The Layout of Electrical
What does the electrical layout look like?

Important Information
This is the fun stuff. 

 Here is a basic FRC Electrical Subsystem: 

 

 

 Some of the basic components of the electrical subsystem include: 

 

 

 12V Lead Acid Battery 

 

 

 

 Nominal Voltage: 12V 

 

 

 Capable of over 180 amps 

 

 

 

 120 Amp Breaker 

 

 

 

 Used to disconnect and connect the battery and prevent the system from drawing too much power. 

 

 

 

 PDH (with its breaker limits) 

 

 

 

 Distributes power from the battery to all components plugged into it 

 

 

 Breaker limits current to the component. ( 5 amp - 40 amp options) 

 

 

 The mini-fuse is not resettable ( 5 - 20 amps) 

 

 

 

 VRM (Voltage Regulator Module) 

 

 

 

 Regulates the voltage directed from PDH to smaller devices 

 

 

 

 (limelight, etc) 

 

 

 RPM (Radio Power Module) 

 

 

 

 Supplies PoE (Power over Ethernet) for the radio. 

 

 

 

 Radio 

 

 

 

 Communicates with the driver’s station via its WiFi network 

 

 

 Connects to VRM for power and Roborio for Ethernet 

 

 

 

 Robo Rio 

 

 

 

 Essentially the brain 

 

 

 Any device that needs info must be connected here. Different ports help different devices and their needs 

 

 

 

 RSL 

 

 

 

 Controlled by the RoboRIO  

 

 

 Flashes whenever the robot is enabled 

 

 

 Stays solid when disabled. 

 

 

 

 CANivore 

 

 

 

 Separates different CAN bus chains.  

 

 

 Ex. one for drive and one for upper shooter 

 

 

 

 CANcoder 

 

 

 

 Precisely measures the rotation of a shaft or wheel 

 

 

 Integrated within CAN chain 

 

 

 

 

 Follow these radio status lights: 

 

 LED Status Indications | FIRST FRC Radio   

 

 There are different sensors on the robot that can be used in code in order to detect something. 

 

 Analog Signals 

 Smoothly and continuously go through a range of values 

 Accelerometers create analog signals 

 

 Digital Signals 

 Blocky and steps between two values, 1 or 0 

 Limit switches create digital signals 

 

 Different sensors include 

 

 Limelights- A smart camera that makes giving the robot vision simpler. Used for April tag or retro reflective tape detection for targeting scoring elements.  

 The Pigeon - What angle the robot is at on the X, Y, Z axes. Critical for autonomous or balancing. Able to tell how fast the robot is moving. Tells us exactly what orientation and speed the robot is going. 

 Encoders- Absolute and incremental. Both types are used to measure the rotation of an axle. Absolute encoders know their angle on startup, while Incremental encoders need to be zeroed 

 Limit Switch and Mag switches-  

 Lim: Hitting the top button interrupts or starts the flow of electricity, depending on how it’s wired. Good for hard limits.  

 Mag: Detects when a magnet is close to the sensor, good for when you don't want something physically touching 

 Beam Brakes and CANandCOLORs- Uses light to tell if there is an object between the emitter and receiver. Tells how far away an object is by bouncing light off it and recording the time it takes to sense the light. CANandCOLORs measure heat, distance, color, and more! 

 Phosphorus Canandcolor   

 Linear and Rotary Potentiometers- Uses a change in resistance as the shaft rotates or the slider moves  to indicate position or adjust voltage levels 

 Sensor Types: 

 

 

 Rotation 

 

 

 

 Mag Encoders 

 

 

 

 

 

 Limit 

 

 

 

 Magnetic/Hall Effect 

 

 

 

 

 

 Visual 

 

 

 

 Color 

 

 

 Proxy 

 

 

 Limelights