The Speedbot is ready to move!
This exploration will give you the tools to be able to start creating some cool projects for your Speedbot to follow.
- VEXcode V5 that will be used in this exploration:
- To find out more information about the block, open the Help and then select the [Drive for] block.
- Make sure you have the hardware required, your engineering notebook, and VEXcode V5 downloaded and ready.
| Quantity | Materials Needed |
|---|---|
| 1 |
Speedbot Robot |
| 1 |
Charged Robot Battery |
| 1 |
VEXcode V5 |
| 1 |
USB Cable (if using a computer) |
| 1 |
Engineering Notebook |
Step 1: Preparing for the Exploration
Before you begin the activity, do you have each of these items ready? Check each of the following:
-
Are the motors plugged into the correct ports?
-
Are the smart cables fully inserted into all of the motors?
-
Is the Brain turned on?
-
Is the battery charged?
Step 2: Start a new Project
Before you begin your project, select the Speedbot (Drivetrain 2-Motors, No Gyro) template project. The template project contains the Speedbot's motor configuration. If the template is not used, your robot will not run the project correctly.
Complete the following steps:
- Open the File menu.
- Select Open Examples.
- Select and open the Speedbot (Drivetrain 2-motors, No Gyro) template project.
- Since we will be using the drive for block, rename your project Drive.
- Save your project.
- Check to make sure the project name Drive is now in the window in the center of the toolbar.
Step 3: Drive Forward
- Add the [Drive for] block to the {When started} block in the programming area.
- Select the drop-down and change the units from inches to millimeters.
- Change the distance from 1 mm to 100 mm.
- Click on the Slot icon. You can download your project to one of the four available slots in the Robot Brain. Click on the number 1.
- Connect the robot to your computer or tablet. The Brain icon in the toolbar turns green once a successful connection has been made.
- Click the Download button on the toolbar to download the Drive project to the Robot Brain.
- Check to make sure your project has downloaded to the Speedbot's Brain by looking at the Robot Brain’s screen. The project name should be listed in slot 1.
- Run the project on the Speedbot robot by making sure the project is selected and then press the Run button on the Robot Brain. Congratulations on creating your first project!
Step 4: Drive Reverse
Step 5: Wait then Drive in Reverse
- Add a [Wait] block before the [Drive for] block. This will tell the robot to wait before driving in reverse.
- Insert three seconds into the [Wait] block. This tells the robot to wait three before driving in reverse.
- Download the project.
- Run the project on the Speedbot robot by making sure the project is selected and then press the Run button.
Step 6: Complete the Basketball Drills Challenge!
In the Basketball Drills Challenge, the robot must be able to navigate a series of lines at different distances. The robot will travel forward to the first line which is 10 cm from the starting position, wait 1 second, and then travel backwards returning to that same line. The robot will then repeat the action by driving forward 20 cm to the second line, wait 1 second, and then drive backward to the original starting line. The robot will drive forward to the third line with a distance of 40 cm, wait 1 second, and then finally return to the starting line to finish the challenge.
Before programming the robot, plan out the robot's path and behaviors in your engineering notebook.
After completing the Basketball Challenge, you will be able to combine forward and reverse movements with additional robot behaviors to complete even more advanced challenges.
Keep in mind when programming that 1 cm = 10 mm