Mechanical Principles
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General
- Build for modularity: Over the course of the build season, you'll have new ideas about upgrades to mechanisms. Designing for modularity allows you to swap these out quickly, getting the robot back in the hands software and drive with as little disruption as possible. Robot downtime is time that software isn't getting to tune autonomous and drive team isn't getting to practice!
- Build for maintainability: In line with building for modularity, you want the robot to be as easy to fix as possible. Stuff will break during the season, so it's important that it's easy to fix! Try to keep bolts accessible and motors unblocked.
- Stay organized: Keep track of the parts you're using to build your mechanism. Keep bolts sorted into the parts containers. Once you're done with a part, put it back where it belongs. In a disorganized workspace, it's difficult to tell whether the bolt you found on the table came off the robot (and we need to search for where it belongs lest the robot fall apart on the field), or has been sitting there since 2021 and no one has cleaned it up.