It depends on what your needs really are. There is s good chance the EZB4 controller will work with your robots, however, if it's traditional software that you're looking for, that's not what EZ-Robots is based on. You can use traditional software to run the controller, but you will do a lot of reinventing the wheel if you do. The controller has been used in many different robots both small and large. Size is not an issue. It can work many different servos but some will require a power booster device to run if the servo (or motor) requires a lot of power. Basically it works on devices which can interpret PWM signals.

The EZB4 controller is designed to work with the ARC software program. That program has, as it's basic philosophy, the use of pre-programmed modules called Controls. In ARC, you select what controls you wish to use and set them up accordingly by changing options. The controls do all the interfacing and handshaking for you. Basically, you can get the robot to do what you want with little or no traditional programming required. There is a scripting language available to do things not covered in the controls or things to communicate with devices for which there are no controls as yet. The scripting language is, however, only a subset of a full blown language like MS Visual C++ or Visual Basic. It can do many things but not nearly as much.

I suggest you download a copy of ARC and have a look at it. There are also many tutorials you can go over to help you get a feel for the system.

I might mention that ARC has recently been revised/rewritten to accommodate plugins. But that is just starting and has a long way to go before it is fully implemented. The plugins would be written in higher level languages such as those I mentioned earlier.

Hi queenidog, and welcome to the forum.

From what you have asked and with the requirements you are looking for, I would decently say a big YES, EZ-Robot is for you. C++ has some restriction with what can be done with robotics, where as EZ-Robot has software called ARC, which has a seriously powerful and easy to understand built in scripting language that can do so much, and is as easy or as complicated as you want it to be. So you don't really need to get bogged down understanding C++. You don't really need to know programming to use EZ-Robots software, but if you wanted to, there an SDK section and there is also the open source UniversalBot .

Along with the ARC software, is the heart of most robot projects seen here, and that is the EZ-B v4 controller. This is where you can connect and control servos, sensors, the v4 camera for recognition and tracking abilities, and numerous other devices you can connect to it.

A good place to start and make an evaluation, is to look through the learn section to see what all the functions are and how to use them. And another good place to look, is through the project showcase section to see what members have made, and how they went about it. I was a lot like yourself, with some electronic knowledge, and knew zero about programming. I have now built two robots, and half way through building my third. I can say, hand on heart, I couldn't have done this without the EZ-B and ARC, or without the help and advice from the very friendly, helpful, and knowledgable forum community.

So, look through the learn section to look at the features available, look through the project showcase section, download ARC to your PC and have a play around it, and have a good look through the forum, as there is a lot of valuable information here. Once you get involved with EZ-Robot, you'll never look back.

I hope that has given you something to think about, and if you have any more questions, don't be afraid to ask.

Steve.

I forgot to mention... another good place to have a look is the user tutorials section of this website. The tutorials were written by fellow community forum members and will also give you a great idea of what you can do with the EZ-Robot platform.

Thanks to both... I have other servo control boards from Lynxmotion, Pololu, Chinese clone, and I made a couple myself using PIC processors. I've abandoned the latter since I don't want to reinvent the wheel since the first two products I mentioned have superior software to what I was attempting. (I wanted to make a standalone servo calibrator tester...found one from China for $3.95 with free shipping.) I'd rather buy the big parts and work to make something useful. So...what I'm saying is I'd rather not buy ANOTHER controller (EZB4) when I have all this hardware already, BUT if it really advances my cause, I could! I played around with EZRobot which has an SSC32U control..but didn't know how to use it. And if I did get something going, how far could I take it with EZRobot, which seems <mostly> proprietary to its own products.
I certainly like the GUI of EZRobot compared to Flowbotics.

@queenidog I asked a question similar to this, some time ago, wondering if EZ Robot products would enhance the robot I had built and allow me to get it to do the things I wanted it to do. I certainly wasn't happy with the platform I was running it on. Having no background in programming and never having built any robots before, I was looking for an easy to understand programming platform. (the hieroglyphics of Arduino scirpts baffled me).

I received answers from several people, including the CEO himself DJ Sures, telling me that I couldn't go wrong with EZ-Robot and boy were they RIGHT! Everything about EZ Robot has made building and programming robots (I have 3 now) EASY. I am amazed at how easy it is to animate a robot with a few clicks of the mouse. This forum is also one of the best, the staff of EZ Robot as well as many experienced and intelligent people are here to answer your questions.

So, Yes - EZ Robot will fill your needs. To get started download ARC and play with it. Look thru the tutorials and forum discussions to understand how it works. Order one of EZ Robots robots or a Developers Kit to run your own robot - you won't be disappointed.

@queenidog.

The SSC-32 servo controller uses the servo() comand using the VX (virtual) servo ports found in ARC. Here is a tutorial on using the SSC-32 servo controller. It connects to one of the three UART ports on the EZ-B, and uses the TX and RX pins on the digital ports. Funnily enough, I just ordered a SSC-32 today to connect to an EZ-B so I haven't tried it yet, but I know of other members who have and are very happy with the way the two boards interact.

I wouldn't necessarily say that the EZ-Robot platform proprietary (although you did say mostly", as there are many devices that come from over sources that works with the EZ-B, including Arduino which works well as a slave unit to run additional sensors ect. You can also use other software platforms with ARC such as RoboRealm for example. ARC already has a great recognition control, but RoboRealm has more options and can be used with ARC. That's just one example.

The platform here will in my option, advance your needs, and I think you will be very happy if you jumped in and got yourself an EZ-B v4.

Wow...these answers are great. I'd like to thank ALL of you which is why I didn't click on the "resolved" link above.

This is giving me a clear path on what I want to do.

this is a great forum! 4 replies in 22 hours.

I've also since adopted Arduino a little more than I had in the past. (I was going the Microchip PIC way), so EZRobot interfacing with Arduino is a good thing.

Can't wait to jump in.

I said I was "new to robotics". Not quite true since I have made some in the past, but not very sophisticated ones. Here's a link to Bunzilla, Racky, and Duncan. Bob's 3 robots