Botcoin management
Botcoins were held and dispensed by the the hopper, since it made the task much easier. First, the hopper provided a large area to catch the falling botcoins. Second, it also provided a convenient funnel for dispensing the botcoins. Botcoins were then dispensed in an all-or-nothing fashion. This meant that no physical mechanism was used to restrict the number of botcoins dispensed. Instead, the regulation was done in software by only requesting s specific number of coins, depending on the target exchange.
The hopper itself was designed to be lightweight so the lifting mechanism was only loaded by the coins. Instead of using 1/4" acrylic, like the majority of the robot, 1/8" Duron was used for the hopper to meet the lightweight requirement. The design of the hopper could have been enhanced to allow it to protrude from the robot body, and decrease the number of coins that missed the target.
The lifting mechanism, a servo motor with a cam-rod attached, provided the lifting force for the hopper. The servo motor rotated, which caused a rod to act like a cam, and push the hopper up enough to cause the coins to slide out. While this was a reliable and efficient mechanism, the lifter could have been moved closer to the fulcrum to increase the lift angle.
The hopper itself was designed to be lightweight so the lifting mechanism was only loaded by the coins. Instead of using 1/4" acrylic, like the majority of the robot, 1/8" Duron was used for the hopper to meet the lightweight requirement. The design of the hopper could have been enhanced to allow it to protrude from the robot body, and decrease the number of coins that missed the target.
The lifting mechanism, a servo motor with a cam-rod attached, provided the lifting force for the hopper. The servo motor rotated, which caused a rod to act like a cam, and push the hopper up enough to cause the coins to slide out. While this was a reliable and efficient mechanism, the lifter could have been moved closer to the fulcrum to increase the lift angle.