I should have mentioned that the roller claw itself was passive. Used custom made rachets (you could use the VEX ones now) to allow the chains to spin inwards as the elevator was lowered over the balls, and lock the chains if gravity tried to spin them the other way. The effect was a bit like the intake of 1107B’s “superstacker.” One prong was on a pneumatic pivot, which allowed the claw to open and dump the balls. The elevator of course could double as a hanger, lift for scoring system, or something else. The system could be done actively as well, but initial prototypes of this passive system appeared quite promising.
6 Drive, 1-2 intake, 2 lift, 2 pivot. Never will do lower than 6 motor drive.
I will agree with you on the strategy part, but I don’t agree with you saying motors are the limiting factor. Our first design concept could have a 6-8 motor drivetrain. I think that many mechanisms could be better accomplished with pneumatics.
Also it seems as if most people agree the climb has to be done quickly, i.e. without having extra motors pulling you up. I think it has to be done with pneumatics/elastics, or a drivetrain PTO.
6 motors on the drive is cool, but descoring might be more important. I didn’t see a lot of shoving matches at Worlds in the College division. Maybe if you geared them up for speed it would help more. I don’t know. But this was the distribution we were planning to use.
The really short stroke on the Pneumatics is what we’re concerned about. 4" isn’t that much. I’m not opposed to using them for what we can, but we want motors for a lot of things.
for all you doubters… 
-
cleasweep was in 2010 THREE (3) years ago!
the overall standard of excellence has raised significantly and the prototype and iteration process is faster than before
not to mention that the robot pars are many times better than 3 years ago (10 HS, aluminum, etc) -
the point swing is massive considering the “low” “max score”
pretty sure if you “do it right” teams WILL need to add in the descore ability before the next competition and have it done fast!
I think climbing will be worth it if your alliance partner is able to defend the 2 large balls on the top of the goals while you start your climb. I missed out on climbing in round up in my freshman year so I’m going all out for toss up. Hopefully my design will work.
I’m not sure how descoring will work since the buckyballs will be in random positions but axles might be able to navigate inside.
Do you guys do anything other than robotics?
I’ve spent the last 6 class hours browsing the forums and drawing, and my lunch break unpacking from Words and sorting parts for the new robot design. This one we aren’t bothering to CAD or do a notebook for. It’s just going to get built and do Driver’s/Programming Skills and maybe do a few competitions. The good designs based on a winning strategy are coming later. We’re very excited.
Come to think of it, I would have a lot of free-time if we decided NOT to do VEX next year. I guess go program and build full-time for VexU with my friends who are graduating. I couldn’t drive, but I could coach and do Programming Skills more than the couple days a week I’m planning now.
Not unless you have a wallbot on each side. In a scenario with all offensive robots, even if you could do it instantly it would be better to stay in the goal zone and defend your points/decrease your opponent’s points than to go over to the hanging zone and hang.
hello ! … yes it is my life ! …
today i woke up … 7am … go to school for 8am … then work on robot till 9 am … then 2 hours work in lessons … then 15 mins break(robot) … then 2 hours work in lessons … then 40 mins (robot) … then 2 hours … then robot for 30 mins
then i get home and forum/cad … i have done all the cad for my scissor lift and my base and i have started on my intake design
My Reveal … (plan to do a full robot reveal with videos by 27th July)
basically …
4 393 motor mecanum drive
2 393 motor lift
4 393 motor intake (2 for score of bucky) (2 for score of big ball)
structure … all aluminum, … with all electronics on the arm/back of intake … meaning i can pull base up using a hook fitted to the back of my scissor lift
so … work … today i have adjusted my drive and i can drive over a a 2.5" peice of box section without ramped edges 
lift … scissor lift is built with prototype 1:7 gear ratio …
intake mounting is built (just needs putting on) …
then all i need to do is adjust my gateway intake for the bucky balls …
then … after all that is make the big ball intake which is hard to explain !
^ i am coming to worlds this year, as it is my last year of robotics
and … yes i think climbing is important … one of the 5 main things i am considering !
:eek: Wow… you guys seem very dedicated…
Dedication is a requirement for success.
hell yeah … i am the only dedicated member on my team … i do the following …
only cad designer
only programmer (drive/auton/prog skills)
lead designer on all systems …
electrician
all online challenges
forum stuff
video stuff
all notebook stuff …
Spending that much a day is a bit overkill, no?
We spend around 5-6 hours a week on our robot.
you think so … but that is not just build … that is getting stuff out … working on small things, drawing up designs … atm … building prototypes till like June 9th … then put all of the best stuff together !
I’ve been known to pull 20 hour days for multiple weeks straight during FRC build season. VEX may require less time to achieve competency, but achieving excellence involves continuously pushing yourself to do more, and never being satisfied with “good enough.” Chase perfection, catch excellence.
I think climbing is a very important but also difficult task to accomplish this year. High hanging with a ball would be worth alot, although the bucky balls in the goals are also worth alot. I am thinking that the robot should be very light (All aluminum), and shouldn’t have that much or any pneumatics. Pneumatics would made the robot heavy and also hard for the robot to get high/low hanging, since the lift should be geared down in order for the robot to lift itself up.
- Btw, this is 986A Lancers. We were in the Engineering division
Permanent points become less important the later in the game you are. Hanging will be the last thing you do, and you can assume that pretty much anything you do on the rest of the field during hang time won’t have time to be undone. You want to be getting permanent points early and fighting over the temporary points late. Scoring a bunch of temporary points during the midgame and then going to hang just lets your opponents undo all your work in the last 20s or so - and you can’t descore anything after the match ends.
If memory serves, 1103 didn’t hang all that much in tournament matches. I suspect that was because he understood this.
Can’t descore if you can’t get to the goal 
It isn’t really that hard to have a robot sit in front of a goal to protect it from being descored. It’s unlikely that two robots are going to hang for the same alliance so… whats the other robot able to do? shut down some decoring thing by sitting in front of a goal…
lol well if u saw Green eggs robot this year, (massive descore/rescore), they just pushed everyone out of the way that tried to block them
hence the term “doing it right”