear cylinder is charge while the trigger cylinders lock it back. The "triggers" are then shot and the geometry in the linkages allow the kicker foot to increase speed as the "triggers" travel through their stroke. The large cylinder only uses roughly 4 inches of stroke, allowing for decent compressor recharge time.

The different between center and far kicks: Stopping the roller results in a center (low) shot and running the roller as we kick results in a far (chip/high) shot.

All the kicking options and cylinder timings are coordinated in software.

[Johnny]

Beautiful robot guys, wouldn't expect anything less. Little curious how your ball roller works though. Good luck in Arizona, Im rooting for you guys!

[David Brinza]

I got a "really close look" at BeachBots' machine on Thursday.

As always, their robot is marvelously efficient, well-constructed and is almost a work of art. For a small team with modest resources, BeachBots consistently deliver amazing machines. They are very deserving of their Engineering Excellence Award here in AZ. I wouldn't be surprised if they came away with more hardware today!

Outstanding job, BeachBots!

[Joe Ross]

Originally Posted by Lil' Lavery

Is that a accelerometer and/or gyro on the arm?

We went really simple on the control system this year. There are no sensors on the arm, its very simple to operate manually. Our only sensor is the ball sensor, which is a current sensor.