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I've got wall-to-wall shag carpet in my living room. Can the
Robodyssey work on this, or does it prefer a flat surface?

Some 2 wheel robots (2 main wheels, sometimes with a small third
wheel) get hung up on shag carpet and I'd hate to spend $250 without
knowing how well this might work.

Eric


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Eric,

The mouse has nice wide skateboard wheels so those should do well on shag.
But, there are a few edges on the chassis that carpet may snag on. But, I
don't
think you will find any robot worth having that won't have this issue.

FYI, I have a mouse and like it allot!

Regards,

Chris

----- Original Message -----
From: "Eric Engler"
To:
Sent: Saturday, February 17, 2007 10:39 PM
Subject: [BasicX] Does the Robodyssey Mouse work well on a shag carpet?
> I've got wall-to-wall shag carpet in my living room. Can the
> Robodyssey work on this, or does it prefer a flat surface?
>
> Some 2 wheel robots (2 main wheels, sometimes with a small third
> wheel) get hung up on shag carpet and I'd hate to spend $250 without
> knowing how well this might work.
>
> Eric
> Yahoo! Groups Links
>


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--- In b...@yahoogroups.com, "Eric Engler" wrote:
> I've got wall-to-wall shag carpet in my living room. Can the
> Robodyssey work on this, or does it prefer a flat surface?

Hi Eric,

I teach robotics and own about 30 of the Mouse robots. My students
and I have run them on various surfaces, but never on thick, shag
carpet. So I borrowed a sample carpet from Home Depot and tested our
robots on 1.125" thick shag. Here are a few observations:

1. The Mouse does work on the thick shag, but, as expected, the ride
isn't too smooth and results will vary. That is, don't expect the
precision you would get on a smooth surface.

2. Its motion is more precise when moving linearly than when turning.

3. The Mouse comes with two tail support options: a smooth phenolic
ball and a swiveling tail wheel assembly. Both work on the shag, but
the tail wheel offers a significantly better performance (as shown in
the video below).

4. Recently, Robodyssey upgraded the wheels for their Mouse. The
new wheels provide a better grip on hard, smooth surfaces -- and they
work better on shag carpet, too. In fact, the old wheels didn't
provide any traction on the carpet.

But don't take my word for it. You can view a video of my test
carpet test at my book's website:
http://www.basicxandrobotics.com/demo/. (Scroll down
to "Robodyssey's Mouse on Shag Carpet".) The video shows the robot
operating with both the phenolic ball and tail wheel.

Hope this helps.

chris

P.S. The Mouse is a superior product and my students and I love it.


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--- In b...@yahoogroups.com, "Chris Odom" wrote:
>
> --- In b...@yahoogroups.com, "Eric Engler" wrote:
> > I've got wall-to-wall shag carpet in my living room. Can the
> > Robodyssey work on this, or does it prefer a flat surface?

> I teach robotics and own about 30 of the Mouse robots. My students
> and I have run them on various surfaces, but never on thick, shag
> carpet. So I borrowed a sample carpet from Home Depot and tested our
> robots on 1.125" thick shag.

Wow, that's going well beyond normal expectations, Chris! I checked
out your site and I am amazed at how much effort you put into it.

I work with book publishers occasionally, and I have never seen an
author give this much support to people who buy their books!

I envy your students. They probably can't understand the subtle boost
you're giving their career. Even if they don't get into electronics or
programming, you're stimulating their brain cells and helping them to
visualize many possibilities. This is the key goal of educators and
it's sorely lacking in most schools.

Eric


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You can make your own and just buy some of the parts from them. Then you will save some money and learn from the experence. If you would like some ideas email me and I could send you a picture of my version.

Eric Engler wrote:
I've got wall-to-wall shag carpet in my living room. Can the
Robodyssey work on this, or does it prefer a flat surface?

Some 2 wheel robots (2 main wheels, sometimes with a small third
wheel) get hung up on shag carpet and I'd hate to spend $250 without
knowing how well this might work.

Eric

---------------------------------
Don't get soaked. Take a quick peak at the forecast
with theYahoo! Search weather shortcut.

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