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5. Triangulation Bracket

When attaching two bars of c channel, one experiences difficulty in triangulating the two channels so that they cannot shift or bend under pressure. In the past competition teams have used a shaft collar with a coupler and standoffs or a cut piece of c channel to triangulate however, this gives only a limited range of motion to the coupler. With the new triangulation bracket, triangulating between perpendicular c channels is made easy at any angle or direction. The triangulation bracket has two pivots, one where it meets the c channel and one where it meets the standoff to allow for more range of motion. A bracket is placed on each end of the standoff and then bolted to one of the c channels. In a complete robot this is useful for c channels that are attached to are vertically attached to a drive base that have force being horizontally applied to them as without solid triangulation the vertical c channel tends to pivot. It is also useful for keeping a drive base parallel as bolts tend to allow small movements that misalign the chassis. I used Inventor ver. 2016 to create this design. I started by taking measurements of the c channel and the bolts to figure out how big and how thick I wanted to make the pieces then I designed the rotation bracket by making a base that would attach to the c channel then drawing and extruding a rotation point for the rotation joint. I figured out the size of the bolts than used the extrusion function to make the holes. I then used the chamfer and fillet function to smooth and round the edges. I made the rotation joint so that it would be able to rotate in the rotation bracket with a bolt through it. I made a hole in the top of it small enough that a coupler could be screwed into it to allow a standoff to attach to it. Again i used the chamfer and fillet functions to smooth and round the edges. I then tested it in an assembly to see if the two pieces fit together and if they fit to a c channel. after testing to make sure everything fit together I 3d printed it. From this project I learned how to make parts that fit multiple specifications and how to 3d print parts using Inventor. I also learned how to effectively use functions on Inventor. Through Inventor I am able to CAD an entire robot or certain functions of a robot before I build it which is beneficial in finding the right design in minimal time. Inventor will help me in my career path because it teaches me not only how to design, but how to use software to create physical components that I can test it. photos of 3D printed bracket are included: