Change Release Notes
Published May 1st, 2025 - Because robots deserve a fresh update too.
New Features That’ll Make Your Circuits Tingle
New Control Command: GetAddress for Connection Skill
Need to know exactly where your EZB is hiding on the network? Introducing GetAddress - the ControlCommand that gives you the IP address portion of the connection string for a specific EZB index.
Now your robot can whisper its coordinates back to you like a digital secret agent. Check out the Connection skill cheatsheet for syntax, usage, and how this might just save your butt when you’re managing fleets of EZBs like a boss.
Example: Connect the EZB v4 WiFi Camera with the IP Address of the EZB.
New Control Command: GetStatus for Connection Skill
Is it alive? Is it connected? Is it ghosting you?
Use the GetStatus command to return the connection status of a specified EZB. No more guessing, no more elaborate retry loops - just ask and it shall reveal its fate.
Tip: Combine this with
GetAddressand suddenly you're running the Mission Control of your own robot army.
The Cognitive Face Cloud Service Is Back, Baby
We found it. We dusted it off. We plugged it in. And now - the Cognitive Face cloud service is restored and better than ever.
Give your robot the gift of facial recognition again, so it can tell the difference between you and your evil twin. Or maybe just remember who keeps unplugging it.
Bonus: You’ll get confidence scores, emotion detection, and the occasional robo-side-eye when it recognizes your mother-in-law.
New Timeout Support for ADC, Digital, and servo Wait Commands (Python + JavaScript)
No more getting stuck in infinite waits because your sensor’s feeling moody.
We’ve added timeout support (in milliseconds!) to the WAIT script commands in Python and JavaScripts. The details have been updated in their appropriate documentation pages in the support section of the website.
Now your robot can give up politely and move on with its life.
Bug Fix: String Concatenation with EZ-Script & Global Variables
We fixed a sneaky little bug where concatenating strings with EZ-Script or global variables wasn’t playing nice.
Now everything behaves as expected - "Hello " + "World" finally equals "Hello World" again.
Robots of the world, unite - your strings are finally whole.
What’s Next?
We're brewing more updates in our silicon cauldron. But for now, go ahead and explore these new commands, bug fixes, and restored features. Your robot's never been this ready for action.
Need help or want to brag about your build?
Join the Synthiam Community - where robots and humans vibe together.
ARC Downloads
ARC Free
Free
- Includes one free 3rd party plugin robot skill per project
- Trial cloud services
- Free with trial limitations
For schools, personal use & organizations. This edition is updated every 6-12 months.
ARC Pro
Only $8.99/mo
- 2 or more PCs simultaneously
- Includes unlimited skills
- Cloud backup
- And much more
Experience the latest features and bug fixes weekly. A Pro subscription is required to use this edition.
Runtime
Free
- Load and run any ARC project
- Operates in read-only mode
- Unlimited robot skills
- Early access fixes & features
Have you finished programming your robot? Use this to run existing ARC projects for free*.
- Minimum requirements are Windows 10 or higher with 2+gb ram and 500+MB free space.
- Recommended requirements are Windows 10 or higher with 8+gb ram and 1000+MB free space.
- ARC Free known-issues can be viewed by clicking here.
- Get more information about each ARC edition by clicking here.
- See what's new in the latest versions with Release notes.
Compare Editions
| Feature | ARC FREE |
ARC PRO |
|---|---|---|
| Get ARC for Free | View Plans | |
| Usage | Personal DIY Education |
Personal DIY Education Business |
| Early access to new features & fixes | Yes | |
| Simultaneous microcontroller connections* | 1 | 255 |
| Robot skills* | 20 | Unlimited |
| Skill Store plugins* | 1 | Unlimited |
| Cognitive services usage** | 10/day | 6,000/day |
| Auto-positions gait actions* | 40 | Unlimited |
| Speech recongition phrases* | 10 | Unlimited |
| Camera devices* | 1 | Unlimited |
| Vision resolution | max 320x240 | Unlimited |
| Interface builder* | 2 | Unlimited |
| Cloud project size | 128 MB | |
| Cloud project revision history | Yes | |
| Create Exosphere requests | 50/month | |
| Exosphere API access | Contact Us | |
| Volume license discounts | Contact Us | |
| Get ARC for Free | View Plans |
** 1,000 per cognitive type (vision recognition, speech recognition, face detection, sentiment, text recognition, emotion detection, azure text to speech)
Upgrade to ARC Pro
Elevate your robot's capabilities to the next level with Synthiam ARC Pro, unlocking a world of possibilities in robot programming.
Thank you for the return of Cognitive Face!!!
I'm glad it's appreciated! It has been an absolute nightmare to get that going. The "person recognition" is a complete no-no because it's been cancelled due to human rights and privacy concerns. But, I can understand why, as it's a pretty interesting, controversial subject. However, usage within ARC is meant for educational and managed environments, but there's always a way to work around it. So they will keep that disabled due to what's happening in countries that monitor surveillance. Without a doubt, it can be an invasion of privacy, albeit a testament to what technology is capable of for government surveillance. So, in a way, it should be something that the public can be exposed to so that people know its capabilities. Disabling a technology like that could be seen as a distraction to what this technology is capable of.
As an afterthought to my previous comment, the TV series "Person of Interest" comes to mind as a controversial discussion around storing and identifying identities. But, there's always a false positive that could lead to legal issues, specifically if governments use this technology to monitor and identify criminal behavior. I'd hate to be the person who gets falsely identified through AI technology.... because, how do you defend yourself against that? Something to think about....
I know it's a free platform but there is no recourse and no one to talk to. No Customer support. I have no doubt it's all oversaw and managed by AI. All that is available on that platform for help is just AI and website instructions. From what I've learned this is happening to many, many innocent people. Shut down and canceled by AI with no recourse and no human in sight to help.
I'm thinking we are heading into some dark areas of this AI technology that will cause pain and personal problems for "the little people" like us. I know it has exciting and tremendous possibilities for good. But right now it has no discretion, soul or understanding.
I hope I'm wrong.
Oh boy-that's a terrible story. It's also not the only time I've heard that about Facebook. I keep seeing posts on Reddit about similar issues-where accounts are removed/deleted/banned without notice, and the person can't recreate one. I stopped using social media a while ago, but I keep Facebook around specifically for the marketplace.