Driving on carpet

[Hazmatt]

So my team was driving around on a carpeted part of the shop today and spinning the wheels all over the place for about 5 minutes. When one of the mentors on the team went to go touch the chassis he got a pretty big shock from it. Apparently the plastic has the "wool socks on carpet" effect. Is this something I should be looking out for? I mean...some of the components in the kit came in special bags to protect against static shock, I would hate to ruin all the components on the board because I touched them . Anyone else experienced this??

[wilmo]

This also happens when running on REGOLITH. Every time we would go up to the robot we would get a decent static shock. It was much more prominent on carpet though.

[Hazmatt]

Originally Posted by wilmo

This also happens when running on REGOLITH. Every time we would go up to the robot we would get a decent static shock. It was much more prominent on carpet though.

is it something to be worried about? If the cRio and other components are insulated from the chassis does it matter?

[gorrilla]

how long were you driving for?

i wouldent want to chance it.......

[Hazmatt]

Originally Posted by gorrilla

how long were you driving for?

i wouldent want to chance it.......

I think it was only for 5 minutes, but like I said there was tons of wheel spin (like, donuts the whole time )

[wilmo]

I think it was only for 5 minutes, but like I said there was tons of wheel spin (like, donuts the whole time )

Which is totally unavoidable

I wonder if something like the vibration dampers on the "feet" of the compressor would help at all? (If it is a problem) It is my understanding that the bolt does not run all the way through the damping system thus making it insulated.

[SammyKay]

Oh jeeze. Are you serious?? Did FIRST think about the chance that it might cause static electricity??

[Hazmatt]

Originally Posted by SammyKay

Oh jeeze. Are you serious?? Did FIRST think about the chance that it might cause static electricity??

Is it even a problem though if the electronics board is isolated from the chassis?

[SammyKay]

Originally Posted by Hazmatt

Is it even a problem though if the electronics board is isolated from the chassis?

I dunno. It shouldn't be, I don't think. Mind you it is my first year doing electrical stuff.

[Stormnnormn]

I can't envision it being any problem. It'll be a shocker if it is.

Shouldn't be a problem. Our 06 bot turned out to be an unintentional Van De Graph generator, so we could get a HUGE jolt by touching the frame after any match. Lucky we had a crazy freshman who kinda liked it!

[hillale]

Originally Posted by CraigHickman

Shouldn't be a problem. Our 06 bot turned out to be an unintentional Van De Graph generator, so we could get a HUGE jolt by touching the frame after any match. Lucky we had a crazy freshman who kinda liked it!

Same for us in 06. Hooray for freshmen!!

[wilmo]

I don't believe it will be a problem either, since most teams mount their electronics on lexan/polycarbonate, no additional precautions are really necessary.

[Alan Anderson]

Traction wheels on carpet generate static electricity too. We've usually put a short grounding strap/chain on our robot when practicing at our facility, just to keep from zapping the students. It sounds like we'll be needing one again this year.

[Meredith Novak]

Originally Posted by Alan Anderson

Traction wheels on carpet generate static electricity too. We've usually put a short grounding strap/chain on our robot when practicing at our facility, just to keep from zapping the students. It sounds like we'll be needing one again this year.

We have put one on the practice robot and it seems to be working.