Programming looked over codes and sorted out little name thingies. Afterwards we had a discussion about them. We also got gyro to work and we put it into our code bais. We tested it and watched the angle change. Now we just need to tune the camera.
Mechanical had to find the center of the drum and drill holes through. Had to find female and male electrical connecters. We measured, drew, and drilled the holes to attach the parallel things (for the wheels) which we will later be welded.
The drive-train is nearly complete. The omni-wheels are mostly mounted except
that we are short some 1/2 ID bearing and need to get chain around all wheels.
NUMBER ONE Goal - Get the drive-train complete and operational with a temporary
control system. I stayed for an hour after the school was cleared yesterday and
restored order to the shop. The playing field is clear and ready to test the
drive system. Sean has set a personal goal for the programming team of having
code ready for testing by Wednesday. That goal has to be matched on the drive
side of the house. This is a new system for our team and if we do not have a
100% positive test of it on Wednesday then we need to immediately revert to a
basic four wheel drive , skid-steer system. I do not want to have a robot that
can't drive! I am more than a bit concerned that the weight came in on the robot
base at 50 lbs. I'm not sure if we can cut weight there other than I've ordered
aluminum sprockets to replace the steel sprockets on the omni-wheels. We also
removed the extra section of the profile designed to provide support and mounts
for 3/16 inch wheel axles.
NUMBER TWO Goal - All of the mechanism on the robot need to be complete and
ready for mounting to the running platform by the end of the day on Saturday.
Those include: BALL COLLECTOR , BALL CONVEYOR, BALL STORAGE, BALL CANNON.
I am scheduling a long day for this Saturday which will include lunch. Plan on
9:00 - 4:00 for this Saturday. We will need week five to test the mechanisms and
make improvements. I am being told by Sean and Bruce that the only way that we
will be able to score consistently is to build up a table of shooting solutions
based upon actual robot performance. That means at least a week of testing in
the evenings.
Here is a thought for consideration,
We have been developing mechanisms on the second chassis for two weeks while the
drive-train system was being developed on the first chassis. We are going to
need to be merged. As we add more elements to the second chassis, is it going to
be easier to move just the four wheel / transmissions???
We'll look that over this week and need to make a decision by Saturday.
-
APS
A great day in the shop:
Major milestone
The robot drove good first shot out of the blocks this afternoon. The
multivariable calculus that Sean and Bruce worked up for the drive system (LOL)
worked perfectly. We may have a lingering issue with one motor/transmission not
being closely matched so the drive is good in all but one direction. After some
initial tests they then added code and a second controller for a zero degree
spin. That too worked good on the first test.
What didn't work was a smooth ride up the ramp. As of now, we have not been able
to get up the ramp and onto the platform unaided. The omni-wheel design concern
has proved true as this point. When the front wheels are 3/4 the way up the
ramp, the robot spins and rolls down the ramp. We will need an assist to get up
the ramp. I sat behind the robot with my feet on the frame to keep it from
spinning down the ramp and it was able to get on top. Once the front wheels are
over the lip, they are on a level surface and can pull the robot over the top.
We can test this process with last year's robot once we replace the damaged
robot controller. That is a top task for early in the week.
-
APS
