Does FIRST require us to use the given roller chain parts on the sprockets, or are we allowed to use Autodesk Inventor’s Roller chain generator to represent the same chain?
It is far too much work to spend on getting a nonmoving chain that is only for looks when we can use a simulation chain with real time calculations and data.
What do you mean by “Does FIRST require us”?
FIRST doesn’t regulate what you do in Inventor. They don’t care if you use Inventor. Many teams use SolidWorks or ProE. Furthermore, FIRST doesn’t care if you choose not to CAD at all. If you are referring to Autodesk for the Excellence in Design challenge, of course they prefer that you use the tools that they implemented in their software.
The CAD team at 1515 strongly believes that it is crucial and most efficient to use whatever tools are available to their fullest potential. Use the Roller Chain generator. It’s quick, dynamic, and allows for modification. If you don’t like the blueish line (which I can’t stand), open up the part and change the material to Metal Steel Oxidized.
I have tried, and it not only would take the better part of the build season to CAD a chain, but also it would be required to be designed around a specific sprocket DIA and distance. It is unforgiving.
EDIT: sorry, that came out a bit harsh. Didn’t know you are a rookie. If you’d like, you can send me your CAD to take a look at. You are basically allowed to do whatever works best for you.
I was actually quite unaware that FIRST does not regulate how we do our CAD. We did know that it was for the Excellence in Design award, but we weren’t sure what they wanted. We had conflicting ideas and made us unsure of what we should do. Thanks for telling us how to camouflage the blue band though!
We have good experience with Inventor, the only confusion came from this being our first year in FIRST Robotics.
Using the Design Accelerators would be looked upon very favorably. Wink wink
Pete