Autonomous Initilization
 

I am curious. If we wanted to have several different options for our autonomous 15 seconds, could there be switches on the OI for choosing between them, or would the switches have to be on the RC? I think that, to run, the OI will have to be in communication with the RC anyways.

The OI needs to be in contact with the RC, but nothing it sends gets input into your code.

Basically, all the axes are set to 127 and all switches are set to off. Thus, the switches would need to be on the RC.

during autonomous mode, does the reset switch still work? if so, does it reset the RC, or just the OI?

So how exactly will the autonomous mode be switched off? This may have been answered before, I haven't checked through all the threads yet.

There is a bit that you test in code that tells you when the game is in auton mode. If you don't test for it it basically looks to your code like your OI is idle. The innovation first manuals describe how to test for it in code.
http://www.innovationfirst.com/first...ence_Guide.pdf

Considering that the only way we have control over the autonomous mode is to change the team number, which can obviously not be done at competition, I'm guessing that the competition port/arena controller will be sending the signal to the OI as to whether to run in autonomous or user-controlled mode...

I'm working from memory, here, but I think the reset button on the OI resets the RC (as I think that's the only thing that would ever need resetting). I would assume that the reset button would work during autonomous mode because its not an input your program would read. It is a command intercepted by some other controller in the RC that would then initiate the reset sequence.

yeah, anything PLUGGED into the OI will not work. anything BUILT into the OI will work. that includes the E-Stop button for obvious reasons.

Half true. There's two resest buttons on the OI--one resets the OI and the other resets the RC.

then i guess we have our prog switcher right there. each time you reboot, pick a dif program. Replace the bat volt with the prog id. or something like that

there's sample code in the manual for it to automatically switch...


just look in there under the different modes...it has the EXACT code you need :)

if anyone has any trouble, feel free to contact me via PM or IM or e-mail


*jeremy

First of all, you will not be able to reset the robot using the OI control because that switch is still based on radio trasmission to work. So you would also not be able to switch programs bassed on changing the batt volt to a program id because it will not transmit to the robot. To program autonomous mode you will have to use switches on your robot or just change the program before you get to the field based on the robots and teams that you are up against. You can always set the starting values of the speed controlers or the spikes though the program. This is also another way to program the autonomous mode.

I agree...a switch or two on the "on board black box" circuit board should do the trick ;)

There will be radio communication between the OI and the robot during autonomous mode. I haven't checked yet if the reset button works in autonomous mode, but my guess is that it will, because the reset command is handled by the master processor, not the BASIC stamp. Remember, the robot won't do anything at all (autonomous or not) without a valid radio link.

What I have heard is that your controls (Joysticks and such) won't even be turned on by the judges until the 15 seconds are over. So I'm guessing all the control systems are plugged into a system that keeps them off for the 15 seconds, just like the system that activates the robots when all 4 pads are being stood on.

How to control Autonomous mode from the OI

Alas, that won't work during competition, but it should prove invaluable during testing.

Why won't it work during the competition?

They would simply have control over it. All we have to do is keep auton_mode aliased to PB_mode.bit6 and it SHOULD work, right?

Yes - as far as the robot controller is concerned, the BASIC Stamp won't know the difference between an autonomous mode dongle connected to the competition port versus the OI being installed at a driver's station during competition and having the field controls activate the autonomous mode.

BY THE WAY:

Connecting pin 8 to pin 5 on the Competition port will put it in autonomous mode if you have the default alias of auton_mode VAR PB_mode.bit6