Tracked Rover (work in progress)

Let's Make Robots Projects Showcase
1

hey everyone, i guess is as good a time as ever to reveal my secret little project, since…a while ago :laughing: i’ve been planning therover and stuff and saving up money >_> to buy it, not i have many on the parts…and this is when i start asking question :laughing:

first, quick over view, today i got my package with the stuff i ordered last thursday, as usual, LM did an excellent job of packing everything up and made sure it was comfortable :stuck_out_tongue:, heres some pics of what i got

my full order all layed out on my workbench
putfile.com/pic.php?img=4500228

the very pretty (and shiny) Sabertooth 2X10 Regenerative Dual Channel Motor Controller :smiley:
putfile.com/pic.php?img=4500229

nother view with the protective case opened
putfile.com/pic.php?img=4500230

bottom side
putfile.com/pic.php?img=4500231

individual and very good packing of one of my switches
putfile.com/pic.php?img=4500232

the pretty box of and the smart charger itself :slight_smile:
putfile.com/pic.php?img=4500233

the IR sensor from LM another good packing job
putfile.com/pic.php?img=4500234

the absolute beasts of the order, these motors are wicked beastly
putfile.com/pic.php?img=4500238

me holding the motor itself, and keep in mind, i dont not have a small hand, these motors are 4 inches long, a whopping 7.46 ft lbs of torque :open_mouth:
putfile.com/pic.php?img=4500236

front view of the motor
putfile.com/pic.php?img=4500237

thats it, oyea, heres a VERY rough drawing of what i want the rover to look like, i still haven’t straightened everything out completley, so it may end up looking different
putfile.com/pic.php?img=4435990

this like i said, is going to be a tracked vehicle and im planning for it to be about 6 inches wide and 9-10 inches long, i want about 5, maybe 6 inches of ground clearance, also, i want to make it autonomous and RC so i can drive over some stuff when i want :laughing: :stuck_out_tongue:

any questions, comments or critisism, tell me, and ill see how i can improve on it :wink:

2

WOW those planetary gearmotors are HUGE! what A BEAST they are.

3

o yea, in the mean time i plan on making a small prototype with my VEX stuff and see what these motors can really do, btw, prepare to answer some questions on programming for a micro and motor controllers and stuffs :laughing:

4

motor controller Q’s and mechanical stuff NP. Micros and Programming all my knoledege of that is down the tubes, sorry buddy :laughing:

Im a rover guy so anything about that is np, especially RC Q’s thats np.

5

Oh snap! Those are some MONSTER motors :neutral_face: That protective case for the motor controller is damn cool :astonished:! I want one :neutral_face:

6

Looks good Chunga. Now I know what you needed those 4000mAh packs for. :slight_smile:

I have some 680 brushed ow turn otors that will fit your planetaries if want to try them. They are much slower but more torque than the high speed 680’s. They would probaly cut your RPM in half though. I have some heatsinks for the 680 can motors on your gearboxes too.

Keep the updates coming. Sounds cool.

7

heat sinks? :smiley:, sounds interesting, im going to PM you, cause i may need some fans fromm you too, the gearboxes create more heat than i expected them to

8

The beauty of those planataries, they are roughly the same size as the motor so you can snap 550 sized heatsinks right onto the gearboxes as well.

Just be sure they are 550’s and measure them. the OD should be 37.5 ish. could be 36.8 to 37.9mm. Measure the can and the shroud on the motor. You can always pull the aluminum sleeve off the motors if you are using heatsinks.

Plus, if those are 550 motors like the site says, you can always toss a 680 into them (1/2" longer) for extra power and RPM. :wink:

Here are what the heatsinks look like.
http://i138.photobucket.com/albums/q253/gfisher2002/robots/IMG_0631.jpg

9

evolution, damn, you do have a ton of junk laying around :stuck_out_tongue: Make an excel inventory of everything you have lol. Don’t think the excel will support such long lists.

Btw, why purple and curved? Do you have any Flame shaped heat sinks?

10

LOL no. No flame ones.

I don’t usually buy heatsinks. These guys are $14 each or something dumb like that. I usually buy bulk CPU heatsinks, the older ones that didn’t use a fan, or surplus chip set heatsinks and heat them up and bend them around a wood dowel that’s a bit smaller than the motor diameter. I make them just over a half circle so they snap on and then use some thermal CPU paste between them to fill any tiny gaps.

I got my parcel slip for my form bending machine today so I will be able to use steel rod of different diameters as jigs in it to bend perfectly round heatsinks from flat ones. I will be able to do alot more aluminum work than before once I pick up tomorrow.
I could always make you a set to a specific size and height for your project for a few bucks each. Or some fancy ones for a little extra.

11

hmmm, ill need to think about it, but im leaning more toward yes, ill be thinknig about it, also, i may want to buy some fans too

12

Sounds good. I’m going to pick my Form Bending machine up this morning so hang tight. I’ll be able to make some heatsinks more customized to the size and shape you would want to fit your project.

13

hey everyone, today i spent an hour or 2 cutting out some wood for the body of a prototype rover then putting the parts into it, its not very complicated but its just for sizinf purposes, so it works for me, i plan on putting some bigger fans in it too to help cool everything

here are some pictures
putfile.com/pic.php?img=4506159
putfile.com/pic.php?img=4506160
putfile.com/pic.php?img=4506161

again, comment and critisim welcomed

14

looks awsome
is it going to be made out of wood or are you just using wood for your prototype?

15

I think he is using wood as prototype and final version will use some good ol’ lexan… At least that was the plan last time I talked to him about it.

Chunga, you should get some custom heatsinks from evo! Get them shaped in a circle (or half circle with tabs at end w/ screw holes) and place them around the motory part of the motor. This will add better cooling. Then add a fan behind the motor to suck the air across the heatsinks into the center and then the fans in back will pull that hot air out.

Evo, how much would it cost to get some custom bent heatsinks?

16

yea, that what i was planning on doing, and yes, im only using wood for the prototyping process, the final version will be in lexan, im thinking black or a smoky transparent, right now, i think im going to make a drive train as best i can with the VEX and TRY and write a program for it that i can just input later to the real version

17

Looks great man.

I would probably use heat sinks as well. Although with the motors geared, they aren’t going to be under alot of load.

Heatsink prices would depend on the diameter of motor you want them for and the style of fins. For a 600 motor with simple 1/2" fins about 1" wide and half circle shaped, I could probably make a set of 4 for around $15 to $20. Smaller ones for less.

18

im thinking i will only need 2, and some fans too, cause like i said, its warmer than i expeceted, plus the motors themselves put out some heavy fanning too

19

i have like 20 fans
from old computers that i took apart :laughing:

20

UH! All my robots have been made from lexan and I find that they are never stable enough. Its good and all cause its easy to use and cut, but it attracts so much dust even when covered and its hard to waterproof all the edges. My next version of the SPY 2 (the Spy 3) will be made of probably an aluminum welded or formed chasis. Its stronger and has a nicer finish if you spray paint a design into it. Its also lighter.

but thats just my 0.02 :wink: