I looked into the rules and It never stated that we NEEDED to use the compressor. I figured that some of you might know the answer to this. Is it mandatory that we use the compressor that was provided in the KIT.? and can we use more then one linear actuator.??
Thanks
You must use the compressor provided in the kit. If you follow the part use flowchart, since a compressor has a motor, you can not use another compressor besides the one in the kit.
However, If you only need a small amount of air for your application, you can just put the storage tanks on the robot and then charge the tanks before each round.
Also, you are allowed 3 custom cylinders from Smc and the one in the kit.
We used the rectangular AL for our frame and installed sealed (rtv) bulkheads fastened with rivnuts then put ports where we want them in the frame and use the frame as a storage tank.Might freak the other teams out cause it so creative.But thats what robotics is all about.
Keep creating.
Jim H:ahh:
*Originally posted by Jim Harbison *
We used the rectangular AL for our frame and installed sealed (rtv) bulkheads fastened with rivnuts then put ports where we want them in the frame and use the frame as a storage tank. Might freak the other teams out cause it so creative.But thats what robotics is all about.
Keep creating.
That is explicitly against the rules. If you did it in prior years, you are lucky that you got away with it. Whoever inspected your robot at the competition slipped up. You might not like it stated this way, but consciously or not, you were cheating.
The applicable rule last year was Rule M13. It explicitly stated that custom built pneumatic components were prohibited.
This year, the applicable rule is unchanged. Rule M12 states: Only items listed under the PNEUMATICS section of the Kit list may be used to STORE, generate or transmit compressed air or vacuum, with the following exceptions:
- Suction cups may be fabricated from legal Kit parts, as defined in rule K1 below,
- Tubing may be compressed in order to block the flow of air,
- Tubing may not be compressed in order to generate compressed air or vacuum,
- Only the allowed air cylinders may be used to generate vacuum
Yes, the practice of sealing bulkheads into aluminum tubing and storing compressed air in them will “freak the other teams out” - but not because you are being creative. They will react, and appropriately so, because you are violating the rules that they are obeying.
By backdriving (i think that is term) the piston you create a a vacuum. Just attach one of atwoods to the 2.5" bore piston pull it out and a vacuum is created. Just attach some rubber tubing to the opening of the piston and run it into the suction cup.
but would the suction be strong enough to hold a crate, and would the cup hold? the boxes have lips, and it would really suck (no pun intended) if you set it up, but then, lets say, an upside down box would not line up properly. also with the issue of no compressor, I’d be concerned about air leakage from the time you leave the pits to the time you actually match, and if you only have limited air, you might not get the job done that the pneumatics would be intended for, with maybe only 5-6 times that you could use a pneumatic cylinder, and less if it was large.
It really depends on what size cylinder you back-drive and how much air you start with in the system, as well as the size of your suction cup and the quality of the seal it makes with the box. If you want to calculate the amount of force you will be able to exert, you’re going to need the following equation:
P0V0=PfVf, where P0 is the initial pressure of your system (usually 1 atm), V0 is the initial volume of air in the system, Vf is the final volume after extending the cylinder, and Pf is the final pressure of the system. Thus to calculate your sucking power, subtract Pf from P0 to get the pressure difference from atmospheric. This will be the number of psi your suction cup holds with. Multiply this by the area of your cup and you will have a decent estimate of how much sucking power you have.
As a side note, 1atm is approx 14.1 psi if I remember correctly.
–Rob
We just messed around with this today. We brought in a vacuum pump and tried it. It does hold quite well and say -60 to -70 lbs. They cylinder provided in the kit can create about -90lbs at full stroke. It could be more if ours had leaks.
We have discussed the wording for the legal number of cylinders.
Some threads have said it is four as long as you use the one that is in the kit but others are interpreting the rule to mean 3 TOTAL cylinders.
This is a change over last year…
any interpretations???
thanks
Bob
*Originally posted by Bob Steele *
**We have discussed the wording for the legal number of cylinders.
Some threads have said it is four as long as you use the one that is in the kit but others are interpreting the rule to mean 3 TOTAL cylinders.This is a change over last year…
any interpretations???
thanks
Bob **
Bob,
Check this thread out.
- Katie
More specifically, check out this post: http://www.chiefdelphi.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=16056&perpage=15&pagenumber=2#post117752.
Thanks guys!!
That clears the question up.
Thank you for being helpful!!