TTS Pro-Bot User manual

Warranty & Support
This product is provided with a one year warranty for problems found during normal
usage. Mistreating the Pro-Bot or opening the unit will invalidate this warranty. Any
data stored on the unit and any consequential loss is not covered by this warranty.
The battery is not user replaceable.
Technical Support
Please visit www.tts-group.co.uk for the latest product information.
Email [email protected] for technical support.
TTS Group Ltd.
Park Lane Business Park
Kirkby-in-Ashfield
Nottinghamshire,
NG17 9GU, UK.
Freephone: 0800 318686 Freefax: 0800 137525
WARNING:
Do not dispose of this product in household waste.
Hand it over to a collection point for recycling
electronic appliances. Not suitable for children under
36 months due to small parts – choking hazard.
Made in China, on behalf of the TTS Group Ltd.
USER GUIDE
TTS is proud to be part of plc
TTS Product Code:
EL00535

Programmable floor robot for
more advanced control techniques
Pro-Bot®
USER GUIDE
Age
3+

Contents
Care and Maintenance of Pro-Bot®
Battery Precautions and Requirements
Know Your Pro-Bot
Pro-Bot Basics – A Program
Editing Your Program
Repeat Loops
Different Step Lengths and Angles
Using the Pen Mechanism
K’Nex Compatibility
Procedures – What is a Procedure?
Procedures – Using Procedures
Procedures – Defining and Editing
Menu System
Special Commands Menu
Using Sensors
Examples Using Sensors
Connecting to a PC
More Example Programs
Technical Specification
Warranty & Support
3
4
6
7
7
8
8
10
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
18
19
20
21
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2

Pro-Bot®
Pro-Bot® is a programmable floor robot designed for more advanced control
techniques. It is ideal progression from the TTS Bee-Bot® (TTS Code - EL00363). Pro-Bot
can be used simply by programming arrows or inputting more complex commands
and procedures. Built-in light, touch and sound sensors” (x2) and the ability to add a
pen to the device so that Pro-Bot can draw its own route. There are also four locator
points on the body so that K’Nex can be used to build frames.
Also available is Probotix software (TTS Code - EL00477) which allows children to
create their Pro-Bot program using the software and then transfer to the robot using
a USB connection. Similarly programs created on the Pro-Bot can be transferred to the
software. See www.tts-shopping.com for more information.
Important Information
Please read all instructions carefully before use.
Please retain all instructions for future reference.
WARNING: CHOKING HAZARD - Small parts. Not for children under 3 yrs.
Care & Maintenance of Pro-Bot
To clean, wipe the Pro-Bot gently with a clean, damp cloth.
Keep the Pro-Bot away from direct sunlight and heat.
Do not allow the Pro-Bot to come into contact with water or other liquids.
In the event of static, your Pro-Bot may malfunction or lose memory: in this
case, insert a paper-clip or similar into the reset hole located near the On/Off
Switch to reset the Pro-Bot.
The normal function of the product may be disturbed by strong Electro
Magnetic Interference. If so, simply reset the product to resume normal
operation by following the instructions in the user guide. In the event that
the function does not resume, please use the product in other location.
3

Battery Precautions
Use a 3V CR2032 battery (included) for back-up. This will need replacing approximately
once per year or more often if Pro-Bot is left discharged.
On first use, fully charge before inserting the backup battery.
Only use the recommended or equivalent type batteries.
Do not short-circuit the battery terminals.
Always dispose of old batteries safely.
Rechargeable batteries are only to be charged by an adult.
Manually examine for damage the plug enclosure and other parts. In the event of any
damage, the toy and charger must not be used until the damage has been repaired.
Non-rechargeable batteries are not to be recharged.
Different types of batteries or new and used batteries are not to be mixed.
Batteries are to be inserted with correct polarity.
Exhausted batteries are to be removed from the toy.
Recharging your Pro-Bot
Insert the USB cable into the charging socket on the rear of your Pro-Bot.
Connect the other end to a spare USB port on a PC or laptop. Alternatively, connect to a
USB charging plug.
If you have the Pro-Bot docking station, then place the Pro-Bot into the docking station
and connect the power cable.
The green LED in the left eye will turn on to show that the Pro-Bot battery is charging.
The green LED in the left eye switches off when the Pro-Bot is fully charged
It may take up to 2 hours to fully charge the Pro-Bot if the battery has been fully
discharged.
Once fully charged your Pro-Bot will have approx. 8 hours of normal usage, approx. 2 hours
when in continuous use.
Battery life will be extended if the battery is recharged when power is low rather than
allowing battery to become completely exhausted.
Always fully charge your Pro-Bot before storing for long periods. It is strongly reccomended
that the Pro-Bot is recharged every six months.
4

Installing the Battery in Pro-Bot
On first use, fully charge before inserting the backup battery.
Ensure the power slide switch is set to “OFF”.
Use a cross head screwdriver to remove the backup battery cover.
Remove an exhausted battery by moving spring clip sideways.
Insert the battery with the +ve sign uppermost.
Close the cover and tighten the screw.
5
Pro-Bot®

Know Your Pro-Bot
Pen holder Light Sensor
Front touch
sensor
Menu key
Scroll keys
LCD Panel
Rear
touch
sensor
Numeric
keypad
Main drive
wheels
Speaker
Backup
battery
cover
Reset hole
USB
Connection
Sound On/
Off switch
Power
On/Off
switch
Sound sensor
K’Nex
mounting
hole
Arrow keys
Trailer fitment
positions
Main
battery
cover
6

Pro-Bot Basics – A Program
By default, pressing a or moves the Pro-Bot 25cm and pressing the or
rotates 90º. Pro-Bot’s memory can hold over 200 steps, making it possible to
create longer and more complex program sequences.
Here’s a sample program to get you started. After entering the following
commands press and the Pro-Bot will trace out a square with 25cm
sides
When writing programs on the Pro-Bot, the short form of the program commands is
displayed on the LCD screen of the Pro-Bot:
TIP: If you want to stop the Pro-Bot when it is going, press the key again.
In a programming language, such as Logo, a program is
a sequence of commands that are executed in the order
specified. With the Pro-Bot, like the multi-award winning
Bee-Bot®, a simple program can be developed using only
the four arrow keys. Surprisingly complex and extended
sequences can be created without requiring any other keys.
Forward
Right turn
Repeat
Fd
Rt
Rpt
Back
Left turn
Pause
Bk
Lt
Ps
Front touch
sensor
7
Pro-Bot®

Editing Your Program
One of the great strengths of the Pro-Bot is its ability to edit the programs using the
built-in LCD. Use the scroll keys above the display to move the cursor up and down the
list of commands.
To insert a command in between two commands, move the cursor onto the command
you want to insert after, then type the new command.
TIP: To insert in front of the first command of a program, move the cursor to the very
top of the display (above the first command).
To delete a command, press the key.
Pressing will only delete the last key pressed on each line.
TIP: To delete the whole program or individual procedures, hold the key down
for 3 seconds and select the required option using the scroll keys and key to
confirm.
Repeat Loops
Clearly, typing those 8 commands in to draw a square is a very inefficient use of time
and can be confusing to students. What we actually want the Pro-Bot to do is draw one
side of the square, then turn 90º, and do that four times.
Of course, Pro-Bot can do that for you. Just tell it to repeat the two commands four
times. Use the key to start this, then a number specifying how many repeats are
required, then your command list, and finally the key to finish the sequence. Pro-
Bot will repeat all commands between these two keys as many times as you specify.
For instance, to draw a 25cm square, press the following keys:
Notice that Pro-Bot changes the order slightly on the display. This is to conform better
to the Logo language specification whilst minimising the number of keys that need to
be pressed. With only five key presses, we have made a much simpler program that can
easily be modified to create other regular shapes.
TIP: If the number after the key is omitted, the loop will be executed 255 times.
8

Different Step Lengths and Angles
Pro-Bot is not limited to 25cm steps and 90º turns. To go different distances and
angles, simply use the same commands you are used to but add the number of cm or
degrees afterwards. For instance, to move 37cm forward, press:
To turn Pro-Bot left by 30º, press:
Using the number keys and the repeat loops, we can make Pro-Bot trace out more
complex regular polygons, using the same program structure as before, but with
changed numbers and 5cm sides. For instance:
TIP: To work out how many degrees to turn, divide 360 by the number of sides in the
polygon. So a nine sided nonagon would need to turn by 360/9 = 40º at each
step.
Triangle:
Pentagon:
Hexagon:
Octagon:
Circle (approx):
9
Pro-Bot®

Using the Pen Mechanism
With the pen mechanism, you can bring these shapes to life. Insert a standard (Berol)
dry wipe marker into the pen holder, then twist the levers clockwise to place the pen
under slight pressure onto the writing surface. Ensure the surface below is capable of
taking a dry wipe pen without damage.
When you have finished drawing, twist the levers anti-clockwise to lift the pen off the
surface. There is no need to take the pen out every time.
TIP: It is easiest to fit the pen in correctly when the mechanism is in the “Up”
position. Twist the levers anti-clockwise and ensure that the top of the
mechanism is proud of Pro-Bot’s top surface.
TIP: Don’t put the pen in with the lid still attached or the lid will stay in! To remove
the pen lid from the Pro-Bot, put the pen back in so that it fits back into the lid
then push the pen up from the underneath using a ball-pen or similar.
K’Nex Compatibility
The Pro-Bot has been designed to be compatible with K’Nex. It has 4 K’Nex shaped
mounting holes one in each corner to allow K’Nex pieces to be inserted.
10

Procedures – What is a Procedure?
Logo is a “procedural language”. This means that the main program can call other
“secondary programs” (procedures) that each perform a specific function. For
instance, one procedure could trace out a leaf, another could trace out a petal and a
third could draw a stem.
The main program could use all these three procedures to draw a complete flower.
Pro-Bot, of course, can do exactly this. In fact different groups of students could write
the different procedures and the main program, then put them all together and see
how well it works!
Pro-Bot has several different types of procedure. They are numbered from 1 to 39.
Procedure numbers 1 to 32 are fully definable by you, numbers 33 to 37 are for
sensors and 38 to 40 are the built-in, invisible, demo sequences. The other special
procedures are also shown differently in the display and are:
FRONT: Run when the front touch sensor is triggered
REAR: Run when the rear touch sensor is triggered
DARK: Run when the light sensor goes from light to dark
LIGHT: Run when the light sensor goes from dark to light
SOUND: Run when the sound sensor is triggered
HEXGN: Draws a hexagon (not visible)
DIAMND: Draws a diamond (not visible)
FLOWER: Draws eight diamonds using proc 39 (not visible)
33
34
35
36
37
38
39
40
11
Pro-Bot®

Procedures – Using Procedures
To use an existing procedure in your program, press the key followed by the
number of the procedure you want to run. For example, to run the built-in hexagon
procedure, you would use:
The following example draws a simple flower, with each petal being drawn using a
Procedure 1 (petal), which itself uses Procedure 2 (half petal).
TIP: On complex programs it is best not to use “Pause after command”, so switch it off
in the Config menu.
Main
Rpt 6 [
Proc 1
]
Proc 1
Proc 2
Lt 120
Proc 2
Lt 60
Proc 2
Rpt 10 [
Fd 1
Lt 6
]
12

Procedures – Defining and Editing
To create a new procedure, press the key then scroll down to the <New Proc>
menu entry and press again. You are then presented with a list of procedures
from Proc1 to Proc32 and the sensor procedures. You can use any of the first 32
procedures for what you want, but the sensor ones are fixed and can only be used
for their allocated sensor. Scroll down to the number you want to use then press
again to select it.
The top line of the display changes to the number of the procedure chosen, for
example “Proc 3”. You can then enter commands as you would normally. When you
have finished entering commands for the procedure, press the key again.
To edit a procedure you have already written, press and scroll down to the <Edt
Proc> menu entry and press again. Scroll down to the number of the procedure
you want to edit, then press . Edit the commands in the list as normal and press
once more to complete the procedure editing.
Pro-Bot allows you to run any procedure from within any other procedure, even ones
that haven’t any commands in yet. If you run procedures that call each other, you
may get into an endless loop. Don’t worry; just press the key to stop the program
running.
TIP: To completely redefine a procedure that you have already written, simply use
“New Proc” instead of “Edit proc” and Pro-Bot will clear the procedure for you.
13
Pro-Bot®

Menu System
Using the menu key gives you access to a number of other functions within Pro-Bot.
Special commands can be added to your program, different configuration options can
be selected and procedures can be managed.
The Menu system is entered by pressing the key above the display. You are
then given a list of menu selections. The first in the list is always <Back>, which allows
you to go back one level of the menu. Use the up and down scroll keys to move the
highlight to the menu item you want to select, then press again to select that
item.
The Menu system is structured as follows:
Back
New Proc
o
Edt Proc
o
Config
o
•
•
o
•
•
Sensors (NB. in version 1 all sensors are enabled together)
o
o
o
<Select>
<Select>
Units
Cm
Pro-Bot
End of Cmd
Beep on/off
Pause on/off
Touch on/off
Sound on/off
Light on/off
Goes back one level
Edit procedure with empty program
Edit procedure with existing program
Units are in Cm
Units are in Pro-Bot lengths
Enable beep after commands
Enable pause after commands
Enable both touch sensors
Enable sound sensor
Enable light sensor
14

Clears Main procedure only
Clears specified procedure
Clears the whole program
Clr Main
Clr Proc
Clr All
Clear
o
o
o
15
Special Commands Menu
Press and hold for 1½ seconds and a list of special commands will appear. Use the
scroll keys to select the desired command, then select it with the key. The special
commands available are:
Light On:
Light Off:
Sound 1:
Sound 2:
Sound 3:
Sound 4:
Sound 5:
Sound 6:
Sound 7:
Pen Up:
Pen Down:
Switches the Pro-Bot’s headlights on whilst running
Switches Pro-Bot’s headlights off
Plays sound “switch on”
Plays sound “button click”
Plays sound “car horn”
Plays sound “data transfer”
Plays sound “transfer complete”
Plays sound “error”
Plays sound “go to standby”
Has no effect but provides compatibility with Probotix
Has no effect but provides compatibility with Probotix
Pro-Bot®

Using Sensors
The most exciting thing about learning to program with the Pro-Bot is the four
built-in sensors that can be used to control your program. Before you can use
sensors in your program, you must enable them by selecting sensors from the Menu
system and checking that they say “On”.
You don’t need to call the procedures for the sensors; they will be run automatically
whenever the relevant sensor is activated. In fact, you would be very unlikely to ever
use the command “Proc 33” in a program, although it is not forbidden.
Touch Sensors
When the front touch sensor hits an obstacle, procedure 33 FRONT will run. Similarly
when you activate the rear touch sensor, procedure 34 REAR will be run. You can get
Pro-Bot to do whatever you like when these are activated.
TIP: Why not beep the horn, reverse and turn slightly to avoid an obstacle? Put the
following commands into procedure 33 FRONT:
Sound 3 (remember to press and hold to access the special commands)
Bd 10
Rt 45
Then watch what happens when your main program causes it to run into an
obstacle.
16

Light Sensor
The light sensor, mounted on the front of Pro-Bot, is sensitive to changes in the light
level in the room. When the room lights go dark (below about 50 lux), procedure 35
DARK will be run. Similarly, when the room lights come back on (more than about
350 lux), procedure 36 LIGHT will be run.
TIP: Why not switch Pro-Bot’s headlights on when the room goes dark, and switch
them off again when it gets light?:
In procedure 35 DARK: “Light On”
In procedure 36 LIGHT: “Light Off”
Then watch the headlights go on and off when the room lights are switched
off while running your main program. Perhaps your main program is drawing a
square?
Sound Sensor
The sound sensor, mounted underneath, is sensitive to short sharp sounds such as
a hand clap or a shout. It is only enabled during pauses so that the sounds of the
motors do not accidentally trigger the sensor. You may want to insert a brief pause
after every command – go to the Configuration menu and check that it says “Pause
On” in the “End of Command” menu entry. If you do that, there will be a brief period
after every command when the Pro-Bot will listen for your instruction.
Alternatively, you could insert a pause for a fixed length of time at the beginning of
the program, or at specific points where you want the Pro-Bot to wait for you.
TIP: Insert a Pause 499 at the start of your program. When you press Pro-Bot
will do nothing until you clap, or shout at it, then the program will start running.
You don’t even have to put anything into the Procedure 37 SOUND for this to
work! This is an excellent example for including those without fine motor skills.
17
Pro-Bot®

Examples Using Sensors
Example 1: Turning lights on when going through a tunnel
Press followed by New Procedure
Select Procedure 35 ‘Light to Dark’ [35 DARK] using scroll keys
Press and hold the button to access the special commands menu.
Select ‘Light On’
Press again
Select procedure 36 ‘Dark to Light’ [36 LIGHT]
Press and hold the button to access the special commands
Select ‘Light Off’
Press to return to the main screen
At the main screen, program Pro-Bot to move forward by pressing the forward
arrow several times
Press to start Pro-Bot
The program will look as follows in the following three procedures
Main
Fd 100
35 DARK
Light On
36 LIGHT
LightOff
18

Example 2: Reversing when front touch sensor is pressed
Press followed by New Procedure
Select Procedure 33 ‘Front touch sensor’ [33 FRONT]
Press and hold the button to access the special commands menu.
Select ‘Sound 3’ to make Pro-Bot beep its horn
Press the back arrow key to program Pro-Bot to reverse
Press the left arrow key to insert a turn (by doing this Pro-Bot will continue
reversing and turning until there are no obstacles in front of it)
Press to return to the main screen
Press the forward key and enter a large number such as 300 (This will
ensure that Pro-Bot hits an object in the room before the program ends)
Press to start Pro-Bot
The program will look as follows in the two procedures
Connecting to a PC
Only use the special USB cable provided with your copy of Probotix software (TTS
Code – EL00477) (available separately) to connect Pro-Bot to the PC. Follow the
instructions with Probotix to install the PC software.
The upload/download process is managed completely from the PC and all that
needs to be done on the Pro-Bot is to ensure that it is switched on.
Main
Fd 300
33 FRONT
Sound 3
Bd
Lt
19
Pro-Bot®