Alright. Here it is … in all its glory. Powered using the FIRST transmission and CIMS. Lower arm pivots using a custom gearbox and the VD motor. Upper arm moves using the FP and a nice double reduction. The upper arm extends to allow a total stretch of about 13’. At the end of the arm, is a passive claw made from fiberglass and wrapped in thin aluminum.
All thats left to do, is some final wiring of the sensors and motors, bolt the camera box on, and do some programming. Control box is almost done, and the camera code is done. There is feedback on anything that moves - Drive train has encoders on both sides. The telescoping arm has an encoder as well. The 2 arm joints have precision pots on them (little blue things at each end of the arms). Theres also a tetra holder (that the tetra is sitting on … ) which allows you to hold a tetra. A special thanks to Team 60 for the seminar they did for us and Team 973. Another thanks to team 233 for the inspiration on the telescoping arm. Hopefully tomorrow, we’ll post some pictures of it actually moving.
This robot is a beast. I got a chance to drive it around tonight, and it goes so fast, yet stops almost immediately, even with the Victors set to coast. The telescoping boom also goes way fast. I can’t wait to test all the backdrive protection on the arm motors tomorrow.
By the way - Unoffical name is Sparky … after the sparks that shot out of one of the CIM victors tonight. Hopefully we’ll get some better videos once the thing actually works without letting the arm fall back …
No … theres no pneumatics on the bot. It actually stays in the offical size with the power off … but once you start driving it around it’ll backdrive (until the feedback gets programmed in … which … should be happening as I post this)
Thanks. I’m not sure if anyone has calculated the actual speed yet. I’ll check with the drivetrain people.
I think its 6wd…you can’t really see it in the picture but in the video im pretty sure i saw some chain connecting the the other wheels to the front one…btw awesome design reliable drivetrain + great looking arm. Good luck with the feedback on the arm we did it on my old team and it really helps alot. (Except when we forgot to recalibrate the pots and the arm went insane… :ahh: )
And it is no longer Sparky (for a short time it was also called smokey, because of those wonderful FP motors). It is offically named “Ratchet” (as Joey said already)
