Deck height

[jgeidl]

Will some of you guys that have multilevel robots, like the Turtelbot,
give me the height of your second deck and maybe the reasoning behind
that height. I'm sure that there is a good reason for any given
height...other than, " That's how it came out of the box."

I have my base layer and am going to add a second deck to it. I am
going to make a framework under the second deck and hinge it to enable
easy access to the first layer but I am just guessing at what might be
a good height.

Thanks,

Jim, K6JMG

[anfederman@comcast]

I'd go for 2.5" and 4.5" It depends on the size of the "Kinect" device.
The Asus is smaller.

(2" was too low for my old clunky laptop - covered up the vents and made it
overheat.)

If you get too top heavy, you can tip when you make a fast turn.

--------------------------------------------------
From: "jgeidl" <but...@gmail.com>
Sent: Wednesday, February 29, 2012 1:50 PM
To: "HomeBrew Robotics Club" <hbrob...@googlegroups.com>
Subject: [HBRobotics] Deck height

> --
> You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups
> "HomeBrew Robotics Club" group.
> To post to this group, send email to hbrob...@googlegroups.com.
> To unsubscribe from this group, send email to
> hbrobotics+...@googlegroups.com.
> For more options, visit this group at
> http://groups.google.com/group/hbrobotics?hl=en.
>
>

[Patrick Goebel]

Hi Jim,

My second desk is only 3" above the first but I have four decks so I am keeping the spacing as small as practical.  I tried separating decks 1 and 2 with 4" standoffs at one point but it was a little too wobbly since I am using small diameter aluminum standoffs from Vex Robotics.   As it is, to access anything on the lower deck (battery, power terminal strips, current sensor and voltage sensor) I have to take the top half of the robot off.  This only requires undoing 5 bolts but where I run into trouble is having wires run from the first deck to the second deck where I have the microcontrollers and a USB hub.  If you can stuff everything but the camera and laptop on the first deck, you won't have that issue.

--patrick

[James M. Geidl]

Good points. I have a REALLY low center of gravity since I have a 12V Gel
cell mounted under the first deck. My only concern with that is that I may
be too lower to the ground and get high centered.

James M. Geidl, K6JMG
D.B. Cooper, you have a message.

[James M. Geidl]

I am building a super-structure under the second deck out of Microrax and will attach the aluminum deck to that with some kind of hinges.  I figure that I will be OK with the wiring between decks if I keep the wires all passing through right at the hinge point. 

 

James M. Geidl, K6JMG
D.B. Cooper, you have a message.
 

---

From: hbrob...@googlegroups.com [mailto:hbrob...@googlegroups.com] On Behalf Of Patrick Goebel
Sent: Wednesday, February 29, 2012 2:11 PM

To: hbrob...@googlegroups.com
Subject: Re: [HBRobotics] Deck height

--

[Chris Palmer]

When I started building decks for the ZenBot, I wanted them as small as practical. This meant enough room to mount a Sharp IR ragefinder vertically and high enough for any circuit board components I planned to use (eg: big capacitors, heat sinks, and such), along with any mounting standoffs. Mine ended up about 2.5" deck to deck. It all really depends on what you need to fit in/on there and where you want/need the center of gravity.

I had a hinge on an earlier primitive design (scrap plastic sheet, that I scored and snapped off by hand), but the newer futuristic laser cut body didn't incorporate one. I see you're already planning to do that, and that's a good move. I intend to do a new frame/body design when I get back to working on my stuff, with "ease of assembly" and "ease of access" among the requirements.

-Chris

jgeidl <but...@gmail.com> wrote:

[Randy M. Dumse]

Keystone sells some standoffs and hinges as well.

 

http://www.keyelco.com/products/specs/spec193.asp

 

Thing to do is use a couple hinges above shorter standoffs on an axis on a back edge. Use longer stand offs (to compensate for length of hinges) on others, so all make same height when folded down, but those two bend to allow flip up. Wires should go between levels at that axis of hinging.

 

Think Keystone sells through DidKey and Mouser, maybe others.

 

Randy

---

From: hbrob...@googlegroups.com [mailto:hbrob...@googlegroups.com] On Behalf Of James M. Geidl
Sent: Wednesday, February 29, 2012 5:14 PM
To: hbrob...@googlegroups.com
Subject: RE: [HBRobotics] Deck height

[Tim Craig]

Brutus currently has 3 decks spaced 6 inches. That gives me enough
space to mount the 12V gel cell battery on the lower deck with enough
clearance to easily remove it if I need to. Also enough space to
conveniently get your hands inside and do some work without having to
remove a deck.

My reasoning getting there is sort of backwards. I started with 2 decks
thinking I might eventually add a third and made the standoffs initially
12 inches because I was putting a laptop on the top deck and didn't want
to have to bend too far to access it. ;) I quickly realized that I
needed the additional real estate and cut the middle deck and split the
original standoffs. My standoffs are 1/2 inch aluminum rod end drilled
and tapped for 1/4-20 screws. There are 6 standoffs so 6 screws are
required to be removed to access either the lower or middle platforms.
Of course, the top is open other than there'll be a tower there for the
Asus Xtion.

Brutus is a bit larger having a nominal footprint of 18x24 inches with a
16 inch wheel separation. This with the weight of the battery down low
gives him pretty good stability.

Tim

On 2/29/2012 1:50 PM, jgeidl wrote:

[James M. Geidl]

Thanks, Randy.  those are interesting little gadgets.  In another life I built cabinets for jet aircraft.  There were a lot of really odd hardware items available for that purpose (if you could afford them) and I think this type of hinge was in the bunch.

 

James M. Geidl, K6JMG
D.B. Cooper, you have a message.
 

 

 

---

From: hbrob...@googlegroups.com [mailto:hbrob...@googlegroups.com] On Behalf Of Randy M. Dumse
Sent: Wednesday, February 29, 2012 4:01 PM

[James M. Geidl]

Tim, thanks. I originally was going to go about 7" space but have since
decided to do something around 3 1/2" and then plan on adding a 3rd deck if
I need to. I have my battery mounted under the first deck which really
helps with the center of gravity but may turn out to give me such poor
ground clearance that I have to move it. If I do, I am going to do like you
and mount it on the second deck. I am have mounted it on it's side to
reduce the space needed and will probably do the same thing if I move it to
the second deck.

James M. Geidl, K6JMG
D.B. Cooper, you have a message.

-----Original Message-----
From: hbrob...@googlegroups.com [mailto:hbrob...@googlegroups.com] On
Behalf Of Tim Craig
Sent: Wednesday, February 29, 2012 5:04 PM
To: hbrob...@googlegroups.com
Subject: Re: [HBRobotics] Deck height

[Patrick Goebel]

Hi Jim,

It would be great to see a picture (or two) of what you've come up with
once you have something assembled. I'm having difficulty visualizing
the frame and hinging mechanism you are describing.

--patrick

[Tully Foote]

One thing to note is if you're using Kinect/other primesense derived sensors they produce bad interference when looking across the ground from less than about 20cm above the ground. 

Tully

--
You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "HomeBrew Robotics Club" group.
To post to this group, send email to hbrob...@googlegroups.com.

To unsubscribe from this group, send email to hbrobotics+unsubscribe@googlegroups.com.

[James M. Geidl]

Great Tip.  I'm not yet but will in the future.

 

James M. Geidl, K6JMG
D.B. Cooper, you have a message.
 

---

From: hbrob...@googlegroups.com [mailto:hbrob...@googlegroups.com] On Behalf Of Tully Foote
Sent: Thursday, March 01, 2012 10:25 AM

To: hbrob...@googlegroups.com
Subject: Re: [HBRobotics] Deck height

To unsubscribe from this group, send email to hbrobotics+...@googlegroups.com.

[James M. Geidl]

Tully,

I settled on 3 1/2" which give me 7 1/2" from the ground.  Thanks for the tip, I added the extra 1/2" because of it.

James M. Geidl, K6JMG
D.B. Cooper, you have a message.
 

 

 

From: hbrob...@googlegroups.com [mailto:hbrob...@googlegroups.com] On Behalf Of Tully Foote
Sent: Thursday, March 01, 2012 10:25 AM

To: hbrob...@googlegroups.com
Subject: Re: [HBRobotics] Deck height

To unsubscribe from this group, send email to hbrobotics+...@googlegroups.com.