Hull and Enclosures

The body of the RoboFlock is split into three printed enclosures: a lower battery compartment under the chassis, the main hull above it, and a latching hull top that carries the LiDAR and GPS.

This split keeps the high-current battery physically separated from the low-voltage logic and motor drivers, simplifies access during testing (the hull top latches off without disturbing the rest of the robot), and gives each major sensor a fixed, repeatable mounting reference.

Lower Battery Compartment

The battery compartment screws into the underside of the main chassis frame. It houses:

Two 3S 6 Ah LiPo batteries
The 24v 20Ah 40A Lithium Ion Battery
Cable pass-throughs that route motor leads upward into the main hull

Main Hull

The main hull (RV1-HUL-001) bolts to the top of the main chassis frame. It houses the upper electronics stack:

Jetson Orin Nano on its carrier board
Motor drivers (one per BLDC, ×4)
Power distribution from the battery compartment below
Sensor cabling on its way up to the hull top

Motor leads route from the battery compartment up through the floor of the hull and terminate at the motor drivers inside. Service loops at each end allow the suspension to articulate through its full range without putting tension on the strain reliefs.

Note

The hull is currently in Draft status - the print spec block in the Parts Catalog is intentionally TBD until the geometry stabilizes.

Hull Top

The hull top (RV1-HUL-002) latches onto the main hull and acts as both a weather cover and a sensor mounting plate. Two sensors mount directly to it:

LiDAR - secured in a forward-facing twist-lock slot. Drop the LiDAR base into the slot and rotate to lock; the slot constrains both vertical and rotational position so the LiDAR repeats its mounting orientation every time the cover is reinstalled.
GPS antenna - sits on a flat base plate immediately behind the LiDAR. The plate provides the ground plane required by the patch antenna.

The latching mechanism lets the top come off in one motion for service, without unplugging any sensor cabling that lives below the hull-top plane.

Note

Sensor cables route through the dedicated hole in the hull top - verify strain relief and make sure the LiDAR cable has enough slack to allow the twist-lock action without binding.

Electronics Brackets

Smaller printed brackets handle individual electronics modules. The first of these is the LiDAR mounting bracket (RV1-ELE-BKT-001), which mates the LiDAR body to the twisting slot in the hull top via 4× M2.5 brass heat-set inserts.

Additional brackets - ultrasonic sensor housings, IMU mount, GPS antenna retention, status LED housings - will be added to the catalog as they finalize.

Cable Routing Summary

Battery compartment ─────► Main hull ─────► Hull top
   (batteries)    (Jetson, drivers)   (LiDAR, GPS)

   motor leads (×4) ──┐
                      ▼
              pass through floor
                      │
                      ▼
                motor drivers

For wire gauge, color conventions, and full pinouts see the Wiring Specifications.