Introdução

Checklist

To use the gogoboard, you should have the following things ready.

  • A GoGo Board together with a USB cable.
  • Batteries or power adapter if using motors. Although the gogoboard can be powered via the USB cable, it is not recommended for use with motors, as the USB port provides only limited power.
  • Some sensors and/or motors.
  • Construction materials such as cardboard paper, wood, ice-cream sticks, string, etc.
  • A computer running any recent version of Windows (Windows 2000 and older have not been tested).

Connecting to the GoGo Board for the first time

  • Before plugging the gogoboard to the computer, it is best to install the GoGo Monitor beforehand. The GoGo Monitor is available in the downloads page.
  • Connect the USB cable to the GoGo Board and then to the computer. Power on the GoGo Board. You should hear it beep twice.
  • When the board is first connected to a computer, you will be asked for a driver. The gogobard requires a single .inf files for this process. You can download the file “gogo_cdc_NTXPVista.inf” from the gogoboard’s website. Alternatively, since this file is automatically installed with the GoGo Monitor, you can let Windows search for a driver automatically as well. Note that it may take some time before Windows locates the file.
  • Check Windows Device Manager to see the COM port number of the newly connected gogoboard.
  • Launch the GoGo Monitor. Enter the correct serial port number then press "Connect". This should open the main page of the GoGo Monitor software. You are now ready to go!

Using the GoGo Monitor

GoGo Monitor Layout

Here is a list of things you can start doing with the GoGo Monitor.

Basic Testing

  • BEEP - Press the beep button to hear the board beep. This is a good way of testing the connection between the computer and the GoGo Board.
  • LED ON / LED OFF - Press to turn on of off the USER LED located on the lower left. This is also a good way to test if the board is working correctly.
  • PING - Press to see which version of the GoGo Board you have connected. It also shows you the firmware version as well.

Playing with Sensors

  • BURST ON / BURST OFF - Press these buttons to show or hide sensor values. When burst mode is on, you will see eight blue bars showing the sensor readings for each sensor port. Plug any sensor into the ports and you should see the bars changing. Sensor values ranges between 0 and 1023.

Motor Controls

  • ON / OFF - This turns on or off motor ports. You will first have to select which motor ports you want to control by selecting the check boxes on the top labeled A, B, C, and D. These letters are the motor port names.
  • BREAK / COAST - Break tells the motor to not only stop, but also resist turning. Coast, on the other hand, simply cuts the power and allow the motor to spin freely. Note that leaving the board in the break state consumes power. You should coast the port after the break action is complete. The OFF button does this automatically. It breaks for one second and then coasts the motor.
  • THISWAY / RD / THATWAY - Tells the motor which way to turn, this-way or that-way. RD stands for REVERSE DIRECTION.
  • POWER - You can set the power level of each motor port. The power level ranges from 0 (off) to 7 (full power).

Infrared Remote

The GoGo Board can receive commands from any SONY infrared remote controls. You can use these commands (or codes) in your Logo procedure (see below). To monitor what codes are being received, select the MONITOR IR check box.

Different ways to program the GoGo Board

Now that the GoGo board is working, you can start using it in many programming environments. The GoGo board can function in two modes: tethered and autonomous.

Autonomous Mode

The GoGo Monitor allows users to download and store procedures on the board. The GoGo Board can execute these procedures even while disconnected from the computer. This allows users to create autonomous robots, environmental sensing devices, and other smart objects. Writing Logo Procedures in the Autonomous Mode You can create programs by selecting the LOGO PROCEDURES tab on the GoGo Monitor. You will see a text area where you can type in your programs.

logo procedurs

The following is a simple example of a Logo procedure that tells the GoGo Board to beep every one second five times.

to go
repeat 5 [ beep wait 10 ]
end

The line "to go" creates a procedure named "go". The line "end" marks the end of this procedure. You can put as many commands in between the two lines as you want. In this case, we ask the board to beep and wait for one second (the number after the wait command is in tenths of a second). The repeat command tells the board to do the commands inside the square brackets five times.

Downloading and Running Your Procedures

running procedurs

Once you have finished your program, the next step is to download it to the GoGo Board. This is done by pressing the DOWNLOAD button. The GoGo Board will beep once when the download is complete. To run the program, press the RUN BUTTON on the GoGo Board. This button is located just below the on/off switch. The USER LED will light up while your program is running.

More Programming Examples

Here are some more examples of Logo programs.

to back_and_forth
     a, on wait 30
     beep
     rd wait 30
     off
end

This procedure is called "back_and_forth". Notice the use of underscore characters. You can't have spaces in the procedure name. This procedure turns on motor a for three seconds. Then it beeps once and reverse the rotation of the motor and keep going for another three seconds. It finishes by turning the motor off. The command "a," is how you address motors. There is no space between the motor name and the comma. If you want to control both motor a and b at the same time, you can type "ab,". The board remembers which motors you have addressed. So, you don't have to address them again.

to move_with_sensor
     forever [
     if sensor1 < 500 [ a, onfor 5 ]
     ]
end

This example shows how to use sensors. The program will turn on motor a for half a second when sensor1's value is less than 500. If you are using a switch, the motor will be triggered when you press it. The FOREVER command loops through the commands inside its square brackets indefinitely.

Tethered Mode

In this mode the board is always connected to the computer. It allows any programming language that can access a serial port to interact directly with the sensor values and to actuate various devices. You can create games, interactive art work, and many other applications in this mode. Right now you can access the GoGo Board from the following programming environments:

  • NetLogo - a multi-agent programmable modeling environment
  • Scratch - A graphical programming language for everyone
  • Microworlds - A multimedia enhanced version of the Logo programming language

Troubleshooting guide

USB power issues. Using motors while powered only by the USB port is not recommended. USB ports provide only 500mA max, which is usually not sufficient to properly drive motors. It can also interfere with the USB connection causing board resets. It is best to use batteries or a power adapter while using motors.

GoGo Monitor losing control of the gogoboard. This typically happens when the gogoboard is reset either intentionally (by power cycling the board) or unintentionally due to power issues. Because a board reset will also reset the USB circuitary, you must follow the sequence below to proceed properly.

  1. Exit GoGo Monitor
  2. Power on the gogoboard
  3. Restart GoGo Monitor and connect