Design Decisions

General Design Choices

Omniwheels

• Using omniwheels for mobility to enable holonomic drive (movement in any direction without rotation)
• Custom CADded omniwheels designed for the specific requirements of the robots

Electronics

• Custom controllers designed for precise robot control
• Custom firmware to handle the specific control requirements and movement patterns

Robot 1: Shell Spinner

Weapon System

• Brushless motor positioned in the center of the robot
• Shell initially driven by a full planetary gear system
• Design iteration: Simplified to just one planet gear and one ring gear to reduce complexity and weight while maintaining effectiveness

Motors

• Weapon: Brushless motor for high-speed spinning weapon
• Drivetrain: Specialized combat robotics motors designed for durability and control in combat scenarios

Robot 2: Hammer Saw

Initial Concept

• Original idea: Linear rails that come crashing down, similar to roller coaster mechanics, to leverage gravity
• Chain-driven actuator to lift the weapon upward
• Pawl and ratchet mechanism to hold the weapon in the raised position
• Release mechanism to allow gravity-powered strike
• Concept: “Kind of like a punch to the face”

Current Design

• Evolved to a hammer saw design
• Incorporated the ratchet mechanism from original concept
• Gravity-assisted strike maintained as core principle
• Addition: Springs added to provide additional power to the strike
• Combines both gravity and spring energy for maximum impact