Chapter 6: Building stragegies

The topics discussed in chapter 6 are Studless Building Techniques, maximizing Modularity, loading the structure, putting it all together: chassis modularity and load, and hybrid robots: using studless and studded lego pieces. With the new lego parts, studless bricks are now taking over studded bricks. Studless bricks are more flexible but that doesnt mean weaker. Four different beam arrangements are given. Arrangement A is the straight beam. Arrangement B is the L shaped beam. Arrancement C is the is a multiple beams hooked together in a way so there are beams facing every direction. Finally arrangement D is where there are two beams connected by a rod. Arrangement A alone isnt very useful but when hooked to something else, it can provide stability. Arrangement B is used to make a more rigid assembly. Arrangement C can connect two white beams. Arrangement D is useful to like the two beams in option A but it will not work under tension. Combining these four configurations can give you a light and sturdy robot. An important note was also given about the pegs. It says that the black and blue pegs are better to use when connecting beams because they fit tighter. The gray and tan ones are better suited for moving parts. The next section was about modularity which is where you build the robot in sections that can be removed and used for other projects and can also be removed without having to deconstruct the whole robot. Sometimes you have to give up a little modularity to get the robot more compact but the more modular the robot, the easier it will be to handle. Loading the structure was the next section. To start off, the book says to keep the wheel close to the supporting beam because it acts as a lever the further out it goes. The gears also need to be close to supporting beams to ensure that there is minimal friction in the system. If there are two gears, it is a good idea to connect the two axles with a beam. In the next section, all of these concepts are put together. It goes on to say how it is good to separate the left and right drive assemblies which provides better modularity. Also, it mentions that you should put the load of the NXT to where it shares the load equally throughout the robot. Chapter 6 has helped me finish the drag race challenge and the tractor challenge by making it easier to make modifications and increase the strength of my robot while making it lighter at the same time.