Hello, I am totally new to robotics, but I want to build a small scissor lift to use in a performance art piece, and saw some VEX designs on youtube, and I am hoping that someone could tell me whether or not it would be possible to make a scissor lift that fits my requirements using VEX. The scissor lift would need to meet the following criteria:
must be able to lift it’s own weight, plus a load of about 2 pounds on the top platform.
the top platform must travel at least 35 inches from its lowered height to its raised height.
Could somebody let me know if this would be possible, and if so, point me in the right direction of a decent design, as well as how many motors I would need? (I plan on using continuous rotation servos, which I would control with Arduino). Also, if someone could tell me what a good power source for the motors would be, that would be fantastic. I would need the power source to last at least 10-15 minutes. I know this is a lot of questions, but I’m really new to this, and any help would be greatly appreciated.
I am not going for vex competition. I simply want to create a scissor lift for a piece of performance art. Would it be possible? Would most hobby servos work for this? Also, could somebody advise on the feasibility of the project, considering the two criteria I listed?
If thats the case, you can use dc motors.
In fact, you dont even need to spend money on the cortex. Ardiuno board will do the job as well… and cheaper.
I think you’re referring to what we here simply call “motors.” In our inventory, servos only move to an angle. Motors can rotate continuously. Our Vex motors can have speed adjusted simply by sending varying motor power levels (if you’re using ROBOTC), but I believe any DC motor (or in your terminology, continuous rotation servos) would behave the same as well.