Are automotive Power Door Lock actuators legal?

[jpcuzzourt]

Hi. I'm a new mentor for our FRC team and I wanted to check the legality of a potential actuator for 2015 FRC. Automotive power door lock actuators are often made with a small reversible 12V DC motor with a rack and pinion to push or pull a door lock control rod. Are these actuators legal under R18 as a "door motor," or otherwise. Is this the right place to ask?
These are commonly available as "Universal Power Door Lock Actuators" for about $5.00.
Thanks for the help.

[Jon Stratis]

While CD here can give good guidance, the only place to get a true ruling is the official Q&A: https://frc-qa.usfirst.org/Questions.php

You need to get your team's login info for it (have the team's main contact log into TIMS and find it).

Fortunately, this exact question has already been asked!

https://frc-qa.usfirst.org/Question/...or-power-locks

Q. Table 4-1 lists door motors as allowed for use on the robot. Does that include the door motor for power locks?
2015-01-14 by FRC4328
A. Yes, Team Update 2015-01-16 will update the description of the Window, Door, Windshield Wiper, and Seat motors to specify that they must be from an automotive application (i.e. from an automobile). Motors used in or for automotive doors meet the revised criteria.

[jpcuzzourt]

Thank you!
I'm very much still learning where to look for information.

[Retired Starman]

This was addressed in Q & A No. 172. Check it out!

Dr. Bob

Chairman's Award isn't about building a robot, every team builds a robot.