We tried making a dimensioned drawing of the feeder and realized that it was too long. To save front to back space, we decided to modify the feeder to center the ball and thereby eliminate 10 inches of front to back space with the elimination of the funnel. The feeder prototype group slightly modified their focus to try a flat corkscrew feeder to try to move the ball sideways and center it. The feeder will then intake through a hole in the bumper.
As stated, we encoutered difficulties with front to back distance. We also encountered difficulties with height, but solved that with a system where the ball rolls through a hole in the belly pan into the feeder, saving 2.5 inches.
Lyle will present a CAD for a revised type of feeder and the prototype group will then continue to work on the corkscrew motion type feeder
We are still ahead of schedule.