What do you guys think is going to be the better choice for this year’s competition?
It really depends on the robot.
However:
Advantage of 12 motors:
-more continuous power
-easier to have a cycle (like spinning an axle)
-more practical
Disadvantage of 12 motors:
-more drain on batteries than 10 motors+pneumatic
Advantage of 10 motors+pnuematics:
-more powerful than motors in most cases
Disadvantage of 10 motors+pnuematics:
-only a certain amount of power per match (pnuematics will usually be used up by the end of the match while motors can still run - are probably only practical as maybe in intake such as 8059F’s in post 85 of their reveal page: https://vexforum.com/t/8059a-robot-in-1-day-singapore-vex-edition-reveal-more/29897/1&page=9)
-pnuematics are harder to figure out and more expensive so many teams don’t even have them
-AIR BRAKES(still possible with motors but much harder)
Based on these lists, I feel that most teams will use 12 motors as a cheaper and more straightforward solution to their robot, but the top-seeded teams at matches will probably have 10 motors and pnuematics because of their usability as air brakes which helps with staying in place while aligning for a shot into the high net.
With pnuematics you can use more than 2 pistons. I think that 10 motors with pnuematics is better. But, yes, it does depend on the robot. ELEVATED 1.0 was better with pnuematics.
To add to the disadvantages of pneumatics:
This year, the cylinders might add to much weight and take up to much room to be easily lifted.
It does depend on your robot, but I feel that 12 motors is the better option in most cases. As pneumatics are still limited to 2 tanks, there is only so much you can do with them, while the extra 2 motors can be used the whole match. With this year’s game, most shooters such as flywheels require lots of motor power, and having extra motors can help with this, as well as a stronger drive or intake system. I don’t see too many large uses for pneumatics in this game, there are things like pneumatic brakes, shooting adjustment, or ramp/elevation system release, but these can probably just as well be done with motors and/or elastics in a way that offers a more efficient power usage, and the motor could serve multiple purposes. That’s just my thoughts that, at least for simpler robots, 12 motors is the better option, but maybe for more complex mechanisms the pneumatics end up being better.
And keep in mind too that 2 extra motors is significantly cheaper than pneumatics, so teams that can’t really afford pneumatics will definitely go for the 12 motors.
I figure if you can afford it the better bet it pneumatics, for a couple of reasons
- you only have ten motor ports, so you will to Y cable off the extra two, but you can only CONTROL 10 motors, so you will have to have multiple motors doing the same thing
2)you can use infinite pneumatic pistons, and while you have limited amounts of air, you can use a bunch of pistons on a bunch of different devices that only get used a few times, for example a break or a lift
- pneumatics are much more powerful than motors
I don’t think it would be a problem to lift a robot with pneumatics, but it would be a challenge with two motors, you would have to go super slow
This robot lifts up decently fast with only 2 motors
ok, so I guess there are ways to do it, but the idea I have wouldn’t work with that
12 motors
Here’s why:
start of the match - motor turns on
15 seconds in - motor is spinning
30 seconds in - motor is spinning
45 seconds in - motor is spinning
1:00 in - motor is spinning
.
.
.
end of the match - motor is spinning
after the match - the motor - guess what - it SPINS!
This thread needs a poll :).
I think many teams will only use 10 motors (or maybe less) without pneumatics. More isn’t always better.
One of our teams will most likely be using 10 motors + pneumatics due to running a transmission that will transfer drive power to lift power at end of match(if it works out). Our other team may only need 10 motors and nothing else to be competitive.
Stanley suggested to make a poll out of this.
You’d need to get creative with a mechanism or use multiple cylinders to lift a robot as they only have a stroke of 2".
Paul_1460X has just made a poll related to this thread.
I think it really depends on the robot, I think 10 motors is plenty if your intention is to just build a flywheel, intake and drive system.
Drive System (4 Motors)
flywheel (4 motors)
intake (2 motors)
Then onto that robot you can add pneumatics brakes, maybe even a transmission ( if u even transmit ). Pneumatic brakes are awesome when shooting, as they allow you to pretty well stay in the same spot.
For a robot designed to lift, it could go either way, pneumatic assists for your lifting might be helpful, but even 2 motors can lift an entire robot (as we have already seen).
Exactly my idea. I currently have 2 pistons, but plan on adding 4 more (yes I know that’s a lot). On my design, 12 motors would just be overkill. That’s because my shooter(s) only take 2 motors, so an additional 2 motors would have little use at this point in the season. Also, each of the pistons will only be activated once or twice (one time refers to the action of going from deactivated to activated to deactivated again) so there is almost no possibility that they will run out of air.
Are teams that use 12 motors putting themselves in greater risk of tripping their Cortex PTC’s? If so, that could be a disadvantage of 12 motors.
Honestly, the cost of pneumatics has been a barrier for us.
Maybe, but it shouldn’t be a problem with correct usage of a power expander (i think ) as the power expander has its own PTC, taking the load (at least somewhat) off of the cortex. Well thats the theory…
Dam.
12 motors because pnuematics are too expensive, plus they don’t really have a use for this game.