Corvis (temp bot name) rough ideas.

[Bacon Wizard]

Well, heck it might not work, but like I said: i get a very cool item even if it's not up-to this particular job.

I've seen a broadhead arrow (that's the wrong sort) go clean through 3mm hardox, and that was just from an ordinary x-bow. So I'm in with a chance if I can keep the weight of the ram's shaft down.

[james...venom]

The difference is its very easy for us to calculate the force a spike might have on a ram and we can simply work out if its likely to fail and the spike come out etc how ever we would struggle to say if a crossbow type method is safe without seeing it and testing it first. As I said its great someone is thinking of new methods

[Bacon Wizard]

The difference is its very easy for us to calculate the force a spike might have on a ram and we can simply work out if its likely to fail and the spike come out etc how ever we would struggle to say if a crossbow type method is safe without seeing it and testing it first. As I said its great someone is thinking of new methods

Yeah, I get it completely. It's an unknown quantity and needs to be checked-out. No problemo.

We're a year or two off that occasion anyhow.

[Bacon Wizard]

News: My mate Vikki is now on-board as chief advisor, using her experience as an aircraft engineer. I am currently having a crash-course in space-frame design (HW corvis will deff. be a spaceframe, not monocoque)

Armour is looking like polycarbonate plates, each of which is attached to the frame via tempur-foam bushes and stiff springs and covered in 6+ layers of sheer-thickening-fluid-impregnated kevlar (not in a composite) No chance of being pierced, and the rest is all about shock absorbing.

Have contacted custom carbon-fibre parts manufacturer in Uk for advice on arbalest weapon: I can't make it myself: too much chance of air-bubbles in the composite (and those would explode under the pressure, making a crack in the weapon = fail )

Am now looking for a really basic FW on which to test armour and other ideas. No intention of winning anything. Just want a RC, moving, wheeled, box that's viable.

[maddox10]

Tiberius. n'uf said.

[Bacon Wizard]

yeah, the comparison is a good one, to be fair.

[joey_picus]

Is your armour going to keep out Tibs's claw though? The weapon does interest me (waaay back in my ridiculous vapour design days I had an idea for a giant crossbow spike) but I'm curious as to whether the Hardox sheet that you mentioned being penetrated was anchored down or not, because I can't not visualise this being a very efficient and effective way to propel yourself and an opponent in opposing directions rather than actually penetrating anything...

[daliad100]

If you keep the mass of the ram and spike down and move it very fast (low moving mass + high flow rate) then you have a chance of stabbing through something.

As mass of the spike is <<< robot mass then they shouldn't get flung apart as much but still pack a punch due to having a lot of momentum. High velocity should also reduce the time the impulse acts making for lots of force. You could try recessing the spike into your robot so it has ample time to accelerate before hitting anything.

[Liftoff]

If you keep the mass of the ram and spike down and move it very fast (low moving mass + high flow rate) then you have a chance of stabbing through something.

I think it should be the other way round, the spike should be made from very heavy material like tungsten and be made as small as possible - same principle as used on armour piercing KE rounds. Having said that, I cant see a crosbow launched tethered projectile attaining the velocity of a cannon launched KE penetrator... But still worth a try!

[Bacon Wizard]

Yeah, I am still working this out. It needs enough mass to be felt by the other bot, but needs to be light enough to get some speed-up.

Walking is never going to beat wheels for pushing. I'll just have to live with that. I'm hoping geckskin will be commercially available so that at least we can withstand a pushbot.

Armour-wise, I am confident you won't get through it mon. I'll be using sheer-thickening fluid on the kevlar. It keeps out a 50cal bullet, so you don't stand a chance of penetrating it, frankly. Blunt-force trauma is a different matter.

And of course walkers are inherently flippable.

[Bacon Wizard]

You could try recessing the spike into your robot so it has ample time to accelerate before hitting anything.

That's the plan. But I don't yet know how large the bow itself needs to be to generate the required forces. That'll pretty-much dictate the rest of the bot's design.

I'm counting on the reverse-energy configuration to help. Here's an example of perhaps the market leader for ordinary bows right now. Imagine mine with the arms 10 x thicker and the whole thing narrower.

http://youtu.be/yhVNMoRXjOY

Cocking it is also a concern. I could end-up with something that takes 30 secs to re-cock but which nobody want's to get hit-by. Or it could be weedy and quick. I need to do some proper maths.

[Bacon Wizard]

Has anyone ever attempted a bot that anchors itself to the arena floor with suction for better weapon-deployment and/or anti flip?

[typhoon_driver]

Magnets....

[Anttazz]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CH51gYY2wZc

[maddox10]

Yep, John Reed with Killerhurtz -see the movie Antazz posted.
There a turbine and extremely fast running motor created suction between bottom plate and floor.

In Beta he used a gazillion magnets.


But anti-flip. Worst case scenario robot and piece of floor get airtime. The flippers atm are "powerfull".