pit design

[kDude]

Okay, and the poles are just anchored to the ground by something heavy?

[RyanZ]

What are team did is we bought some work benches and put them on the outer edges of the pit

[JJD]

It hasn't been implemented yet, but our goal for the 2009 season is to have part of the pit made of plexiglass. Should help for organization.

[Natron]

Originally Posted by JJD

It hasn't been implemented yet, but our goal for the 2009 season is to have part of the pit made of plexiglass. Should help for organization.

wont plexiglass be heavy and hard to move, not to mention really breakable?
(PS if my posts seem kind of snobby, i dont mean them that way...sorry )

[EricH]

Originally Posted by Natron

wont plexiglass be heavy and hard to move, not to mention really breakable?
(PS if my posts seem kind of snobby, i dont mean them that way...sorry )

Actually, this one is an example of constructive criticism.

And the answer: it depends on the design. The "breakable" aspect is something to look into, though it may be less breakable than if it were on a robot. It's also easy to fix, if you have the budget for Lexan. Here's the difference: Plexiglass is typically a type of acrylic; Lexan is a brand of polycarbonate. Lexan is tougher to break. Weight for either depends on thickness. They can be heavy, but they can also be lightened with a holesaw or similar method.

Weight can be removed; pits can be made collapsible. The issue I thought about would be remembering the pit after the event--it's going to be hard to see without some form of coloring, maybe tape or paint on the edges. (Which will also help with not running into it...)

[Natron]

Thanks EricH im glad someone understands

As for the Plexi statement, i didnt know that, and i learned something new and i will share this info with my team tomorrow!

Good luck!

[JJD]

Originally Posted by EricH

Actually, this one is an example of constructive criticism.

And the answer: it depends on the design. The "breakable" aspect is something to look into, though it may be less breakable than if it were on a robot. It's also easy to fix, if you have the budget for Lexan. Here's the difference: Plexiglass is typically a type of acrylic; Lexan is a brand of polycarbonate. Lexan is tougher to break. Weight for either depends on thickness. They can be heavy, but they can also be lightened with a holesaw or similar method.

Should have said "Plexiglass-Type material"

It'll probably be lexan, as were fortunate enough to have a member who's parents have a business doing that stuff.

Come to think of it, we used Plexiglass for our original electronics tray, and it broke so we used lexan.

[Brian C]

Originally Posted by CarterM

Here is Fondy Fire's 2007 pit design. Sorry, but this is the best picture that we have........;'(

That is one nice looking pit! Great presentation for your sponsors, nice job!

[Natron]

hey Natron here can anyone send me some pics of their pit(s)? we R looking for some ideas and would appreciate any input.

[Cyberphil]

On another thread i posted some links to 103's design.

Here they are:
http://www.chiefdelphi.com/media/photos/32045
http://www.chiefdelphi.com/media/photos/32044
http://www.chiefdelphi.com/media/photos/32043

[Natron]

no offense, cyberphil, but you cant see much of the pit in those pictures

[Natron]

from EricH: Oh, and one thing you may want to bring is a collapsible chair. The pit crew will thank you.

one of those collapsable stepladders is a good idea as well. u can use it as a chair AND a stepladder!

[Carol]

I did a quick search and in the thousands of pictures we have I really couldn't find many of the pit; that is, a picture in which you could see the actual pit and not just lots of people in it. This one is the best. The main part of the pit, which was the subject of the earlier post I made with the CD drawings, is in the back. A smaller workbench is on the right that has just sliding bins on the bottom and some wire shelf on top. The robot is kept on the cart for repairs. There is a small wire shelf unit on the far right that is used to hold our yearbook and giveaways. The famous (now scaled down per FIRST rules) tower with the flashing light is obscured by the trackball, which is on a specially made PVC pipe holder made just for that game. There is also a small step stool and some bins (from the 2003 game) of parts, but that's about it. Perhaps someone from MOE who actually works in the pit (unlike me) can explain better.

Green bow-tie is optional for pit repairs.

We transport the pit in a parent's pickup truck; see the second picture.

If this looks complicated, realize that these weren't all designed and built at once. We've had ten years to build and modify these.

[Cyberphil]

Originally Posted by Natron

no offense, cyberphil, but you cant see much of the pit in those pictures

Well i said in a different post, these were the best I could find. And I promised that I would put them in here.

[Natron]

Oh...sorry