Skip to main content

Design, Develop, and Iterate on your Project

In this section, you will use the projects that you build in the Play section to create a project that can manipulate both the arm and the claw.

Recall the ArmUpDown2 and the ClawUpDown projects.

Arm Up Down 2 VEXcode project to the left and Claw Up Down VEXcode project to the right.

We want to somehow incorporate both of these projects into the same project. However, there is only one Brain Up button and one Brain Down button.

Thus, we need a button to act as a "switcher" between the arm and claw.

Use the following outline of blocks to help you build your project:

Code snippets from VEXcode projects in this Unit to be used like sentence starters to help begin the project. The 4 snippets are A When started block with a forever block, an if then else block with the condition set to Brain check button pressed; the If then else structure to move the arm up and down with the Brain up and down buttons, and the If then else structure to do the same for the Claw motor.

Answer the following questions in your engineering notebook as you plan your project:

  1. What do you want to program the robot to do? Explain with details.
  2. How many conditions will your project need to check in the [If then else] blocks?

Hint: Use the Brain Check button as the "switcher" between the arm and the claw. Thus, if the Brain Check button is pressed and held, the arm is controlled using the Brain Up and Down buttons. If the Brain Check Button is released, the claw is controlled using the Brain Up and Down buttons.

Follow the steps below as you create your project:

  1. Plan out the conditions that your project needs to check using drawings and pseudocode.

  2. Use the pseudocode you created to develop your project.

  3. Test your project often and iterate on it using what you learned from your testing.

  4. What could you add to your project to better control the Claw and Arm Motors? Explain with details.

  5. Share your final project with your teacher.

If you're having trouble getting started, review the following in VEXcode IQ Blocks:

  • If-Then-Else Blocks or Using Loops tutorial videos

Tutorial icons side by side. The icon on the left reads Using Loops and the one on the right reads If then else blocks.

  • Using Help tutorial video

Tutorial icon that reads Using Help on the bottom and shows the outline of a block being selected and help open above.

  • Previous versions of your project (ArmUpDown2 or ClawUpDown)

VEXcode IQ Toolbar with the Tutorials icon called out in a red box, to the right of the File menu.

<  Back Return to Labs Next  >