BATTLEBOTS/COMBAT
ROBOTS GET-TOGETHER AT JERRY'S WOOD-FIRED DOGS [OCT 18]
Our
dear friend, Andrew Botter, the nicest human robot encyclopedia
you could ever meet, once bought a hot dog restaurant
with his dad
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He
invited lots of SoCal teams to bring their bots, talk
shop, & entertain the patrons
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Dr.
Inferno ]|[, The Disk O' Inferno, giant nuts, antweights--the
works!
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What
a crew, including teams responsible for Particle Accelerator,
Double Jeopardy, Deep Six, Gigabyte, Malice, VDD, Mechachu,
& more!
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Instagram
post from Jerry's, advertising the event
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Another
Jerry's Instagram post for the event
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EDUCATIONAL
OUTREACH [JUN 18 - PRESENT] - (SEE EDUCATIONAL
OUTREACH GALLERY)
GOENGINEER'S
SHAPE YOUR WORLD 2017 [MAY 17]
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...and
3 giant nuts.
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To
showcase their 3D printing capabilities, GoEngineer made a 1/4-scale
printed version of The Disk O' Inferno!
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The
scale model was motorized & controlled by Blueeooth.
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Before
the experts showcased their software, the audience watched an
interview of me explaining how I used SolidWorks to design The
Disk O' Inferno.
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This
is what I look like on a big screen on Windows 7 Media Player.
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I
gave the keynote speech, chronicling 2 decades of robot designs,
from my modest 17 lb Rampage
to my considerably less modest 250 lb The Disk O' Inferno.
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Another
impressive demonstration of the capability of the printers that
GoEngineer resells was a 1:1 scale print of the enormous chassis
part!
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What
else can be done with a giant 3D print? Put some markers on
it & scan it back into the computer!
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GoEngineer
showed a thermal analysis of The Disk O' Inferno being hit with
a flamethrower...
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...and
a finite element stress analysis of the disk whacking an immovable
object. Analysis showed no failure!
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Another
demonstration showed how to generate photorealistic renderings
in a snap.
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Also
demonstrated was Composer, which can be used to make interactive
assembly & repair documentation.
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SOLIDWORKS
WORLD 2017 [FEB 17]
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The
current Infernolab stable was on display in the Product Showcase
in the Partner Pavilion at the opening event of the tour, in
Anaheim: Dr. Inferno
]|[, Towering Inferno,
& The Disk O' Inferno...
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...and
3 giant nuts.
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Also
in attendance were 3 other popular BattleBots, as well as a slew
of 15-pound student-built fighting bots.
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One
of the high points of the hgh-profile morning keynote events
was live robot fighting. The 15-pound robots went at it in the
NTMA NRL
arena, under the guidance of The Infernolab's own Richard Loehnig!
Dr. Inferno ]|[ was too pretty (& too hefty) to fight.
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I'm
looking forward to seeing how SolidWorks & GoEngineer continue
to support robot combat teams both young & old.
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GoEngineer's
after-hours party at the bolwing alley. Thanks to founder / president
/ owner Ken Coburn & his colleagues for the fine evening!
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Fortunately,
SolidWorks World will be at the LA Convention Center again next
year. Let's see how many robots I can haul in next time... :]
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AFTERWARD
[MAY 16]
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The
Disk O' Inferno got swept up in the excitement of the NBA finals.
Video.
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The
ol' spin-the-basketball-on-the-hardened-steel-pointy-tail-tip
trick.
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Passing
back & forth with Mark. What teamwork!
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The
Disk O' Inferno & Towering
Inferno appeared on Good Mythical Morning's search for
robots appropriate for a tabletop fight. Our bots were a little
too big for the to use. Aaaand, I'm really not sure what this
show is all about, but it's got a huge set of followers &
views, so I'm clearly not trendy (surprise).
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Towering
Inferno posing for the Good Mythical Morning folks.
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Regarding
The Disk O' Inferno. I think it was wise of Richard to keep
the safety guards on when these guys visited.
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BATTLEBOTS
2016 EVENT [APR 16]
Final
wiring. Most pictures of Mark are a blur--he's young, perky,
& impetuous. Most pictures of Ross are in sharp focus--he's
mature, meticulous, & cautious. The original odd couple!
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We
sported the casual t-shirts on work days. 3-piece suits were
saved for special days. Bringing beach chairs was a good move
on my part--until 3/4 of them got crunched & tossed out...
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Tuning.
Easy to transport the bot on its back, folded, with a giant
F-shaped restraint keeping it from springing up. The disk is
also pinned to prevent it from rotating.
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Ready
to go. Waiting. Probably the shortest (in height) robot in the
whole event, & one of the longer ones too.
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In
the folded position, with the tail acting as top armor against
overhead hammer bots, or poised to bring some downward slaps
itself!
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Spotlight
added later to highlight the hundreds of disco ball mirrors.
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All
set up on the pit table on display: signs, sponsor banner, safety
guards, etc.
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Going
through the rotating video capture exercise to generate on-screen
animation graphics.
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Still
shiny during the photo shoots.
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Debating
poses with the photographer...both mine & the bot's.
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One
of the runs in the test box.
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Grand
entrance: strut, strut, strut, wiiiiiiind up, & POINTY POSE
NOW!
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The
Bee Gees backing up Travolta.
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Glad
our sponsors got good on-screen exposure. Ross applies spotlight
to disco ball, I do the pointy pose yet again, Richard &
Mark roll their hands (Mark earns the difficulty multiplier
for doing it while holding the radio transmitter).
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Complicated
action shot in the fight against Chomp: Chomp flames & swings
down, The Disk O' Inferno puts the tail upright to block the
swing, Chomp pops up high & doesn't land the blow. Full
fight video.
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Post-fight,
our fans swarm us for a photo op.
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BUILD
[APR 16]
First
subassembly: Ampflow
gearmotors, NPC
Colson wheels, our custom hubs & hubacps. Detailed assembly
drawings with BOMs make for efficient assembling!
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That
complicated chassis took a long time to machine. We did much of
our wiring & layout on a 1:1 printout.
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Mark
getting ready to program the speed controllers, Ross planning
wiring, & Jason kitting fasteners & other COTS.
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The
disco mirror precision layout was performed per ASME Y14.5M, with
tolerances besting those of a finest CNC mill. Another masterpiece
by Art By Ji.
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Disk
& tail weapon subassemblies were the next to come together,
with flair & everything.
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Richard
& Jason test-fitting the weapon subassemblies. It's beginning
to look like a bot!
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Installing
the drivetrain subassemblies & weapon motors. Routing wires,
cutting them to length, & crimping on connectors.
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The
dense, compact, & light chassis is what allowed enough weight
for 2 powerful weapons. But it did tend to make cable management
challenging...
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FINISHED
PARTS [MAR 16]
Disk
weapon: 48 lb, cut from 1 billet of tool steel, single tooth w/
asymmetric pockets for balance.
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Chassis
Frame: 48 lb, cut from 1 billet of aluminum 6061. Not many screws
needed to assemble this bot!
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Tail
Frame: 16 lb, cut from 1 billet of aluminum, awaiting disco dance
floor paint job.
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Tail
Shaft: 7 lb of heat-treated tool steel.
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Chassis
Floorpan: 13 lb, cut from 1 billet of aluminum 6061, dozens of
registraton featues to lock to Chassis Frame.
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4
Tail Tips, each made from tool steel. 2 installed, & 2 spares.
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2
Tail Pivot Blocks, which held bushings that supported the Tail
Shaft. Interlocked into features in the Chassis Frame to handle
abusive impacts.
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EDMed
giant steel wrench to torque giant Trantorque keyless bushing
that held Disk to Disk Shaft.
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MACHINING
PARTS AT NTMA
[FEB 16]
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