Two things... steering question and something awesome I came across

[TasV]

First... the something awesome: http://idintern.wordpress.com/2013/04/06/lego-holonomic-wheel/ . Just thought this was really interesting.

Steering question: I was speaking to a colleague of mine who is now the I.T. guy at work and the conversation got around to Lego robots because he had heard that the kids in my robotics class recently competed in the state Robocup finals and took out 1st, 3rd (my Son :) ), 4th, and 5th place in the event out of 80 teams making us the current year's state champions. He was talking about how he competed in Robocup when he was a kid. Something he said has been bugging me for a while now and I haven't been able to work out how it might be done... if it can be done it would allow us to make much smaller and lighter robots. He said he managed to install steering into his robot that used only one motor (the NXT motor) and no steering rack (no pivot system either). Can this even be done?

Edited September 10, 2013 by TasV

[Hrafn]

Steering question: I was speaking to a colleague of mine who is now the I.T. guy at work and the conversation got around to Lego robots because he had heard that the kids in my robotics class recently competed in the state Robocup finals and took out 1st, 3rd (my Son :) ), 4th, and 5th place in the event out of 80 teams making us the current year's state champions. He was talking about how he competed in Robocup when he was a kid. Something he said has been bugging me for a while now and I haven't been able to work out how it might be done... if it can be done it would allow us to make much smaller and lighter robots. He said he managed to install steering into his robot that used only one motor (the NXT motor) and no steering rack (no pivot system either). Can this even be done?

Maybe he's thinking of how some inexpensive RC cars use only one motor for both propulsion and steering. When the motor spins one way, it drives the vehicle forward; when it spins the other way, it turns the vehicle (always in the same direction, say, left). It works, but it's awkward, and you sacrifice a lot of maneuverability.

[Baelyrn]

Yes, it has been done in Lego 9748 Droid Developer Kit. R2-D2 goes straight forward, but turns clockwise when going backwards.

Edited September 10, 2013 by Baelyrn

[Ape Fight]

And on the 1997 Technic Barcode Truck B-Model

[TasV]

So, it couldn't be done to drive forward, be able to turn left or right as required, as well as reverse in a straight line for short distances?