This patent pending robot is our smaller treaded robot that can be used to climb stairs. It can climb over many obstacles that are a lot taller than itself by using the flipper arms. The robot's flipper arm can lift its nose up, stabilize it from flipping over, and/or lift itself up. The arms can also be used to right itself after flipping over. The LT-F Treaded robot is an affordable treaded robot that can be easily transported (weighing about 35 lbs) and is small and can handle most terrains with its aggressive all terrain treads. Several different motors, battery options, and motor controllers, motor mounts, wheels/treads can be selected with this robot it. Read this entire write-up to help you choose the correct options located at the bottom of this page. After selecting the options you can click the update price to see the adjusted price with your chosen options. The minimum recommended options are already chosen below and reflected in the adjusted price.

See our support page for this robot kit. The support page includes dimensions, videos, and other details. The videos also show the abuse the robot can take. See our Treaded LT Support Page.

This robot is not meant for carrying heavy loads or pulling heavy objects like our HD2 Treaded Robot. The robot is a light weight tough little robot that can go over and under many obstacles. With the patent pending flipper arm it is highly maneuverable. The treads are driven by powerful IG52 gear motors with #25 chain with a 1:2 reduction to the ~ 7 inch front wheels. The flipper arm allow this robot to ascend and descend stairs. The robot axles are solid high strength steel so they will not bend when the robot is dropped. The rear shaft is mounted on sealed needle bearings and keyed to accept the machined flipper arms and then driven with custom gear box powered with a IG42 75 RPM gear motor. We have designed this robot to be as simple as possible without compromising its strength, durability, or functionality.

We are now selling the next generation LT-F. We have added improved flipper/stabilizer arms as pictured below. We have also modified the tracks and wheels from the original design to allow this robot be be even more robust. The wheels are composite wheels. The center is high strength rubber with timed teeth. The rubber is sandwiched between black Ultra High Molecular Weight Polyurethane (UHMW). The treads are CNC cut to have timed holes that match the timed teeth of the wheels. The outside edges of the tracks have rubber guides (not pictured) to ensure proper tracking. The result is a much hardier track and wheels system that is more tolerant to changes in temperature, speed, debris, etc. The new chassis is made from aircraft grade aluminum. The design uses all laser cut parts that are bent with a CNC break for precise alignment and mating of the parts. We weld the seams using TIG for a solid chassis. A one piece aluminum cover is included to cover the top of the chassis.

The robot chassis is symmetric and invertible. The robot can be driven by a simple RC system, one of our custom controllers, or a PC. Contact us for providing a custom control solution. See our Military and Law Enforcement page for some custom control solutions we have provided.

The robot has the ability to climb stairs and go over most terrain. We have spent a lot of time developing this robot so you can use it from the beginning with no issues. The All-Terrain rubber pattern treads are about 3" wide and are reinforced with a nylon mesh with a black rubber tread. The chassis is 3 inches high x 8.25 inches wide x ~19 inch wheel center distance length. The total width of the robot is about 17 inches wide with the flipper arms. The center cavity is large enough for for the motors, batteries, electronics, cameras, etc. The top is flanged with laser cut holes that are tapped for mounting an acrylic cover. The robot is currently geared with a 1:2 reduction (gear motor to drive wheels). Custom gearing can be requested. The OD of the wheels with the tread is about 7 inches (which is its total height too), so with the recommended Type 02 IG52 290 RPM motors ground speed is about 4.5 ft/sec.

Click on pictures for larger views

Standard Items:

Standard Items that come with this kit are as follows:

• Welded Aluminum Base for 52mm Motors (qty 1)

• Water Jet cut Aluminum cover to laser cut to bolt onto the Aluminum Chassis. (qty 1)

• CNC Tracks with matched wheels (Qty 2 sets)

• Custom tread tensioning blocks.

• Custom machined flipper arms with a custom gear box powered by a IG42 75RPM motor

• Electric Motor Hookup Kit - TE-024-000 (Qty 3)

• Electric Power Hookup parts (Wire, fuses, switch, connectors, etc.)

• All necessary hardware, bearings, chains, sprockets, etc.

Gear Motor Options:

Different gear motors can be selected in the options section. The robot weighs around 25 pounds with two 2200 24V NiMH battery packs. Its capable of carrying another ~20 lbs. The robot itself is designed to carry even more weight, but since its skid steering, turning in deep grass, carpet etc will be difficult with heavy loads. You should opt for the Type 02 IG52 103 RPM motors or the Type 04 IG52 285 RPM motors if you are going to load it up with heavy loads. We now offer IG52 gear motors with encoders. Review the spec sheets for the individual gear motors to determine typical current draw. Using Type 04 IG52 285 RPM motors and a Lithium ion 10Ahr battery the approximate current draw we measured was as follows: 3 Amps straight, 8 Amps pivot on concrete, 15 Amps pivot turn on deep thick grass, 40 Amps stall condition.

Battery Options:

For the motor batteries, you can choose 2 12V 4500mAHr battery packs (run in serries for 24V 4500mAhr) or one Lithium ion 10Ahr battery for optimal performance and run time. The one Li-Ion battery takes up less room than 2 12V 4500mAHr battery packs battery packs and offers outstanding power and high discharge capacity. You can also opt to put your own batteries in the robot too. Don't forget to get your battery chargers either.

Battery Mount Options:

Drive Motor Controller Options:

For the drive motor controllers, you can choice either of these options. The MD03 is a single channel so you need 2 (one per side). The Sabertooth is only rated for 30V max. NiMH batteries will charge to around 30V so you would be at the very limit of these controllers. If using a Sabertooth, either the 10A or 25A can be used, but the 10A will be overloaded in a stall condition. Our Custom RC controllers controllers have been specially programmed for the Spektrum Radios and include a 1A switching regulator.

• Sabertooth Dual 25A Motor Driver - TE-091-225 (Qty 1)

• Sabertooth Dual 10A Motor Driver - TE-091-210 (Qty 1)

• MD03 Devantech 20A 50V Motor Driver - TE-036-000 (Qty 2)

• Sabertooth Custom Dual 10A RC Motor Driver - TE-115-210 (Qty 1)

• Sabertooth Custom Dual 25A RC Motor Driver - TE-115-225 (Qty 1)

Flipper Motor Controller Options:

For the flipper motor controller, you can choice from a couple different options. The flipper arm uses a IG42 22RPM motor so a simple PWM can be used, but is slightly undersized in a stall condition. The SyRen is only rated for 30V max. NiMH batteries will charge to around 30V so you would be at the very limit of these controllers. The PWM can not be controlled directly with a RC controller, the SyRen can.

• PWM Motor Controller 3A 12-55V - TE-058-000 (Qty 1)

• SyRen 10A Regenerative Motor Driver - TE-098-110 (Qty 1)

RC Controller Options:

If using a motor controllers that supports RC control such as the SaberTooth, You can can use a RC controller to control the robot. You will need at least 2 channels with forward and reverse proportional control. Another proportional channel for the flipper.

For the RC Controllers, you can choice any of these controllers.

• HiTec Laser 4 Channel 75MHz RC Controller Pkg - TE-033-004
• HiTec Laser 6 Channel 75MHz RC Controller Pkg - TE-033-006

We also carry the Spektrum Radios which we have had outstanding results with. We sell the Spektrum systems with the fail safe BR6000 Bot Receiver. With the spread Spektrum frequency hopping DSM2™ technology we get great range and reliability regardless of the other 2.4GHz systems around like routers and phones. The other benefit of 2.4GHz is most motor noise and mechanical noise/interference is well below this frequency, which often causes issues with the 72 and 75MHz radio systems.

• Spektrum DX5e Transmitter with BR6000 Bot Receiver - TE-105-005
• Spektrum DX5eTransmitter with AR500 Receiver - TE-113-005
• Spektrum DX6i Transmitter with AR6200 Receiver - TE-113-006
• Spektrum DX6i Transmitter with BR6000 Bot Receiver - TE-105-006

Motor Mount Option:

IG52 Drive motors mounted to side walls with optional motor supports	IG42 flipper arm motor mounted to flipper arm gear box with optional motor supports

Painting Option:

The chassis is aluminum, and as a default it will be supplied with a wire brushed aluminum look. As an option the robot chassis can be sandblasted and painted a Satin Black.

Assembly Options:

You may purchase this kit assembled or as a kit. Either way you get access to our assembly manual. We recommend full assembly of the robot. Full assembly will include all the mechanical assembly and wiring of the robot for the options selected.

Additional Information:

We build these kits as they are ordered. Please allow 1-3 weeks for shipment. This is a large and heavy package. The price includes building a custom wooden shipping crate. The shipping costs will be calculated upon checkout, the robot and crate weigh about 50lbs.

This kit does not include a microcontroller, sensors, etc. See our Treaded LT Support Page and our ATR Robot Building Page for options and links to our controllers, sensors, and controller batteries. Don't forget to get your battery chargers either.