BuildingLEGORobots

For
FIRSTLEGOLeague
Version:1.0
Sept.23,2002

By
DeanHystad

www.hightechkids.org

AbouttheAuthorandThisDocument
DeanHystadisafirstclassLEGOfanatic.DeanisanengineerforMTSSystemslocated
inEdenPrairie,Minnesota.MTSSystemsCorporationisoneoftheworldsleading
suppliersofmechanicaltestingandsimulationequipment,makingeverythingfrom
earthquakesimulatorstoamusementparkrides.AtMTS,Deanwritescontrolsoftware
forarangeoflargeroboticsystems.Asyoucanseeinthisbook,Deanbringsthat
expertisetohispassionforLEGO.DeanhasjudgedatFLLeventsforseveralyearsand
iscurrentlyworkingasacontributingauthoronasoon-to-bepublishedbookonLEGO
Mindstorms.Deancanbereachedatdean.hystad@mts.com.
Thisbookisasignificantpieceofwork,andfranklyisaweinspiringtome.Itisan
excellentmixoftheoryandpractice.Someofthetextmaybebeyondmiddleschool
youth,buttheaccompanyinglabsandpresentationmaterialshouldhelpcoaches
understandtheconceptsandpresentkeyideastotheirteams.Thebookcanalsoprovidea
usefultextforthoseofyouwantingtoincorporateFLLintohighschoolclasses.Ihope
youfindituseful.
ThisbookfitswellwithINSciTE'smissiontoadvanceinnovativeprogramsthatprovide
anenvironmentwherekids,educators,andthetechnicalcommunitycometogetherto
cultivatelifelonglearninginscience,mathandtechnology.
FredRose
Fredrose@hightechkids.org
INSciTEPresident
September20,2002

CopyrightandTrademarkNotice
2002INSciTEinagreementwith,andpermissionfromFIRSTandtheLEGOGroup.Thisdocumentis
developedbyINSciTEandisnotanofficialFLLdocumentfromFIRSTandtheLEGOGroup.This
documentmaybefreelycopiedanddistributed,electronicallyorotherwise,initsentiretyonly,andonlyif
usedinconjunctionwithFIRSTLEGOLeague.Anyuse,reproduction,orduplicationofthismanual
forpurposesotherthandirectlyrelatedto
FIRSTLEGOLeagueisstrictlyprohibitedwithoutspecificwrittenpermissionfromINSciTE.
LEGO,ROBOLAB,andMINDSTORMSaretrademarksoftheLEGOGroupusedherewith
specialpermission.FIRSTLEGOLeagueisatrademarkownedbyFIRST(For
InspirationandRecognitionofScienceandTechnology)andtheLEGOGroup
usedherewithspecialpermission.INSciTEisatrademarkofInnovationsinScienceandTechnology
Education.
INSciTE
POBox41221
Plymouth,MN55441
www.hightechkids.org

TableofContents
1

Structures ................................................................................................................1-1
1.1
Bricks,Plates,andBeams ...............................................................................1-1
1.1.1
Bricks ......................................................................................................1-1
1.1.2
Plates.......................................................................................................1-2
1.1.3
Beams .....................................................................................................1-3
1.1.4
AxlesandPins.........................................................................................1-3
1.1.5
LEGOVocabulary ..................................................................................1-4
1.2
BuildingaFrame ............................................................................................1-5
1.2.1
LEGOGeometry.....................................................................................1-7
1.3
SNOT..............................................................................................................1-9
2
Gears.....................................................................................................................2-12
2.1
SpurGears ....................................................................................................2-12
2.1.1
GearSpacing.........................................................................................2-12
2.1.2
GearRatio .............................................................................................2-16
2.1.3
Torque...................................................................................................2-18
2.1.4
Speed.....................................................................................................2-20
2.1.5
GearTrains............................................................................................2-21
2.1.6
ClutchGear ...........................................................................................2-23
2.2
CrownGear...................................................................................................2-24
2.3
BevelGear ....................................................................................................2-24
2.4
WormGear ...................................................................................................2-25
2.4.1
DirectionalTransmission ......................................................................2-27
2.5
Differential....................................................................................................2-27
2.5.1
RatchetSplitter......................................................................................2-29
2.6
GearRack .....................................................................................................2-30
2.7
Pulleys...........................................................................................................2-31
2.7.1
Torque...................................................................................................2-32
2.8
Reinforcinggeartrains..................................................................................2-33
2.9
Backlash........................................................................................................2-34
3
Wheels ..................................................................................................................3-37
3.1
Sizes..............................................................................................................3-37
3.1.1
Speed.....................................................................................................3-37
3.1.2
Force .....................................................................................................3-39
3.2
Treads ...........................................................................................................3-41
3.3
Balance .........................................................................................................3-42
3.3.1
FindingtheCenterOfGravity...............................................................3-42
3.3.2
Inertia ....................................................................................................3-43
3.4
WheelLoadingandFriction..........................................................................3-46
4
LegoElectronics ...................................................................................................4-48
4.1
RCXBrick ....................................................................................................4-48
4.1.1
Firmware...............................................................................................4-48
4.1.2
Programming ........................................................................................4-49
4.2
Motors...........................................................................................................4-51

4.2.1
Modes....................................................................................................4-52
4.2.2
Attaching...............................................................................................4-53
4.3
TouchSensor ................................................................................................4-54
4.3.1
Bumpers................................................................................................4-55
4.3.2
LimitandPositionSwitches..................................................................4-57
4.3.3
Rotationsensor......................................................................................4-57
4.4
LightSensor..................................................................................................4-58
4.4.1
Experiment#1,Color ............................................................................4-59
4.4.2
Experiment#2,AmbientLight..............................................................4-64
4.5
RotationSensor.............................................................................................4-66
4.5.1
Resolution .............................................................................................4-66
4.5.2
Internals ................................................................................................4-67
4.5.3
CountingErrors.....................................................................................4-68
4.6
SensorStacking.............................................................................................4-69
5
RobotDrives .........................................................................................................5-70
5.1
DifferentialDrive..........................................................................................5-70
5.1.1
Casters...................................................................................................5-71
5.1.2
WheelConfiguration.............................................................................5-73
5.1.3
Steering .................................................................................................5-74
5.1.4
SteeringMadeEasier ............................................................................5-76
5.1.5
StraightLineTravel ..............................................................................5-76
5.1.6
DifferentialSkid....................................................................................5-78
5.2
Steeringdrive................................................................................................5-79
5.2.1
Turning..................................................................................................5-80
5.2.2
TricycleDrive .......................................................................................5-82

Figures
Figure1-1.BasicLEGOBrick ......................................................................................1-1
Figure1-2.BrickDimensions........................................................................................1-1
Figure1-3.ThreePlates=OneBrickhigh ....................................................................1-2
Figure1-4.SimpleGearboxUsingTechnicPlates ........................................................1-2
Figure1-5.TechnicBeams ............................................................................................1-3
Figure1-6.PinsandAxles.............................................................................................1-3
Figure1-7.StudsontheSideofaBeam? ......................................................................1-4
Figure1-8.ATypicalDrivenWheelAssembly.............................................................1-4
Figure1-9.A16LTechnicPin ......................................................................................1-4
Figure1-10.CommonTechnicPieces ...........................................................................1-5
Figure1-11.SimpleFrame ............................................................................................1-5
Figure1-12.ImprovedFrame ........................................................................................1-6
Figure1-13.CrossBracedFrame ..................................................................................1-6
Figure1-14.SnapOnConnectionsareWeakinTension ..............................................1-7
Figure1-15.CrossBracing ............................................................................................1-7
Figure1-16.TwoCrossBracingChoices ......................................................................1-8
Figure1-17.ATallFrame .............................................................................................1-8
Figure1-18.DiagonalCrossBracing.............................................................................1-9
Figure1-19.OneofJenniferClark'sIncredibleCreations.YesitsLEGO. ...............1-10
Figure1-20.Turning90degrees.StudsOut ...............................................................1-10
Figure1-21.Turning90degrees.StudsIn..................................................................1-11
Figure1-22.UpsideDown...........................................................................................1-11
Figure1-23.ExtendingBeamsUsingPinsandPlates .................................................1-11
Figure2-1LegoSpurGears.........................................................................................2-12
Figure2-2.StudGearSpacing.....................................................................................2-13
Figure2-3.HalfStudSpacingUsing2Holed1x2Beam ..........................................2-14
Figure2-4.VerticalGearSpacing ...............................................................................2-14
Figure2-5.CircumventingVerticalGearSpacingRestrictions...................................2-15
Figure2-6.DiagonalGearSpacing..............................................................................2-15
Figure2-7.CircumventingDiagonalGearSpacingRestrictions ..................................2-16
Figure2-8.3:1GearRatio ...........................................................................................2-17
Figure2-9.Torque=ForcexDistance ........................................................................2-18
Figure2-10.TheRatiooftheTorquesisEqualtotheRatiooftheRadii ....................2-19
Figure2-11.RatioofAngularVelocitiesisEqualtoInverseRatiooftheRadii .........2-20
Figure2-12.Multi-stageGearTrain ............................................................................2-21
Figure2-13.IdlerGear ................................................................................................2-23
Figure2-14.UsingClutchGeartoLimitForces..........................................................2-23
Figure2-15.CrownGear .............................................................................................2-24
Figure2-16.BevelGear...............................................................................................2-24
Figure2-17.ASmallWheelBuiltfromTwo12tBevelGears ....................................2-25
Figure2-18.WormGear..............................................................................................2-25
Figure2-19.UsingtheWormGear'sSelfLockingFeature.........................................2-26
Figure2-20.LEGOLeadScrew ..................................................................................2-26
Figure2-21.DirectionalTransmission.........................................................................2-27
Figure2-22.LEGODifferential...................................................................................2-27

Figure2-23.DuringTurnstheWheelsCoverDifferentDistances ..............................2-28
Figure2-24.UsingDifferentialtoCalculateAverageRotation...................................2-29
Figure2-25.UsingaDifferentialtoCalculateDifferenceinRotation ........................2-29
Figure2-26.RatchetSplitter.........................................................................................2-30
Figure2-27.LEGOGearRackandPinion ..................................................................2-30
Figure2-28.PulleysandBelts .....................................................................................2-31
Figure2-29.LegoPulleys............................................................................................2-31
Figure2-30.TwowaystoIncreaseTorqueCapacity...................................................2-32
Figure2-31.UsingPulleystoLimitTorque ................................................................2-33
Figure2-32.Forcesongears........................................................................................2-33
Figure2-33.GearboxesDontHavetobeBigtobeStrong ........................................2-34
Figure2-34.Backlashiscausedbypoorgearmeshing ...............................................2-34
Figure2-35.Preloadingageartrainwitharubberband..............................................2-35
Figure2-36.SplitgearmadefromLEGO....................................................................2-36
Figure3-1.LegoWheelsandTires..............................................................................3-37
Figure3-2.AVeryFastTractor...................................................................................3-39
Figure3-3.Force=Torque/Radius............................................................................3-40
Figure3-4.TrackedRobot...........................................................................................3-41
Figure3-5.MarioFerrari'sJohnny5............................................................................3-41
Figure3-6.Wheelbase .................................................................................................3-42
Figure3-7.FindingCGUsingBalanceMethod ..........................................................3-43
Figure3-8.ModifiedBalanceMethod.........................................................................3-43
Figure3-9.AnInclineMovestheEffectiveCG ..........................................................3-44
Figure3-10.TurningGeneratesForcesandMoments.................................................3-45
Figure3-11.FIRSTTeam254'sRobot"CheesyPoofs"DoesaVictoryWheelie .......3-45
Figure3-12.CantileveredandFullySupportedWheels ..............................................3-46
Figure3-13.WheelLoading ........................................................................................3-46
Figure4-1.TheRCXProgrammableBrick .................................................................4-48
Figure4-2.RCXCodeScreenshot...............................................................................4-50
Figure4-3.ROBOLABScreenshot ..............................................................................4-50
Figure4-4.9VoltGearedMotor .................................................................................4-51
Figure4-5.PWMDutyCycles ....................................................................................4-52
Figure4-6.UsingaPulleytoIncreaseDrag ................................................................4-53
Figure4-7.UsingColorCodingtoDocumentProperConnectorOrientation .............4-53
Figure4-8.StrengtheningMotorMountswithCrossBracing .....................................4-53
Figure4-9.MotorMountUsingRails..........................................................................4-54
Figure4-10.WiringtheTouchSensor.........................................................................4-55
Figure4-11.ASimpleBumper....................................................................................4-55
Figure4-12.ABumperthatUsestheRotationSensor ................................................4-55
Figure4-13.ANormallyClosedBumperDesign........................................................4-56
Figure4-14.ImprovedNormallyOpenBumper..........................................................4-56
Figure4-15.PositionandLimitSwitches ....................................................................4-57
Figure4-16.ATouchRotationSensor ........................................................................4-58
Figure4-17.TheLightSensor .....................................................................................4-58
Figure4-18.LightSensorColorExperiment...............................................................4-60
Figure4-19.VisibleLightSpectrum ...........................................................................4-61

Figure4-20.TheLightSensorSeesDifferentlythanOurEyes....................................4-61
Figure4-21.LightColors ............................................................................................4-62
Figure4-22.ColorExperimentSensorReadings.........................................................4-63
Figure4-23.AmbientLightExperiment......................................................................4-64
Figure4-24.LightSensorReadingsforGrayLEGOBrick.........................................4-65
Figure4-25.RotationSensor .......................................................................................4-66
Figure4-26.UsingGearReductiontoIncreaseResolution.........................................4-67
Figure4-27.RotationSensorInternals.DON'TDOTHIS!!! .....................................4-67
Figure4-28.HomemadeRotationSensorMadeFromLEGOParts .............................4-68
Figure4-29.AHomingSwitchtoResettheRotationSensor......................................4-68
Figure5-1.ADifferentialDriveRobot........................................................................5-71
Figure5-2.SwivelCasters ...........................................................................................5-71
Figure5-3.SwivelCastersareSelfAligning...............................................................5-72
Figure5-4.CastersGenerateSteeringForcesWhileAligning ....................................5-72
Figure5-5.DiamondShapedWheelLayout................................................................5-73
Figure5-6.TriangleShapedWheelLayout .................................................................5-74
Figure5-7.TurningRadiusisDeterminedWheelbaseandRelativeSpeed.................5-74
Figure5-8.PivotingAboutaWheel ............................................................................5-76
Figure5-9.SimpleLEGOSlipLimiter........................................................................5-77
Figure5-10.ALockingDifferential ............................................................................5-78
Figure5-11.APairofDifferentialSkidRobots ..........................................................5-79
Figure5-12.Twosteeredwheelrobots........................................................................5-80
Figure5-13.PathPlanningisHarderforNon-HolonomicRobots ..............................5-80
Figure5-14.AckermanSteeringMinimizesGeometryInducedWheelSkid ..............5-81
Figure5-15.TurningRadiusisDeterminedbyWheelBaseandSteeringAngle ........5-81
Figure5-16.TricycleDrive(Left)andSteeringDrive(Right)RobotsLookSimilar ..5-82
Figure5-17.AnySteerAngleisPossiblewithaTricycleDrive .................................5-83

Tables
Table1-1.CalculatingDiagonalLengths ......................................................................1-9
Table2-1.SpurGearSizes ..........................................................................................2-13
Table2-2.DiagonalGearSpacing ...............................................................................2-16
Table2-3.GearRatiosforLEGOSpurGears .............................................................2-18
Table2-4.Measuredpulleydiameters .........................................................................2-31
Table2-5.PulleyRatios................................................................................................2-32
Table4-1.LightSensorReadingsforPeanutM&Ms ..................................................4-59
Table4-2.LightSensorReadingsforColorExperiment.............................................4-60
Table4-3.SensorReadingsforAmbientLightExperiment ........................................4-65
Table4-4.SensorReadingsforTwoStackedSensors.................................................4-69

1 Structures
1.1 Bricks,Plates,andBeams
Bricks,plates,andbeamsarenotasglamorousastheRCXbrick,motors,andsensors.
Buttheyarethefundamentalcomponentsthatareusedtobuildtheframethatsupports
theRCX,counteractsthemotorsforces,andholdsthesensorspreciselyinplace.Master
someLEGObuildingfundamentalsfirst,andyourteamwillhavesuccess.Ignorethem,
andyoullspendmoretimerepairingyourrobotthanyoudidbuildingit.

1.1.1 Bricks
ThisisaLEGObuildingbrick.Littlehaschangedsinceitsintroductionin1949.
AccordingtoLEGO,theyhaveproduced320billionbricks1sincethattime.Thats
approximately52bricksperpersonlivingtoday.

Figure1-1.BasicLEGOBrick

LEGObricksaremadeoutofABSplastic.Theyareinjectionmoldedtoveryexacting
tolerances(0.002mm)2.Thetopofthebrickiscoveredwithcylindricalplasticbumps
calledstuds.Thebottomofthebrickhascylindricalholesortubes.Whenyousnaptwo
brickstogether,thetubesdeformslightlyaroundthestuds,lockingthetwofirmly
together.

1.1.1.1Dimensions
Thecommonpracticeistorefertobricksusingtheirdimensions:width,length,and
height(thoughheightisoftenleftoffwhenreferringtostandardsizedbricks).When
doingthis,thewidthandlengthdimensionsaregiveninstuds.Thepiecebelowisa2x4
brick.
1

4
Figure1-2.BrickDimensions

LEGObricksarebasedonthemetricsystem.The2x4brickaboveis16mmwide,32
mmlong,and9.6mmhigh(ignoringthestudsontop).Thatworksoutto1stud=8mm.

Fromwww.lego.com/eng/info/history
From JinSatosLegoMindstormsTheMastersTechnique

1-1

Italsomeansthatbricksare1.2studshigh.Thisasymmetrycanleadtodesignand
buildingdifficultiesaswillbediscussedlater.

Question: What is the smallest sized cube that can be made out of
LEGO bricks?

1.1.2 Plates
Platesareessentiallyshortbricks.Theyare1/3theheightofstandardbricks--3.2mmor
0.4studs.Platesusethesamenamingconventionasbricks.

Figure1-3.ThreePlates=OneBrickhigh

Someplateshavethroughholesalignedwiththebacksidetubes.Theyarereferredtoas
Technicplates,orlessobscurely,plateswithholes.Theholesacceptaxlesandconnector
pinsandmaketheTechnicplatesmuchmoreuseful.

Figure1-4.SimpleGearboxUsingTechnicPlates

Construction Note: Use normal plates when you dont need the through
holes. Save the Technic plates for where they are needed.

Question: What is the smallest sized cube that can be made out of
bricks and plates?

1-2

1.1.3 Beams
In1977,LEGOintroducedTechnic3,aseriesofcomplexmodelsforolderchildrento
build.CentraltoTechnicarethenewbeamswhichare1xbrickswithholesintheir
sides.Theholesarespacedatone-studintervalsandcenteredbetweenthestudsonthe
topofthebeam.Thebeamscanbestackedontopofeachotherjustlikebricks.In
addition,connectorpinscanbeplacedinthesideholesallowingthebeamstobe
assembledsidebyside.Thenumberofassemblytechniquesavailableusingthenew
partsisstaggering.

Figure1-5.TechnicBeams

1.1.4 AxlesandPins
TheRISkitcomessuppliedwithawidevarietyofpinsandaxlesforconnectingTechnic
beamstogether.ThemostcommonlyusedoftheseistheblackTechnicpinwithfriction,
orfrictionpin.Thefrictionpinhassmall,raisedridgesthatmakeitlocktightlyinthe
holesofaTechnicbeamprovidingaverystrongconnection.Alongversionofthe
frictionpincanbeusedtopinthreebeamstogether.Thedoublepinworkswellwiththe
goofytransparentblueconnectorblockthatcomesinthenewerRISsetsandhasanaxle
holethatcansometimesbeuseful.
A

C
A.
B.
C.
D.
E.
F.

PinwithFriction
3LDoublePin
LongPinwithFriction
TechnicPin
HalfPin
Pin

L
G.
H.
I.
J.
K.
L.

AxlePin
6LAxle
3LPinwithStud
FullBushing
HalfBushing
LongPinwithStopBushing

Figure1-6.PinsandAxles

SlightlylesscommonisthegrayTechnicpin.Similarinappearancetothefrictionpin,it
lackstheridgesandhasaslightlyloosefit.TheTechnicpinisagoodchoiceforpivots
orhinges.TheshortpostoftheTechnicpinfitsnicelyinthehalfdeepholesinthe
sideoftheRCX,anditisoftenusedtoattachbeamstothesideoftheprogrammable

Fromwww.lego.com/eng/info/history

1-3

brick.TheshortpostoftheTechnicpinisactuallythesamesizeasaLEGOstudand
canbeusedtomimicstudscomingoutofthesideofabeam.

Figure1-7.StudsontheSideofaBeam?

Axlesarelongrodsthathavea + shapedcrosssection.Theyslideeasilythroughthe
holesinTechnicbeams,buttheyfittightlyinthecross-holesfoundinwheels,gears,
bushings,andotherTechnicelements.Axlesareavailableinevenstudlengthsstartingat
2andgoingupto12.Therearealso3and5studlongaxles.Itiscommontouse
shorthandwhenreferringtoaxles,describingtheaxleusingitslengthfollowedby L .
Thusafourstudlongaxleisa4Laxle.

Figure1-8.ATypicalDrivenWheelAssembly

Thereareafewoddballpartsthatdontreallyfitintheaxleorpincategory.Thefirstis
theaptlynamedaxlepinwhichishalfTechnicpinandhalfaxle.Itismostcommonly
usedtoattachgearstothesidesofbeams.Anotheristhe3Laxlewithstud,whichisa
threestudlongTechnicaxlewithastudononeend.Trystickingthestudintheholeofa
Technicbeam.Theconnectionissurprisinglystrong.ThelongTechnicpinwithstop
bushingismyfavoritepart.IuseitwheneverIneedaremovablepinconnectionbecause
thebushingontheendiseasytograsp.Thecross-holeinthestopbushingacceptsan
axleandcanbeusedtomakesomeinterestingparts.

Figure1-9.A16LTechnicPin

1.1.5 LEGOVocabulary
TheRISkitisfilledwithallkindsofinterestingplasticpartsthatdontlookmuchlike
anythingwithwhichyouareusedtobuilding.Lookhardandyoullnotfindonescrew,

1-4

nut,bolt,ornail.Instead,youhavetheblueholey-thingandthelittlegray
whatchamabobwiththeaxleinit.
Toaidincommunicationandfacilitatetheexchangeofideas,theLEGOcommunityhas
comeupwithnamesforeachthingamajiganddoohickey.Mostofthenameswere
providedbyLEGO--extractedfrommarketingorpackagingliterature.Butmanypart
monikersoriginatedintheusercommunity.Figure1-10liststhenamesofsomeofthe
TechnicpartsincludedintheRISkit.
A

A.
B.
C.
D.
E.

AxleJointerPerpendicular
AngleConnector#1
ConnectorwithAxlehole
PoleReverserHandle
ConnectorBlock3x2x2

F.
G.
H.
I.

Beam1x2withAxlehole
AxleJoiner
Liftarm1x3
Liftarm1x6

Figure1-10.CommonTechnicPieces

Links: Jim Hughes maintains Technica, a beautiful website that has a

complete Technic parts registry with pictures and an interesting history of

LEGO. His URL is w3.one.net/~hughesj/technica/technica.html.

1.2 BuildingaFrame
Arobotneedssomesortofframe.Theframegivestherobotitsshape.Itprovides
mountingpointsforsensorsandreactstheforcesgeneratedbymotorsandgears.Itis
likeourskeleton,whichgivesusourshape,supportsourorgans,andreactstheforces
generatedbyourmuscles.Agoodframeisstrong,lightweight,andholdstogethereven
aftermuchuse.

Figure1-11.SimpleFrame

Figure1-11showsasimpleframemadeoutofbeamsand1x8plates.Itsstrong,
lightweight,andthedimensionsareappropriateforthebaseofarobotplatform.Butitis

1-5

notveryrigid.Agentlepushonopposingcornerscausestheframetotwistoutofshape.
Eventuallythecornerconnectionsworkloose,andtheframefallsapart.
Theproblemisthattheplatesdonotlockthecornersatrightangles.Thereisasmall
amountofclearancebetweentheendsofthe1x6beamsandthesidesofthe1x12
beams.Thisallowsthestudstoactashinges.Replacingoneormoreofthe1x8plates
with2x8platesmakestheframemuchmorerigid.

Figure1-12.ImprovedFrame

Theimprovedframeismuchstiffer.Pushingonthecornerscausesittoflexhardlyatall.
The2x8platefirmlylockstheshortandlongbeamstogetheratrightangles.Thisframe
isadequateformanyapplications,butitcanbemadeevenstronger.

Figure1-13.CrossBracedFrame

TheframeinFigure1-13usescrossbracingtoholdittogether.The1x3liftarms
preventtheframefrombeingpulledapart.Crossbracingisausefultechniquefor
buildingverystrongLEGOstructures.TheconnectionsbetweenLEGObricksarevery
strongincompression(aforcepushingthebrickstogether),andinshear(asideways
forcetryingtoslidethebricksacrosseachother),buttheyarerelativelyweakintension
(aforcepullingthebricksapart).Whencrossbracing,wereinforceaconnectionwhich
isweakintensionbyaddingcomponentsthatwillbeinshear.Inthiscase,the1x3lift
armsandaxlepinsareinshearwhentryingtopullthebeamsapart.

1-6

Compression

Tension

Shear

Figure1-14.SnapOnConnectionsareWeakinTension

1.2.1 LEGOGeometry
A1x6Technicbeamis1studwide,6studslong,and1.2studshigh.Bricksandbeams
notbeinganintegernumberofstudshighcausesproblemswhentryingtodocross
bracing.ThiscanbeseenintheleftassemblyinFigure1-15.Thesecondholeinthe
verticalbeamdoesnotlineupwiththeholeinthehorizontalbeam.

Figure1-15.CrossBracing

Intheassemblyontheright,thethirdholeintheverticalbeamalignsperfectlywiththe
holeinthehorizontalbeam.Thisisbecausethebeamandthetwoplatesaddupto
exactlytwostudstall(1.2+2*0.4=2).Youwillfindthatcrossbracingonlyworksout
whentheverticalholespacingisdivisiblebytwo.

Question: What is the shortest stack of beams (no plates allowed)

that will align with holes in a vertical beam?
Construction Note: The two assemblies below are the same height, but the
one on the right allows for locking the beam at an intermediate point and has
better spacing for vertical meshing of LEGO gears.

1-7

Figure1-16.TwoCrossBracingChoices

Thissametechniquecanbeusedtobuildtallframesthatarelightweightandstrong.
Figure1-17showsatallframethatusesfrictionpinsatthecornerstoattachthevertical
andhorizontalmembers.Noticethatthe1-2-1(1Beam-2Plates-1Beam)techniqueis
usedtogettheproperspacing.

Figure1-17.ATallFrame

1.2.1.1DiagonalBracing
Itsveryeasytogetlockedintothemindsetthathorizontalandverticalaretheonlyways
tobuild.Thegrid-likenatureoftheLEGOpiecesreinforcesthisthinking.Butdiagonal
connectionsarepossibleaswell.
Diagonalbracingistrickiertoimplementthanperpendicularcrossbracing.Cross
bracingcanbeusedonanyassemblywherethedimensionisevenlydivisiblebytwo
studs,butitcantbeusedanywhereelse.Withdiagonalbracingtherearemoresolutions,
buttheirderivationsarenotasobvious.

1-8

4.8

1.5

Figure1-18.DiagonalCrossBracing

Youcanfinddiagonalbracingsolutionsthroughexperimentation.Laythediagonal
braceonthepart,andmoveitaboutuntilyoufindaplacewheretheholeslineup.Itcan
alsobedoneanalyticallyusingthePythagoreanTheoremforrighttriangles. Thesumof
thesquaresofthelegsofarighttriangleequalsthesquareofthehypotenuse. Thisis
oftenwrittenas C = A 2 + B 2 . Thetwolegsarethebase(widthacrossthebottom)
andtheheight.Thehypotenuseisthediagonalbeam.Diagonalbracingispossibleifthe
hypotenuseisclosetoanintegernumber(lessthan0.05studsdifference).
Table1-1.CalculatingDiagonalLengths

Base(A)
4
3
1.5
6

Height(B)
4
4
4.8
8

Hypotenuse
5.65
5
5.03
10

Comments
Doesntfit
Perfectfit
Fits,butalittletight
Perfectfit

1.3 SNOT
SNOTisalltherageintheLEGObuildingcommunitytoday.SNOT,standingforStuds
NotOnTop,isawayofbuildingwithLEGOthatdoesnotalwaysutilizethetraditional
click-fitassemblytechniques.Thiscanbeverytrickyandrequiresgreatimagination,but
theresultingmodelsareverybeautifulandquiterealistic.

1-9

Figure1-19.OneofJenniferClark'sIncredibleCreations.YesitsLEGO.

Luckily,TechnicismoreflexibletobuildwiththanotherLEGO.Butitisstilldifficult
sometimestofigureoutawaytoattachthemotorwhereyouwantitortopositionthe
sensorinjusttherightplace.TryingtodiscovernewwaystoputLEGOtogetherisa
challengingactivitythatcanbealotoffun.Herearesomeideastogetthecreativejuices
flowing.

Figure1-20.Turning90degrees.StudsOut

1-10

Figure1-21.Turning90degrees.StudsIn

Figure1-22.UpsideDown

Figure1-23.ExtendingBeamsUsingPinsandPlates

1-11

2 Gears
Eventuallyyouwillwanttomakeyourrobotmove.Afterall,thisisnottheFLL
SculptureCompetition!The9voltmotorsprovidethemotivepower,buttheymaynot
runattherightspeedorbepowerfulenough.Itmayalsobetoodifficulttopositionthe
motorswheretheycanbedirectlyattachedtothewheels.Alltheseproblemscanbe
solvedusinggears.
Gearsaregenerallyusedforoneofthefollowingreasons:
1. Totransmittorquefromoneaxletoanother
2. Toincreaseordecreasethespeedofrotation
3. Toreversethedirectionofrotation
4. Tomoverotationalmotiontoadifferentaxis
5. Tochangerotarymotiontolinearmotion
6. Tokeeptherotationoftwoaxlessynchronized

2.1 SpurGears
Aspurgearisusedwhenshaftsmustrotateinthesameplane.Inaspurgeartheteethare
straightandparalleltotheshaft.Theyarebyfarthemostcommontypeofgears,and
theyarewhatmostpeoplepicturewhenyoumentiongears.LEGOincludesfour
differentsizedspurgearsintheRoboticsInventionSystem.

16

24

40
Figure2-1LegoSpurGears

Gearsarenormallyreferredtobytheirtypeandthenumberofteeth.Take,forexample,
an8toothspurgear.Sometimesakindofshorthandnotationisusedwhere tooth is
replacedwith t andthetypeisnotspecifiedforspurgears(becausetheyareso
common).Forexample,a40toothspurgearwouldbereferredtoasa40tgear.

2.1.1 GearSpacing
SizesofLEGOspurgearsareshowninTable2-1.Itisinterestingtonotethattheratio
oftheradiiisequaltotheratioofthetoothcount(8/24=0.5/1.5=1/3).Thisisbecause
allthedifferentsizedspurgearshavethesamesizedteeth--eventhelittle8tgearwithits
involuteprofilegearteeth.Havingthesamesizedteethallowsthegearstomesh
properly.

2-12

Table2-1.SpurGearSizes

Teeth
Radius(studs)

8
0.5

16
1

24
1.5

40
2.5

Knowingtheradiusofagearandthenumberofteeth,wecancalculatethesizeofeach
tooth.Thisinformationcanbeusefultoknowwhenusingaspurgearwithagearrack.
Circumference
Circumference
SizexCount
Size
16tooth

=2xPixRadius
=ToothSizexToothCount
=2xPixRadius
=2xPixRadius/Count
=2xPix1/16
=Pi/8studs
=0.392studsor3.14mm

Checkitoutforyourself.Theteethforeachspurgearreallydoevaluatetothesame
size!

2.1.1.1HorizontalGearSpacing
UsingtheinformationfromFigure2-2,wecancalculatethegearspacingrequiredfor
propermeshing.Thedistancebetweenthetwoaxlesisequaltothesumofthetworadii.

8t
16t
24t
40t

8t
1.0studs
1.5studs
2.0studs
3.0studs

16t
1.5studs
2.0studs
2.5studs
3.5studs

24t
2.0studs
2.5studs
3.0studs
4.0studs

40t
3.0studs
3.5studs
4.0studs
5.0studs

Figure2-2.StudGearSpacing

Combinationsusingeight,twenty-four,andfortytoothgearsarestraightforwardtoset
up.Sixteentoothgearsareeasytousewithothersixteentoothgears,butrequirehalf
studspacingtomeshwith8t,24t,or40tgears.Atwoholed1x2Technicbrickcanbe
usedtogethalfstudspacing.

2-13

Figure2-3.HalfStudSpacingUsing2Holed1x2Beam

Construction Notes: Gear spacing of two or three studs provides the

maximum number of gear combinations. Two stud spacing also works well in
vertical layouts.

2.1.1.2VerticalSpacing
Itisdifficulttomeshgearslaidoutonaverticalaxis.Thegearspacingtableshowsthat
propergearmeshingisachievedathalfstudintervalsstartingat1studandgoingupto5
studs.Forgoodverticalgearmeshing,weneedtobuildastructureusing1.2studhigh
beamsand0.4studhighplatesthatprovidesthecorrectspacing.Itworksoutthat2and
4studsspacingaretheonlysolutions.

8t
8t
16t
24t
40t

16t

24t
2.0studs

40t

2.0studs
2.0studs

4.0studs
4.0studs

Figure2-4.VerticalGearSpacing

Thespacingdoesnthavetobeperfectforthegearstomesh.Anythingwithin0.08studs
worksfairlywell.The8toothand16toothgearsalmostfitat1.6studspacing(idealis
1.5studs),buttheydontmeshsecurely,anditispossibleforthegearstoslip.

2-14

Figure2-5.CircumventingVerticalGearSpacingRestrictions

Figure2-5showsonewaytogetaroundverticalgearspacingrestrictions.Themiddle
gearisheldinplacebyanaxlepinintheverticalbeam.Thetopandbottomgearsare
spacedsixstudsapartallowingthemtofitnicelyonaxlespassingthroughthehorizontal
beams.

2.1.1.3Diagonalgearspacing
Diagonalgearspacingistrickiertocalculatethanperpendicularorverticalgearspacing.
Aswasdonetocalculatediagonalcrossbracingsolutions,Pythagorasstheoremforright
trianglesisusedtocomputethediagonal(hypotenuse).Thisvalueisthencomparedto
theidealgearspacinginformationfromthetableinFigure2-2.

3.44

2.8
2

Figure2-6.DiagonalGearSpacing

Table2-2showsthepossiblelayoutsfor8,16,24,and40toothspurgears.Vertical
dimensionsaredisplayedinthelefthandcolumn,horizontaldimensionsinthetoprow.
Attheintersectionofeachrowandcolumnisthecalculateddiagonalgearspacing.The
entryisleftblankifthisdistancedoesnotmatchthespacingofanyoftheavailablegear
combinations.Acceptablegearmeshesmustbewithin0.08studsoftheidealvalue.
Excessivebindingofthegearsoccursifthespacingistoosmall.Ifthespacingistoo
great,thegeartrainwillhavelargeamountsofbacklash,andslippagemayoccur.

2-15

Table2-2.DiagonalGearSpacing

VerticalSpacing

HorizontalSpacing
0
1.2
1.6
2
2.4
2.8
3.2
3.6
4
4.4
4.8

0.5

2.06
2.45

1
1
1.56

1.5
1.5
1.92

2
2

2.5
2.5

2.56

2.97

3
3

2.5

3.5
3.5

4
4

4.03

4.5

5
5

4.92

3.47
2.97

3.44
3.53

4.06
5.02

4.03

5.00
5.06
5.03

Figure2-7.CircumventingDiagonalGearSpacingRestrictions

Figure2-7showsonewaytogetarounddiagonalgearspacingrestrictions.Three
perpendicularaxlejoinersareusedtoholdthegearsinplace.Themiddle24toothgearis
attachedusinganaxlepin.Thetwo8toothgearsarespaced4.1studsaparttofiton
axlespassingthroughthehorizontalbeams.Theextra0.1studsspaceisdividedevenly
betweenthetwogearmeshes.

2.1.2 GearRatio
Gearratioishowmuchtheoutputshaftofagearboxturnsforagivenrotationofthe
inputshaft.InFigure2-8,wehaveagearboxconsistingoftwogears:an8tgearonthe
inputshaftanda24tgearontheoutputshaft.Ifthe8tgearrotatesonefullrevolution
theneightofitsteethwouldpassthroughthestartingline.Becausethetwogearsare
meshed,eightofthe24tgearsteethwouldalsopassthestartingline.Sincetheteethare
evenlydistributedaroundthecircumferenceofthegear,the24tgearturns8/24thsor1/3
ofarevolution.

2-16

1rev
8teeth
1/3rev
8teeth
Figure2-8.3:1GearRatio

Usingtherotationinformationwecancalculatethegearratio.Followingpopular
convention,itisexpressedasaratioofwholenumbers.
GearRatio =1:1/3
=3:1
The3:1gearratiotellsusthattheinputshaft(attachedtothe8tgear)hastocomplete
threefullrevolutionsfortheoutputshaft(attachedtothe24tgear)torotatealltheway
aroundjustonce.Usinggearstoslowdownrateofrotationordecreasetheamountof
rotationiscalledgearingdown.Ifweweretoswitchthe8tand24tgearsaround,the
outputshaftwouldspinthreerevolutionsforeachrevolutionoftheinputshaft.Thisis
gearingup,andthegearratiowouldbe1:3.
Youmayhavenoticedthatthegearratioistheinverseoftheratioofthenumberofgear
teeth.Thereasonforthisiseasiertoseeifwerecalculatethegearratiousinganinput
shaftrotationofonly1tooth.Inthecaseofthe8tgeardrivingthe24tgear,theinput
shaftwouldturn1/8ofarevolutionandtheoutputshaft1/24ofarevolution.
GearRatio =1/8:1/24
=24:8
=3:1
Usinggeartoothcountstodirectlycalculategearratiosiseasierandfasterthan
calculatingtherotationsfirstandthenusingthesevaluestoderivethegearratio.

2-17

16:8
or
2:1

40:8
or
5:1

24:8
or
3:1

Table2-3.GearRatiosforLEGOSpurGears

InputShaftor
DrivingGear

OutputShaftorDrivenGear
8t
16t
24t
40t

8t
1:1
1:2
1:3
1:5

16t
2:1
1:1
2:3
2:5

24t
3:1
3:2
1:1
3:5

40t
5:1
5:2
5:3
1:1

Links: Ted Cochran has a nice treatment of gear ratios with Minnesota FLL
examples at www.hightechkids.org/fll/coaching/Gears/gears.htm.

2.1.3 Torque
Torqueisaforcethattendstorotateorturnthings.Yougenerateatorqueanytimeyou
applyaforcetothehandleofawrench.Thisforcecreatesatorqueonthenut,which
tendstoturnthenut.Ifthenutistootight,youeitherpullharder(moreforce),orgeta
longerhandledwrench(moredistance).

Force

Torque
Distance

Figure2-9.Torque=ForcexDistance

Fromthewrenchexample,weseethattorqueisaproductofforceanddistance.The
unitsusedwhenmeasuringtorquereflectthis.IntheU.S.wemeasuretorqueinfootpounds(ft-lbs).Newton-meters(Nm)istheunitoftorqueinthemetricsystem.

2-18

Gearsoperatebytransmittingforcesattheteethofthegear.InFigure2-10,the24tgear
isgeneratingaforceagainsttheteethofthe40tgear.Theforce(f)isequaltothetorque
(t1)appliedtothe24tgeardividedbytheradius(r1).Theforcetransmittedbyagearis
inverselyproportionaltothegearsradius.Thelargertheradiusofthegear,thelessforce
itwillgenerateforagiventorque.
Theforceagainsttheteethofthe40tgearcreatesatorque(t2)equaltotheforce(f)times
theradius(r2).Thetorquecreatedbyapplyingaforcetoagearisproportionaltothe
gearsradius.Applyingaforcetoalargegearwillcreatemoretorquethanapplyingthe
sameforcetoasmallgear.
r1 f =t1/r1
t1
f

t2 =fxr2
t2 =(t1/r1)xr2
t2/t1=r2/r1

t2
r2
Figure2-10.TheRatiooftheTorquesisEqualtotheRatiooftheRadii

Thetorqueavailableattheaxleofdrivengear(40t)canbeexpressedasafunctionofthe
torqueturningthedrivinggear(24t)andthetworadii;t2=t1xr2/r1.Asmallgear
drivingalargergearwillamplifytorque.Therewillbemoretorqueavailableattheshaft
ofthelargergearthanissuppliedtotheshaftofthesmallergear.
Fromthediscussionearlier,weknowthatthegearratioistheinverseoftheratioofthe
gearsradii.Thisallowsustousethegearratiotocalculatethetorqueamplificationofa
gearsystem.Usingthegearratiofortheexampleabove:
GearRatio =r2:r1
=r2/r1
=5/3
t2
=t1xr2/r1
=t1xGearRatio
=t1x5/3
TheTechnicgearmotorsuppliedwiththeRISkitcangenerateatorqueofabout9Ncm
withfreshbatteries.Intheexampleabove,howmuchtorquewouldbeavailableatthe
shaftofthe40tgearifweattachedthemotordirectlytotheshaftofthe24tgear?
t2 =t1x5/3
=9Ncmx5/3
=15Ncm

2-19

2.1.4 Speed
Whenusingsimplemachineslikegears(oranykindofmachineforthatmatter)you
nevergetsomethingfornothing.Inourpriorexample,weusedgearstoincreasetorque.
Whatwetradedtogetthetorqueincreasewasspeed.Theoutputshaftmayturnstronger,
butitalsoturnsslower.
Ifwemeasuretheanglesinradians(1radian=180degrees/Pi=1revolution/(2xPi)),
thetoothvelocityofagear(v)isequaltotheangularvelocity()timestheradius(r).
Thereisaproportionalrelationshipbetweentheradiusandthetoothvelocity.Atagiven
angularvelocity,theteethofalargergearwilltravelfasterthantheteethofasmaller
gear.

1
2

r1 v =1xr1
2 =v/r2
2 =(1xr1)/r2
=1xr1/r2
2/1=r1/r2

r2
Figure2-11.RatioofAngularVelocitiesisEqualtoInverseRatiooftheRadii

Whentwogearsaremeshed,thetoothvelocityforeachgearisthesame.Intheexample
above,whatistheangularvelocityofthe40tgearifthe24tgearisspinningat180rpm?
r1 =1.5studs=12mm
r2 =2.5studs=20mm
1 =180rpm
=180revolutions/minutex1minute/60seconds
=3revolutions/second
=3revolutions/secondx2Piradians/revolution
=6Piradians/second
=18.85radians/second
v =1xr1
=18.85radians/secondx12mm/radian
=226.19mm/second
2 =v/r2
=(226.19mm/second)/(20mm/radian)
=11.31radians/second
=1.8revolutions/second
=108rpm
Thelargergearspinsmoreslowlythanthesmallergear.Theratiooftheangular
velocitiesisequaltotheinverseoftheratiooftheradii.Knowingthiswecancalculate
theangularvelocityusingtheradiusratiodirectly.

2-20

2 =1xr1/r2
=180rpmx1.5studs/2.5studs
=108rpm
Justaswithtorque,thegearratiocanbeusedinplaceoftheratiooftheradii.
GearRatio=r2:r1
=r2/r1
=5/3
2
=1xr1/r2
=1x(1/GearRatio)
=1/GearRatio
=180rpm/(5/3)
=180rpmx3/5
=108rpm

Links: How Stuff Works, one of the best sites on the web, has a wonderful
article about gears, gear ratios, torque, and speed. Check it out at
www.howstuffworks.lycozone.com.

2.1.5 GearTrains
Ifanumberofgearsarecascadedsothatseveralmeshesrelateaninputtoanoutput,a
geartrainisformed.Usingfour40tandfour8tgears,itispossibletocreateagearratio
of625:1.

E D

CB

Figure2-12.Multi-stageGearTrain

Thegeartrainaboveconsistsoffourstages,eachhavinga5:1gearratio.Tocalculatethe
overallgearreduction,westartwiththegearratiobetweenAandB,multiplythattimes
theratiobetweenBandC,andsoonuntilwegettoE.

2-21

AB
BC
CD
DE
AE

=5:1
=5:1
=5:1
=5:1
=ABxBCxCDxDE
=5:1x5:1x5:1x5:1
=5x5x5x5:1x1x1x1
=625:1

The9vgearedmotorcangenerateabout0.06ft-lbsoftorquewithfreshbatteries.Ifwe
hookedoneuptoshaftAandturnediton,thetorqueamplificationsshouldproduce37.5
ft-lbsoftorqueatshaftE.Thatsenoughtorquetotightenthelugnutsonmycars
wheels.Duetofrictioninthegeartrain,theactualavailabletorquewillbemuchlessthan
37.5ft-lbs,butitwillbestrongenoughtosnapaxlesandbreakgearteeth.Becareful
whenusinglotsofgearreduction.
Asmentionedbefore,anyincreaseintorqueisaccompaniedbyacorrespondingdecrease
inrotationspeed.Ifwetookourmotor,hookedituptoshaftAandgotitspinningat200
revolutionsperminute(rpm),shaftEwouldspinat0.32rpmorabout1revolutionevery
3minutes.Ifinstead,weattachedthemotortoshaftE,thenshaftAshouldspinat
125,000rpm.Thatwouldhavetheteethofthelast40tgeartravelingat585mph!
Fortunately,thelargeamountoffrictioninthegeartrainpreventstheweak9vmotor
fromgeneratingsuchdangerousspeeds.Whengearinguptoincreasespeed,torque
amplificationmagnifiesthefrictionforcesofthelaterstages.Withagearratioof1:625,
itisunlikelythatthemotorispowerfulenoughtospinthegearsatall.

Question: For the example above, what would the gear ratio be if the
8 tooth gears were replaced with 24 tooth gears?

2.1.5.1IdlerGear
The24toothgearinFigure2-13isanidlergear.Anidlergeardoesnotaffectthegear
ratioofageartrain.ThegearratioforACisthesameasitwouldbeifthe24tooth
gearwereleftout.Idlergearsarequitecommoninmachineswheretheyareusedto
connectdistantaxles.Theyarealsousedtochangethedirectionofrotationoftheoutput
shaft.
AB =3:1
BC =1:3
AC =ABxBC
=3:1x1:3
=3x1:1x3
=1:1

2-22

C
Figure2-13.IdlerGear

2.1.6 ClutchGear
Thefunnylookingwhite24toothspurgearwiththewritingonitsfaceistheclutchgear.
Theclutchgearisspecialinthatthegearteethareabletorotateabouttheshaft.Ithasan
internalclutchmechanismthatstartstoslipwhenitsmaximumratedtorqueisexceeded.
Theclutchgearisusedtolimitthetorqueofagearedsystem,savingmotorsand
preventingyourrobotfromtearingitselfapart.
Theclutchgearhas 2.5.5Ncm stampedonitsface.Thisisthetorqueratingofthe
clutch.NcmstandsforNewtonCentimeter,aunitoftorque(torqueisaproductofforce
anddistance,centimeterisaunitofdistance,andNewtonisaunitofforce).Theclutch
gearcantransmitamaximumtorqueoffrom2.5to5Ncm(0.018to0.037ftlbsor0.22
to0.44inlbs).

24mm

B
Figure2-14.UsingClutchGeartoLimitForces

InFigure2-14,theclutchgearisusedtolimittheforceoftheliftarmpressingagainst
theconnectorpegstops.Withouttheclutchgear,wewouldruntheriskofstallinga
motorordamagingtheassembly.Usingtheinformationwehaveabouttheclutchgear,
gearratios,anddistance,itspossibletocalculatethemaximumforcetheliftarmcan
generatetopushagainsttheconnectorpeg.
Amaxtorque
GearratioA:B
Bmaxtorque

=5Ncm
=5:3
=AtorquexGearRatio
=5Ncmx5/3
=8.33Ncm

2-23

DistanceBtoPin =3studs
=24mmor2.4cm
MaxforceatPin =Btorque/Distance
=8.33Ncm/2.4cm
=3.47Nor0.78lbs

2.2 CrownGear
Thecrowngearhasteeththatareraisedononesideandroundedoffontheother.This
givesitacrown-likeappearance.Thecrowngearisusedwhentheshaftstobeturned
meetatanangle--usuallyarightangle.Thecrowngearcanbemeshedtospurgearsand
wormgears,butitdoesntmeshwellwithothercrowngears.Thecrowngearcanalsobe
usedinplaceofa24toothspurgear.

Figure2-15.CrownGear

Treatthecrowngearjustlikethe24tspurgearwhencomputinggearreduction.Forthe
gearboxabove,ifthe8tgearisattachedtotheinputshaft,andthe24tspurgeartothe
outputshaft,thegearratiois:
GearRatio =24:8x24:24
=3:1x1:1
=3:1

2.3 BevelGear
Thebevelgearhasteeththatslopealongonesurfaceofthedisc.Itisusedwhenthe
shaftstobeturnedmeetatanangle--usuallyarightangle.Ithaslessfrictionthanthe
crowngear,butitcanonlymeshwithanotherbevelgear.LEGOproduces12tooth,14
tooth,and20toothbevelgears.Unfortunately,onlythe12toothbevelgearisincluded
intheRISkit.

Figure2-16.BevelGear

2-24

Theold14toothbevelgearshaveaproblemwiththeirthinfacetedteethbreaking.The
12toothbevelgearhasacircularbackingplatethatstrengthensthegearteethtoprevent
thisfromhappening.Thebackingplategivesthegearasmoothcircularoutlineand
allowsittobeusedasaverysmallwheel.

Figure2-17.ASmallWheelBuiltfromTwo12tBevelGears

Question: A wheel made out of bevel gears would not have much
traction. For what applications could this be a benefit?

2.4 WormGear
Awormgearisascrewthatusuallyturnsalongaspurgear.Motionistransmitted
betweenshaftsthatareatrightangles.Ifyouwanttocreateahighgearratio,nothing
beatsawormgear.Eachtimetheshaftspinsonerevolution,thespurgearmovesone
toothforward.Ifthespurgearhas24teeth,youhavea24:1gearratioinaverysmall
package.

Figure2-18.WormGear

Theefficiencyofawormgearsystemismuchlowerthanthatofnormalmeshesbecause
thewormworksprimarilybysliding,thusincreasingfrictionallosses.Thishasan
unusualsideeffectinthatthewormgearisasymmetricandself-locking.Youcanturn
theinputshafttodrivetheoutputshaft,butyoucannotturntheoutputshafttodrivethe
inputshaft.

2-25

Figure2-19.UsingtheWormGear'sSelfLockingFeature

ThemechanisminFigure2-19makesuseofthewormgearsself-lockingfeaturetohold
thebucketinplace.Theaxlethroughthewormgearcanbeturnedtoraiseorlowerthe
bucket.Onceinplace,notorqueisrequiredtomaintaintheposition.
Thewormgearcanalsobeusedtoimplementaleadscrew.Leadscrewsconvertrotary
motiontolinearmotion.Aleadscrewconsistsofathreadedrodandacapturednut.
Spinningtherodcausesthenuttomovealongthelengthoftherod.Leadscrewsare
usedinmanydevices.OneofthemostvisibleexamplesistheGeniegaragedooropener.

Figure2-20.LEGOLeadScrew

Figure2-20isaLEGOimplementationofaleadscrew.Thethreadedrodisconstructed
ofmultiplewormgearsonthecenteraxle.Thehalfbushingsontheouteraxlesmakeup
thecapturednut.Spinningthecenteraxlecausestheouteraxlestomoveinorout.
Construction Note: Be careful when constructing a threaded rod out of
worm gears. You can put two worm gears on an axle in four different ways,
but only one results in a continuous thread.

Good

Bad

2-26

2.4.1 DirectionalTransmission
OneofthecleverestusesIhaveseenforawormgearisthedirectionaltransmission.A
directionaltransmissionletsyouuseoneoutputporttoperformtwofunctions.Ithasone
inputshaftandtwooutputshafts.Awormgearslidesalongtheinputshaftandengages
spurgearsontheoutputshafts.Whichgearisengagedisdependentupontherotation
directionoftheinputshaft.

Figure2-21.DirectionalTransmission

Thedirectionaltransmissionworksbecauseoffriction.Whenyouspintheinputshaft,
thewormgearexertsaforceagainstoneofthespurgears.Thespurgearresiststurning
becauseoffrictionandpushesbackagainstthewormgear.Iffreetodoso,theworm
gearslidesalongtheinputshaft,engagingtheotherspurgearandeventuallyrunninginto
thesupportbeam.Nowtheforcerequiredtoslidethewormgearexceedstheforce
requiredtoturnthespurgear,andthespurgearbeginsturning.Reversingrotationofthe
inputshaftcausesthewholesequencetooccuragainbutintheoppositedirection.

2.5 Differential
Adifferentialisadevicethattakesatorqueappliedtoitshousingandevenlydistributes
ittotwooutputshafts,allowingeachoutputtospinatadifferentspeed.Differentialsare
foundonallmoderncarsandtrucks.All-wheeldrivecarsliketheAudiQuattrocanhave
threedifferentials;onebetweenthefronttires,onebetweenthereartires,andone
betweenthefrontandreardifferentials.LEGOprovidesadifferentialwiththeRISkit.

Figure2-22.LEGODifferential

Carwheelsspinatdifferentspeedswhenturning.Eachwheeltravelsadifferentdistance
throughtheturnwiththeinsidewheelstravelingashorterdistancethantheoutside
wheels.Sincespeed=distance/time,thewheelsthattravelashorterdistancetravelata
lowerspeed.
Thisisnotaproblemforwheelsthatcanspinindependently.Butinmostvehicles,the
drivenwheelsarelinkedtogethersothattheycanbepoweredbyasinglemotor.Without

2-27

adifferential,thewheelswouldbelockedtogether,forcedtospinatthesamespeed.This
wouldmaketurningdifficult.Forthecartobeabletoturn,onewheelwouldhavetoslip,
whichcanrequiregreatforce.

Figure2-23.DuringTurnstheWheelsCoverDifferentDistances

Thedifferentialisamechanicalcalculator.Itcomputestheaveragerotationspeedofthe
twoinputaxlesandspinsthedifferentialhousingatthisrate.Thisisaninteresting
propertythatcanbeusedinmanyways.InFigure2-24,thedifferentialisusedto
calculatetheaveragerotationspeedofthetwowheels.Attachingarotationsensortothe
differentialhousingwouldprovideanaccuratemeasureoftraveldistance.

Wheel1
100rpm
70rpm

Wheel2
100rpm
50rpm

Housing
(100+100)/2=100rpm
(70+50)/2=60rpm

2-28

80rpm

-80rpm

(8080)/2=0rpm

Figure2-24.UsingDifferentialtoCalculateAverageRotation

Theplatformbelowusesthedifferentialtomeasurethedifferenceinrotationspeed
betweenthetwoaxles.Noticetheextragearbetweenthedifferentialandthewheelon
therightside.Itreversesthedirectionofrotationfortherightdifferentialshaft.A
rotationsensorcouldbeusedheretomeasureturning.

Wheel1
100rpm
70rpm
80rpm

Wheel2
100rpm
50rpm
-80rpm

Housing
(100-100)/2=0rpm
(70-50)/2=10rpm
(80+80)/2=80rpm

Figure2-25.UsingaDifferentialtoCalculateDifferenceinRotation

2.5.1 RatchetSplitter
Anintriguinguseforthedifferentialisaspartofaratchetsplitter.Aratchetsplitterlets
youperformtwodifferentfunctionswithasinglemotor,justlikethedirectional
transmission.Butinsteadofusingfrictiontoswitchgears,theratchetsplitterusesa
ratchetingmechanismtopreventanaxlefromspinninginbothdirections.

2-29

Figure2-26.RatchetSplitter

TheassemblyinFigure2-26ispartofadifferentialdrivecarIbuiltthatusedasingle
motortoprovidebothlocomotionandsteering.Theperpendicularaxlejoinerand24t
gearisaratchetingmechanismthatpreventstherightaxlefromrotatingcounter
clockwise.Whenthemotorturnsclockwise,theleftandrightaxlesturninthesame
directionandpropelthevehicleforward.Whenthemotorturnscounterclockwise,the
ratchetlockstherightwheel,andthevehicleturnstotherightasitbacksup.

Question: What would happen if a second ratchet was added to

prevent the left axle from turning clockwise?

2.6 GearRack
Thegearracklookslikeaspurgearlaidoutflat.Itisusuallyusedinconjunctionwitha
spurgear(whichisreferredtoasthepinion).Rackandpiniongearsareusedtoconvert
rotationintolinearmotion.Anexampleofthisisthesteeringsystemonmanycars.The
steeringwheelrotatesagearthatengagestherack.Asthegearturns,itslidestherack
eithertotherightorleftdependingonwhichwayyouturnthesteeringwheel.The
motionistransmittedvialinkagestothefrontwheelscausingthemtopivot.

Figure2-27.LEGOGearRackandPinion

Oneofthetrickierproblemsencounteredwhenusingthegearrackishowtoprovidea
smoothsurfaceuponwhichtherackcanslide.MostLEGOcarmodelssolvethis
problemwithtiles,whichareplateswithoutstudsontop.Figure2-27usestwo1x5lift
armstoprovideasmoothsurface.AnupsidedownTechnicbeamisanothercommonly
usedsolution.
2-30

2.7 Pulleys
Apulleyisawheelwithagrooveaboutitsdiameter.Thegroove,calledtherace,accepts
abeltwhichattachesthepulleytootherpulleys.Asthepulleyrotates,frictionforcespull
onthebeltputtingitintension.Thebelttransmitstheforcetotheotherpulleycausingit
torotate.

Figure2-28.PulleysandBelts

LEGOincludesfoursizesofpulleysintheRIS--thehalfbushing,thesmallpulley,the
pulleywheel,andthelargepulley.Pulleysareconnectedusingbeltsthatrestinthe
pulleysraces.LEGObeltsarecolorcoded:small(white),medium(blue),andlarge
(yellow).Theblackrubberbandscanbeusedasbelts,buttheyaremoreelasticthanthe
LEGObelts,andtheirrectangularcrosssectiondoesntfitwellinapulleysrace.

Figure2-29.LegoPulleys

Withfourdifferentsizedpulleys,itispossibleto gear upand gear down.The

reductionratiowithpulleysisdeterminedbytheratiobetweentheirdiameters.Thetrick
isdeterminingexactlywheretomeasurethediameter.Table2-4showspulleydiameters
measuredatthebottomoftherace.Theresultingreductionratiosareclosetothevalues
determinedexperimentallyinTable2-5.
Table2-4.Measuredpulleydiameters

Diameter
Millimeters
Studs

Half
Bushing
5.7
0.71

Small
Pulley
8.7
1.09
2-31

Medium
Pulley
22
2.75

Large
Pulley
34.5
4.3

Table2-5.PulleyRatios

HalfBushing
SmallPulley
MediumPulley
LargePulley

Half
Bushing
1:1
2:3
2:7
1:6

Small
Pulley
3:2
1:1
3:7
1:4

Medium
Pulley
7:2
7:3
1:1
3:5

Large
Pulley
6:1
4:1
5:3
1:1

2.7.1 Torque
Pulleysmaybeusedinplaceofgearsinmanyapplications.Sincetherearenoteethto
mesh,placementismuchmoreforgiving.Butbecauseithasnoteeth,apulleycannotbe
usedtotransmithightorques.Thebeltwillslipfirst.Determiningwhenandhowmuch
thebeltwillslipisdifficult.Itdependsonmanyfactorssuchasthesizeofthepulleys,
thetensionofthebelt,andthefrictionbetweenthepulleyandthebelt.
Youcanincreasethetorquecapacityofapulleysystembyincreasingthereductionratio
orbyincreasingthefrictionbetweenthepulleysandthebelt.Increasingthereduction
ratiomaynotbedesirablebecauseithasanassociateddecreaseinspeed.Frictioncanbe
increasedeitherbyusingatighterbeltorbyincreasingthecontactareabetweenthe
pulleysandthebelt.

Figure2-30.TwowaystoIncreaseTorqueCapacity

Question: How else can we increase the friction between the pulleys

and the belt?

Someenterprisingrobotdesignersusebeltslippageasatorquelimitingdevice,similarto
theclutchgear.Becauseslippageisdifficulttopredict,itisbesttouseexperimentation
tofindthebeltandpulleycombinationthatwillslipatthedesiredtorque.

2-32

Figure2-31.UsingPulleystoLimitTorque

Construction Notes: The tank tread and sprocket can be used like a pulley
and belt system. The treads teeth prevent slipping even if a large torque is
applied to the sprocket.

2.8 Reinforcinggeartrains
Thecomponentsofthegeartrainarelikelytoexperiencethelargestforcesofanythingin
yourrobot.Themotorwillstallandwheelswillslipbeforeforcesgettoooutofhand.
Butwithenoughgearreduction,itiseasytogenerateforcesthatwilltearagearboxapart.

Figure2-32.Forcesongears

Differenttypesofgearsrequiredifferentkindsofsupport.Inspurgears,forcesare
appliedperpendiculartotheaxles.Unlesstheaxlesareproperlysupported,theywillbe
pushedapartwhenhightorquesareapplied.Supportingtheaxlesisnotaproblemin
horizontallayouts,butverticalanddiagonallayoutsmayrequireadditionalbracing.
Crownandbevelgearshaveforcesdirectedperpendicularandparalleltotheiraxles.As
withspurgears,thesupportingstructurewillprobablyrequirebracingtoholdtheaxlesin
place.Thiscanbedifficultattimesbecausethesupportsareperpendiculartoeachother.
Crownandbevelgearsalsorequireasolidbackingtopreventthemfromslidingontheir
axles.
Themostdifficultproblemwiththewormgearislockingthewormscrewinplaceonits
axle.Thisisexacerbatedbythegearsoddlength(its15.5mmlonginsteadofthe16mm

2-33

requiredforaperfectfit).Whenthewormgearisusedwithaspurgear,thespurgears
axlemustbewellsupported.

Figure2-33.GearboxesDontHavetobeBigtobeStrong

2.9 Backlash
Thebacklashofageartrainistheamounttheinputshaftcanrotatewithoutmovingthe
outputshaft.Backlashiscausedbythegearsnotmeshingperfectly(seeFigure2-34).In
thisexample,whengearAreversesrotation,thetoothongearBgoesfrombeingloaded
ontheleftsidetobeingloadedontherightside.Becauseofthegapbetweentheteeth,A
willbeabletorotateasmallamountbeforeBnoticesthechangeindirection.

Figure2-34.Backlashiscausedbypoorgearmeshing

Backlashintroducesdiscontinuity,uncertainty,andimpactinmechanicalsystems.This
makesaccuratecontroldifficult.Positioningaccuracyisalsocompromiseddueto
backlash.Alargeamountofbacklashmakesarobotfeelsloppyandgivesanoverall
impressionofpoorengineering(youwanttoimpressthosejudges).
Inindustry,backlashisreducedbyusingspeciallymatedgearsthataredesignedtomesh
perfectly.LEGOgearsaredesignedtoworkwithawidevarietyofgearsofdifferent
sizesanddesigns.Thislimitshowperfectlytheycanfittogether.Luckily,thereare
otherwaystominimizebacklashanditseffects.

2-34

ReducingBacklash:
1. Placerotationsensorsneartheoutputshaft.Thisminimizestheeffectbacklash
hasonthesensorreadings.Unfortunately,italsolimitsyourabilitytoincrease
sensorresolutionbygearingup.
2. Uselargegears.Backlashislessnoticeableinlargergears.
3. Minimizethenumberofgearsinageartrain.Thelargerthenumberofmeshes,
thegreaterthebacklash.
4. Backlashincreaseswhenyougearupanddecreaseswhenyougeardown.
5. Whenlayingoutgearsdiagonally,keepgearspacingneartheidealvalues.
Backlashincreasesifthegearsaretoofarapart.
6. Becarefulwhenusingthewormgear.Thewormgearsoddsize(1.94studs
long)makesitdifficulttosupport.Multiplehalfbushingscanbeusedtoholdthe
wormgearinplaceforlightlyloadedapplications.
Aninterestingalternativeistopreventbacklashfromoccurring.Youcantaketheplay
outofageartrainbyapplyingatorquetotheoutputshaft,tradingsomeinputtorquefor
moreprecision.Ifthetorqueisgreatenough,itpreventsbacklashfromhappeningwhen
changingdirection.InFigure2-35,therubberbandissupplyingtheforceusedto
preloadthegeartrain.

Figure2-35.Preloadingageartrainwitharubberband

Somehighprecisionmachinesuseasplitgeartominimizebacklash.Asplitgearlooks
likeaspurgearthathasbeencutthroughthemiddleaboutitscircumference.Springsare
placedinchannelsbetweentwogears.Thespringspushthegearsapartradially.When
meshedtoanothergear,thespringiscompressedprovidingapreloadforce.

2-35

Figure2-36.SplitgearmadefromLEGO

Figure2-36showsasplitgearmadeoutofLEGOparts.Itusestheaxlesinsteadof
springstoprovidethepreloadforce.Whenassembling,the40tgearsaretwistedone
toothrelativetoeachotherbeforemeshingthemtothe8tgears.

2-36

3 Wheels
FLLchallengesinvolvedmovingaroundandpickingupthings,movingaroundand
droppingthings,movingaroundandtriggeringthings.Allthismovingaroundrequires
somesortofmobileplatform,andmostofthemobileplatformsusewheels.
Wheelssupporttheweightoftherobotandtransmitthepowerofthemotorstothe
ground.Whatwheelsyouusewillaffectyourrobotsspeed,power,accuracy,andability
tohandlevariationsinterrain.Wheelchoiceswillhaveaprofoundeffectonyourrobots
successorfailure.

3.1 Sizes
LEGOhassuppliedawidevarietyofwheelsandtiresintheRISkit.Therearethree
sizesofsolidrubbertireswhichallfitonthesameplasticwheelandthreesizesof
balloontiresthatfitondifferentlysizedhubs.Dimensionsinmillimetersarestampedon
thesidewalloftheballoontires.Dimensionsforthesolidtiresarenotavailable,
therefore,approximatedimensionsaresuppliedinthefigurebelow.

SmallSolid
24mmx7mm

MediumSolid
30mmx10.7mm

LargeSolid
43mmx10.7mm

LargeBalloon
81.6mmx15mm
SmallBalloon
30.4mmx14

MediumBalloon
49.6mmx28mm

PulleyWheel
30mmx4mm

Figure3-1.LegoWheelsandTires

Thediameterofthewheelschosenwill,inalargepart,determinehowfastandpowerful
yourrobotis.Largewheelswillmakearobotrunfasterbutdecreaseitstowingcapacity.
Smallwheelswillgiveyoumorepowerbutwithacorrespondingdecreaseinspeed.

3.1.1 Speed
Asyoudrivedownthehighwaythespeedyourcartravelsisdependentuponthe
rotationalspeedoftheengine,thegearratioofthetransmission,andthediameterofthe
tires.Theenginespeedandgearratiodefinehowfastthedrivewheelsarespinning

3-37

(theirangularvelocity).Theangularvelocitycanthenbeconvertedtolinearvelocity
usingtheequationforthecircumferenceofacircle(distancearoundthecircle).

1Revolution

Diameter

Circumference

Circumference=PixDiameter
IamdrivingdownthehighwayinmytrustyCamrywiththebrokenspeedometercable
whenIseeapolicecarwithitslightson.Aquicklookattheinstrumentsshowsthe
engineisat800rpmandthatIaminthirdgear.AmIgoingtogetaticket?

v=xPi x d

Iknow(becauseIdiligentlyreadtheownersmanual)thatthegearratioformyautomatic
transmissionis1:1inthirdgear.Ialsoknowthatthetiresare24.6 indiameter.Sowhat
isthespeed?

=EngineRPMxGearRatio
=800rpmx1:1
=800rpm
v =xPixd
=800rpmx3.14x24.6inches
=61826inchesperminute
=58.5mph!I think Im OK
Thesameequationscanbeusedtocalculatetheexpectedtravelspeedofyourrobot.For
example,letsusetherobotshowninFigure3-2.Ithasone9vmotorthatisgearedupby
afactorof3:1(a24toothcrowngeardrivingan8toothspurgear).Itusesthebig81.6x
15balloontirestomakeitgoreallyfast.Themotorshouldbeabletoreach300rpmfor
alightlyloadedstructurelikethis.Whatistheexpectedspeed?

=MotorRPMxGearRatio
=300rpmx3:1
=900rpm
v =xPixd
3-38

=900rpmx3.14x81.6mm
=230,601mmperminuteor8.7mph!Wow!!!

Figure3-2.AVeryFastTractor

Question: For the example above, what would the travel speed be if
we changed the gear ratio by putting the 8 tooth gear on the motor and
the 24 tooth crown gear on the axle?

3.1.2 Force
Inourdiscussionofgears,wesawthatthereisarelationshipbetweenforce,torque,and
radius--thesamerelationshipsholdtrueforwheels.Whenyouusebigwheelstoincrease
speed,youhavetogiveupsomething,andthatsomethingisforce.Arobotwithbig
wheelscannotpullasmuchasarobotwithsmallwheels.

3-39

Torque
Torque
Radius
Force

Radius

Force
Figure3-3.Force=Torque/Radius

Therelationshipbetweenforce,distance,andtorqueworksagainstuswhenitcomesto
wheels.Largewheelshaveabiggerradius(leverlength)andwillgeneratelessforcefor
agiventorquethansmallwheelswould.Lessforcemeanslessacceleration.Thecarwill
gofaster,butitwilltakelongertoreachthatspeed.Using9Ncmasanestimateforthe
availablemotortorque,letsdeterminethewheelforcesforthevehicleinFigure3-2.
Torque =MotorTorquexGearRatio
=9Ncmx1:3
=3Ncm
Radius =Diameter/2
=81.6mm/2
=40.8mmor4.08cm
Force
=WheelTorque/Radius
=3Ncm/4.08cm
=0.735N
=0.1653lbsor2.64oz!Weak!!!
Forcomparison,ifweusedthesmallsolidwheels(24mm),thetractorwouldtravelat
2.5mphwiththewheelssupplyingupto9ozofforce.Switchingthegearratiofrom3:1
to1:3wouldhavethetractorgoingonly mph,butitwouldbecapableofdeliveringa
whopping5lbsofforce.Itsunlikelythatthetireswouldhaveenoughtractionto
transmitthismuchforcetotheground,consequently,someslippingwouldresult.

Question: If big wheels are less efficient for towing, why do tractors
have big wheels?

3-40

3.2 Treads
TrackedrobotshavebeenverypopularinFLLcompetitions.Theyareeasytobuild,and
thekidsthinktheylookcool.TheRISkitcomeswithtwotanktreadsandfoursprocket
wheels.Thesprocketwheelshavearoundaxleholeallowingthemtospinfreely.
Drivingthetreadrequiressomeadditionalmechanismtolockthesprocketwheelstotheir
axle.Thisisusuallydonewitha16toothspurgear.

Figure3-4.TrackedRobot

Treadshavegoodtractioninroughterrainand,ifwellsupported,cancrosssmallravines
thatwouldstopawheeledvehicle.Trackedrobotstendtobewideandlowtothe
ground,givingthemexcellentstability.Theyarealsoveryagile.Atrackedrobotcan
turninplacebyspinningitstreadsinoppositedirections.
Unfortunately,treadshaveanumberofdisadvantages.Theyhavefairlypoortractionon
smoothsurfaces.Theslippingtreadsmakeitdifficulttousedeadreckoningnavigation.
Alsothereisalotofpowerlossduetothecontinuousbendingandstraighteningofthe
treadsastheyrollaroundthesprocketwheels.

Figure3-5.MarioFerrari'sJohnny54

Fromwww.marioferrari.org/lego.html

3-41

OnlyonesizetrackisincludedintheRISkit.Forthetracknottoslip,thespacing
betweenthesprocketsmustbelargeenoughtomaintainalighttension(about12studs).
Thewheelbasecanbeshortenedifadditionalsprocketsareusedtochangetheshapeof
thetrack.Intheexampleabove,twopulleywheelsmakeuptheadditionalsprocketthat
givesJohnny5hisdistinctivedrivetrain.

3.3 Balance
Properbalanceisveryimportantinrobotdesign.Foryourrobottomoveinapredictable
andrepeatablemanner,allwheelsmustbeincontactwiththegroundatalltimes,andthe
weightcarriedbyeachwheelmustbeconsistent.Improperbalancewillresultinarobot
thattipsovereasilyorliftsitswheelswhenacceleratingorturning.
Balanceisdependentupontwofactors:wheelbaseandcenterofgravity.Centerof
gravity(CG)isthepointwithinyourrobotwherethereareequalamountsofmassabove
andbelow,equalamountstotheleftandright,andequalamountsforeandaft.For
stabilitycalculations,wepretendthatallthemassofyourrobotisconcentratedinthis
tinyspot.Thewheelbaseistheregionoutlinedwhenyouplayconnectthedotswiththe
pointswhereyourrobotswheelstouchtheground.

Figure3-6.Wheelbase

Tomaintainbalance,theCGmustremainwellinsidethewheelbase.Ifitisoutsidethe
wheelbase,therobotwilltipover.TheclosertheCGistothecenterofthewheelbase,
themorestabletherobotbecomes.

3.3.1 FindingtheCenterOfGravity
DeterminingyourrobotsCGisaninformativeandeducationalactivity.Therearemany
waysthiscanbedone,rangingfromthedryandboring(summingthemomentofinertia
foreachcomponentanddividingbythetotalmass)totheslightlyfrightening(hanging
therobotfromastring).AfairlysafeandeasywaytolocatetheCGisthebalance
method.
TodeterminetheCGusingthebalancemethodyouneedtolocatethebalancepointon
thelateral,longitudinal,andverticalaxes.Eachbalancepointdefinesaplaneupon
whichtheCGresides.TheCGislocatedattheintersectionofthethreeplanes.

3-42

LateralBalance
Plane

LongitudinalBalance
Plane

CGisonthisline

Figure3-7.FindingCGUsingBalanceMethod

Tofindthebalancepoints,youneedafulcrumthatwillsupporttheweightoftherobot
whilestillallowingittotipeasily.A2x4curvedtopbrickisthefulcrumintheexample
above.Placetherobotonthefulcrumsuchthatthefulcrumisparalleltothebalance
planeyouaretryingtolocate.Slowlyadjustthepositionofthefulcrumuntiltherobot
balances.Thisisthebalancepoint.RepeatfortheothertwoaxestofindtheCG.
FindingtheverticalcomponentoftheCGcanbedonethesameway,butsometimesyour
robotsdesignwillallowthis.IfIcantbalancethefront,rear,orsidesoftherobotona
fulcrum,Imodifythebalancemethodtouseapartoftherobotasthefulcrum.Carefully
tilttherobotupuntilitfeelslikeitisbalanced.Nowuseacarpenterssquare(abookor
tissueboxwillworkaswell)toprojectaplaneupverticallyfromthefulcrum.TheCGis
thepointwherethisplaneintersectsthelateralandlongitudinalbalanceplanes.
VerticalLine
Centerof
Gravity

Lateraland
Longitudinal
BalancePlanes
Intersection

Figure3-8.ModifiedBalanceMethod

3.3.2 Inertia
Determiningtheverticalcomponentofthecenterofgravityismoredifficultthanfinding
theleft/rightcenterorthefore/aftcenter.Sowhybotherdoingit?Afterall,ifyouknow

3-43

thattheCGisnearthecenterofthewheelbase,thentherobotisguaranteedtobestable,
right?Well,notalways.Figure3-9showshowclimbinganinclinemovestheeffective
CG.TherobotwiththelowerCGisstillstable,butclimbingtheinclinemovestheCG
behindtherearwheelsontherobotwiththehigherCG,causingittotipoverbackwards.

CG
CG

BalancedOK

OhOh!TipsOver
Figure3-9.AnInclineMovestheEffectiveCG

AmoreimportantreasonforknowingtheverticalCGistobeabletopredicttheeffects
thataccelerationwillhaveonyourrobot.Thewidelypublicized(andoverhyped)
problemswiththeSuzukiSidekickandothersmallSUVshavemadethepublicaware
thatsmallwheelbasevehicleswithhighcentersofgravityaremoresusceptibletorolloversthanvehicleswithlargewheelbasesandlowcentersofgravity.Figure3-9shows
howthismayoccuronanincline,buthowdoesithappenonaflatsurfacewhenturning?
InhisPrincipia,SirIsaacNewtonwasamongthefirsttodocumentobservationsofa
propertycommontoallmatterwhichwenowcallInertia.Hestatedthatbodiesatrest
liketostayatrest,andbodiesinmotionliketostayinmotiongoingthesamerateina
straightline.Tomovearestingbodyoralterabodysmotionrequirestheapplicationof
anexternalforce.ThisissummedupnicelyintheequationForce=massxacceleration,
orF=ma.
Whenyouaredrivingdowntheroadandturnthesteeringwheel,thedirectionyourcaris
travelingchanges.Theroadpushesagainstthetiresofyourcarcausingittoaccelerate
sideways.Inertiadictatesthatyourcarandeverythinginsideitresistthisacceleration
withaforceequaltotheirmasstimestheacceleration.Theinertialforceislocatedatthe
carsCGandispointinginthedirectionoppositetheacceleration.BecauseCGisnot
downontheroadwherethewheelforceisapplied,thisinertialforcecreatesatorque(or
moment)whichtriestotipthecarover.
Luckily,theweightofthecarisgeneratinganopposingmomentthatworkstopreventit
fromtippingover.Alliswellaslongasthemomentduetogravityisgreaterthanthe
momentduetotheinertialforce.Widewheelbasecarswithlowercentersofgravityare
saferbecausetheinertialforcesrequiredtorollthecaroveraremuchgreater.Thetires
areincapableofgeneratingsuchlargeforces,therefore,thecarskidsinsteadofrolling
over.

3-44

CG

F2=mxa=F

Weight

D2
D1

M1=WeightxD1
M2=ForcexD2
Rolloveroccurswhen
M2>M1
F

Figure3-10.TurningGeneratesForcesandMoments

Inertialforcesarealsothecauseofthe wheelies towhichsomanyFLLrobotsare

prone.Whenyourrobotisstoppedandyouturnonthemotors,theyinitiallygenerate
theirmaximumtorque.Iftheresultingaccelerationislargeenough,theinertiagenerated
momentwilltiptherobotbackwards,pullingthefrontwheelsofftheground.Luckilythe
torqueoutputfromthemotordropsoffsignificantlyoncethewheelsstartturning,
stoppingthewheeliealmostasquicklyasitstarted.

Figure3-11.FIRSTTeam254'sRobot"CheesyPoofs"DoesaVictoryWheelie

Wheeliesshouldbeavoidedbecauseitisdifficulttocontrolarobotpredictablywithout
allofitswheelsontheground.Fromtheturningdiscussion,wesawthatthelikelihood
oftippingisreducedbyhavingalowercenterofgravityorawiderwheelbase.Thisis
alsotrueforwheelies,whicharelesslikelytohappenifthecenterofgravityislowand
wellaheadofthedrivenwheels.YoucanmovetheCGforwardbyrepositioning
componentsorbyaddingextraweighttothefrontoftherobot.Asimilareffectis
achievedbymovingthedrivenwheelstowardstheback.

Question: What else can be done to prevent wheelies besides moving

the CG or the wheels?

3-45

3.4 WheelLoadingandFriction
TheweightoftheRCXbrick,batteries,threemotors,alightsensor,andarotationsensor
iscloseto1pound.Addtothisaframe,motorsupports,gears,andsomesortof
manipulator,andatypicalFLLrobot(ifthereissuchathing)issupporting1.5to2
poundsonitswheels.Dependingontherelativeplacementofthewheelsandsupporting
framecomponents,theforceontheaxlesmaybemanytimesgreater.Thesehighforces
cancausemuchofthemotorpowertobewastedtryingtoovercometheresulting
friction.Whatisgeneratingtheseforces,andhowcantheybeminimized?

Figure3-12.CantileveredandFullySupportedWheels

Mostwheeledvehiclesusesomesortofcantileveredassemblytoattachthewheelstothe
vehicle.Supportedononlyoneside,theaxleactslikealever,generatingamomentthat
hastobereactedtobytheframe.Amomentistheproductofaforce(theweightbeing
carriedbythewheel)anditsperpendiculardistancefromitsaxis(theplacewherethe
axleissupportedbytheframe).Thefartherthewheelisfromtheframe,thelargerthe
moment.
Thewaythattheframereactsthemomenthasagreateffectontheamountoffriction.
Wheretheaxlepassesthroughtheframeitdoesnotrestagainstthetopofthechannel,
butinsteaditistilted,contactingtheframeatonlytwopoints.Thefartherapartthetwo
contactpointsare,thelowertheforcesexertedagainsteach.
B

A
W

A
W

Figure3-13.WheelLoading

Distancea
1stud
1stud
4studs

Distanceb
2.5studs
1.5studs
1.5studs

ForceA
2.5W
1.5W
0.375W

3-46

ForceB
-3.5W
-2.5W
-1.375W

FrictionForces
6W
4W
1.75W

Figure3-13andthecorrespondingtabledemonstratetherelationshipbetweenwheel
placementandloading. W istheweightofthemodelsupportedbythewheel. A and
B areforcesexertedagainsttheaxlebytheframe. a isthedistancebetweenthetwo
contactpointsontheframe. b isthedistancefromtheframetothewheel.
TocalculatethevaluesofforcesAandBweneedtousewhatwehavelearnedabout
forcesandmoments.FromNewtonsequation,F=ma,weknowthatabodywill
accelerateifacteduponbyaforce.Sinceourwheelisnotacceleratingupordown,we
candeducethattheforcesA,B,andWmustallcancelout;theirsumisequaltozero.
Forourpurposeshere,wewillsayforcespushinguparepositiveandforcespushing
downarenegative.
A-B+W=0
B=A+W
Amomentisjusttheproductofaforceactingatadistance,anditfollowsthesamerules
asregularforces.Abodyactedonbyamomentwillexperienceanangularacceleration.
Iftheangularaccelerationofabodyiszero,thesumofthemomentsaboutanypointon
thatbodymustalsobezero.Tomaketheequationseasiertoworkwith,Iamgoingto
pickthepointwhereforceBisapplied.Here,wewillusetheconventionthatamoment
thatwantstocauseaclockwiserotationispositive,andacounterclockwiserotationis
negative.
Axa+Bx0Wxb=0
Axa=Wxb
A=b/axW
Nowwecanstuffinsomenumbers.Thevaluesbelowarefromtheleftmostexamplein
Figure3-13.
a =1stud
b =2.5studs
A =b/axW
=2.5xW
B =A+W
=2.5xW+W
=3.5xW
Theimportantthingtotakeawayfromthisdiscussionisthatyoucanreducefrictionby:
1. Placingthewheelsclosetotheframe
2. Spreadingouttheaxlesupportstoreducetheforcesrequiredtoreactthemoment
fromthewheel.

Question: What would the table entry look like for the fully
supported wheel assembly shown in Figure 3-12?

3-47

4 LegoElectronics
4.1 RCXBrick
TheRCXisyourrobotsbrain,atinycomputershapedlikeaLEGObrick.Atthecoreof
theRCXisaHitachiH88bitmicrocontrollerrunningat5to20MHzwith32KofRAM.
Thismayseemanemicwhencomparedtomoderndesktopcomputerswith2GHz32bit
processorsand512Mbytesofmemory,butitsaspowerfulastheAppleIIcomputerI
learnedtoprogramonandsignificantlymorepowerfulthanthecomputersthatsentmen
tothemoon.
Themicrocontrollerisusedtocontrolthreevoltageoutputs,threesensorinputs,andan
infraredserialcommunicationsport.Snap-onwireleadsareusedtoconnecttheRCXto
motors,lamps,touchsensors,lightsensors,rotationsensors,etc Theserial
communicationportisusedtodownloadprogramsfromaPCandcanbeusedto
communicatebetweentwoRCXs.
TheRCXispoweredby6AAbatteries.OlderversionsoftheRCXalsohada9VDC
inputplugforusewithanoptionalACadapter.IfyouhavethismodelofRCX,the
transformerwillpayforitselfinsavedbatterycosts.Havingtwoorthreesetsofgood
qualityrechargeablebatteriesisalsoagoodidea.Therechargeablealkalinebatteries
seemtoworkbestwiththeRCX.
Construction Note: When building your robot, remember that you will have
to occasionally remove the RCX to replace the batteries. Design accordingly.

Figure4-1.TheRCXProgrammableBrick

4.1.1 Firmware
TheRCXcontains32Kofbattery-backedRAM.Mostofthisisusedupbythefirmware
thatyouhavetoinstallpriortoloadingyourownrobotprograms.Anadditional6Kis
reservedtostoreuptofiveuserprograms.Thismaynotseemlikemuchspace,butmost

4-48

RCXprogramsareonlyafewhundredbyteslong.Theremainingmemoryisusedfor
runningprograms.
WhenaprogramiswrittenfortheRCX,itdoesnotcontainnativecodefortheCPU.
Instead,itismadeupofspecialbytecodeswhichareinterpretedbythefirmware.Thisis
similartothewayJavaprogramsonthewebareinterpretedbytheJavaVirtualMachine
runninginyourbrowser.UsingabytecodeinterpreterallowstheRCXtomaintaina
reliableenvironmentforexecutinguserprograms.Yourprogrammaynotdowhatyou
want,butitwontcrashtheRCX.
BecausethefirmwareisstoredinRAM,itiserasedifyourRCXremainswithoutpower
formorethanafewseconds.AcapacitorintheRCXpowersthememorylongenough
foryoutochangethebatteries(15-30seconds).IfafterchangingbatteriesyourRCXno
longerfunctionsproperly,youmayhavelostyourfirmware.Youcantellifthefirmware
isloadedbylookingattheLCDdisplay.Ifallyoucanseeistheprogramnumberand
theminifigicon(eitherstandingorwalkingasinFigure4-1),thenthefirmwareisnot
loaded.ThiswillbetheconditionofyourRCXbrickwhenyoureceiveyourkit.
Construction Note: Whenever it is turned on, the RCX is receptive to
messages coming in on its infrared serial port. With all the activity and
congestion at competitions, it is quite possible that another team could
unintentionally overwrite the programs stored in your RCX. Care should be
taken to block the IR port when not in use.

4.1.2 Programming
TheRCXisprogrammedusingspecialsoftwarethatresidesonyourPC.Theprogramis
translatedintobytecodesandtransferredtotheRCXviaaninfraredseriallink(usingthe
IRtower).Thismethodofprogramming--writingcodeononetypeofcomputertoberun
onanothertypeofcomputer--iscalledcrossdevelopment.Acomputerwithouta
keyboardandmonitor,liketheRCX,iscalledanembeddedsystem.Thatmeansall
FLLersareembeddedsystemsdevelopers,familiarwithcrossdevelopmenttools.This
isimpressivestufftoputonyourresume.
UserprogramscanbewritteneitherinRCXCodeorROBOLAB.RCXCodeisthe
graphicalprogrammingtoolthatLEGOsuppliestoprogramtheRCX.Itistargetedto
peoplewithnoprogrammingexperience.Programsarewrittenbypickinginstruction
blocksandsnappingthemtogether,muchlikeusingactualLEGObricks.Theoriginal
versionsofRCXCodewereverylimited(V1.0andV1.5).Manyinstructionssupported
bythebytecodeinterpreterwerenotavailable,andsupportforvariableswasminimal.If
youplantouseRCXCode,makesureyouhavetheversion2.0software.RCXCodeis
currentlyonlyavailableforWindowsPCs.

4-49

Figure4-2.RCXCodeScreenshot

ROBOLABisaproductofLEGODACTA,theeducationbranchofLEGO.Itisbased
onLabVIEW,agraphicalprogrammingenvironmentthatisreallyusedbyengineersand
scientistsformeasurementandcontrol.Infact,NASAscientistsusedLabVIEWto
monitortheSojournerRoveronMars!LikeRCXCode,ROBOLABusesagraphical
metaphorforwritingprograms.Commandiconsareselectedfromapaletteandplacedin
theprogrammingworkspace.Thenthecommandiconsarewiredtogethertospecifythe
programflow.

Figure4-3.ROBOLABScreenshot

ROBOLABisamorepowerfultoolthanRCXCode,butnotallthispowerisdirected
towardsprogrammingrobots.LargeportionsofROBOLABaredevotedtousingthe
RCXlikealabinstrument.YoucancreateprogramsthatrunonthePCbutcollect
sensordatafromtheRCX.OtherROBOLABtoolsareavailabletoprocessandanalyze
thedata.Thereareeventoolsforpublishingtheresultsorconvertingthemtoaweb
4-50

page.LearningallthereistoROBOLABcouldtakealongtime.Luckily,everythingyou
needforFLLisisolatedinonesectioncalledInventor.ROBOLABalsohasextensive
userdocumentationbuiltintothetool,plusthereisaverythoroughusermanualavailable
onlineathttp://www.ceeo.tufts.edu/robolabatceeo/documentation.htm.
ProgrammingusingRCXCodeorROBOLABisprettymuchthesame.Theprogrammer
usesthemousetoselectfromalistoficonsthatrepresentprograminstructions.The
selectedinstructioniconsareplacedintoaworkspace.Somesortofgraphicalconnection
metaphorisusedtodefinetheflowoftheprogram(snappingtogetherforRCXCode,
wiresforROBOLAB).Whentheprogrammerfinisheslayingouttheinstructions,he/she
usesamenuortoolbarbuttontocompiletheprogramanddownloadittotheRCX.
IfyouareprogrammingonaMac,thenyouhavetouseROBOLAB.Otherwise,the
choiceismostlyamatteroftaste.CarefulanalysisofMinnesotaFLLcompetitionresults
overthelastthreeseasonsshowsnocorrelationbetweenateamssuccessandthe
programminglanguageitused.

4.2 Motors
Themotorthatcomeswiththechallengekitiscalledthe9voltgearedmotor.Ithasan
internalgeartrainthatdeliversa12:1gearreduction.Thisconvertsaninternalrotation
speedof4200rpmtoamoreuseable350rpm5attheoutputshaft.Theinternalgearing
alsoincreasesthestalltorqueto8.9Ncmor0.06ft-lbs6.

4Studs

2.8Studs
or
2.33Bricks

3.6Studs
or
3Bricks
4Studs

Figure4-4.9VoltGearedMotor

Themotornormallydrawsabout10milliamps(mA)ofcurrentundernoload.Thiscan
easilyincreaseto200mAormorewhenitisworkinghard.Addpoweredsensors(light
androtation),theLCDdisplay,theprocessor,andatypicalFLLrobotcanbedrawing
600700milliamps.SincegoodqualityAAbatteriesareratedaround2500milliamp
hours(mAh)youcanexpecttochangebatteriesafterthreetofourhoursofoperation.

Typicalspeedunderloadiscloserto200rpm
FromtheRandomHallLegoRoboticsSeminar(web.min.edu/sp.742/www/motor.html)

4-51

4.2.1 Modes
TheRCXhasthreemodesofcontrollingthemotor--Off,On,andFloat.InFloatmode,
themotorisnotdrivenandcanspinfreely.Itbehavesjustasitwouldiftheconnecting
leadswereremoved.
InOffmode,theRCXinternallyshortsthecontactsoftheoutputconnector.Thishasa
brakingeffectontheattachedmotorcausingittoquicklystopspinning.
InOnmode,theRCXsendsthemotoreither+9Vor-9Vtomakethemotorspin
clockwiseorcounterclockwise.Pulsewidthmodulation(PWM)isusedtoprovideeight
powerlevelsettings.
PowerSetting1
25%DutyCycle
PowerSetting3
50%DutyCycle
PowerSetting5
75%DutyCycle

Figure4-5.PWMDutyCycles

Pulsewidthmodulationisaninexpensivewaytocontrolpoweroutput.Insteadofsetting
theoutputvoltage(voltageregulatorsareexpensive),theRXCquicklyswitchesthe
poweronandoff.Differentpowerlevelsareachievedbyvaryingthepercentageoftime
thatthepowerison(thisiscalledthedutycycle).OntheRCX,theminimumpower
settingiszero,whichcorrespondstoadutycycleof12.5%(thepowerison12.5%ofthe
time).Atlevel7,powerissuppliedcontinuously(100%dutycycle).
Thegearedmotorhasalittleinternalflywheelthatevensoutthemotorspeedasthe
powerisswitchedonandoffforPWM.Youseeitinoperationwhenyouspintheshaft
ofanunattachedmotor.Theshaftcompletesseveralrevolutionswhiletherotationspeed
slowsdowntozero.Ifyoucontinuetogivetheshaftatwistonceasecondorso,itis
prettyeasytogetitturningatafairlyconsistentspeed.Thisiskindofamechanical
versionofpulsewidthmodulation
Onceyougetthemotorspinning,itdoesnttakemuchenergytokeepitgoing.Thiscan
beabitofaproblemifyouareusinglowpowersettingstorunyourmotorslower.
Withoutmuchload,agearedmotorspinsuptoaboutthesamespeedregardlessofthe
powersetting.Eachpower-onpulsesuppliesmoreenergythanfrictioncandissipate
duringtherestofthecycle.Theextrapowergetsstoredintheflywheelasinertia.With
everycycle,alittlebitmoreenergyisstoredintheflywheel,increasingtherotation
speeduntilequilibriumisreachedatthepointwherethemotortorquestartstofalloff.

4-52

Figure4-6.UsingaPulleytoIncreaseDrag

Motorspeedcontrolisreestablishedbyaddingsomefriction.Afterallthecareful
thoughtandattentiontodetailyouputintoyourrobotdesigntominimizefriction,now
itstimetohavesomefun.Takeoutyourlistofgoodbuildingpracticesandbreakallthe
rules.Squeezethebushingsuptightagainstthesidesofthebeams.Usethreeorfour
gearsinsteadoftwo.Becreative,butmakesurethejudgesknowthereasonandthinking
behindyourmodifications.Youdontwanttobepenalizedforpoormechanicaldesign.

4.2.2 Attaching
Amotorisattachedtooneofthethreeoutputconnectorsbyusingasnap-onwirelead.
Youcanreversetherotationdirectionofthemotorbychangingtheorientationofthe
connection.Ifyouneedtowireupamotorduringcompetitionforaconfiguration
change,makesurethatyoualwaysattachtheleadsthesameway.Markingthe
connectorleadsandmotorportswithcolorcoded1x2platesworkswellasareminder.

Figure4-7.UsingColorCodingtoDocumentProperConnectorOrientation

Motorsgeneratesignificantforceandwillworkthemselveslooseifonlyheldinplace
usingsnap-onmountings.Additionalsupportisrequired.Thiscanbeprovidedusingthe
samecrossbracingtechniquesusedtobuildstrongstructures.

Figure4-8.StrengtheningMotorMountswithCrossBracing

4-53

TheRISkitincludes1x2plateswithrailsthatcanbeusedasbracketsforthemotors.
Theyprovideacompactandsturdywaytoattachamotortoabeam.Therailscanalso
beusedtocreateaquickreleasemotormount.ThemotorinFigure4-9iseasilyremoved
afterunsnappingthebottom2x6platethatholdsitinplace.Thiscouldbeusefulifyour
robotsdesignrequiresyoutomoveamotorduringhead-to-headcompetition.

Figure4-9.MotorMountUsingRails

4.3 TouchSensor
ThetouchsensoristhesimplesttouseofalltheLEGOsensors.Itconsistsofa2x3
brickwithaspringloadedbutton.Thebuttonvariestheresistanceofthesensorwhenit
ispressed.TheRCXsoftwareconvertsthesensorfeedbacktoabinarysignal:onefor
whenthebuttonispressed,andzeroforwhenitisreleased.
3studs

2studs

1brickor
1.2studs
2.5studs
Thetouchsensorisunusualinthatitdoesnthaveanattachedwireleadliketherotation
andlightsensors.Instead,itusesasnap-onleadlikethemotors.Thefourstudsclosest
tothebuttonhaveelectricalcontactstoreceivetheleadwireconnector.Orientationis
notimportantiftheleadwireisattachedtoallfourcontactstuds.Youcanalsomakethe
connectionbyusingonlytwoofthecontacts,butwhendoingso,theleadwiremustbe
orientedasshownbelow.

4-54

Bad

Good
Figure4-10.WiringtheTouchSensor

4.3.1 Bumpers
Abumperisadevicethatnotifiesyourrobotthatyouranintoanobstacle.Whenstruck,
thebumpermovesandpressesorreleasesatouchsensor,notifyingyourrobotofthe
impact.BumpersarethemostcommonuseforatouchsensorinFLL.Thismaybedue
totheConstructopediausingtouchsensorsprimarilyinthisrole,oritcouldbebecause
bumpersaresuchusefuldevices.

Figure4-11.ASimpleBumper

Abumperassemblyusuallyconsistsoffourparts:thebumper,asensor,areturn
mechanism,andasupportingframework.Thebumpercomponentisthepartthat
receivestheimpactandconvertsittomotionthatcanbedetectedbythesensor.The
motionisusuallysliding(Figure4-11)orpivoting(Figure4-12),thoughIhaveseen
someinterestingbumpersbuiltofflexiblepartsthatusebending.Thesensorcomponent
isusuallyatouchsensor,butbumperscanbebuiltusingrotationsensorsorlightsensors.

Figure4-12.ABumperthatUsestheRotationSensor

4-55

Thereturnmechanismforcesthebumpertoitsnormal(non-impacted)statewhenthe
obstacleisremoved.Themostcommonreturnmechanismisarubberbandthatpullsthe
bumperagainstamechanicalstop.Thedesignofsomebumpersallowsgravitytobe
usedasthereturnmechanism.ThesimplebumperinFigure4-11originallyusedthe
springinsidethetouchsensorasthereturnmechanism.Thatdesignprovedtobe
unreliable,occasionallysignalingacollisionwhennonehadoccurred.Addingtherubber
bandfixedtheproblem.

Figure4-13.ANormallyClosedBumperDesign

Mostbumperdesignscanbedividedintotwocategoriesbasedonthewaytheymonitor
theirsensorforimpacts.ThebumperinFigure4-11isa NormallyOpen design.When
acollisionoccurs,thebumperpressesagainstthetouchsensor,closingthecontacts.Ina
NormallyClosed styleofbumper,thereturnmechanismpullsthebumperagainstthe
touchsensor.Acollisioncausesthebumpertopullawayfromthetouchsensor,opening
thecontacts.
WhenthenormallyopenbumperinFigure4-11collideswithanobstacle,theimpactof
thecollisionistransmittedthroughthebumpertothetouchsensor.Thiswillloosenthe
sensormounting,andafterafewcollisionsthesensormayfalloff.Additionalbracing
couldbeusedtostrengthenthesensormounting,butthisjusttransmitstheimpacttothe
robotframe.
InanormallyclosedbumperlikethatinFigure4-13,theforceofacollisionisabsorbed
bytherubberbands.Thisbumperalsohasalong throw, thedistancebetweenwherea
collisionisdetectedandthebumper bottomsout againstahardstop.Thelongthrow
allowsthebumpertosenseanobstacleandstoptherobotbeforeahardcollisionoccurs.

Figure4-14.ImprovedNormallyOpenBumper

4-56

Normallyclosedbumpersaregoodatdetectingobstaclesandprotectingyourrobotfrom
forcefulcollisions.Butthenormallyclosedtouchsensorcausesproblemsforsensor
stacking(attachingmultiplesensorstooneinputport).Aclosedtouchsensorwillforce
theinputtobe1(ifconfiguredasatouchsensorport)or100(ifconfiguredasalight
sensorport).Theimprovedbumperaboveretainsallthebenefitsofanormallyclosed
designwiththeadvantageofhavingthetouchsensorbenormallyopen.

4.3.2 LimitandPositionSwitches
Touchsensorshavemanyusesotherthanbumpers.Limitandpositionswitchestellyou
whenacomponentofyourrobotisinacertainlocation.Theyarediscretesensors(as
opposedtocontinuoussensors)inthattheyprovidepositioninformationonlyatcertain
locations.Youonlyknowwhereyouarewhilethetouchsensorispressed.Whenitis
open,youonlyknowwhereyouarenot.

Figure4-15.PositionandLimitSwitches

Limitandpositionswitchesreallydifferonlyintheiruse.Limitswitchesareguardsthat
watchforsomethingbeingwhereitisnotsupposedtobe.Theyareprotective
mechanismsusedwhendamagecouldresultfromadevicemovingoutsideitsworking
envelope.Apositionswitchisjusttheopposite;itisamessengerthatnotifiesyouwhen
adeviceiswhereyouwantittobe.
ThelightscannerinFigure4-15hastwolimitswitchesandapositionswitch,andalluse
onlyonetouchsensor!Thebottomtwocamsarepartofthelimitswitches.Theyprevent
thescannerpostfromtwistingmorethan+/-90degrees.Thetopcamisapositionswitch
thattellstheRCXwhenthesensorispointedstraightforward.Tobeabletointerpretthe
touchsensorfeedback,theprogramhastokeepcarefultrackofwherethescannerpostis
andwhichwayitisspinning.

4.3.3 Rotationsensor
PerhapsthemostrepeatedgripeIveheardfromFLLteamsisaboutthelackofasecond
rotationsensor.Havingtwojustseemstomakesense:oneforleftandoneforright,or
onefordistanceandoneforsteering.Otherteamsseethelackofasecondrotation
sensorasachallenge,andsomeoftheirsolutionshavebeenverycreative.

4-57

Figure4-16.ATouchRotationSensor

Justasarotationsensorcanbeusedinplaceofatouchsensoraspartofabumper,a
touchsensorcanbeusedtomeasurerotation.Intherotationsensor,opto-interruptersuse
lighttomonitorthepositionofafan-shapedrotor.InFigure4-17,thetouchsensoris
usedtomonitorthepositionoftheaxlejoiner.

Question: What is the resolution of the rotation sensor in Figure

4-16?

4.4 LightSensor
Thelightsensorisa2x4LEGObrickthatcontainsaredlightemittingdiode(LED)and
aphototransistor.TheredLEDilluminatestheareainfrontofthebrick,andthephoto
transistormeasurestheintensityofthereflectedlight.Thelightsensorreturnsavaluein
therangeof0to100%.ThelowestreadingIhaveeverseenis20%,whichItookat
midnightinthemiddleofmybasementwiththelightsoff.Youcangetto100%by
aimingthesensoratthesunonacleardayorbyholdingitwithinafewinchesofa100W
lightbulb.Innormaloperation,thesensorvaluestendtobebetween30and60%.
2studs

1.33bricks
or
1.6studs
4studs
Figure4-17.TheLightSensor

OneofmyearliestexperienceswiththelightsensorwaswhenIuseditaspartofacandy
sorter.IwantedtosortbagsofpeanutM&Msbasedonthecoloroftheircandyshells
(brownismyfavorite).Theconceptwassimple.Iwouldusethelighttodeterminethe
color,thenmovetherobottopositionitoverthecorrectbin.

4-58

Imadeapivoting LazySusan typerobotthatIcouldsurroundwithcupstoreceivethe

candy.Therubbertrackmadeaniceconveyorbelt,andIfoundadesignforsomething
calleda marblepump thatdidagreatjobofgettingthecandy,oneatatime,outofthe
hopper.Withallthemechanicsworkingcorrectly,allthatwasleftwastopopthelight
sensorvaluesforeachcolorintotheprogram.VisionsofwatchingBattlebotswhile
munchingonbrownM&Msdancedthroughmyhead.

Distance
From
Sensor

Table4-1.LightSensorReadingsforPeanutM&Ms

stud

Red
48

Orange
48

Yellow
51

Green
38

Blue
40

Brown
40

1stud

45

46

48

37

35

35

Inevergotthatsortertoworkverywellbecausethesensorvaluesfordifferentcolored
M&Msweretoosimilar.Afterplayingaroundabitandtryingafewthings,Igotitto
sortM&Msintothreecolorgroups:Yellowinonecup,OrangeandRedinanother,and
Blue,Green,andBrowninathird.Eventually,Igottiredofworkingontherobotand
disassembleditforparts.IthinkthissamesortofthinghappenstomanyFLLteamsthat
trytousethelightsensorontheirrobot.Theycomeupwithareallyneatideaandbuild
robottotryitout.Duringtesting,therobotdoesntworkquiterightordoesntwork
reliably.Theteamtinkersaroundwithitabit,failstomakerealprogress,andtossesthe
sensorbackintothepartsbin.
TheproblemsIhadwiththecandysorterwerenotthefaultofthelightsensor.The
projectwasdoomedfromtheverystartwhenIchosetousethesensorinanapplication
forwhichitwasillsuited.Ineededtohaveabetterunderstandingofthelightsensor
beforeusingitinanotherproject,therefore,toincreasemyunderstanding,Iperformeda
seriesofexperiments.

4.4.1 Experiment#1,Color
Frommycandysorterexperience,Iknewthelightsensorreadingisaffectedbythecolor
oftheobjectatwhichitisaimed.Butthereadingalsoappearstobeaffectedbythe
distancebetweenthesensorandtheobject,variationsintheobjectssizeandshape,and
ambientlightingconditions.IfIwasgoingtolearnanythingaboutthelightsensor,Ihad
tolimitthenumberofvariables.Formyfirstexperiment,Idecidedtostudythe
relationshipbetweenlightsensorvalue,color,anddistance.

4-59

Figure4-18.LightSensorColorExperiment

Forthisexperiment,IbuiltaboxoutofLEGOpartswithalightsensorcenteredatone
end.Theboxhadsolidsidesandatopandbottomtopreventambientlightfrom
distortingtheresults.Next,Imadeseveraldifferentcolored targets thatIcouldplace
intheboxatvariousdistancesfromthesensor.Iused1x4brickstomakethetargets
becauseIhavetheminmanydifferentcolors,andtheywillallowotherstoeasily
reproducemywork.Foreachdifferentcolor,Itooksensorreadingsat1,2,3,4,and5
studsspacing.Theresultsareshowninthetablebelow.
Table4-2.LightSensorReadingsforColorExperiment
Distance(studs)

Black
White
Gray
DkGray
Yellow
Red
Blue
Green

1
43
54
49
45
53
50
44
42

2
38
48
43
40
48
45
38
37

3
35
43
39
35
43
41
34
32

4
33
40
35
31
39
37
32
29

5
27
37
32
29
36
35
31
28

4.4.1.1Color
AsIwasperformingmylightsensorexperiments,itbecameapparentthatthelightsensor
doesntseelightthesamewayIdo.Tomyeyes,thegreenbricksappearbrighterthan
theredbricks,yetthegreenbricksensorreadingswereconsistentlylower.Infact,the
lightsensorreadingsforthegreen,blue,darkgray,andblackbrickswereessentiallythe
same.
Lightismadeupofelectromagneticwaves--vibrationsofelectricandmagneticfieldsthat
travelthroughspace.Therearemanytypesofelectromagneticwaves:somewecanfeel
(heat),somewecansee(light),andsomewehaveharnessedforourownuses(television
andradio).Oureyescandetectelectromagneticwaveswithwavelengthsintherangeof
400nm(violet)to700nm(red)inlength.Wecallthistinyportionoftheelectromagnetic
spectrumvisiblelight.Oureyesperceivedifferentwavelengthsofvisiblelightashaving
4-60

differentcolors.Lightwithawavelengthof700nmisred;bluelighthasawavelength
around460nm.

Figure4-19.VisibleLightSpectrum

TheLEGOlightsensorusesasiliconephototransistorasitssensingelement.According
toMichaelGasperi7,thephototransistorismostsensitivetolightintheredtoinfrared
range,havingpeaksensitivityaround800nm.CheapredLEDsofthetypeusedinthe
lightsensor,outputafairlybroadspectra,butthemostintenselightissomewhere
between650and750nm.Thismakesitadecentmatchforthephototransistor.Oureyes
aremostsensitiveintheblue-greentoyellowrange(500nm600nm).Thisexplained
whythegreenbrickslookedsobrighttome,andtheredbrickslookedbrighttothelight
sensor.Butitdidntadequatelyexplainwhythelightsensorreadingsfortheyellow
bricksweresohigh,andthereadingsforthegreenbricksweresolow.

RelativeResponse(%)

100
80
60
Phototransistor

40

HumanEye
20
0
300

400

500

600

700

800

900

1000

1100

Wave le ngth(nm )

Figure4-20.TheLightSensorSeesDifferentlythanOurEyes

Therearetwowaysinwhichweseecolors.Onewayisforanobjecttoemitlightwaves
inthewavelengthoftheobservedcolor.ThelightsensorsredLEDemitslightwitha
wavelengtharound660nm,whichiswhyitappearsred.Yourcomputermonitorand
televisioncanemitred,green,andbluecoloredlight.Othercolorsarecreatedbymixing
theseprimarycolors.Theotherwaytoseecolorisforanobjecttoreflectlightwavesin
thefrequencyoftheobservedcolorandabsorballotherwavelengths.TheredLEGO
brickreflectsredlight,butabsorbsblueandgreenlight.

ExtremeMindstormsAnAdvancedGuidetoLegoMindstorms ,DaveBaum,MichaelGasperi,Ralph
HempelandLouisVilla

4-61

Blue

White
Red

Green

Figure4-21.LightColors

ThelightsensorreadingsinTable4-2starttomakesensewhenyouthinkofcolorin
termsofemission,reflection,andabsorption.Withthecoverplacedonmytestbox,the
onlylightstrikingthecoloredbricktargetwastheredlightemittedfromtheredLED.
TheredLEGObricksareverygoodatreflectingredlight,thatswhytheyappearredto
usandbrighttothesensor.Thegreenandbluebricksdontreflectredlightwellatall
andhavesensorreadingsthatwouldmakeyouthinktheywereblack.Theyellowand
whitebricksgivethehighestsensorreadingsbecausetheyreflectredlightandother
wavelengthstheLEDemitsaswell.

Question: In a dark room, what color do you see when shining the
light sensors red LED light on a yellow LEGO brick?

4.4.1.2Distance
TheInverseSquareLawisaneatmathematicalformulathatshowsupallovertheplace
inphysics.Itdefinestherelationshipbetweenthemeasuredstrengthofathing,likethe
pullofgravityortheloudnessofsound,andthedistanceyouarefromthesourceofthe
thing.TheInverseSquareLawforlightintensitystatesthattheintensityoflight
observedfromasourceofconstantbrightnessfallsoffasasquareofthedistancefrom
theobject.Itisgenerallyexpressedastheratiooflightintensitiesl1andl2atdistancesd1
andd2.

l1 d 22
=
l2 d12

RelativeIntensity(%)

100
80
60
40
20
0
1

Re lative Dis tance

Thismeansthatifwedoublethedistancetoalightsource,theobservedintensityis
decreasedto(1/2)2or ofitsoriginalvalue.At3,4,and5timesthedistance,the

4-62

intensitywouldbedecreasedto1/9,1/16,and1/25oftheoriginalvalue.Initially,intensity
fallsoffveryquicklyasyoumoveawayfromalightsource.Butasyougetfartherand
fartheraway,thechangebecomeslessandlessnoticeable.
Giventhat,itwasnosurprisethatplotsofthesensorreadingsshowtheintensity
decreasingrapidlyasthedistancebetweenthelightsensorandthetargetincreases.Im
notsurewhythesensorreadingsdidntfalloffasquicklyaspredictedbytheInverse
SquareLaw,butIthinkitmightbeduetothephototransistorandLEDbeingsoclose
together(muchofthelightmeasuredbythephototransistorneverleavesthelightsensor
housing).Lookingattheplotsandthetable,InowseewhyInevergotmycandysorter
toworkverywell.Achangeindistanceassmallashalfastudisenoughforthelight
sensortoconfuseredwithyelloworbluewithgreen,andifaredbrickisplacedtwo
studsfartherawaythanagreenbrick,thelightsensorcanttellthedifferencebetween
them.
55
Y ellow

SensorReading(%)

50

Red
Blue

45

Green
40
35
30
25
1

Dis tance(s tuds)

Figure4-22.ColorExperimentSensorReadings

4.4.1.3Conclusions
Fromthisexperiment,IdrewafewconclusionsabouttheLEGOlightsensor.Themost
importantisthatyoucanusethesensortomeasuredistanceifyouknowthecolorofthe
reflectingsurface,oryoucantellcolorifyouknowthedistancefromthereflecting
surface,butyoucantdoboth.Forbestresults,thelightsensorshouldbeusedin
carefullycontrolledconditions.Caremustbetakentolimitthenumberofvariables.
Thelightsensordoesnotseelightthesameashumansdo.Thesensitivityofthesensor
isnotwellmatchedtohumanvision.Whatappearsbrighttooureyesmaybedarktothe
lightsensor,andlightthatisoutsideourrangeofvisioncaneasilydrivethesensor
readingto100%.Itisalwaysagoodpracticetocollectandanalyzesomesensordata
priortodevelopingastrategyforusingthelightsensor.

4-63

Ialsolearnedthatthelightsensorisextremelysensitivetothedistancebetweenthe
sensorandthereflectingsurface.Whenusingthesensortomeasurecontrastitmustbe
heldafixeddistancefromthereflectingsurface.Evensmallvariationsindistancecan
makethesensorreadingsunusable.Rememberthiswhendesigningthelightsensor
mountforyourrobot.

4.4.2 Experiment#2,AmbientLight
Inmyfirstexperiment,Istudiedtherelationshipbetweencolorandthelightsensor
reading.Fromthedata,Ideducedthatthesensorreadingisnotonlydependantuponthe
coloroftheobjectbeingviewedbutalsouponthewavelengthofthelightilluminating
theobject.Innormalusage,thelightsensorandtargetwillnotbeinasealedcontainer.
Lightfromexternalsources,ambientlight,willhavesomeeffectonthesensorreading.
Tobetterunderstandhowambientlightaffectsthesensorreadings,Iperformedasecond
experiment.
Forthisexperiment,Ibuiltawallofdifferentcoloredbrickstouseasatargetandan
adjustablestandtoholdthesensoraknowndistanceawayfromthebricks.Thestand
was spiderlike tominimizetheshadowitcast.Ithenrecordedthelightsensor
readingsforeachcoloredbrickatdifferentdistancesunderavarietyoflighting
conditions.First,asabaseline,Itookmeasurementsinacompletelydarkroominmy
basement(lightsensorreading22%).Irepeatedtheexperimentin normalbasement
lightingconditions(sensorreading46%)andthenin brightcompetition lighting
conditions(sensorreading65%).ThereadingsappearinTable4-3.

Figure4-23.AmbientLightExperiment

ThefirstthingInoticedfromthedatawashowthegreenandbluesensorreadingswere
themostaffectedbythepresenceofambientlight.Theincandescentlampsusedto
producethemoderateandbrightlightingconditionsemitafullspectrumofvisiblelight
wavelengths.Thisgivestheblueandgreenbrickssomethingtoreflect,sotheyappear
muchbrightertothesensorthaninthepreviousexperiment.

Question: In the 01 FLL challenge Volcano Panic, a blue tape line

was used to mark the edge of the ocean. The intersection of the blue

4-64

line with one of the many black lines on the table was a useful navigation
landmark. Many teams had a hard time finding the blue line. What was
the likely source of their problem, and how could they have improved
their chances?
Table4-3.SensorReadingsforAmbientLightExperiment

Black
DkGray
Gray
White
Green
Blue
Red
Yellow

1
stud
39
40
43
50
36
39
47
49

NoLight
2
3
std
std
27
27
34
30
38
34
44
40
32
28
36
33
43
39
44
39

4
std
26
28
33
37
27
29
36
37

1
stud
39
40
45
52
40
45
51
52

LowLight
2
3
std
std
36
35
38
38
45
43
50
50
42
42
44
45
49
48
50
49

4
std
35
38
43
50
42
45
49
50

1
stud
39
43
49
58
49
51
56
58

BrightLight
2
3
std
std
46
52
47
53
53
57
60
62
55
58
58
60
60
62
61
63

4
std
52
53
57
63
58
60
62
62

However,thereallyinterestingandimportantthingtonoticeishowambientlight
changestherelationshipbetweensensorvalueanddistance.Figure4-24isaplotofthe
Graybricksensorreadingsunderthethreelightingconditions.In nolight conditions,
thesensorreadingsaresimilartothosetakeninthesealedchamberinexperiment#1.
Thesensorreadingsarealmostflatin lowlight conditions.ThelightfromtheredLED
iscompletelyoverwhelmedbythelightfrommultiple100Wincandescentlampsusedto
lighttheroom.Andin brightlight conditions,thesensorreadingsactuallyincreaseas
thesensorismovedawayfromthetarget.Atshorterdistances,thelightsensorbodyand
testfixtureblockedsomeoftheambientlightfromstrikingthetarget.Lesslightwas
blockedasthesensorwasmovedfartheraway.
60

SensorReading(%)

55
50
45
40

NoLight
Low Light

35

BrightLight

30
25
1

Dis tance (s tuds)

Figure4-24.LightSensorReadingsforGrayLEGOBrick

4-65

4.4.2.1Conclusions
Itappearsthatthelightsensorisverysensitivetoambientlight,whichisdisconcerting
becauseyouseldomhavecontroloverthelighting.Thispointwasreallydrivenhome
whenIdemonstratedafewofmyrobotsatanoutdoorexposition.Eventhoughthe
demonstrationtablewasunderacanopytent,Ihadaverydifficulttimegettingtherobots
withlightsensorstoworkcorrectly.AndIthoughtIhadthesensorsprettywell
protected.Ishouldhavetestedmyrobotsundertheexpectedlightingconditions.
Rememberthiswhentestingyourrobotinadimlylitbasement.Itmaybehavevery
differentlyonceitisunderthebrightlightsofthecompetitionarena.

4.5 RotationSensor
Therotationsensorisusedtomeasurehowfararotatingaxlehasturned.Ithasafree
spinningbushingtoreceivetheaxle.Asthebushingturns,acounterintheRXCis
incrementedordecremented.Eachfullrotationregistersas16countsgivingthesensora
resolutionof22.5degrees.
4studs

2bricks
or
2.4studs

1.33bricks
or
1.6studs
2studs

3.5studs

Figure4-25.RotationSensor

Therotationsensorscantrackupto32,767countsineitherdirection.Ifyouexceedthis,
thesensorwill wraparound goingfromlargestpositivevaluetolargestnegativevalue
(orviceversa).Inpractice,thecountlimitationisseldomaseriousproblem.Arobot
withtherotationsensordirectlyattachedtothelarge81mmballoontireswilltravel1/3
ofamilebeforewraparoundoccurs.

4.5.1 Resolution
Theresolutionoftherotationsensorisusuallyadequatefordistancemeasurement.
UsingthelargestLEGOwheel(the81.6mmballoontire),22.5degreesworksouttoonly
0.6 oflineartravel.Forthesmallballoontire,itis .Butthismuchmeasurement
uncertaintymaybeunacceptableforaccurateturning.Foradifferentialdriverobotwith
awheelbase10studswide, ofwheeltravelworksoutto8degreesofturnangle.

4-66

Figure4-26.UsingGearReductiontoIncreaseResolution

Effectivesensorresolutioncanbeincreasedusinggearreduction.Fortheexamplein
Figure4-26,theinputshaft(onewiththewormgear)turns24timesforeachrevolution
oftheoutputshaft(onewiththespurgear).Therotationsensorwillgenerate384counts
foreachrevolutionofthe24toothgear.Thatslessthat1degreepercount.
Unfortunately,thisassemblyhasabout2degreesofbacklash,causingalotofthat
resolutiontobewasted.

4.5.2 Internals
Therotationsensorisaninterestinglittledevice.IfyouhadSupermansX-rayvision,
youcouldseethatitisbuiltusingtwotinyopto-interrupters.Theseareforkshaped
devicesthathaveanLEDononetineandaphotoresistorontheother.Thephoto
resistorsenseswhenanobstructionpassesbetweenitandtheLED.

Figure4-27.RotationSensorInternals.DON'TDOTHIS!!!

Therotatingbushinghasfourlittlefanbladesthatpassbetweentheopto-interruptersas
thebushingspins.Theopto-interrupteroutputchangesasabladeentersandagainasit
leaves.Thisgives8transitionsperrotationforeachsensor.Usingtwosensorsprovides
16countsperrevolutionplusallowsthesensortocalculatethedirectionofrotation..

4-67

Figure4-28.HomemadeRotationSensorMadeFromLEGOParts

Youcanusealightsensor,lamp,andmediumpulleywheeltobuildyourownrotation
sensor.Thelightsensorandlampareusedtoimplementtheopto-interrupter.Asthe
axleturns,thepulleywheelwillalternatelyblockortransmitlightfromthelamp.With
onlyonesensor,youcannotdeterminerotationdirection,butdirectioncanusuallybe
ascertainedbylookingatthemotorcommands.

Question: What is the resolution of the homemade rotation sensor in

Figure 4-28?

4.5.3 CountingErrors
TherehavebeendozensofpostsonLUGNET(LEGOUsersGroupNetwork)discussing
amysteriousproblemwiththeLEGOrotationsensor.Thereisawideheldbeliefthat
countingerrorsoccuriftherotationspeedistoofastortooslow.Exactspeedsare
uncertain,buttheyhavebeenreportedtobebelow10-20rpmorabove1200-1400rpm.
Thelargebodyofexperimentaldataavailableonthewebseemstoagreethattherotation
sensorisquitereliableifspeedsarekeptinthe601000rpmrange.

Figure4-29.AHomingSwitchtoResettheRotationSensor

Therotationsensorcanbetrickytouse,sodontimmediatelyblamecountingproblems
ifyouhavedifficultiesusingitinyourrobot.Repeatabilityproblemsaremorelikelydue
toprogrammingerrors(forgettingtoclearthesensorbeforeuseorinterpretingthesensor
4-68

readingsincorrectly),designerrors(inadequatesensorresolutionorexcessivebacklash),
controlproblems(acceleratingandturningtoofast),orvariationsininitialconditions
(notputtingeverythingintherightplacebeforepushingthestartbutton).Butifyoustill
haveproblems,aftercheckingthateverythingelseworksfine,youmightneedahoming
switch.
Ahomingswitchisasecondarysensorthatcanbeusedtocheckorresetthevalueofthe
primarysensor.ThelightscannerinFigure4-29usesatouchsensorforahoming
switch.Thecamattachedtotherotatinglightsensorpressestheswitchwhenthelight
sensorisfacingforward.PressingtheswitchnotifiestheRCXtocheckthevalueofthe
rotationsensorandresetthecountsiftheyareincorrect(thecountshouldbezeroatthe
straightaheadposition).

4.6 SensorStacking
TheRCXhasthreemotoroutputportsandthreesensorinputports,yetthechallengekit
includestwotouchsensors,twolightsensors,andonerotationsensor.Whatdoyoudo
withallthoseextrasensors?ManyFLLteamsresolvethisdilemmabyleavingthe
sensorsoutoftheirdesign.Oneteamcameupwiththecreativeideaofusingitstouch
sensorsasdecorativeeyes.Theeyeslookedcoolbutwerentveryhelpful.Themost
usefulsolutionistostackthesensors.
Stackingistheattachingofmultiplesensorstoasingleinputport.Whendonecorrectly,
theRCXisabletoreadtheinputportvalueanddeterminewhichsensorthevaluecame
from.Touchsensorsarethebestcandidatesforstacking.Theycanbestackedwithlight
sensorsorothertouchsensors.Theoretically,twolightsensorscouldbestacked,butI
wouldntknowhowtointerpretthesensorreading.Rotationsensorscannotbestacked
duetothenatureoftheirfeedbacksignals.
Table4-4.SensorReadingsforTwoStackedSensors

TouchOpen
TouchClosed
LightSensor

TouchOpen
0
1
lightlevel

TouchClosed
1
1
100

LightSensor
lightlevel
100
???

FromTable4-4,wecanseetheimportanceofplanningforsensorstackingintheearly
stagesofrobotdesign.Whenatouchsensorispressed,noothersensorsattachedtothat
inputcanberead.Anybumpersorpositionorlimitswitchesthatuseatouchsensormust
havethesensorbenormallyopen(zero).

4-69

5 RobotDrives
Avastmajorityofrobots,especiallythoseusedinindustry,areofthestationarytype.
Theymayhavehandstopickthingsupandarmstomovethingsfromheretothere,but
theyhavenolegs.Instead,theydependonotherspecializedmachinestobringthemthe
materialstheyneedfortheirworkandcartoffthefruitsoftheirlabor.Therobots
designedforFLLarequitetheopposite;theyneedtomove.Theyhaveplacestogoand
scientiststosave,andallwithoutanyoutsideinterventionorcontrol.Thiskindofrobot
iscommonlyreferredtoasanAutonomousRoboticVehicleorARV,anditisamongthe
mostdifficultkindsofrobotstobuildandprogram.
ThepartofanARVthatisresponsibleformovingaroundiscalledthemotionbaseor
motionplatform.Earlymotionbaseswereexclusivelywheeledplatformsthatonlyhad
tomovetheirrobotsaroundonasmoothlaboratoryfloor.Asrobotsmovedoutofthe
lab,automotiveandtanktyperobotsbecameincreasinglypopular.Nowadays,ARVs
arezoomingdownthehighwayat60mph,divingtothedeepestdepthsoftheocean,
walkingdownintothecauldronsofactivevolcanoes,flyingsurveillanceoverenemy
armies,androllingoverthesurfaceofMars.
ThemotionbasesforFLLrobotshaventbeenquitesoexotic.Theiroperating
environmentisclosertothesmoothlaboratoryfloorthanthecauldronofanactive
volcano.Wheeledplatformsarethemostcommon,buttracksarepopulartoo.Some
haveall-wheel-drivetohelpthemclimbinclinesortraverseruggedterrain.Afewteams
havetriedautomotivetypeplatformswithsteeredfrontwheels,butmostrobotsusesome
sortofdifferentialsteeringarrangementwhereturningisperformedbychangingthe
relativespeedsofthetwodrivemotors.
Muchofyourrobotssuccesswillbedeterminedonhowwellthestrengthsofitsmotion
basematchtheneedsofyouroverallstrategy.Whatsmoreimportant,speedor
accuracy?Istravelinginaperfectlystraightlinereallyrequired?Doyourplansrequire
lotsofturnsandmaneuveringintightquarters?Ispullingcapacityorloadcarrying
capacityimportant?Whataboutobstacles,uneventerrain,surfacevariations?Many
questionsmustbeansweredbeforebuildingcanbegin.

5.1 DifferentialDrive
Differentialdrivemotionplatformswereverypopularinearlymobilerobots.Two
wheelsmountedonasingleaxisareindependentlypoweredandcontrolled,providing
bothdriveandsteering.Steeringisperformedbychangingtherelativevelocitiesofthe
twodrivewheels.Spinningtheleftwheelfastercausestherobottoturnright.Spinning
therightwheelfastercausestherobottoturnleft.Byspinningthewheelsinopposite
directions,itispossibletoturninplace,somethingthatisimpossibletodoinan
automobile.Perhapsthemostcommonexampleofadifferentialdriveplatformin
everydaylifeisthewheelchair.

5-70

Figure5-1.ADifferentialDriveRobot

DifferentialdriverobotsareverypopularinFLL.Imsurethisisinlargepartdueto
theirinclusionintheConstructopedia.However,theyreallyareagoodplatformfor
robotcompetitions.Differentialdrivesareeasytodesignandbuild,makingthemagood
choiceforteamswithyoungchildren.Theyareveryagileandcanbequitecompact,
allowingthemtomaneuverintightspaces.Havingtwomotorsattachedtothedriven
wheelsmakesdifferentialdriverobotsverypowerfulandcapableofclimbinginclines
thatwouldstopotherrobots.

5.1.1 Casters
Becauseitishardtomakeastabletwowheeledvehicle,mostdifferentialdriverobots
haveoneormorenon-drivenwheelstoprovidebalance.Commonlycalledcasters,
idlers,orbogeys,thejobofthesewheelsistopreventtherobotfromtippingoverwhile
atthesametimehavinglittleornoimpactonlocomotionorsteering.Unlikethedriven
wheelsthathaveonlyoneaxisofmotion,thesebalancewheelsmustbeabletoturnin
anydirection.Upside-downballrollersareperfectlysuitedforthistask.Usingskidscan
alsobeagoodsolutionifthefloorissmoothandslippery.

Figure5-2.SwivelCasters

ButLEGOdoesnotmakeballbearings,andskidsarenotalwaysappropriate.Therefore,
FLLdifferentialdriverobotsusuallyuseaswivelcaster.Aswivelcasterhasoneormore
wheelswhichareattachedtoapivotinghorn.Thehornisbenttooffsetthewheelaxle

5-71

andpivotaxle.Thisoffsetmakesthecasterwheelselfaligning.Whenyourrobot
changesdirectionthecasterautomaticallyturnstothenewheading.
Aligning
Torque

Steer
Angle
Travel
Direction

D
Drag
Caster
Offset

O =CasterOffset
A =SteerAngle
D =Oxsin(A)
F =DragForce
T =AligningTorque
=FxD
=FxOxsin(A)

Figure5-3.SwivelCastersareSelfAligning

Asadifferentialdriverobotmovesforward,thegroundslidesbackwardsbeneaththe
casterwheels.Frictionbetweenthewheelandgroundgeneratesaforcepulling
backwardsonthewheel.Ifthecasterispointedinthedirectionoftravel,thedragforce
justcausesthecasterswheeltoturn.However,ifthecasterisnotpointinginthe
directionoftravel,itgeneratesanaligningtorquewhichtendstopivotthecaster.The
amountofaligningtorqueisproportionaltothecasteroffset.Casterswithalargeoffset
willhavehigheraligningtorquesforagivensteerangle.Theyaremorestableand
followbetterthancasterswithsmalloffsets.

Figure5-4.CastersGenerateSteeringForcesWhileAligning

Increasingtheoffsetwillmakeacasterlesstwitchy,butitcanalsoamplifycastersteer,
whichissomethingthatisnotverydesirableinrobotapplications.Castersteeris
somethingweareallfamiliarwithfromourexperiencewithshoppingcarts.Itisthe
tendencyofthecasterstosteerthefrontendofthecartwhiletheyalignthemselvesafter
completingaturn.Thisisparticularlynoticeableifthecartisheavilyloadedand
straighteningafterasharpcornerorreversingdirection.Whileonlymildlyannoyingina
shoppingcart,itcanbearealprobleminarobot.Excessivecastersteermakesyour
robotdifficulttocontrolandintroduceserrorsindistanceandsteeringmeasurements.
Whenthecasterwheelisnotalignedwiththedirectionoftravelitgeneratesasideways
forceasitrolls,justasthefrontwheelsofanautomobilegenerateasidewaysforce
duringsteering.Ifthefrictionbetweenthewheelandthegroundistoogreattoallowthe
castertoskid,theforceisexertedagainstthecart,causingthefrontendtomove
sideways.Asthecasterstraightensout,thesidewaysmotionbecomeslessandless
noticeable.

5-72

Question: Drawing on your shopping cart experience, how can you

minimize the caster steer effect?

5.1.2 WheelConfiguration
Earlydifferentialdriverobotsoftenhadadiamondshapedwheelconfigurationlikethat
showninFigure5-5.Theserobotsusedencoders(rotationsensors)onthetwodrive
wheelstomeasuredistancetraveledandtocontrolsteering.Therefore,itwasvery
importantthatthedrivewheelsbeinfirmcontactwiththeground.Byhavingcasters
bothforeandaft,itwaspossibletoputtherobotscenterofgravitydirectlyoverthe
drivewheels,whichsupportedalmostalloftherobotsweight.Thismaximizedthe
tractionofthedrivewheelsandminimizedtheforcesgeneratedbythecastersaligning.

CG

Figure5-5.DiamondShapedWheelLayout

Thediamondlayoutworkedgreatinthelab,glidingalongoverthesmoothflatfloors,but
itencounteredsomeseriousproblemsoutintherealworld.Toachievestaticstability
(notfalloverwhenstandingstill),avehiclemusthaveatleastthreewheels,notallona
commonaxis,touchingtheground.Ifthevehiclehasmorethanthreewheelsthereisno
guaranteethatallthewheelswillbetouchingthegroundatanygivenmoment.A
problemwiththediamondwheellayoutisthatwhenoneofthecastersdrivesovera
bumpitcausesoneofthedrivewheelstoliftupintotheair.Whenthishappens,the
robotturnsuncontrollablytowardstheraisedwheel.Bythetimethecastergetsoverthe
bump,therobotisnolongercertainofitsheadinganddistancetraveled.
Athreewheeledtriangleconfigurationfixesthisproblem,butitlosessomeofthe
advantagesofthediamondlayout.Withonlythreewheels,youareguaranteedtohave
allthreewheelsincontactwiththeground.Unfortunately,usingthreewheelsalsomeans
thatthecenterofgravitycannotbecenteredoverthedrivewheelaxis,andsomeofthe
robotsweightwillbesupportedbythecaster.Tocompensate,robotdesignersposition
theCGasclosetothedrivewheelaxisandasfarawayfromthecasteraspossible.
Movingthecasterfartherawayfromthedrivewheelsalsohelps.

5-73

CG

Figure5-6.TriangleShapedWheelLayout

Thecastercanbeplacedeitherinfrontoforbehindthedrivewheels.Adifferentialdrive
robotpivotsaboutapointcenteredbetweenthetwodrivewheels.Placingthecasterin
frontofthedrivewheelsmakesthefrontendoftherobottwitchy,verysensitiveto
steeringchanges.Placingthecasterbehindthedrivewheelsmakesthefrontendmore
stable.

5.1.3 Steering
Adifferentialdriverobotsteersbyturningthedrivewheelsatdifferentspeeds.Spinning
theleftwheelfastersteerstherobottotheright,andspinningtherightwheelfastersteers
therobottotheleft.InhisarticlefortheSeattleRoboticsSociety,G.W.Lucas8shows
thatthedrivewheelsofadifferentialdriverobotfollowconcentriccircularpathswhile
turning.Thisisshowninthefigurebelow.
R
B
A
L1
L2

L2

=TurningRadius
=WheelbaseWidth
=AngleofTurn
=InnerWheelArcLength
=OuterWheelArcLength

L1
B
W2

W1
Figure5-7.TurningRadiusisDeterminedWheelbaseandRelativeSpeed

Iftheturnangle(A)ismeasuredinradiansthenthelengthsofarcsL1andL2canbe
expressedas:
L1=AxR
L2=Ax(R+B)

UsingaPID-basedTechniqueForCompetitiveOdometryandDead-Reckoning byG.W.Lucas
www.seattlerobotics.org/encoder/200108/using_a_pid.html

5-74

Withalittlealgebraicmanipulationwecandefinetheturningradius(R)asafunctionof
thewheelbasewidth(B)andthetwoarclengths(L1andL2).
A= L2/(R+B)=L1/R
RxL2=(R+B)xL1
Rx(L2L1)=BxL1
R=BxL1/(L2L1)
Ifwehaveadifferentialdriverobotwitha4 widewheelbase,whatistheturningradius
iftheinnerwheelistravelingat18inchesperminute(ipm)andtheouterwheelat
24ipm?Whatwouldbetheheadingchangeiftherobotmaintainedthisspeedfor10
seconds?
Thereareseveralwaystosolvethisproblem,butperhapstheeasiestistocalculatethe
distanceeachwheelwouldtravelduringthe10seconds,andusethesevaluestocalculate
theturningradius.
L1=V1xTime
=18ipmx10seconds
=18ipmx10/60minutes
=3
L2 =24ipmx10/60minutes
=4
R =BxL1/(L2L1)
=4 x3 /4
=3
Nowthatweknowtheturningradius,itiseasytocalculatetheturningangle.The
turninganglejusthappenstobethesameastheangularchangeintherobotheading.
NewHeading
OldHeading

HeadingChange =TurningAngle
=L1/R
=3 /(3 /radian)
=1radian
=57.3degrees

5-75

Knowinghowfareachwheelmoved,wecancalculatethenewheadingfortherobot.
SimilarequationscancalculatehowfartherobotmovedintheNorth/Southand
East/Westdirections.Ifwewrotetherobotcontrolprogramtocontinuouslycalculate
headingandpositionbasedonthewheelmotion,wewouldbedoingodometry.
Odometryisanavigationtechniquewheredatafromwheelpositionsensorsisusedto
calculatethepositionandorientationoftherobot.Almostallland-based,mobilerobots
useodometryaspartoftheirnavigationsystem.

5.1.4 SteeringMadeEasier
Theodometryequationdiscussedintheprevioussectionrequirespositioninformation
fromeachdrivewheel.ThismakesusingodometryforyourFLLrobotabitdifficult.
Therotationsensoristhebestdeviceformeasuringwheelposition,andthechallengeset
hasonlyonerotationsensor.Onesolutionwouldbetoconstructarotationsensoroutof
alightsensorortouchsensor.Someteamshavedonethisandgottenittoworkpretty
well(andscoredsomemajorcreativityandmechanicaldesignpoints).Anothersolution
istorethinktheodometryequation,andmakeitworkwithonlyonewheelposition
sensor.
B
L2
A

=WheelbaseWidth
=OuterWheelArcLength
=Angleofturn=L2/B

L2

A
B
W2

W1

Figure5-8.PivotingAboutaWheel

Figure5-8showsthewheelmotionforazeroradiusturn.Theinnerwheelislockedin
position,andtheouterwheelpivotsaboutit.Becausethereisnorotationoftheinner
wheel,itdoesntrequirearotationsensor.Theturningangleiscalculatedusingtheouter
wheelmotionandthewheelbase.

5.1.5 StraightLineTravel
Aproblemthatmanyteamshavewiththeirdifferentialdriverobotsisgettingthemto
travelinastraightline.Differentialdriverobotsareextremelysensitivetotherelative
velocityofthetwodrivewheels.Evenaverysmalldifferenceinspeedwillresultinthe
robottravelinginanarc.Thetendencytoturncanbeminimizedthroughgoodbuilding
practices,evenweightdistributionandchoosingwellmatchedmotors.Buttotravelina
perfectlystraightlinerequiressomesortofcorrectionmechanism,eithermechanicalor
software.
First,youneedtodecideiftravelinginastraightlineisimportantornot.Ifyour
competitionstrategyisbasedonmakingperfectturnsandtravelingalonglaserstraight
paths,yourteammaybeinforsomedisappointment.Themostsuccessfulteamsbuilda
robotthat goesstraightenough andrelyonotherstrategiestocompensateforany
5-76

navigationerrors.Theseselfcorrectingrobotsarebetterabletohandletheinevitable
variationsinstartingpositionorunexpectedbumpsandslipsthatoccurduringtheheadto
headcompetition.

5.1.5.1.1 SoftwareSolution
Mostdifferentialdriverobotsuseencoders(rotationsensors)tomeasurethepositionof
eachdrivewheel.Totravelinastraightline,therobotscontrolsoftwarecontinuously
monitorstheencoderfeedbackandadjuststhepowertotheleftandrightmotorstokeep
thevalueseven.Thismethodisdifficulttoimplementwithonlyonerotationsensor
availableintheFLLchallengekit.Itrequiresthatasecondencoderbeconstructedusing
thelightsensororatouchsensor.

5.1.5.1.2 MechanicalSolutions
Inautomotiveapplicationsitisoftendesirabletolimittheslipbetweentheleftandright
drivewheels.Aclassicexampleofthisisbeingstuckinthesnow.ManytimesIhave
seencarsstuckinthesnowwithonetirespinningwildlyonanicypatchandtheother
tiresittingstationaryondrypavement.Thedifferentialsuppliesthesametorquetoeach
wheel,butbecauseonewheelisspinningfreelyontheice,themaximumtorquetothe
otherwheelisverysmall.
Manycarsinnorthernclimatesareequippedwithalimitedslipdifferentialtosolvethis
problem.Withalimitedslipdifferential,ifonewheelisspinningfasterthantheother,
thedifferentialremovestorquefromthefasterwheelandsuppliesittotheslower.This
isoftendonewithsomesortofclutchthatconvertsaslidingmotionintoatorque.

Figure5-9.SimpleLEGOSlipLimiter

ThedifferentialdriveplatforminFigure5-9usesalengthofribbedhoseasaclutchto
limitslipbetweenthetwodrivewheels.Whenonewheelspinsfasterthantheother,the
axlesslipinsidetheribbedhose.Frictionbetweentheaxlesandthehosetransmitstorque
fromthefasterwheeltotheslowerwheel.Thelongerthelengthofaxleinsidethehose
themoretorqueistransmitted.Therobotwontgoperfectlystraight,buttheamountof
turningcanbegreatlyreduced.

Question: What other LEGO parts could be used to design a slip

limiting clutch?
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Sometimesalimitedslipdifferentialisntenough.Toeliminateslipbetweentheleftand
rightdrivewheels,someoffroadvehiclesareequippedwithalockingdifferential.A
lockingdifferentialhasaswitchthatallowsittoworklikeanormaldifferential,orforces
ittobehavelikeasolidaxle.

Figure5-10.ALockingDifferential

WaybackintheGearschapter,wetalkedabouthowadifferentialcanbeusedto
measurethespeeddifferencebetweentwotiresbyreversingtherotationofoneofthe
inputshafts.ThisformsthebasisforaLEGOlockingdifferential.Preventingthe
differentialinFigure5-10fromrotatingmakesthedrivetrainbehaveasthoughtheleft
andrightwheelswereattachedtoasingleaxle.Unlockingthedifferentialallowsthe
wheelstospinindependently.

Question: Some vehicles have a button or lever in the passenger

compartment for locking and unlocking the differential. Can you think of
a scheme where the RCX could lock and unlock our LEGO implementation?

5.1.6 DifferentialSkid
Differentialskid,sometimesreferredtoasskid-steer,isavariationofthedifferential
drive.Itsnormallyusedwithtrackedvehicles(liketanks),butsometimeswith4or6
wheelplatforms(liketheBobcatskidloaderorGatorATV)aswell.Castersarenotused
inadifferentialskiddrive;allthewheelsaredriven.Wheelsontheleftsidearedriven
byonemotor,wheelsontherightbyanother.
Skidsteerconfigurationsrelyontrackorwheelslippageforsteering.Asaconsequence,
thewheelpositioninformationcannotbeusedforreliableodometry.Forthisreason,
skidsteeringisusuallyreservedfortele-operated(remotecontrolled)robotic
applications.Non-drivenmeasurementwheelscanbeaddedtoobtainodometry
informationforautonomousoperation.

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Figure5-11.APairofDifferentialSkidRobots

ManydifferentialskidrobotshavecompetedinMinnesotaFLLcompetitionsoverthe
pastfewyears,andseveralhavedonequitewell.Thesuccessfulteamsdeveloped
strategiesthatmaximizedtheirrobotsstrengthsandminimizedtheirrobotsweaknesses.
Skidsteerrobotsaregoodclimbersandcanhandlerougherterrainthanmostotherrobot
designs.Theyareasmaneuverableasadifferentialdriverobot,butlessproneto
unwanteddifferentialsteer.Andpoorodometrydataisntaproblemifyourrobotuses
linefollowingorsomeotherlandmark-basedstrategyfornavigation.

5.2 Steeringdrive
Asteeringdriveisthefamiliarconfigurationusedinautomobiles.Inasteeringdrive,
onemotorisusedforlocomotionandasecondmotorforsteering.Decouplingsteering
fromforwardmotionmakesasteeringdriveeasiertocontrolthanadifferentialdrive
wherethevelocityofeachdrivewheelmustalwaysbecarefullymeasuredand
controlled.Frontwheeledsteeringprovidesaccurateodometrywhilesupportingthe
tractionandgroundclearanceneedsofall-terrainoperation.Thismakesitapopular
choiceforoutdoorautonomousvehicles.
Ingeneral,asteeringdriverobotismoredifficulttobuildthanadifferentialdriverobot.
Itneedsadifferentialtotransferthepowerofthedrivemotortothewheels.Extra
gearingisusuallyrequiredtoamplifythetorqueoutputofthesingledrivemotor.The
steeringmechanismcanalsobedifficulttodesignusingthepartsavailableintheRISkit.
Luckily,therearemanyTechnicsteeringdriveexamplesontheweb.Aquicksearchon
LUGNETrevealedover100differentsteeringdrivevehicles.
Figure5-12showstwodifferentsteeringdriverobots.Therobotontheleftusescrown
gearsandspurgearstopivotthefrontaxles.Therobotontherighthasrackandpinion
steeringjustlikemostcarsontheroadtoday.Therobotontherightusesaspecialgear
rackthatisavailableinmanyTechnicvehiclesets,butasimilarmechanismcouldbe
builtusingthegearrackssuppliedintheRISkit.

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Figure5-12.Twosteeredwheelrobots

5.2.1 Turning
Asteeringdriverobothasanon-zeroturningradius.Thismeansthatunlikeadifferential
driverobot,asteeringdriverobotmusttranslate(moveforward,backwards,and/or
sideways)whileturning.Suchsystemsaresaidtobenon-holonomic.Inanonholonomicrobot,oneormoreofthedegrees-of-freedom(heading,position)cannotbe
controlledindependently.Thismakespathplanningmoredifficultbecauseeachheading
changewillhaveanaccompanyingpositionchange.Non-holonomicvehiclescanbe
particularlydifficulttonavigateintightspaces.Rememberthelasttimeyouparallel
parked?

DifferentialDrive

SteeringDrive

Figure5-13.PathPlanningisHarderforNon-HolonomicRobots

TheonlyodometryinformationIcouldfindonthewebwasforsteeringplatformswith
Ackermancorrection.Usedinalmosteveryvehicleyouseeontheroad,Ackerman
steeringcorrectionisamodifiedsteeringgeometrythatminimizeswheelskidwhen
turning.Duringsteering,thefourwheelsofasteeringdrivetravelalongfourconcentric
arcs.AsseeninFigure5-14,thefrontwheelsofavehiclewithAckermancorrectionare
orientedsuchthattheextendedaxisofthewheelspassesthroughthecenterofthesearcs.
Thisrequirestheinnerwheeltoturnatasharperanglethantheouterwheel.

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TurningCenter
WithAckermanCorrection

TurningCenter?
WithoutAckermanCorrection

Figure5-14.AckermanSteeringMinimizesGeometryInducedWheelSkid

WithoutAckermancorrection,thefrontwheelsbothturnthesameamountwhensteering.
Thisresultsinthemtryingtotravelalongarcswithdifferentcenters.Asthevehicle
turns,oneorbothofthefrontwheelsareforcedtoskidsideways,generatinglargeforces
onthesteeringcomponentsandproducingexcessivewearonthetires.Moreimportant
forroboticsapplications,isthefactthatyoucantcalculatesolutionsfortheodometry
equationsbecausetheturningcentercannotbeabsolutelydetermined.
ItspossiblebutdifficulttobuildaLEGOsteeringdrivewithAckermancorrection.I
foundsomewebpageswithcalculatorsfordesigningthecomponentsandgeometryanda
fewbooksdevotedtothesubject.Unfortunately,thesolutionsrequireusingspecifically
sizedcomponentsthatoftendontmapwelltomyavailableLEGOpieces.
Asimplersolutionistouseonlyonesteeredwheel.Threewheeledsteeringdrivesare
mostcommoninspecializednichemarketslikegolformeterreadercarts.Theirmain
disadvantage,atendencytotipoverwhenturningathighspeed,isnotabigproblemin
theseapplications.However,athreewheeledplatformssimplerconstructionand
odometrymakesitagoodchoiceforaLEGOrobot.
A
A =SteerAngle
L =WheelbaseLength
R =TurningRadius
=L/sin(A)

Figure5-15.TurningRadiusisDeterminedbyWheelBaseandSteeringAngle

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AsshowninFigure5-15,theturningradiusofasteeringdriveisdeterminedbythe
lengthofthewheelbaseandthesteerangleofthefrontwheel(s).Thisiswhylongtrucks
havealargeturningradiusandsmallsportscarsatightturningradius.
Letssaywehaveasteeringdriverobotwitha6 longwheelbaseandamaximumsteer
angleof30degrees.Whatistheminimumturningradiusforthefrontwheel,andhow
farwouldthefrontwheeltravelwhilecompletinga45degreeturn?
TurningRadius =L/sin(A)
=6 /sin(30degrees)
=12
TravelDistance =RadiusxAngle(inradians)
=12 x45degreesx(Piradians/180degrees)
=12 xPi/4
=9.42

5.2.2 TricycleDrive
Atricycledriveisasteereddriveplatformwithasingledrivenfrontwheelandtwo
passiverearwheels(orviceversa).Thoughitmaylookverysimilartoathreewheeled
steeringdriveplatform,atricycledrivehassomeuniquecharacteristicsthatmakeit
preferableformostroboticapplications.Themostimportantoftheseisitsabilitytoturn
inplace.

Figure5-16.TricycleDrive(Left)andSteeringDrive(Right)RobotsLookSimilar

Asdiscussedintheprevioussection,theminimumturningradiusforasteeringdriveis
determinedbythemaximumsteerangleandthelengthofthewheelbase,R=L/sin(A).
Ifthemaximumsteeranglewas90degrees,thentheturningradiuswouldbeequaltothe
wheelbaselength.Therobotcouldpivotaboutapointmidwaybetweenthetworear
wheels.
Unfortunately,asteeringdrivewillnotturnifthesteerangleis90degrees.Ifthevehicle
movesatall,thefrontwheel(s)skidsidewaysinsteadofrolling.Thisisbecausethedrive
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forcesfromtherearwheelsareperpendiculartothedirectionoftravelofthefrontwheel.
Alloftheforceisdirectedatpushingthewheelsideways,andnoneatpushingit
forwards.Sidewayswheelslipisnoticeableevenatsteeranglessignificantlylessthan
90degrees.Aboutthebestyoucanhopeforistoplacetheturningcenternearthe
outsideofthedrivewheels
TricycleDrive

SteeringDrive

A=90

L=R

Turning
Center

A<90

L R>L
Turning
Center

Figure5-17.AnySteerAngleisPossiblewithaTricycleDrive

Atricycledriverobothasthedrivemotorattachedtothesteeredwheel,allowingitto
operateatanysteerangle.Thisgivesitmaneuverabilitythatrivalsthatofdifferential
driveandskidsteeringrobots.

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