Falcon Scouting System Release
 

I am pleased to announce that we have finished and our now releasing our Scouting System and Sorting System that we made for the 2013 Season. We are also releasing the code for it in case any of you want to play around with the code. In order to use our software, you will need 6 gamepads, SlimDX already installed on your computer, and access to Excel.

This is an update of our old post about our System that was for last years game. It can be found here:

http://www.chiefdelphi.com/forums/sh...ghlight=falcon

Here is a Google Doc on how to use the System and what you need (This is also included when you download the system as a text file):

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1...2OLUVRKyc/edit

The Scouting System looks like this and is what gets all the data from the matches:

http://i.imgur.com/HQzT6PT.png?1

Another program that comes with this is the Sorting Program. This program gathers all the data from the Scouting Program and sorts through it all to get the averages for each team. This is how it looks like:

http://i.imgur.com/HUMt6OG.jpg

Here is how the Excel sheet looks before you sort it using the Sorting program:

http://i.imgur.com/SMEs5HA.jpg

Here is how the Excel sheet looks after sorting it:

http://i.imgur.com/Uuh7R46.jpg

You can download the software and the code for them here (Using WinRar):

http://code.google.com/p/falcon-robo...ting-software/

Edit: If you find any errors or improvements that can be made feel free to post them.

Re: Falcon Scouting System Release
 

Good Job Serg!

Re: Falcon Scouting System Release
 

Team 2512 has been looking forward to using your system at competition since it was first released, and planning on testing it during week 0 and 1 before our week 2 regional. For testing though is there any way that you know of to develop a random match schedule for the system? Also is there any way of getting the match schedules for week 1 online so we can do some testing during week 1? Thanks A LOT for making this open to the public I am sure many will appreciate it.

Re: Falcon Scouting System Release
 

Well, in order to use the system you need a previously made text file that contains the matches in it. For testing purposes, you can just input a whole bunch of random matches and use those. That is what I did to test it.

Re: Falcon Scouting System Release
 

Sorry, but for some reason my window doesn't match up with the instructions, for example there is no setup teams button and the event button doesn't switch to a skip button when pressed. what am I doing wrong?

Re: Falcon Scouting System Release
 

Strange. Are you sure you are using the Scouting program and not the sorting one?

Re: Falcon Scouting System Release
 

looks great though my only problem with it is it completely ignores defense which will be highly influential this year

Re: Falcon Scouting System Release
 

When you click format excel it says "please choose a black excel..." just a heads up haha but great job.

Re: Falcon Scouting System Release
 

Do you think that you could make a video of the system being setup for a mock competition? I think that it would be a great help.

Re: Falcon Scouting System Release
 

This seems like a great idea. I will see what I can do.

I am aware of this haha. I forgot to change it at the end.

If it is really that necessary for teams to have this, I can put something for it.

Re: Falcon Scouting System Release
 

No, I was using the sorting one, sorry about that, however when I try and run the scouting program nothing happens, it pops up with the window that connects to the internet to verify, but after that nothing happens. I ran the program in a virtual machine to see if it was something miss configured in my OS and in the VM it just crashes. Any ideas on how to fix this?

Re: Falcon Scouting System Release
 

Do you have Slim DX installed?

Edit: What OS are you using? This has only been tested for Windows 7 and Windows 8.

Re: Falcon Scouting System Release
 

Is there a phone version for the iPhone, making it more portable would be very useful at competition.

Re: Falcon Scouting System Release
 

Sadly, no. This was made so all the scouters can scout together. I never intended to make an app for it.

Re: Falcon Scouting System Release
 

I am running Windows 7 home premium and I have installed slimDX. Is there anything else that I need for the program to run

Re: Falcon Scouting System Release
 

Did you download the correct SlimDx? You should have downloaded the SDK one. Here is the download link:
http://code.google.com/p/slimdx/down...02012%29.ms i

Re: Falcon Scouting System Release
 

Thank you sooooo much, that was my problem. I installed the SDK and everything started to work. Is there any way to make the data input screen less cramped, I cannot see all of the team numbers (if the team is 4 digits I can only see three), is there any way to fix this?


Sorry about all of my questions :D

Re: Falcon Scouting System Release
 

Hmmm if this is a problem I can make the numbers smaller. I am almost done with an update so once I finish it, I will post it

Re: Falcon Scouting System Release
 

That would be awsome, Thanks :)
Question: If our team was to use afterglow controllers, do we need the Xbox360 model or the PS3 model

Re: Falcon Scouting System Release
 

We are using the PS3 model. I am not sure how it will respond with the Xbox 360 controllers

Re: Falcon Scouting System Release
 

Ok thanks, we are about to go and buy the controllers and I wanted to know of there was a difference, we will get PS3 controllers :yikes:

Edit: Where would you suggest buying them from?

Re: Falcon Scouting System Release
 

If I can recall correctly we ordered them from Best Buy.

Re: Falcon Scouting System Release
 

Hello I am Clyde and I am working with Bernie from team 250.

First off, thank you for developing this software. Regardless of what we found below, we believe this is a great addition to the community.

For our testing we are using a Acer laptop w/ 17" monitor, all software was installed as directed. We are however using XBox controllers and have faced a couple hurdles with that.

XBox Specific Issues
The following issues are related to using different controllers. Anyone using XBox controllers should expect to experience these issues.

• The X,Y,B and A buttons are working fine.
• The start and back buttons are programed as the Left Joystick and Right Joystick.
• The triggers are not registering.
• There also is no climb button as the center button that says Xbox is not programmable. We're reprogramming this to the D-Pad.

All Scouters

• If you hold down multiple buttons it counts for all of them.
• If you hold buttons down the count continues to increment.
• If you hit both buttons to switch from teleop to auto and auto to teleop the scouter will temporarily disappear.
• All the scores can go into the negatives which isn't a game option.

Scouter 5 Specific

• I have also found problems with scouter 5, it does not switch from teleop and auto mode correctly.
• Also with scouter 5 if you try to make it score in auto all scores go to teleop.
• There is an issue with the last digit not showing in any window if it goes to 3 digits or 2 digits that are negative.

Scouter 1 Specific

• There is also a problem with scouter one on the low goal in auto or teleop there is a zero in front of whatever score u have, but we think this is just a error of having an extra text box over the real text box.

Controller Issues

• If any controller becomes unplugged while running the scouting program you have to restart it or else that controller will not register.
• There is also no way to get scouter three to register unless u have all 6 controllers plugged in.

For some of these issues we are rewriting sections of the code. We definitely can share back the changes we have had to make to accommodate the Xbox controllers.

Re: Falcon Scouting System Release
 

Thank you for the feedback! I will work on these issues immediately. Also, thank you for implementing this for xbox controllers as I know some teams will not use ps3 controllers. I will try to finish these by today and upload the updated version I made with a defense option.

Re: Falcon Scouting System Release
 

It's our pleasure to help out on the software. I also found another a issue with scouter 3.
When you first start it up the right score section for the low goal is missing. If you switch to auto while in auto, then it will show the starting zeros.

-Clyde

Re: Falcon Scouting System Release
 

Yes, I have fixed that already thank you. Almost done fixing all the issues.

Re: Falcon Scouting System Release
 

Sergio,

Hope the sprint to the end of Build went well for you guys. Amazingly this year we finished with an hour to go.

Saturday we're going to spend working on our scouting with the students. Any chance you'll have the code updated by then?

Thanks,

-Bernie

Re: Falcon Scouting System Release
 

Yes, I currently have my program updated. I have not figured out yet how to stop the counter from going up when a button is held. I will update the code in google code ASAP

Re: Falcon Scouting System Release
 

Thanks Sergio. For now, I don't think that error is game breaking in any way. Just means the scouters have to pay more attention to what they are doing.

-Bernie

Re: Falcon Scouting System Release
 

I have uploaded the updated versions! Here are the downloads: http://code.google.com/p/falcon-robo...downloads/list

Re: Falcon Scouting System Release
 

Thanks Sergio,

Clyde and the scout team are diving into it now. We'll have some feedback in an hour or two.

-Bernie

Re: Falcon Scouting System Release
 

No Problem.

I will be waiting for the feedback.

Re: Falcon Scouting System Release
 

I am having an error about the application being installed in a different location, how do i fix that?

Re: Falcon Scouting System Release
 

Go to your initial location and open it from there. Tell me if it is updated.

Re: Falcon Scouting System Release
 

Sorry, I didn't realize that the program installed and was uninstallable, so i just uninstalled it and reinstalled it and it worked :)
Edit: the update looks great, except for a few overlaps; you cannot see the pyramid goal count because the label covers it.

Re: Falcon Scouting System Release
 

Glad you like it. That's strange. I will look into that.

Re: Falcon Scouting System Release
 

Our team has just received our controllers and I am having trouble assigning controllers to specific scouters, we have colored controllers and they end up assigned to the wrong color. How can i fix this?

Re: Falcon Scouting System Release
 

The way to fix this is to get into the code and physically change it yourself. If you would like, I can try to implement a new feature to do this without having to open the code. Let me know which you would like to do.

Re: Falcon Scouting System Release
 

That would be awesome if you could create a setup that configures the joysticks, or now however, which ports go to which scouters?

Re: Falcon Scouting System Release
 

Okay, I will post back when I finish that. The thing for that is every computer is different. The settings on the current system match the controllers to the scouters on my computer, but does not on other peoples. This will require to change a couple numbers around in the code to match it for your computer.

But for sure, I will try to make this and release it as soon as possible.

Re: Falcon Scouting System Release
 

I am just recovering from our regional, but wanted to pop in here and say a couple words.

On Thursday nite we made final code modifications to the Falcon Scouting System. Mostly to adjust for our use of X-Box gamepads versus PSP, but also we weren't using any kind of error/defense recordings. To me its too hard to watch for fouls during a game.

Our code team also removed some of the errors that pop up from hitting keys on the keyboard (like ESC and some others).

Friday morning Clyde on our team got his group of scouters up and on the software. A couple hiccups in the first couple matches but by 5 (of 74) they were off and running.

It was simple to grab the data file in between matches and look at upcoming teams we were facing. I was called to do this on nearly every match after our 3rd. We placed 3rd in qualifiers and I sat in with the alliance meetings and provided information. We made it to semi-finals and I did the same and was prepping Finals before we were knocked out 2-1.

Friday nite we were in 1st place and had a serious scouting meeting ahead of us. We mixed the electronic scouting with a dozen booklets handed out to mentors/parents that had a single page for them to observe robots all day on Friday and taken some written notes. Out scouting meeting took 2 hours and we reviewed the other 48 robots at our regional. We had specific data on each match they played as well as our parents/mentor observations.

So in summary, what did everyone think? It was awesome!

To have live data between matches, to know who was trending to be the threat, who's robot wasn't scoring well and we wouldn't have to focus on was great. Teams around us in the stands were asking about and I made sure to let them know this was the Falcon Scouting system and that we just tweaked it. Alliance members were the same, they were very impressed by the amount of data we had. If you count hits, misses, pyramid, we had approx. 5,000 data points by the time we hit our first quarter finals.

Later this week we'll get out our code changes but I wanted to come here and personally thank Sergio and his team for providing this software to begin with. It was a real big step up for our scouting system and it definitely made a difference in the game play and us going 7-2 in quarterfinals.

Thanks FRC #0842 (Falcon Robotics)!

-Bernie

Re: Falcon Scouting System Release
 

Glad to hear our system helped you guys out! May I ask what hiccups you were having if they were human based or code based? It is great to hear that other teams are benefiting from this. Thank you for your feedback and good luck on your next regional!

Re: Falcon Scouting System Release
 

Great Job Sergio! Hope more teams use this! It makes a huge difference in our team's performance.

Re: Falcon Scouting System Release
 

Sergio,

The initial hiccups had nothing to do with your software. It was all driven by the team just getting orientated. I didn't get the match data loaded in until 10 minutes before it started. Mostly because it wasn't available online before 7:30am.

Clyde got his team in order very quickly though and I think we had maybe 9 students at most touch it all weekend. The students just didn't want to leave, so others swapped in only on drink or bathroom runs.

We have a team meeting this Thursday, so i should be able to get them to write up more then.

-Bernie

Re: Falcon Scouting System Release
 

Okay, thank you for your feedback!

Re: Falcon Scouting System Release
 

Sergio,

I plug in a controller, and my computer recognizes it, but no data is being inputted.

What am i doing wrong?

Thanks

Re: Falcon Scouting System Release
 

it looks great guys !!!!! here is the link to what 2429 will be using this year

http://www.chiefdelphi.com/forums/sh...99#post1244299

Re: Falcon Scouting System Release
 

Are you sure you are pushing the correct combination of buttons?

Re: Falcon Scouting System Release
 

No button combinations are registering

Re: Falcon Scouting System Release
 

What controller are you using and have you downloaded Slim Dx onto your computer?

Re: Falcon Scouting System Release
 

It's a dualshock 3, and I have slim dx. What version should I have for windows 7 64 bit?

Re: Falcon Scouting System Release
 

Here is the download for the Slim DX you should have:
https://code.google.com/p/slimdx/dow...02012%29.ms i

Re: Falcon Scouting System Release
 

Is it perhaps because they are standard console controllers? The cable detaches and the controller can be used via wireless. Do they need to be solely wired controllers?

Re: Falcon Scouting System Release
 

Are you trying to connect it to the computer via a usb cable or solely wireless? Also, have you downloaded the drivers for your controller?

Edit: Team 250 used a standard Xbox controller so I don't think that's the issue. You can ask them if they had to do anything different.

Re: Falcon Scouting System Release
 

Im trying to use it wired, that'll be more reliable than bluetooth. I don't think i have the drivers, where would i go about getting those. It does say it installs some software when i plug it in though.

These are for PS3

Re: Falcon Scouting System Release
 

After a quick google search I found that there a lot of issues with trying to work a dualshock 3 controller on pc. A solution I found is downloading drivers from motionjoy. Though I do not how to do it, they have a tutorial on their. In my opinion , I suggest you try a ps2 controller or any other controller. Some people have had bad issues with motionjoy, which is why I advise to try a different controller. But, if you really want to use the dualshock, their drivers are your best bet.

Re: Falcon Scouting System Release
 

Ill have to try and find some, a far as I knew, they had to be dual shock 3 since it said it was for ps3 controllers

Re: Falcon Scouting System Release
 

So, how do you go about making it work with the Xbox controllers? Our team really wants us to try and do that instead.
I am in no way experienced with code, but a lot of my team is. Any help is appreciated!

Thanks!

Re: Falcon Scouting System Release
 

Well, the controllers we are using are usb ps3 controllers which mean they are only usb compatible.

Re: Falcon Scouting System Release
 

Ok.

We have decided to use Xbox controllers, and so far they are working well, just trying to change some of the code to work with the Xbox controllers.

Our main trouble now is that no one has visual studio...

Trying to verify with dreamspark right now...

Thanks for all the help so far

Re: Falcon Scouting System Release
 

Team 1939 would like to thank you for making this available. We used a slightly tweaked version at Kansas City this weekend, and our scouts loved it. (We had a mix of PS3 and PS2 controllers, which have a slightly different button map, and we added match number to the output file.)

We've been a paper team before, and this made everything so much easier, with minimal hardware and power requirements. Thank you very much.

Re: Falcon Scouting System Release
 

You can download C# for free. If you have anymore questions feel free to ask!

Glad we could help!

Re: Falcon Scouting System Release
 

Our team will be meeting Tuesday nite. Our programmers have altered the code so that you can push a single button and change if you are using this via Xbox controllers or PSP controllers.

Sergio how would you like to handle this. Do you want me to send the code back to you? Or do you want me to just post it on here?

There were some other slight code changes we made and our programmers have commented the code to show where and why I believe.

Thanks again,

-Bernie

Re: Falcon Scouting System Release
 

Feel free to post it on here if you wish.

Re: Falcon Scouting System Release
 

I seem to be having a similar problem as this. I'm using the updated version. I am able to get sorting working but scouting 'opens' but nothing happens. No window opens or anything but it looks like something is loading. I installed the correct SlimDX and I am using Windows 7. What should I do to get this working?

Re: Falcon Scouting System Release
 

Did you download multiple copies of the software?

Re: Falcon Scouting System Release
 

I'm having troubles with the sorting, it starts processing data then gets to 20% and stops.

We really need this for this weekend's regional.

HELP!

Thanks

Re: Falcon Scouting System Release
 

Did you make sure to import the teams first? You should have a notepad file with each team in your event in chronological order separated by a comma.

Re: Falcon Scouting System Release
 

Yes, we only have 6 teams input yes for testing, should we try more?
Everything is seperated by commas but should there be a space. Says its a problem in the input string

Re: Falcon Scouting System Release
 

A space is not required. Did you make sure to write the correct number of matches into the text box? And make sure to import the correct excel file that has all the raw data from the scouting software

Re: Falcon Scouting System Release
 

yes, not sure what's up

I think maybe it's not importing into my excel file correctly

Re: Falcon Scouting System Release
 

What exactly does your excel sheet have on it?

Re: Falcon Scouting System Release
 

Figured it out!

Text was inputting by tab, not by comma.

Thanks for all your support through my various problems!
:)

Re: Falcon Scouting System Release
 

Glad to hear it! So it is working well with you now? And good luck in your regional!

Re: Falcon Scouting System Release
 

It's working well, we are working one issue right now, but otherwise great with the Xbox controllers

Thanks again

Re: Falcon Scouting System Release
 

I am still having trouble installing the scouting program. I am using Windows 7 Ultimate and the version of SlimDX that you posted. For some reason it is installing as 2.0.13.43. I am getting this error message after I hit "Install" in the setup for MultipleJoysticks that says "Unable to install or run the application. The application requires that assembly SlimDX version 4.0.13.43 be installed in the Global Assembly Cache (GAC) first." We have been trying to fix this and have already reinstalled Windows on two computers. What should we do?

Re: Falcon Scouting System Release
 

We've also had that the GAC issue on several PCs I finally got one PC to do load the programs. I can get the sorter to work, but when I click on MultipleJoysticks, which I assume is the program to run the scouting program, I get nothing. A window opens up that says "verifying application requirements, this may take a few minutes" and that is it, nothing else, when I click on the sorter program, I get a screen similar to what you show in your screenshot, but nothing for the scouting program. Any help would be greatly appreciated! Thanks for all your hard work.

Re: Falcon Scouting System Release
 

Have you guys deleted and re installed everything? Also, make sure to extract all the files from the rar folder int your desktop or anywhere else

Re: Falcon Scouting System Release
 

Yes I have done all of this on a fresh copy of windows. I got the program to work fully on our driver station computer running windows 7 home premium, but we need that for driving. Do you think there is something about windows 7 ultimate that causes this problem?

Re: Falcon Scouting System Release
 

I have not tested with windows 7 ultimate but this might be the case. Try it on another windows 7 home premium and see if it works.

Re: Falcon Scouting System Release
 

Sergio--Do you have scouting data from the Galileo division at Championships? If so, would you mind posting it here?

Re: Falcon Scouting System Release
 

Yes but some of it is unreliable due to human error (Some matches were not saved properly and some zeros are placed where they shouldn't be). I can still post what I have.

Re: Falcon Scouting System Release
 

is there no 2014 update? just curios it seemed to be a very good scouting system.

Re: Falcon Scouting System Release
 

There is. I am having some last tweeks made on it then I will release it.

Re: Falcon Scouting System Release
 

Almost done tweaking the system?