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2005-10-13

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The Merits and Benefits of Plastics Components for Robots

Seattle, WA, USA -- (Jobwerx News) -- igus plastics cable carriers, continuous-flex cables, plastic bearings and linear guide systems help University of Arkansas students build robots.

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Students at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock used Energy Tube and DryLin® linear bearings to build a robot for the 2005 FIRST Robotics Competition. For the past six years, the University of Arkansas team has been participating in FIRST (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology) Robotics, a hands-on engineering competition where teams of students are challenged to design, build and program a robot to perform varying tasks.

Two students and one professor used donated components from igus® Inc., the leading developer of Energy Chain Systems®, Chainflex® continuous-flex cables and iglide® plastic bearings, in their robot - Green Smog - designed specifically for a game called Triple Play. During the challenge, two teams of robots go head-to-head in a competition of precision and wits. In order to win, Green Smog had to place large four-sided frames on top of tetrahedron goals.

Green Smog - Click on photo for high resolution image.

To accomplish this objective, the team, comprised of Traig Born, James Tidwell and Dr. Andrew Wright, equipped Green Smog with a vertical lift they called the liftetup. The device, made of a scissor-lift module, used DryLin R lubrication-free, maintenance-free linear bearings to increase the efficiency of the module by 50 percent.

The team also used a System E2 Energy Tube, an enclosed style cable carrier, to manage and protect the numerous wires used to keep the robot running. In addition to keeping the cables from entangling or being damaged by their competitor's robots, the lightweight feature of the E2 Energy Tube also enabled the team to reduce the weight of its robot, a crucial requirement in qualifying for the event.

University of Arkansas Team - Click on photo for high resolution image.

During the seeding rounds, the University of Arkansas' Green Smog placed 12th out of 52 competing teams at the St. Louis regional. Wright, the team's advisor, attributed some of his students' success to the help provided by igus and the Y.E.S. Program.

"We have been an active part of the Y.E.S. Program since its inception and were very excited to receive free products and support from igus," said Wright. "The Y.E.S. Program is a great way to get students excited about engineering and to make it easier for them to participate in enriching competitions such as FIRST Robotics."

To learn more about the University of Arkansas' 2005 FIRST robot, please visit theduchy.ualr.edu/igus/.

Igus Inc., founded in 1985 and based in East Providence, R.I., develops and manufactures industry-leading plastic cable carriers, continuous-flex cables, plastic bearings and linear guide systems. With more than 28,000 products available from stock, the company meets the motion control and machinery component needs of customers worldwide. Product lines include Energy Chain Systems to protect and house moving cables, Chainflex continuous-flex cables, iglide self-lubricating, oil-free, plastic bearings, DryLin linear guide systems and igubal® spherical bearings.

DryLin, igus, Energy Chain System, Chainflex, iglide and igubal are registered trademarks of igus Inc.

The Y.E.S. (Young Engineers Support) Program, from Igus® Inc. is designed to foster the mechanical design ideas and inventions of students who have a passion for engineering. The program aims to not only support students and engineers, but also educate them on the merits and benefits of plastic components. The program offers free donations to students and engineering competitions across the U.S. and Canada. The benefits of the Y.E.S. program are boundless for both igus and young engineers.

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