Team 207 Metalcrafters Presents: Durabot 15

[Botwoon]

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It's a bit late in season to be submitting a robot reveal, but with things finally returning to normal around our shop I've decided to put together a number of decent images showcasing our most recent work.

We've continued to use 3D printed components in our robots, particularly the most recent iteration of the wheels that we'd initially prototyped during the 2010 season. We don't feel that we've been in any disadvantaged by what many consider to be a manufacturing technique exclusive to prototypes; to the contrary, we regularly tout the man-hours saved by 3D printing wheels (assuming that the wheels are up to the rigors of the game) as a definite advantage. As usual, all manufacturing and non-COTS components present on the robot were done/made in-house.

Keen-eyed observers will note that it bears more than a passing resemblance to JVN's Ri3D 'bot. The fact of the matter here is that we chose to sacrifice creativity of design in the pursuit of a simplified, modular platform that provides for the possibility of iterative design. This is, in a way, the culmination of a new "doctrine" of chassis design that we've been refining since 2011. Because of this, we were finally able to pursue design features such as two-speed transmissions for the first time in - I believe - over a decade.

I can say without reservation that, despite basing our work upon that of others, we worked as hard as ever on this robot, if not more. I'm also personally very happy to say that we were able to compete with a robot that truly performed as expected, and our almost completely new team of students (and new drivers) gained a great deal of valuable experience that will carry easily into the next season(s).