As I bring each component into SOLIDWORKS and mate them together, I want to share what I learn as I work on it. This actually helps me organize my thoughts and hopefully it will help other people with their own projects.
Having a CAD model of every robot that is created can provide an advantage in all aspects of the engineering process and the project being worked on. Whenever there may need to be any 3D printed parts added to the robot (to improve stability) for instance, having the robot on SOLIDWORKS (or other CAD software) is vital. The reason it is so vital is because all the dimensions are already there for you to base your new part off of.
I noticed that the side of one of our bot/lift (highlighted areas) were not stable and might cause problems in the future, therefore I opened the assembly model and started designing a bracket to hold that side steady. Instead of reverse engineering every dimension with a ruler, to figure out the dimension i need for the bracket, the CAD model I assembled earlier helped me create the part in a more efficient way.
Above is a picture of the bracket I designed to help stabilize the side of our Big Bot. I didn't go overboard with how the part looks, because we were on a time crunch. However, each feature was designed in a specific way, so it will be able to be 3D printed and satisfy its purpose (holding the side panel together). The holes were created on a flat surface, to avoid any problems with mounting.
I also noticed a few other parts of the Big Bot that needs to be stabilized, so I will start to model up parts to improve the bot before our next competition.
The Small Bot is already fully assembled, and wont be changing before the next competition, therefore I'm going to start modeling up the rest of our Small Bot, for any future improvement designs that might be needed. Below is the CAD of our Small Bot. Stay Tune for more!
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