FRC Day-Off, Week 2

Today was our first down day for FRC build. This post will recap a few of the design decisions and design progress so far.

Drivebase Configuration

There will be a square drivebase on the robot. This was decided up for the following reasons. The square configuration will give more room for the intake. One of the updated rules was that the the robot cannot exceed a 54" cylinder. Because of this, the shorter and wider robot will allow for more room in the intake to drop down.

Electronic Layout Done. Baseplate sent for manufacturing

After finalizing the size and dimensions of our drivebase, the next step was to complete the layout of electronics on the baseplate. The batter will go towards the back of the robot (away from the intake) to balance out the center of gravity. The talon speed controllers will be at the front along with the power distribution board. These were all layed out in the CAD model and mounting holes were put in the baseplate. The raw material for the baseplate was cut and was sent to BAE Systems. The baseplate will get waterjetted by BAE and hopefully sent back by the end of the week.

See above for the electronics layout.

Cutout in Bumpers for Intake

It was decided that the bumpers will have a cutout to allow the intake to drop down. The intake will bring the frisbees over the frame rail, but not the bumper. Having the cutout will allow the intake to drop down on a pivot that is lower down. This will give the intake a smaller profile when pivoting down allowing for a bigger intake when fully extended.