Design
The design team is a combination of engineers and students trained in SolidWorks design studio.
After the entire team has decided the general functions of the robot, the design team steps in. The
design team splits off into groups, each with an engineer and some students, to design specific mechanisms. Each team brainstorms
and decides which ideas to use and what hardware they need. The groups report to the rest of the design team and, if no material
conflicts come up, each group draws its parts in SolidWorks. After all the parts are designed and detailed, construction can begin.
Manufacturing
The manufacturing team takes the machined parts (from the design team) and assembles them.
The manufacturing team starts off where the design team leaves off. As the designs for the assemblies come back finished,
the team cuts out the necessary pieces and puts them together. The frame and drive systems are built first.
After that, the other various assemblies are constructed and put in place. The manufacturing team takes careful
consideration when assembling the pieces. They try to ensure that every part can easily be remade and replaced as
quickly as possible, as well as being "robust." Fasteners are used as uniformly as possible. As soon as all the mechanical parts are positioned,
the electrical and programing divisions are able to hook up and debug their programs and control panels.
Controls
The controls team wires and programs the motors and pneumatics of the robot to make it functional.
The controls team has basically three jobs: to wire the robot, program the robot, and make an operator station.
Wiring the robot entails connecting the motors and the pneumatic devices to the main controller (made by InnovationFIRST).
The basic electrial setup of the robot is: the battery, fuse blocks, radio, main robot controller, Victors (variable speed controllers),
and Spikes (on/off speed controllers).
After the robot is wired, the controls team writes and loads a program into the main controller. This program will tell the robot
how to process the input that comes from the operator station.
The operator station usually consists of its own controller and radio, along with either joysticks or a steering wheel to
control movement of the robot. Switches and dials are used to control other functions. In competition, there will
be two operators: a driver who uses the joystick/steering wheel and a switch operator who uses the switches and dials. Recent advances in technology have given us the ability to also use any controller with a USB interface, such as PS2 or Xbox-style controllers.
|