Mechanical Paths and Time Estimates
The mechanical track is arranged as a full sequence, but you don't need to complete every module in order. Choose the path that matches your current role, then return to the other modules when your work requires them.
The estimates assume a student reads the lesson, works the calculator with their own robot's numbers, and completes the exercise at the end. They do not include build time for the mechanism itself. A team with shop access and a mentor may move faster. A team learning the tools at the same time should allow more time.
New Member Path
Goal: be useful in the shop within two meetings, without breaking anything or getting hurt.
Recommended order: Modules 0, 1, and 2. Then Module 3 lessons 3.1 and 3.2.
Estimated time: 5 to 8 hours.
Checkpoint: you can work safely on every tool your team owns, read a caliper to a thousandth, tap a hole without snapping the tap, and write a notebook entry that another student can act on.
Have new members complete Lesson 2.1 before they use a drill. In particular, make sure they know why every workpiece must be clamped instead of held by hand.
Drivetrain Path
Goal: own the drivetrain, from wheel choice through the math that decides whether it can push.
Recommended order: Modules 3, 4, 6, then 7. Add 9.2 if you are also sizing the drive wiring.
Estimated time: 12 to 18 hours.
Checkpoint: you can state whether your drivetrain is motor limited or traction limited, prove it with both a calculation and a wall-push test, and explain why the two agree or do not.
If a drivetrain feels strong on blocks but stalls while pushing on the field, check whether it is motor limited. Lesson 7.3 covers the calculation and a short wall-push test you can use to confirm it.
Mechanism Designer Path
Goal: design intakes, slides, and arms that work at the ninetieth attempt, not the first.
Recommended order: Modules 4, 6, 8, then 10. Add Module 5 if you are doing your own CAD.
Estimated time: 16 to 24 hours.
Checkpoint: you can compute the worst case load on your mechanism, choose a reduction with real margin, and produce a measured reliability figure from at least 25 trials.
Ask mechanism leads to identify the worst-case angle and the load at that position. They should know those figures well enough to explain how the motor and reduction were selected.
CAD Path
Goal: design the robot in CAD so mistakes cost minutes rather than parts.
Recommended order: Module 5 in full, then Module 4 for the hardware you are modelling, then Module 11.1 for tolerances. Work the exercises in CAD Practice Exercises alongside the lessons.
Estimated time: 10 to 16 hours, plus practice time in the tool.
Checkpoint: you can build a fully defined sketch, assemble a mechanism with correct mates, drive it through its range to find interference, and produce a drawing someone else can fabricate from.
Electrical Path
Goal: wire a robot that passes inspection and survives the day.
Recommended order: Module 9 in full, then 4.2 for the fasteners that hold it all down, then 11.3 for inspection.
Estimated time: 6 to 10 hours.
Checkpoint: you can size a wire for a given current and run length, explain why the drop calculation uses twice the length, and walk the robot through the electrical section of the inspection checklist without an inspector present.
When a mechanism becomes unreliable later in the day, check the battery, connectors, and crimps as well as the mechanism itself. Lesson 9.2 explains how voltage drop develops under load.
Fabrication Path
Goal: make parts that fit the first time.
Recommended order: Modules 2, 3, then 11. Add 4.4 for stack-ups.
Estimated time: 8 to 12 hours.
Checkpoint: you can choose a fit from function, know which direction your shop's processes err in, and produce a part that assembles without persuasion.
Design Lead Path
Goal: run the process, not just a subsystem.
Recommended order: Modules 0, 1, 10, then skim 3, 6, 7, and 8 for the vocabulary. Add 11 before your first event.
Estimated time: 14 to 20 hours.
Checkpoint: you can run a design review that produces a list with owners, and you can look at any subsystem on your robot and ask the question that finds the problem.
The design lead doesn't have to be the team's best builder. They do need to ask for load calculations and trial counts, and make those checks part of the team's routine.
Suggested Weekly Rhythm
A workable meeting shape for a team running both tracks:
| Meeting | Software side | Engineering side | Together |
|---|---|---|---|
| Early week | Lesson plus simulator | Lesson plus calculator | Ten minute standup on blockers |
| Mid week | Implement on the robot | Build or prototype | Test the mechanism with its code |
| Late week | Debug from telemetry | Failure analysis on what broke | Notebook entries, everyone |
Move at a pace that lets each student explain the subsystem they work on: what it does, what load it carries, why it was designed that way, and what they would check first after a failure.
If You Only Have One Weekend
Before your first competition, and in this order: Lesson 2.1 (safety), Module 11.3 (inspection), Module 11.4 (match day), and Lesson 4.2 (fasteners that come loose). That is roughly three hours and it addresses the four things most likely to end your event early.
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