Denmark
Asked — Edited
Resolved Resolved by Rich!

Is The ARC Required For A Bot To Work?

Hi

Im currently looking into EZ-robot, cause i really love the whole idea of bringing robotics out to everyone.

I've always done a lot of electronics and i work as a programmer . I worked a lot with the Fez Panda II, Netduino's, and recently got a Beaglebone black as well.

So im used to the, some times painfully long process of "Write code" -> "Deploy to device" -> "hope it works" -> "Debug" -> "Repeat". And that all the code i do, is actually running on the device.

Now after reading some forums posts, i seem to get the idea that many functions like Video processing (color rec, face rec.) is done on the pc, and not on the board itself. which makes sense since it requires a lot of processing power.

So is it always required to have the robot connected to a device with ARC, for the robot to work, or have i just misunderstood?

And/or what can you do with the EZ-B "standalone", without connection to ARC vs "connected to ARC " ?


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United Kingdom
#1  

You must, in all cases, make your ARC project on a Windows PC (Windows 7 or higher).

However, if you save the project to the cloud it instantly becomes an app (through ARC Mobile) which you can use on your Android or iOS (release date to be confirmed). The Android/iOS device connects to the EZ-B and can then run the project.

ARC Mobile is still being improved (as is ARC for that matter) and I am unsure of it's limitations.

So yes and no is the answer. The EZ-B will always need a connection to ARC (desktop or mobile) though.

A lot of people tend to choose to put an onboard PC or Windows Tablet for running ARC. ARC allows connections to it from another PC running ARC so you could still have remote control should it be required.

Denmark
#2  

Thanks for the reply.

Answered my question perfectly :)

PRO
Synthiam
#3  

Hi thanks for answering rich :)

It is a popular question. I'm glad you recognize the CPU requirements for all of the video and audio processing - as well as the peripheral extensions (wiimote, joysticks, etc)

We considered creating the ezb to be as powerful as a computer, but there were too many downfalls. The processing speed would be quickly out dated. The cost and size would be higher. Battery consumption would be enormous. And the user would still require some remote control ability at some extent. Oh, and everyone already has a mobile phone or laptop.

So the choice was clear:) keep the cost down and piggy back of your higher power/expandable portable devices and laptops.

Now the ezb v4 can scale with your hardware upgrades without needing to be replaced :)