Launcher Safety Ideas

[dtengineering]

It looks like we've got quite a few teams who are going to be launching the ball this year. Hopefully we will be one of them. Our initial tests are quite promising.

Since launching the ball requires some significant accelleration/velocity/momentum there is a potential safety hazard, and it seems like a good idea to share some ideas on what might be done to make a launch mechanism as safe as possible. Here's a couple that we've come up with, and I'm throwing them out for comments additions, etc.

1: Keep high velocity moving parts within the starting configuration of the robot.

2: Reduce the potential for accidental launches by having a "safety" button on the OI, so that the driver/co-driver has to press and hold the safety button, and then pull the launch trigger in order to make the ball launcher fire.

3: Have sensors (IR object detectors, the Sharp GP series for example, but simple switches would do) detect whether the trackball is in place before allowing a launch. (Prevents "dry fires" plus having the ball in place means that it is likely that no one's head is in the way of the launcher.. or even within 20" of it!)

4: Have the system automatically and gradually power down when the control signal is lost (end of match, OI unplugged, etc.). For pneumatics this can be done simply by choosing the correct valve setup. For spring loaded systems this may be more difficult to do automatically, but at the very least a safe and simple unloading process should be designed in to the system.

5: Warning lights on the robot to indicate when the system is "armed".

6: Your ideas....



And, the usual caveat... even if a team or tech inspector posts something here and you implement it on your robot, the definition of "safe" is still the prudent judgement of the tech inspection team at your regional event. CD is not the rule book! These are just some ideas that might help... because it's much easier to build safety in to a system than to add it on a Thursday at a regional.


Jason