First, it was learning the constraint systems in 3D Studio Max so I could animate the suspension. That was not really needed to complete the designs of the E-Crosser.
Now, it's learning Wire Parameters. Basically what those are is constraining one object's movements/rotations/or any other characteristic to another object's characteristic based on a certain equation. The example is seen below but imagine that you have 2 cogs. One has 39 teeth, the other has 14. The smaller cog needs to spin in ratio to the larger one...but that's not all. the drive chain has to move along a track and fit in the teeth of the cog properly. Makes sense?No, well, watch the video then.
I've decided that the E-Crosser LMA will be chain driven with hopefully only 1 gear. Electric motors are torque monsters so I am confident this approach will work. I am still waiting for information from an electric vehicle specialist about these kinds of details.
The electric motor I'll be using is the HPEVS AC7X series motor. These motors produce about 74 horsepower with...wait for it...180ft-lbs of torque. Yummy!
I could suffice with the AC-5X series which has a peak of about 121 torques. Time will tell. Not as tasty but more than enough power.
In the meantime I modelled up the electric motor, cogs, brackets and chain drive. I created a short 2 second animation test to make sure that my equations were right and things moved accordingly.
I am definitely no math genius. Hell, I'm barely a math idiot. So doing the equations took a lot of trial and error.
Check out the math! ANd check out he floating drive gear. Oooooooooo, ghosts.
And some pretty pictures of the whole contraption.
Also, since I have gobs of spare time, I am learning more about the physics engine in 3D Studio Max. I decided to render up and composite a picture. It was just something to fill my time and I thought I would share. The pebbles were strewn about using the gravity amd physics abd a little bit of magic. Enjoy.
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| It's a Cone! |
