Programming the Mecanum Robot with Block Coding in PictoBlox

The Quarky Mecanum Wheel Robot is a type of robot that uses a special type of wheel to move. The wheel is made of four rollers mounted at 45-degree angles to the wheel‘s hub. Each roller has its own motor and can spin in either direction. This allows the wheel to move in any direction, making it an ideal choice for navigating around obstacles and tight spaces. The mecanum wheel robot can also turn on the spot, allowing it to make sharp turns without having to reverse direction.

The robot is programmable with PictoBlox. PictoBlox is coding education software that uses both graphical block-based coding and Python programming.

With PictoBlox, you can program the Mecanum Robot to move, grip, and perform pick & place actions!

If you haven’t installed PictoBlox, please follow the instructions:

Windows Installer (.exe)

STEP 1: Download the Pictoblox Installer (.exe) for Windows 7 and above (Release Notes).

Windows Installer 64-bit

Windows Installer 32-bit

STEP 2: Run the .exe file.

Some of the device gives the warning popup. You don’t have to worry, this software is harmless. Click on More info and then click on Run anyway.

STEP 3: Rest of the installation is straight forward, you can follow the popup and check on the option appropriate for your need.

 

Your software is now installed!

macOS Installer

STEP 1: Download the Pictoblox Installer (.dmg).

macOS Installer

STEP 2: Run the .dmg file.

Mobile App Installer

STEP 1: Open Google Play Store on your Smartphone and and search for PictoBlox or visit the link here to head over to the Google Play Store. You can even scan the QR Code below from your Smartphone to head to the PictoBlox App.

Mobile App Installer

STEP 2: Install the PictoBlox App.

Connecting Quarky with PictoBlox

Let’s begin by first connecting Quarky to PictoBlox. Select your preferred type of device i.e. either the desktop/laptop or your smartphone and follow the instructions.

Desktop

Follow the steps below for connecting Quarky to PictoBlox:

1. First, connect Quarky to your laptop using a USB cable.
2. Next, open PictoBlox on your desktop.
3. After that, select Block as your coding environment.
4. Then, click the Board button in the toolbar and select board as Quarky.
   
5. Next, select the appropriate Serial port if the Quarky is connected via USB or the Bluetooth Port if you want to connect Quarky via Bluetooth and press Connect.
   
6. Click on the Upload Firmware button. This will upload the latest firmware in Quarky.
   
   Note: If your device already has the latest firmware, then PictoBlox will show the message – Firmware is already updated. For learning more you can refer to this tutorial: https://ai.thestempedia.com/docs/quarky/quarky-toubleshooting/updating-quarky-firmaware-with-pictoblox/
7. Once the firmware is uploaded, Quarky starts the Getting Started program. This runs only for the first time. Run through it.

And voila! Quarky is now connected to PictoBlox.

Mobile

Follow the steps below for connecting Quarky to PictoBlox:

1. First, power ON Quarky.
2. Open PictoBlox on your smartphone. Go to My Space and make a new project by clicking the ‘+(plus)’ button in the bottom-right corner.
   
3. Then, tap the Board button in the top-right corner of the toolbar.
   Select board as Quarky.
   
4. Next, tap the Connect button:
   Select your device from the list.
   

And voila! Quarky is now connected to PictoBlox.

Quarky Mecanum Extension

The Quarky Mecanum extension in PictoBlox allows you to control the robot. It has blocks for specific applications. To add the Quarky Mecanum extension follow the instructions:

1. Click on the Add Extension button and add the Quarky Mecanum extension.
2. You can find the Quarky Mecanum blocks available in the project.

PictoBlox Blocks for Quarky Mecanum

The following blocks are available for the Quarky Mecanum:

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The block turns OFF the specified RGB LED of Quarky.

The function stops the specified motor of the Quarky.

The block initializes the ultrasonic sensor with specified echo and trig pins.

The block checks whether the selected class has been detected or not. If the class is detected, then the block returns true; else, false.

Scripts that wear this block will activate once the selected class is predicted either on the recognition window, stage or camera.

Scripts that wear this block will activate once the selected class is predicted either on the recognition window, stage or camera.

The block reports the mass of the sprite.

The block sets the threshold for the sensor connected to the selected pin. Threshold helps users decide whether the sensor is active or not. If the sensor value is greater than the threshold value, the sensor is active, or else it is inactive.

The block reports if the Wi-Fi is connected to the Quarky or ESP32 or not. This block is only available in Upload Mode.

The block sets the oscillator parameters for the selected servo motor.

The block resets the timer to 0.

The block sets the servo motors of the humanoid legs and hands to the specified angles at the specified speed.

The block sets the selected servo motor angle to the specified angle in the specified time. This creates a smooth motion for the servo motor from the current angle to the specified angle.

The block sets the pick or the place action angles to the specified value.

The block makes a request to ChatGPT to get all the nouns, pronouns, verbs, adverbs, adjectives, propositions, conjunction, and interjection from the text specified in it. The response of ChatGPT is then stored in PictoBlox and can be accessed using the get AI response block.

This block takes in a given value and converts it to either an integer or a float depending on the input.

The block writes the text and numbers on the 4×7 segment display.

This block is used to control an end-effector of the robotic arm to move in an arc.

This block sets motor speeds for Quarky’s line following, defining forward and turning speeds for tracking a black line on a white path.

Jumps the sprite up, a specified number of grid squares and then down again.

Changes the costume of the sprite as specified from the options.

Runs the blocks inside if a specified button is pressed of the quarky.

Runs the left motor of the wizbot in a specified direction.

Lights up the LED of the wizbot with specified color.

The block is used to draw an outline of the circle or a filled circle of a specified radius and center position on evive TFT display. It takes the center and the radius of the circle from the user and draws an outline of a circle.

The block sets the digital state of the specified digital pin to either “High” or “Low”. If the output is High, the pin will be at 5V and if the output is Low the pin will be at 0V.

Dabble inputs module have two tactile switches. This block reports the state of the tactile switch (pressed or not) in real-time. If the switch is pressed, then it returns true else false.

This block is to assign custom hand actions to our Humanoid Robot.

The block moves its sprite steadily to the specified X and Y position in the specified amount of seconds – this is like pointing the sprite in a direction and repeatedly using Move () Steps, but with more precision. A disadvantage of the glide block, however, is that it pauses the script while the sprite is moving, preventing the script from doing other things while the sprite is gliding.

The block changes its sprite’s size by the specified amount. The default sprite size is 100; size values below that percentage are for shrunken sprites, and size values above it are for overlarge sprites.

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Conclusion

In conclusion, the Quarky Mecanum Wheel Robot is a powerful and versatile robot that can be programmed using PictoBlox. With its Mecanum extension, it can be programmed to move in any direction, grip objects, and perform pick & place actions. With the help of PictoBlox, users can easily program the robot to perform their desired tasks.