System Spotlight: Swerve Drive

Each robot is designed and built from the ground up. This year the team decided to try something new with the bot's drive system. Every year the robots designed by team 1323 were driven by a tank style drive system, with two sets of three wheels which would spin at different speeds to turn, then at the same speed to move forward.

Instead of using this traditional design, 1323 is using a swerve system. Swerve drives operate like creepers that mechanics use to get underneath cars, in that each wheel can roll in any direction. Using this system, the robot can face forward, but move in any direction easily, which will help it to effectively grab boxes from the field and deposit full stacks in scoring zones.

This new drive system requires two motors per wheel to rotate and drive. One motor rolls the wheel forward or backward, while a small motor pivots the wheel to oriented in the desired direction. This is achieved by having a gear on the shaft that holds the wheel, and a gear above the wheel casing. The gear on the wheel shaft is spun to drive it, while the gear that moves with the casing is driven to reorient each wheel. Four of these swerve gearboxes will be mounted on the corners of the robot, which widens the supportive base and prevents tipping.

Gearbox plates, shafts, and wheel mounts were made in house while gears were shaved down using the team's equipment to reduce weight.

Week 3 Update

Last week team 1323 designed the human loader on the back of the robot. With the loader complete, all that remained in design was creating a method to hold the recycling bin, and updating the tote holder. With many components in the final stages, a mentor was able to work with students to begin writing code for the robot's human operation, and many basic processes were prepared. Having code made it easy to see problems that the robot had, which were not visible when systems were operated manually, and adjustments were made to fix these issues. Nearly every system on the robot was modified slightly, but in the end it functioned better than anticipated at performing the tasks set out for it.

With design almost completed preparations were made for manufacturing as soon as the team was ready. Supplies were ordered and either shipped in or picked up. Modeling design was almost completely finished and plans were made for parts would be produced. Some team members would be able to use the near fully functional prototype to practice operating it, while others coded, and yet another set of students observed to see what modifications had to be made. 

(An assembled elevator for the prototype)

Pictures and a detailed explanation of this years robot will be posted soon as build season comes to a close.

Week 2 Update

The first week give way to the second week of build season, but the team hardly noticed, as they were all hard at work. The only difference between the first and second week was the students return to school, but at meetings much of the same work was being done. With the intake plans solidified, the next assembly that the team worked on was the tote holder. Initially several prototypes were tested, but each was flawed as none could properly support the tote within the robot. After two days a concept involving flaps (to hold the tote in place) was tested with greater success, and the prototype was modified to include this new idea.

A separate intake was initially planned to grab the recycling container, but after a week of failed testing, it was decided that the tote intake would be modified to grab both game pieces. Since two systems were consolidated into one, more space was made available for a human loader, with which the robot can easily grab totes deposited through a shoot during the match. To help coordinate and ensure parts fit together in the robot, the team uses a CAD (computer aided design) software to create a three dimensional model of the robot. This made it possible to see that motors and gearboxes had be adjusted on the intake to prevent it from colliding with the robot's drive system. The necessary fixes were made on the intake, and this same process of checking was continued with all other systems.

Week 1 Update

The 2015 robotics season began just after the turn of the year, as a new challenge was announced worldwide for upcoming competitions. The new challenge focuses on reusability, and uses field elements that can be used by the team after the season ends. Teams will be tasked with stacking tote boxes on top of each other, with additional points rewarding for topping the stack with a recycling bin. Pool noodles designated as "litter" would yield even more points if deposited in either the "landfill" zone or in one of the recycling bins on the field.

Team 1323 spent the first day of build season deciding which approach would net the most points during matches, and began to form basic concepts of how the robot would function. For the remainder of the week and the rest of winter break, the team met in the shop daily to construct prototypes and test ideas. Groups were formed and tasked with testing different subsystems, which will ultimately come together to form the first model of the 2015 robot.

As the prototypes transitioned from basic wood mock ups to aluminum models, the robots final design plans began to take shape. Specific features of the robot can't be discussed until the first competition, so as to prevent other teams from borrowing ideas. However, it was clear that tote stacking would be the primary focus of the robot this year.

Before the first week ended, final concepts were made for the intake system and elevator system of the robot. With these features out of the way, other systems could be planned to fit and coordinate with each other, and the intake could be modified to accommodate new tasks. In the last few days of week 1, several members began assembling the field in the practice room to prepare for final testing and human player practice.

Pre-Season Preparations

With the 2015 season fast approaching, team 1323 began getting ready for the next build season and competitions. The shop was cleaned, machines were aired out, and tools were organized. The old practice field was torn down and cleared out to make room for the new game. Wood and nails were picked up for early prototyping. The entire house cleaning process took a few meetings, but the shop looked as good as new by the end of it.

Due to the relative inexperience of the team, mentors took time to go over each machine with team members, and ensured that each member understood the proper and safe way to use each device. All members were taught the function of the CNC router, mills, lathes, band saw, drill press and various tools in the team tool box. Furthermore, several talks took place in which the mentors and veteran members explained what was expected of each team mate, as well as the best way to function as a team. Ideally, students would plan out the basic idea of the robot. Then they would split up into groups after the announcement of the game to plan out and design parts of the robot to perform a specific task. Finally, each design would be modified to fit with each other and to meet the requirements established by FIRST at the beginning of the year. Mentors made a point of emphasizing that all members should provide input, and that even the most ridiculous idea provides diversity of thought when approaching an issue. By the end of the year, the team was as ready as it could get for the coming build season.