I have been meaning to get this out a long time ago, but this model was characterized by delays, long delays.
This was supposed to be a quick attempt on making a 6 wheeled vehicle with steering on both front and back wheels, and all wheels having power. My initial model is a clear indication of my ambitions with this project:
Somewhere along the road I decided to try to add pendular suspension and it slowly turned into a full blown project. Then I started delaying the project, with me not even touching it for periods of up to 6 months.
The steering module is the most important part of the build, with steering and drive being controlled from each side of the axle it suspends on. I tried to keep it small and strong, while including a differential. I tried to figure out how to get the power through the steering, but I didn’t manage to find a solution which was small enough, so I ended up using those Universal Joints. It is not a good solution, as only a little bit of friction actually holds the wheel in place.
To improve the amount of distance the suspension can work with, I made the connection to the spring so it can detach when the spring on the other side is being pressed together.
To keep the overall height of the model down, I placed the NXT motors between the modules, which worked rather well. As a side effect it also gave the build a very low center of gravity. One thing which required special attention was to keep a smooth surface to prevent the modules getting stuck on the motors.
I do really hate the shape of the NXT motors though, it makes them nearly impossible to incorporate them into a space-efficient model.
All in all, I can’t really say I’m satisfied with the build. While the entire model is very robust, the wheels can easily pop off making the strength of the rest of the model kinda pointless. Also the suspension on the middle wheels should really have been something else than pendular suspension, as it causes the front or back wheels to lift off the ground.
One of my goals with the project was to learn how to do wireless bluetooth communication in C++ from my computer to the NXT. I did succeed, but I never got it polished up with joystick support as I wanted…
January 26th, 2020 11:34
Is there any way that you could/would offer building instructions (or more pictures to reverse engineer) of your initial build (third picture)? I would love it!
January 26th, 2020 16:09
I can give you the other photos I took at least, they are all the way back from 2011 so it is limited how much I remember myself, but I think the photos should be enough to figure out how the important bits:
https://spillerrec.dk/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/IMG_0584-scaled.jpg (The underside showing the gear train)
https://spillerrec.dk/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/IMG_0581-scaled.jpg (A clearer view of the rack and pinion steering.
The steering wheels are directly connected to two thin Liftarm Triangle pieces: https://www.bricklink.com/v2/catalog/catalogitem.page?P=2905#T=C
They are connected to the driving axles using Universal joints pieces: https://www.bricklink.com/v2/catalog/catalogitem.page?P=62520c01#T=C
I’m also using the old style differentials as I don’t like the flimsy gears on the newer 3 stud wide ones you get today which easily slips under load.
So depending on which parts you own you might need to adjust things, but there are tons of way of doing this and Lego has also made a bunch of more or less specialized parts specifically for making cars, so Google around for inspiration if you get stuck. Best of luck!
February 3rd, 2020 20:05
thank you so much for your reply!