#robotics Logs

Nov 08 2014

10:43 rue_house http://www.cnccookbook.com/img/MillStuff/TPGBDovetail/P6143491.JPG damn, I could make that!
11:53 Tom_itx yes
11:53 Tom_itx but could you do it accurately?
11:54 Tom_itx i was looking for a bit like that
11:54 Tom_itx i can't remember if i found one or not but i may have one
15:02 wolfmanjm seems like that bit could be made on a lathe if HSS is appropriate :)
15:02 wolfmanjm that is almost like a fly cutter
15:09 rue_shop2 I have the insert
15:09 rue_shop2 its just an insert holder
15:09 rue_shop2 lathe + hacksaw
15:09 rue_shop2 +- hammer
17:31 GuShH rue_shop2: just get an HSS one, but if you have the inserts... do it yourself, however you need to get it right and without a milling machine, you'll spend a while with the file
17:31 GuShH I don't see how the hammer would work, other than for the center mark
17:31 GuShH keep in mind, the insert type matters.
17:31 GuShH a lot.
17:31 GuShH I never used my hss dovetail cutter
17:31 ShH sh
17:32 GuShH problem with two flutes is that you have to feed it very slowly, I don't see it working properly with just one
17:32 Tom_itx GuShH
17:32 GuShH and by flute I mean cutter, ya know
17:32 GuShH Tom_itx
17:32 Tom_itx did you see my spindle drive fix?
17:32 GuShH nope
17:33 ShH was hoping someone would show up today and deliver something he really wants/needs but I haven't heard from this perso
17:33 Tom_itx http://tom-itx.ddns01.com:81/~webpage/cnc/new_pulleys/timing_pulley_index.php
17:34 GuShH nieat
17:34 GuShH neat*
17:34 GuShH I'll be doing a direct drive conversion to the milling machine eventually, but the big ass belt and pulleys are not cheap
17:34 Tom_itx hopefully i won't wear so many belts out now
17:34 GuShH is it working nicely?
17:34 Tom_itx no but i think it's worth it
17:35 Tom_itx it was
17:35 Tom_itx i screwed up the motor and need to find one
17:35 ShH p
17:35 GuShH I'm glad I replaced the bearings on the 3 phase motor, and got a vfd for it. runs smooth
17:35 Tom_itx the bearing was noisy so i thought i'd fix it but it's not made to be easily replaceable
17:35 GuShH eek
17:36 ShH used the half-finished homemade press to pull the bearings out an
17:36 GuShH I've yet to figure out how to remove the JT5 arbor on this chuck I got...
17:36 Tom_itx well i didn't think both ends would be pressed
17:36 GuShH heat didn't work for me, brute force didn't work.
17:37 Tom_itx and internal brushes which are impossible to get to
17:37 GuShH darn
17:37 GuShH how much is a new one?
17:37 GuShH or can you find it used in good condition
17:37 GuShH although that kinda defeats the purpose
17:37 GuShH or rather the point
17:37 GuShH but yeah when bearings go bad it sucks
17:38 GuShH I should take a picture of all the bearings I replaced on this thing, I got really sick of bearings.
17:38 ShH must be insane for wanting more used machi
17:38 GuShH Tom_itx: you know if some vehicle / automotive belt/pulley setup could be adapted to machinery in general?
17:39 GuShH or should I really look into GT
17:39 GuShH won't be doing this this year though
17:40 Tom_itx GT would be better
17:40 Tom_itx i used 3mm GT2 but on a bigger machine i'd use 5mm GT2 probably
17:41 Tom_itx the GT2 series supposedly has more belt contact than other series
17:43 Tom_itx i doubt the automotive are any different, just adapted for that market
17:44 Tom_itx and are probably HTD or MXL series which are more squared off than the GT2 series
17:46 ShH idly squares off rue_s
17:53 GuShH Tom_itx: the gt pulleys are extruded / pressed (well the profile seems to be) however it looks like it could be easily cut
17:53 GuShH if one wanted a custom pulley
17:55 GuShH I have a divider and a shaper attachment, just wondering.
18:43 Tom_itx steel or aluminum?
18:43 Tom_itx somebody got some steel ones and they said they were powdered steel
18:44 Tom_itx the aluminum look like they are extruded with a hub turned on the side
18:44 Tom_itx they said the powdered steel was hard to machine
18:44 Tom_itx the aluminum i got was easy
20:34 anton02 what's the difference between mindstorms and robotic invention 2.0
20:55 Walkerdine Newbie here looking for advice
20:55 Walkerdine Basically where to start
21:33 Walkerdine hmmm I thougt more people would be in here
21:34 Jak_o_Shadows eh
21:50 Walkerdine There doesn't actually seem to be too many things about robotics anywhere
21:50 Walkerdine at least not from what I can tell
21:51 Hyratel Walkerdine, first you must define "robotics" for yourself
21:51 Hyratel it's such a catchall word
21:54 Hyratel Walkerdine, what do you mean when you say "robotics"?
21:56 Walkerdine building something that automates or does x I guess
21:57 Walkerdine The first thing that usually comes to mind is robots that are used in manufacturing
21:58 Hyratel what kind of something?
21:58 Hyratel because the nature of [X task] will strongly define the solution set
22:07 Walkerdine I'm not sure
22:11 Hyratel Walkerdine, well, there is no "general purpose automation" at present
22:11 Hyratel you must first define your problem
22:14 Walkerdine Well, I guess I'm just looking for more information on the field right now
22:14 Hyratel which feild?
22:15 Hyratel there's a LOT
22:15 Walkerdine Well, Around my area its all manufacturing
22:15 Walkerdine I'm not sure what the definition of any other field of it is
22:16 Hyratel thats why you have to define a problem, even if it's just "grab a thing"
22:16 Hyratel then you can start asking the important questions
22:17 Hyratel such as "what is my thing?" "how do I know it's /my/ thing?" "how do I know where to grab?"
22:18 Hyratel "What is my thing?" you can have it strictly defined
22:18 Hyratel or you can have a system that can handle several Things
22:20 Walkerdine I guess I'm trying to ask more about career prospects
22:21 Hyratel can't help you
22:21 Hyratel the industry doesn't know what it wants
22:21 Hyratel and it poorly describes what it does know
22:21 Hyratel you're better off being a HobbyPro
22:33 Hyratel Walkerdine, so where do your skills lie?
22:34 Walkerdine I'm studying to be a computer engineer currently
22:34 Hyratel that's such a vague title, it bugs the hell out of me
22:34 Hyratel and tells me nothing about what you do
22:34 Walkerdine Electrical engineering with a few programming classes
22:34 Hyratel better, but still doesn't say much
22:35 Hyratel tell me as if I was interviewing you for a project and want to make sure you have skills that will contribute to it
22:36 Walkerdine Well I'm not that far into the core of it so the most I could tell ya is that I've taken a basic electronics class and I know a little C/C++ and MATLAB
22:37 Walkerdine I've also been employed in the manufacturing world for 2 and a half years now
22:37 Walkerdine but what I have been doing is mechanical
22:37 Hyratel so are you trying to get into Sensors/Sensor interpretation, machine learning, mechatronics, learning algorithms...?
22:38 Walkerdine Machine learning and Mechatronics both appeal to me
22:39 Hyratel sensors are important to both
22:39 Hyratel both target acquisition, target handling, and proprioception
22:39 Hyratel do those three classes make sense?
22:40 Walkerdine Yeah
22:40 mrdata are there more?
22:40 Hyratel those are what I can think of off the top of my head
22:41 Walkerdine I'm not sure
22:43 Walkerdine Idk what I would end up doing with a mechatonics degree
22:43 mrdata i dont know if that list is congruent, or represents domains of roughty equal complexity
22:43 mrdata *roughly
22:43 Hyratel I don't think it does
22:44 mrdata and idk if it covers the problem space
22:44 Hyratel but those domains /are/ important for say, a robotic arm that has to isolate and remove items in arbitary/random positions on a conveyor belt
22:44 mrdata okay
22:44 Hyratel which is a good middle ground test case
22:45 mrdata sure, you dont want it to try to drag its arm through the floor, etc
22:45 Hyratel that's where Proprioception (and by extension, inverse kinematics) comes in
22:45 Hyratel IK is the coompyutation of where the arm needs to be to place the Effector in the desired location
22:45 Walkerdine What do you guys do?
22:46 Hyratel also including avoiding obstacles that the arm might collide with
22:46 Hyratel me? I'm an armchair hobbyist
22:46 Hyratel but I read a lot
22:48 Walkerdine armchair hobbyist?
22:49 Hyratel I don't have the materials or funds to /do/ anything with the skills I've acquired by reading
22:49 Hyratel although I've been in and mentoring a local FIRST Robotics team for the past decade
22:50 Walkerdine Team 67 reporting in
22:53 Hyratel *crisp salute* 1793, out of Norview HS
22:55 Walkerdine My team won the championship 2 years in a row
22:57 Loshki Walkerdine: I think you are wise to plan ahead. See e.g. http://robohub.org/jobs-for-roboticists. The field seems to attract dissatisfied mathematicians. Research local opportunities, or consider moving, whichever is more important. Ask the people where you're taking classes...
23:08 Walkerdine I was on the robotics team in high school for 4 years and I always wanted to do something with that in my career
23:09 Walkerdine I just need to find my place
23:09 Walkerdine Which mechatronics seems to be calling my name
23:29 Hyratel I /like/ teaching people that word
23:29 Hyratel "mechatronics"
23:29 Hyratel it covers most of the nebulous idea of "robotics"
23:29 Hyratel while still being a specific skill and discipline set
23:30 Jak_o_Shadows Did you know mechatronics comes from the words electronics and mechanics?
23:30 Walkerdine mhm
23:31 Walkerdine Its a masters degree at my school
23:32 Walkerdine I'm gonna go Computer Engineering -> Mechatronics
23:52 Hyratel Walkerdine, mechatronics is a fun study. what kind of stuff do you like in it?
23:58 Walkerdine I just want to know everything that goes into it
23:59 Walkerdine idk why but I want the knowledge to make things