Mine came Friday (pant, pant) it has already become self-aware chasing me now and GaiNINg on me S2 means SKYNET 2 lasers and repulsor rayts, not LEDs adaptve swaRM TEChnolOGY don'T oPen URS, its a trik nevr PRESS RSET BUTON AARRRGGHHH wnbd,vcprjkdfnhcfbnklhvp[oejkilelk;m eof
Mine came Friday (pant, pant) it has already become self-aware chasing me now and GaiNINg on me S2 means SKYNET 2 lasers and repulsor rayts, not LEDs adaptve swaRM TEChnolOGY don'T oPen URS, its a trik nevr PRESS RSET BUTON AARRRGGHHH wnbd,vcprjkdfnhcfbnklhvp[oejkilelk;m eof
Okay, I may decline delivery on mine.
No, seriously, I got the tracking notice, and it's due on Wednesday. I hope it comes early enough for me to have a meeting with my student to work on it, but usually UPS delivery here happens in the late afternoon.
Aesthetics kudos to Parallax on S2's color. It's a nice dark rich red; they didn't skimp on the pigment in the ABS housing. Less colorant might have given it a cheap toy look, but our P'lax brothers stayed the course and DONE REAL GOOD!
I also notice the functional but stylish flat black paint spray op inside the 3 top light sensor holes, the 2 IR front headlight holes, and all 4 bottom holes on the line sensors to reduce reflections. My original Scribbler did not have these.
I also notice the functional but stylish flat black paint spray op inside the 3 top light sensor holes, the 2 IR front headlight holes, and all 4 bottom holes on the line sensors to reduce reflections. My original Scribbler did not have these.
The original Scribbler, being dark blue, did not permit as much light -- particularly IR -- to pass through to the extent that red does. That's one reason for the black interior finish and also for the black light sensor snorkels.
Yeah, I picked that up right away because I wanted to run the demo program when I introduce the S2 to my student, but I needed to turn off all of the sounds - it's a noisy demo, and I couldn't imagine running that in my office.
I guess I'd make that a generic request: educational robots should have a reasonably simple way of turning off the sounds in their demo programs. We're not all in noisy grade school classrooms.
The moment mine arrived, the rest of the afternoon's plans went out the door, and if these things came with odometers, mine would almost be turning over 100K by now.
Yeah, I picked that up right away because I wanted to run the demo program when I introduce the S2 to my student, but I needed to turn off all of the sounds - it's a noisy demo, and I couldn't imagine running that in my office.
I guess I'd make that a generic request: educational robots should have a reasonably simple way of turning off the sounds in their demo programs. We're not all in noisy grade school classrooms.
sylvie369,
Using the S2.set_volume subroutine sounds like a reasonably simple way of turning off the sounds (even for me).
Still requires a minor software tweak out of the box but it shouldn't take 5 minutes to do. (Or maybe I just missed your point). You could also code something in to take input from one of the other sensors and translate that into a volume setting. Similar to how the ir sensors on the top of the S2 are used to select which demo to run.
Enjoy the S2. Mine is still on the truck........ but on the way!
Using the S2.set_volume subroutine sounds like a reasonably simple way of turning off the sounds (even for me).
Still requires a minor software tweak out of the box but it shouldn't take 5 minutes to do. (Or maybe I just missed your point). You could also code something in to take input from one of the other sensors and translate that into a volume setting. Similar to how the ir sensors on the top of the S2 are used to select which demo to run.
Thanks. My specific issue was that I wanted to show a student the demo program that comes pre-loaded into the S2, but that program makes so much noise that I wouldn't dare run it in my office (in the same hallway with everyone else's office...). With the Spin code for the demo program in hand, it was a pretty quick fix. There's a line near the top of the code reading
SONG_ENABLE = TRUE
and of course I changed that to
SONG_ENABLE = FALSE
and then saved that version and loaded it. There's still the occasional useful beep, but it's no longer a problem. Even the "ambulance" program is usable with the song disabled.
I must have been really good this year. The Parallax elves threw in a #28030. Saved me a trip to the Shack and probably an Andrew Jackson. Those cats at Parallax are a class act. And man is this S2 LOUD out of the box! I now understand the classroom concern. LOL. Awesome. Love this little guy already. Looking foward to sharing this thing with my nephews over the holiday.
There are few places in s2.test where the volume is set btw. Took me a few minutes to track down all the spots. First order of buisness for me is to make that a constant and use it globally for both tones and songs. I noticed also that both s2 and s2_music have sound capabilities. Not sure why that is yet but it will go on the tick list. This is going to be fun.
There are few places in s2.test where the volume is set btw. Took me a few minutes to track down all the spots. First order of buisness for me is to make that a constant and use it globally for both tones and songs. I noticed also that both s2 and s2_music have sound capabilities. Not sure why that is yet but it will go on the tick list. This is going to be fun.
You may have noticed that s2.test is the Scribbler test program, not the default program that comes pre-loaded in the S2. That program is, not surprisingly, named "default".
Setting that song enable thing to false disabled all of the annoying sounds and left the useful beeps.
Yea in default there are a few a things you need to change if you wanted to just turn the volume down. First there is a call to s2.set_volume in the obs_sensor method, then thanks to some calls to s2_music there are a few places in that object were you also need to modify calls to s2.set_volume as well. What I found really interesting is the load_song method in s2_music. In there is a command that pulls the volume value from DAT (enabling each tune to have a different volume). Neat but not very useful for my purposes. For me it would make more sense to put anything noise related in the s2_music object (including beep, set_voices, and set_volume). A line near the top of default could then set the volume once and be done with it, calling all the noise methods from one object. This will make it make it easier when the operating location changes from my home where a volume of 5 is sufficient to another location where more volume is required.
Next I would like to decipher the stall code. I intend to lower the threshold for both the encoder and motor current checks. My little guy spins his wheels a few seconds or so before turning around. There is some fancy stuff happening in s2.stalled so that one will keep me busy for a while.
This is one of those cases where user feedback is very useful. It "sounds" like the S2 object needs a master volume control. This would be very easy to add and will very likely find its way into the next version.
The stall code was one of the trickier methods to write and took a lot of trial and error and back-and-forth between Ben Wirz (the S2's hardware designer) and me before it was right. Here are some clues for deciphering it:
The idea is that you need to compare the wheel velocities to the expected idler velocity to see if the wheels are turning in place and not propelling the robot. The expected idler velocity will be proportional to the sum of the two wheel velocities. It will be highest when both wheels are moving the same direction at top speed; zero, when the wheels are turning in opposite directions, but at the same speed. The idler velocity can be a tricky thing to determine, it turns out, because the detection holes in the idler wheel are not evenly spaced. (This is due to there being an odd number of ribs in the idler wheel.) So, in order to prevent false stall detects, one has to be a little forgiving of the idler time measurement, in case one of the wider gaps is blocking the sensor. This is particularly true when the S2 is moving in a small arc. Try it: put your head down on the floor while the S2 is going around in small circles, and you will see how slowly the idler wheel turns. For this reason, it was necessary to keep two counts for the idler: the number of counts per unit time, and the time since the last count. Another thing that always helps to quell skittery sensor results is hysteresis. This provides stability when the readings are close to the trip point and oscillating back-and-forth over it.
By contrast, checking the motor current in comparison to the battery voltage was much more straightforward.
Phil, Thank you for that insightful answer. That info really helps. And as a bonus I learned a new word "hysteresis" !
On a sad note, the blue power LED on my scribby is suffering from a loose connection. It only powers on when I push it gently to the right I am a soldering iron neophyte and not real excited about fixing this myself. Since I was hoping to have this puppy with me over the holiday I probably wont return it for repair until after the new year. For now I can live with it. This minor fluke in no way diminishes my view of the S2. It is a wonderful product and a great contribution to the robot hobbyist community. I think you, Ben, and the rest of the team did a phenomenal job with the hardware and associated code.
it turns out, because the detection holes in the idler wheel are not evenly spaced. (This is due to there being an odd number of ribs in the idler wheel.)
$10.00 more in all these years. Thanks Parallax for holding the costs down for the schools!
Jim
@Jim - You are right! Parallax has done a great job with this robot and holding the price down. I don't believe that there is a robot anywhere with more featrues at the same price - especially now that the S2 is Propeller Powered!
Comments
Mine's scheduled for UPS delivery on Tuesday. UPS from Parallax always seems to take a long time. USPS takes a couple days.
Okay, I may decline delivery on mine.
No, seriously, I got the tracking notice, and it's due on Wednesday. I hope it comes early enough for me to have a meeting with my student to work on it, but usually UPS delivery here happens in the late afternoon.
Polbit
I also notice the functional but stylish flat black paint spray op inside the 3 top light sensor holes, the 2 IR front headlight holes, and all 4 bottom holes on the line sensors to reduce reflections. My original Scribbler did not have these.
-Phil
-dan
Be sure to check here for an amazing resource thanks to ratronic, Phil and Ben!
http://forums.parallax.com/showthread.php?127703-S2-factory-source-code
Yeah, I picked that up right away because I wanted to run the demo program when I introduce the S2 to my student, but I needed to turn off all of the sounds - it's a noisy demo, and I couldn't imagine running that in my office.
I guess I'd make that a generic request: educational robots should have a reasonably simple way of turning off the sounds in their demo programs. We're not all in noisy grade school classrooms.
Yeah, My wife came home with a box and said, "Look, I got something from Parallax."
It is hard to be good...
The moment mine arrived, the rest of the afternoon's plans went out the door, and if these things came with odometers, mine would almost be turning over 100K by now.
sylvie369,
Using the S2.set_volume subroutine sounds like a reasonably simple way of turning off the sounds (even for me).
Still requires a minor software tweak out of the box but it shouldn't take 5 minutes to do. (Or maybe I just missed your point). You could also code something in to take input from one of the other sensors and translate that into a volume setting. Similar to how the ir sensors on the top of the S2 are used to select which demo to run.
Enjoy the S2. Mine is still on the truck........ but on the way!
-rogersyd
Thanks. My specific issue was that I wanted to show a student the demo program that comes pre-loaded into the S2, but that program makes so much noise that I wouldn't dare run it in my office (in the same hallway with everyone else's office...). With the Spin code for the demo program in hand, it was a pretty quick fix. There's a line near the top of the code reading
SONG_ENABLE = TRUE
and of course I changed that to
SONG_ENABLE = FALSE
and then saved that version and loaded it. There's still the occasional useful beep, but it's no longer a problem. Even the "ambulance" program is usable with the song disabled.
CUT_BLACKWIRE = TRUE
Yeah, that's the kind of solution I'd expect from you plywood lovers.
There are few places in s2.test where the volume is set btw. Took me a few minutes to track down all the spots. First order of buisness for me is to make that a constant and use it globally for both tones and songs. I noticed also that both s2 and s2_music have sound capabilities. Not sure why that is yet but it will go on the tick list. This is going to be fun.
You may have noticed that s2.test is the Scribbler test program, not the default program that comes pre-loaded in the S2. That program is, not surprisingly, named "default".
Setting that song enable thing to false disabled all of the annoying sounds and left the useful beeps.
Next I would like to decipher the stall code. I intend to lower the threshold for both the encoder and motor current checks. My little guy spins his wheels a few seconds or so before turning around. There is some fancy stuff happening in s2.stalled so that one will keep me busy for a while.
good times!
The stall code was one of the trickier methods to write and took a lot of trial and error and back-and-forth between Ben Wirz (the S2's hardware designer) and me before it was right. Here are some clues for deciphering it:
By contrast, checking the motor current in comparison to the battery voltage was much more straightforward.
'Hope this helps!
-Phil
On a sad note, the blue power LED on my scribby is suffering from a loose connection. It only powers on when I push it gently to the right
Why not have a hole between every rib?
Rich H
-Phil
http://forums.parallax.com/showthread.php?79742-Parallax-Scribbler-Robot-pre-orders-are-only-89.00!&highlight=Scribbler
$10.00 more in all these years. Thanks Parallax for holding the costs down for the schools!
Jim
@Jim - You are right! Parallax has done a great job with this robot and holding the price down. I don't believe that there is a robot anywhere with more featrues at the same price - especially now that the S2 is Propeller Powered!