| Question: Can a robot be built with the ability to go forward, turn and then go forward again? Of course. Can it be built with the following restrictions? 1. Use only one motor. 2. No differentials allowed. 3. No more than one robotics invention system. 4. Only one worm gear allowed. 5. Only one expansion pack allowed. Well the answer is a little fuzzy. Because of the massive amount of gears used in Straight-Away, there was so much friction that it couldn�t move itself half the time. However, if you hold the robot in mid air, the things asked in the �Question� are done correctly. The secret is in 4 9-tooth gears and 1 worm gear. Once put in forward the gear will actually slide upwards and then stop at the end and make the robot go forward. When put in reverse, the, well, reverse happens. I learned this concept from Building Robots with Lego Mindstorms. And since a different number of gears is placed on one side, one wheel will go in the opposite direction when run in reverse, thus turning the robot. |
