Refined the programming

Ello Kirk here again!

Today edge detection was added! So if its going to an edge it will reverse away, and spin back around of course since we don't have a back weapon!

Also added touch sensor support, so it will spin around and rip into the robot attacking us!

We also have an alternative program but nothing to test it on so we feel rather disadvantaged but ohwell.... our build skills are superior as will be seen tomorrow err its past 12 so later today haha

heres a ss!

Started the programming

A couple of days ago Locky and I started the programming with something very simple!

basically:

looped the following
if (ultrasonic sensor distance > 50cm)
spin (to look for it)
else
charge and raise fork when < 10cm away (probably change that to 5cm because it is lifting it too early atm!)



Will add edge detection and rear attack detection and that should be as much as we need!

Last minute robot rebuild...

The whole process of building the robot has taught Lockie and I the following:
+ Short wheelbase needed.
+ Simple and sturdy is best.
+ Low center of gravity important.
+ Smart use of sensors needed.
+ Reliable linkages needed.... (we had good linkages that multiplied the torque, etc but they weren't reliable enough for testing let alone a sumo match =\)

So with that in mind we rebuild the robot with all that we have learnt! The set didn't have enough of the needed parts to build exactly what we wanted but we came close.

Changes:
+ Got rid of independent rear suspension... were enough of the right parts in the kit to make a solid rear suspension (the old one broke too easily).
+ Moved motors to give the robot a smaller turning circle.
+ Flipped the control unit so that buttons are easily accessible as the lever motor blocked the controls off. As a result of this the center of gravity has been lowered even further!
+ Changed front linkage system (looks weaker than the old system but is infact more reliable!)

Improvements over version 1:
+ Better (smaller) turning circle!
+ Lower center of gravity
+ More reliable linkage system
+ Easier access to controls

Disadvantages to version 1:
+ Some parts not as sturdy...
+ Not as many defensive structures.

Anyway pic time!

Finished the structure.... for now

Well on Monday Lockie and I finished the general body of the robot, that left us with minor tweaks and coding to go.

Pics will be uploaded later, as they are huge and school internet is slow.


Advantages:
Heavy body, hard to lift.
Weapon sits flush to ground not giving anywhere for other robots to get under.
Low center of gravity.
Good rear protection.

Disadvantages:
Heavy = slow. Acceleration = Force / Mass... hence increasing mass decreases acceleration but momentum = mass x velocity so it will be harder to stop... so kinda good and bad.
Long wheelbase = slow turning, which in my opinion is a big disadvantage, this thing needs to turn quickly to find the enemy and attack.

Edit pics uploaded:

Major progress made....

Today Lockie and myself (Kirk) made quite alot of progress on the robot.

We mounted all three of the motors on the robot in a way which keeps the master unit down, keeping to our original goal of keeping the center of gravity down.

This is what we started the lesson with, prototype robot base and the attacking weapon.

To be done this lesson:
* Mount third motor.
* Install rear suspension (And not just any suspension.... but independent rear suspension ;)).
* Install lifting weapon ready to get connected to motor.


We started with this assortment of robot parts:


And turned them into the awesome beast below!

Since Lockie and I decided to keep the center of gravity low the top motor will need to be moved lower, high center of gravity means it can get tipped and/or lifted easier which we don't want.



Now on to the suspension!

This current suspension is just a quick prototype independent suspension (probably overkill for a battle robot), but will ensure that we always have lots of wheels on the ground which you know it = grip. Although if the robot does get lifted the center of gravity will get higher so even though we have 4 wheels on the ground it'll still be vulnerable but its still superior to a solid axle that would render the two wheels on it useless.



As you can see here the suspension can over-extend.... and doesn't remain level during its extension, leaving on part of the wheel on the ground which is not ideal! I have a plan to combat this and keep the extended wheel(s) level during all parts of the extension which will maximize grip. So I'll update the blog with the new and improved suspension unit tomorrow.



Hopefully the structure of the robot will be finished tomorrow or thursday so coding has time to completed and optimized so that we will win.

Building

Today I worked on developing the front end of the robot.

The front end is the forks, continuing on mine and Kirks plan.

I had attempted a design of the front forks previously. This proved ineffective as it was not sturdy enough and wouldn't allow the lift system to be added on.

I reevaluated this design and decided to use the claws included in the set. These seem very effective, and I constructed the front forks. The large claws are effective at reaching low, allowing the claws to reach underneath the opponents robot and then apply the forklift.

I also worked on the idea of a 270 degree forklift. It is possible. This will be extremely effective If the motor will be able to handle it.

Wiki'd tractor, front end loader and forklifts. Looked at some blueprints. Inspiration.

Tomorrow I will continue to work on the front system.

spawning of a powerful machine

Started the robot sumo unit directed by Mr. Ross and looking forward to the final event.
Today i set up everything I needed to; a bench to work on, the access to blocked blog sites, lego sites and a bunch of other sites i wanted unblocked..

Cracked open the Lego robot kit and looked at the robot Kirk had played around with, we decided to do something involving a fork lift and an ANTIWEDGINGROBOT design.

Will hopefully look better than my design which is above.

Will lift robots off the ground and possibly have two arms to push them off the raised deck