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BallBot/Part1
This website contains an archive of files for the Acorn Electron, BBC Micro, Acorn Archimedes, Commodore 16 and Commodore 64 computers, which Dominic Ford has rescued from his private collection of floppy disks and cassettes.
Some of these files were originally commercial releases in the 1980s and 1990s, but they are now widely available online. I assume that copyright over them is no longer being asserted. If you own the copyright and would like files to be removed, please contact me.
Tape/disk: | Home » Personal collection » Acorn ADFS disks » Electron » EUG_submission.ADF |
Filename: | BallBot/Part1 |
Read OK: | ✔ |
File size: | 21DD bytes |
Load address: | 50206576 |
Exec address: | 31747261 |
Duplicates
There is 1 duplicate copy of this file in the archive:
- Personal collection » Acorn ADFS disks » Electron » EUG_submission.ADF » BallBot/Part1
- Personal collection » Acorn hard disk » misc » misc3 » eug_titles/BallBot/Part1
File contents
BallBot Update Artificial Intelligence Module The Artificial Intelligence module is the computer program which will run in the final robot to drive it around the tennis court to collect any balls, and then dump them in a "home" position. The AI module's technique is easiest viewed if you imagine that you are a small robot on a tennis court, and imagine what strategy you would adopt. It is important to decide what action you would take when confronted with all of the following objects: 1. ME - Never visable from the ultrasonic sensors, because its always behind them (when did you last see your face without using a mirror?), but it is very important to know where you are relative to the rest of the court. 2. THE BALL - The target. How could such a small thing be so important? Go for it, but only if its safe to do so without the risk of colliding with anything on the way. 3. THE PLAYER - Nasty thing this... Keeps on moving around, but gets annoyed if you collide with it. Keep away from this at all costs, otherwise you will find yourself being recycled in the local scrapyard. 4. THE NET - An area where balls often collect, but be VERY careful when maneovreing close to the net - you don't want to get caught up in it, because that would be embarrassing. 5. THE CROWD - Large thing which surrounds the court. Don't collide with it, or you will be in trouble. One wrong move when close to the crowd could find you a place in that scrapyard again... I found that the easiest method of performing this task was to split it up. First the robot enters one of the two sides of the court. It then begins slowly rotating around, scanning the court for balls. If it sees one straight ahead, it drives forward to get it. If it sees one to one side, it steers towards that side to line up with the balls. Once it has collected the ball, it begins rotating again to try and find another ball. If it manages to rotate through 360 degrees without seeing a ball, it knows that this side of the court is clear of balls. The robot then looks for a net post, and steers towards it. When it gets very close, it steers away from the net to go around the post onto the other side of the court. This maneovre required much attention in the development of the module - if it steers too much it tends to get lost off the court, and if it steers too little it collides with the post. When this maneovre has been completed, the robot return to the first stage of the process, and scans the court for balls again. Once again, the robot only finishes when it successfully rotates through 360 degrees without seeing a ball. This time, the robot heads off towards the point where it is to dump the balls - currently in the middle of one of the sides of the court, although this will probably be changed later. Then it dumps the balls here, before heading off towards one of the net posts, where it sits dormant until asked to do another collection. The Computer Simulation The BallBot artificial intelligence module was developed in BASIC on an Acorn Archimedes, using a computer simulation of a tennis court. The simulation takes the robot is being at a point with co-ordinates (x,y) on the court, and facing a direction of bearing d. To find the ultrasonic data to pass to the AI module, it systematically cycles through every object on the court: the balls, the net posts, the net, and any humans. For each it finds the distance that the object is from the robot, using Pythagoras' theorum, and the bearing using trigonometry: It then decides which sensors that particular object would be detected by. If it is out of sight of all of the sensors, it is ignored, and the simulation moves onto the next object. This object will not affect BallBot's input from any of the sensors. If it is in sight of one of the sensors, it compares the distance of the object with any others which are already logged as being detected by that sensor. If it is closer, the previous entry for that sensor is removed, as it would be hidden behind the new object. If it is further away, the object currently being considered is ignored, as it would be hidden from sight. This way, the closest object to the robot is found. When the simulation has finished processing all of the objects in this way, the ultrasonic inputs are completed. They are passed to the artificial intelligence module for processing. Based upon this data, the module decides what to do next, and the output data to the motors is calculated. Although the AI module is running on the same computer as the simulation, it only accesses the ultrasonic data passed to it, and does not use any data concerning the co-ordinates of itself or any other object on the court. This would be cheating, and would make the module useless in any real life situation. The output data is returned to the simulation, which uses it to update the values of x, y and d (the position of the robot). It first has to find the speed at which the robot is travelling, and then uses trigonometry to update x and y: It then calculates whether or not the robot is turning at all, and if it is, it updates the value of the bearing d by adding or subtracting a certain number of degrees from it. When this is completed, the cycle begins again. The same cycle will also be used by the final robot. The only difference is that the manipulation of the motors and the calculation of ultrasonic data will be carried out by hardware, not software. This simulation allowed me to develop the simulation very easily, and as the AI module was in BASIC it could be adapted to overcome faults with little difficulty. At first I placed tennis balls on the court by clicking with the mouse, and then watched the robot move round to collect them. Later, when the robot was more reliable, I added a feature to the simulation which allowed the computer to randomly place balls on the court itself, without the user, and then set the AI module to try to collect them. The simulation produced a log of all of the runs, with a judgement of how well it went. If the AI module successfully collected all of the balls, and returned the, to the "home" spot, it gave a "PASS". If it failed to collect all the balls it returned "FAIL". Other responses were given for crashing into the net or reaching a point of indecision (i.e. the robot just froze up). Later I could watch the failed runs myself, and study them to find out what went wrong. I found it useful to develop the AI module's code during the daytime, and then leave the computer simulation running on its own overnight so that I could see what areas still needed attention. This computer simulation runs in real-time, so that the robot on the screen moves around in the same time-scale as would the real robot in reality. This gives me a better judgement as to whether or not the speed is acceptable than would statistics alone. In order to make the simulation real-time, I had to research the exact dimensions of a tennis court to know how fast the robot will move relative to landmarks on the court. When I had developed the AI module in BASIC so that it was working consistently, I had to translate the module into 6502 machine code. Although BASIC is easier to work with, it would not be feasable to run the code in the final robot or the prototype in BASIC. Machine code not only runs faster, but is also the only language which microprocessors can interpret without special software being present (which will not be the case in the the final robot). When the module had been converted into machine code, I began testing it on a BBC, as opposed to an Archimedes, as this computer runs on a 6502 processor, and so accepts this form of machine code. First I used a conversion of the simulation to check that the conversion had been successful. I found that even without having to run the AI module in BASIC, the BBC simulation ran slowly at only 1/20th of real speed. Even so, I was able to use it to find a few bugs which had cropped up during the transfer, and remove them from the code. Development of the BallBot MOS When the AI module had been successfully converted to the BBC, I began developing a MOS (Machine Operating System) under which it would operate. This reads input from an Ultrasonics module, and then passes the data to the AI module. When the AI module has finished processing the data, it takes the motor control data and sends it to the BBC's output ports to be acted upon by the hardware. This small module is actually a very simple piece of code - its sole purpose is to pass data from one module to another, and to keep all of the modules working together in time with one another.
00000000 42 61 6c 6c 42 6f 74 20 55 70 64 61 74 65 0d 0d |BallBot Update..| 00000010 41 72 74 69 66 69 63 69 61 6c 20 49 6e 74 65 6c |Artificial Intel| 00000020 6c 69 67 65 6e 63 65 20 4d 6f 64 75 6c 65 0d 0d |ligence Module..| 00000030 54 68 65 20 41 72 74 69 66 69 63 69 61 6c 20 49 |The Artificial I| 00000040 6e 74 65 6c 6c 69 67 65 6e 63 65 20 6d 6f 64 75 |ntelligence modu| 00000050 6c 65 20 69 73 20 74 68 65 20 63 6f 6d 70 75 74 |le is the comput| 00000060 65 72 20 70 72 6f 67 72 61 6d 20 77 68 69 63 68 |er program which| 00000070 20 77 69 6c 6c 20 72 75 6e 0d 69 6e 20 74 68 65 | will run.in the| 00000080 20 66 69 6e 61 6c 20 72 6f 62 6f 74 20 74 6f 20 | final robot to | 00000090 64 72 69 76 65 20 69 74 20 61 72 6f 75 6e 64 20 |drive it around | 000000a0 74 68 65 20 74 65 6e 6e 69 73 20 63 6f 75 72 74 |the tennis court| 000000b0 20 74 6f 20 63 6f 6c 6c 65 63 74 20 61 6e 79 0d | to collect any.| 000000c0 62 61 6c 6c 73 2c 20 61 6e 64 20 74 68 65 6e 20 |balls, and then | 000000d0 64 75 6d 70 20 74 68 65 6d 20 69 6e 20 61 20 22 |dump them in a "| 000000e0 68 6f 6d 65 22 20 70 6f 73 69 74 69 6f 6e 2e 20 |home" position. | 000000f0 54 68 65 20 41 49 20 6d 6f 64 75 6c 65 27 73 20 |The AI module's | 00000100 74 65 63 68 6e 69 71 75 65 0d 69 73 20 65 61 73 |technique.is eas| 00000110 69 65 73 74 20 76 69 65 77 65 64 20 69 66 20 79 |iest viewed if y| 00000120 6f 75 20 69 6d 61 67 69 6e 65 20 74 68 61 74 20 |ou imagine that | 00000130 79 6f 75 20 61 72 65 20 61 20 73 6d 61 6c 6c 20 |you are a small | 00000140 72 6f 62 6f 74 20 6f 6e 20 61 20 74 65 6e 6e 69 |robot on a tenni| 00000150 73 0d 63 6f 75 72 74 2c 20 61 6e 64 20 69 6d 61 |s.court, and ima| 00000160 67 69 6e 65 20 77 68 61 74 20 73 74 72 61 74 65 |gine what strate| 00000170 67 79 20 79 6f 75 20 77 6f 75 6c 64 20 61 64 6f |gy you would ado| 00000180 70 74 2e 20 49 74 20 69 73 20 69 6d 70 6f 72 74 |pt. It is import| 00000190 61 6e 74 20 74 6f 0d 64 65 63 69 64 65 20 77 68 |ant to.decide wh| 000001a0 61 74 20 61 63 74 69 6f 6e 20 79 6f 75 20 77 6f |at action you wo| 000001b0 75 6c 64 20 74 61 6b 65 20 77 68 65 6e 20 63 6f |uld take when co| 000001c0 6e 66 72 6f 6e 74 65 64 20 77 69 74 68 20 61 6c |nfronted with al| 000001d0 6c 20 6f 66 20 74 68 65 0d 66 6f 6c 6c 6f 77 69 |l of the.followi| 000001e0 6e 67 20 6f 62 6a 65 63 74 73 3a 0d 0d 31 2e 20 |ng objects:..1. | 000001f0 4d 45 20 2d 20 4e 65 76 65 72 20 76 69 73 61 62 |ME - Never visab| 00000200 6c 65 20 66 72 6f 6d 20 74 68 65 20 75 6c 74 72 |le from the ultr| 00000210 61 73 6f 6e 69 63 20 73 65 6e 73 6f 72 73 2c 20 |asonic sensors, | 00000220 62 65 63 61 75 73 65 20 69 74 73 20 61 6c 77 61 |because its alwa| 00000230 79 73 0d 62 65 68 69 6e 64 20 74 68 65 6d 20 28 |ys.behind them (| 00000240 77 68 65 6e 20 64 69 64 20 79 6f 75 20 6c 61 73 |when did you las| 00000250 74 20 73 65 65 20 79 6f 75 72 20 66 61 63 65 20 |t see your face | 00000260 77 69 74 68 6f 75 74 20 75 73 69 6e 67 20 61 20 |without using a | 00000270 6d 69 72 72 6f 72 3f 29 2c 20 62 75 74 0d 69 74 |mirror?), but.it| 00000280 20 69 73 20 76 65 72 79 20 69 6d 70 6f 72 74 61 | is very importa| 00000290 6e 74 20 74 6f 20 6b 6e 6f 77 20 77 68 65 72 65 |nt to know where| 000002a0 20 79 6f 75 20 61 72 65 20 72 65 6c 61 74 69 76 | you are relativ| 000002b0 65 20 74 6f 20 74 68 65 20 72 65 73 74 20 6f 66 |e to the rest of| 000002c0 20 74 68 65 0d 63 6f 75 72 74 2e 0d 32 2e 20 54 | the.court..2. T| 000002d0 48 45 20 42 41 4c 4c 20 2d 20 54 68 65 20 74 61 |HE BALL - The ta| 000002e0 72 67 65 74 2e 20 48 6f 77 20 63 6f 75 6c 64 20 |rget. How could | 000002f0 73 75 63 68 20 61 20 73 6d 61 6c 6c 20 74 68 69 |such a small thi| 00000300 6e 67 20 62 65 20 73 6f 20 69 6d 70 6f 72 74 61 |ng be so importa| 00000310 6e 74 3f 20 47 6f 0d 66 6f 72 20 69 74 2c 20 62 |nt? Go.for it, b| 00000320 75 74 20 6f 6e 6c 79 20 69 66 20 69 74 73 20 73 |ut only if its s| 00000330 61 66 65 20 74 6f 20 64 6f 20 73 6f 20 77 69 74 |afe to do so wit| 00000340 68 6f 75 74 20 74 68 65 20 72 69 73 6b 20 6f 66 |hout the risk of| 00000350 20 63 6f 6c 6c 69 64 69 6e 67 20 77 69 74 68 0d | colliding with.| 00000360 61 6e 79 74 68 69 6e 67 20 6f 6e 20 74 68 65 20 |anything on the | 00000370 77 61 79 2e 0d 33 2e 20 54 48 45 20 20 50 4c 41 |way..3. THE PLA| 00000380 59 45 52 20 2d 20 4e 61 73 74 79 20 74 68 69 6e |YER - Nasty thin| 00000390 67 20 74 68 69 73 2e 2e 2e 20 4b 65 65 70 73 20 |g this... Keeps | 000003a0 6f 6e 20 6d 6f 76 69 6e 67 20 61 72 6f 75 6e 64 |on moving around| 000003b0 2c 20 62 75 74 20 67 65 74 73 0d 61 6e 6e 6f 79 |, but gets.annoy| 000003c0 65 64 20 69 66 20 79 6f 75 20 63 6f 6c 6c 69 64 |ed if you collid| 000003d0 65 20 77 69 74 68 20 69 74 2e 20 4b 65 65 70 20 |e with it. Keep | 000003e0 61 77 61 79 20 66 72 6f 6d 20 74 68 69 73 20 61 |away from this a| 000003f0 74 20 61 6c 6c 20 63 6f 73 74 73 2c 0d 6f 74 68 |t all costs,.oth| 00000400 65 72 77 69 73 65 20 79 6f 75 20 77 69 6c 6c 20 |erwise you will | 00000410 66 69 6e 64 20 79 6f 75 72 73 65 6c 66 20 62 65 |find yourself be| 00000420 69 6e 67 20 72 65 63 79 63 6c 65 64 20 69 6e 20 |ing recycled in | 00000430 74 68 65 20 6c 6f 63 61 6c 20 73 63 72 61 70 79 |the local scrapy| 00000440 61 72 64 2e 0d 34 2e 20 54 48 45 20 4e 45 54 20 |ard..4. THE NET | 00000450 2d 20 41 6e 20 61 72 65 61 20 77 68 65 72 65 20 |- An area where | 00000460 62 61 6c 6c 73 20 6f 66 74 65 6e 20 63 6f 6c 6c |balls often coll| 00000470 65 63 74 2c 20 62 75 74 20 62 65 20 56 45 52 59 |ect, but be VERY| 00000480 20 63 61 72 65 66 75 6c 20 77 68 65 6e 0d 6d 61 | careful when.ma| 00000490 6e 65 6f 76 72 65 69 6e 67 20 63 6c 6f 73 65 20 |neovreing close | 000004a0 74 6f 20 74 68 65 20 6e 65 74 20 2d 20 79 6f 75 |to the net - you| 000004b0 20 64 6f 6e 27 74 20 77 61 6e 74 20 74 6f 20 67 | don't want to g| 000004c0 65 74 20 63 61 75 67 68 74 20 75 70 20 69 6e 20 |et caught up in | 000004d0 69 74 2c 0d 62 65 63 61 75 73 65 20 74 68 61 74 |it,.because that| 000004e0 20 77 6f 75 6c 64 20 62 65 20 65 6d 62 61 72 72 | would be embarr| 000004f0 61 73 73 69 6e 67 2e 0d 35 2e 20 54 48 45 20 43 |assing..5. THE C| 00000500 52 4f 57 44 20 2d 20 4c 61 72 67 65 20 74 68 69 |ROWD - Large thi| 00000510 6e 67 20 77 68 69 63 68 20 73 75 72 72 6f 75 6e |ng which surroun| 00000520 64 73 20 74 68 65 20 63 6f 75 72 74 2e 20 44 6f |ds the court. Do| 00000530 6e 27 74 20 63 6f 6c 6c 69 64 65 20 77 69 74 68 |n't collide with| 00000540 0d 69 74 2c 20 6f 72 20 79 6f 75 20 77 69 6c 6c |.it, or you will| 00000550 20 62 65 20 69 6e 20 74 72 6f 75 62 6c 65 2e 20 | be in trouble. | 00000560 4f 6e 65 20 77 72 6f 6e 67 20 6d 6f 76 65 20 77 |One wrong move w| 00000570 68 65 6e 20 63 6c 6f 73 65 20 74 6f 20 74 68 65 |hen close to the| 00000580 20 63 72 6f 77 64 0d 63 6f 75 6c 64 20 66 69 6e | crowd.could fin| 00000590 64 20 79 6f 75 20 61 20 70 6c 61 63 65 20 69 6e |d you a place in| 000005a0 20 74 68 61 74 20 73 63 72 61 70 79 61 72 64 20 | that scrapyard | 000005b0 61 67 61 69 6e 2e 2e 2e 0d 0d 49 20 66 6f 75 6e |again.....I foun| 000005c0 64 20 74 68 61 74 20 74 68 65 20 65 61 73 69 65 |d that the easie| 000005d0 73 74 20 6d 65 74 68 6f 64 20 6f 66 20 70 65 72 |st method of per| 000005e0 66 6f 72 6d 69 6e 67 20 74 68 69 73 20 74 61 73 |forming this tas| 000005f0 6b 20 77 61 73 20 74 6f 20 73 70 6c 69 74 20 69 |k was to split i| 00000600 74 0d 75 70 2e 20 46 69 72 73 74 20 74 68 65 20 |t.up. First the | 00000610 72 6f 62 6f 74 20 65 6e 74 65 72 73 20 6f 6e 65 |robot enters one| 00000620 20 6f 66 20 74 68 65 20 74 77 6f 20 73 69 64 65 | of the two side| 00000630 73 20 6f 66 20 74 68 65 20 63 6f 75 72 74 2e 20 |s of the court. | 00000640 49 74 20 74 68 65 6e 0d 62 65 67 69 6e 73 20 73 |It then.begins s| 00000650 6c 6f 77 6c 79 20 72 6f 74 61 74 69 6e 67 20 61 |lowly rotating a| 00000660 72 6f 75 6e 64 2c 20 73 63 61 6e 6e 69 6e 67 20 |round, scanning | 00000670 74 68 65 20 63 6f 75 72 74 20 66 6f 72 20 62 61 |the court for ba| 00000680 6c 6c 73 2e 20 49 66 20 69 74 20 73 65 65 73 0d |lls. If it sees.| 00000690 6f 6e 65 20 73 74 72 61 69 67 68 74 20 61 68 65 |one straight ahe| 000006a0 61 64 2c 20 69 74 20 64 72 69 76 65 73 20 66 6f |ad, it drives fo| 000006b0 72 77 61 72 64 20 74 6f 20 67 65 74 20 69 74 2e |rward to get it.| 000006c0 20 49 66 20 69 74 20 73 65 65 73 20 6f 6e 65 20 | If it sees one | 000006d0 74 6f 20 6f 6e 65 0d 73 69 64 65 2c 20 69 74 20 |to one.side, it | 000006e0 73 74 65 65 72 73 20 74 6f 77 61 72 64 73 20 74 |steers towards t| 000006f0 68 61 74 20 73 69 64 65 20 74 6f 20 6c 69 6e 65 |hat side to line| 00000700 20 75 70 20 77 69 74 68 20 74 68 65 20 62 61 6c | up with the bal| 00000710 6c 73 2e 20 4f 6e 63 65 20 69 74 20 68 61 73 0d |ls. Once it has.| 00000720 63 6f 6c 6c 65 63 74 65 64 20 74 68 65 20 62 61 |collected the ba| 00000730 6c 6c 2c 20 69 74 20 62 65 67 69 6e 73 20 72 6f |ll, it begins ro| 00000740 74 61 74 69 6e 67 20 61 67 61 69 6e 20 74 6f 20 |tating again to | 00000750 74 72 79 20 61 6e 64 20 66 69 6e 64 20 61 6e 6f |try and find ano| 00000760 74 68 65 72 0d 62 61 6c 6c 2e 20 49 66 20 69 74 |ther.ball. If it| 00000770 20 6d 61 6e 61 67 65 73 20 74 6f 20 72 6f 74 61 | manages to rota| 00000780 74 65 20 74 68 72 6f 75 67 68 20 33 36 30 20 64 |te through 360 d| 00000790 65 67 72 65 65 73 20 77 69 74 68 6f 75 74 20 73 |egrees without s| 000007a0 65 65 69 6e 67 20 61 20 62 61 6c 6c 2c 0d 69 74 |eeing a ball,.it| 000007b0 20 6b 6e 6f 77 73 20 74 68 61 74 20 74 68 69 73 | knows that this| 000007c0 20 73 69 64 65 20 6f 66 20 74 68 65 20 63 6f 75 | side of the cou| 000007d0 72 74 20 69 73 20 63 6c 65 61 72 20 6f 66 20 62 |rt is clear of b| 000007e0 61 6c 6c 73 2e 0d 0d 54 68 65 20 72 6f 62 6f 74 |alls...The robot| 000007f0 20 74 68 65 6e 20 6c 6f 6f 6b 73 20 66 6f 72 20 | then looks for | 00000800 61 20 6e 65 74 20 70 6f 73 74 2c 20 61 6e 64 20 |a net post, and | 00000810 73 74 65 65 72 73 20 74 6f 77 61 72 64 73 20 69 |steers towards i| 00000820 74 2e 20 57 68 65 6e 20 69 74 20 67 65 74 73 0d |t. When it gets.| 00000830 76 65 72 79 20 63 6c 6f 73 65 2c 20 69 74 20 73 |very close, it s| 00000840 74 65 65 72 73 20 61 77 61 79 20 66 72 6f 6d 20 |teers away from | 00000850 74 68 65 20 6e 65 74 20 74 6f 20 67 6f 20 61 72 |the net to go ar| 00000860 6f 75 6e 64 20 74 68 65 20 70 6f 73 74 20 6f 6e |ound the post on| 00000870 74 6f 20 74 68 65 0d 6f 74 68 65 72 20 73 69 64 |to the.other sid| 00000880 65 20 6f 66 20 74 68 65 20 63 6f 75 72 74 2e 20 |e of the court. | 00000890 54 68 69 73 20 6d 61 6e 65 6f 76 72 65 20 72 65 |This maneovre re| 000008a0 71 75 69 72 65 64 20 6d 75 63 68 20 61 74 74 65 |quired much atte| 000008b0 6e 74 69 6f 6e 20 69 6e 20 74 68 65 0d 64 65 76 |ntion in the.dev| 000008c0 65 6c 6f 70 6d 65 6e 74 20 6f 66 20 74 68 65 20 |elopment of the | 000008d0 6d 6f 64 75 6c 65 20 2d 20 69 66 20 69 74 20 73 |module - if it s| 000008e0 74 65 65 72 73 20 74 6f 6f 20 6d 75 63 68 20 69 |teers too much i| 000008f0 74 20 74 65 6e 64 73 20 74 6f 20 67 65 74 20 6c |t tends to get l| 00000900 6f 73 74 20 6f 66 66 0d 74 68 65 20 63 6f 75 72 |ost off.the cour| 00000910 74 2c 20 61 6e 64 20 69 66 20 69 74 20 73 74 65 |t, and if it ste| 00000920 65 72 73 20 74 6f 6f 20 6c 69 74 74 6c 65 20 69 |ers too little i| 00000930 74 20 63 6f 6c 6c 69 64 65 73 20 77 69 74 68 20 |t collides with | 00000940 74 68 65 20 70 6f 73 74 2e 0d 0d 57 68 65 6e 20 |the post...When | 00000950 74 68 69 73 20 6d 61 6e 65 6f 76 72 65 20 68 61 |this maneovre ha| 00000960 73 20 62 65 65 6e 20 63 6f 6d 70 6c 65 74 65 64 |s been completed| 00000970 2c 20 74 68 65 20 72 6f 62 6f 74 20 72 65 74 75 |, the robot retu| 00000980 72 6e 20 74 6f 20 74 68 65 20 66 69 72 73 74 20 |rn to the first | 00000990 73 74 61 67 65 0d 6f 66 20 74 68 65 20 70 72 6f |stage.of the pro| 000009a0 63 65 73 73 2c 20 61 6e 64 20 73 63 61 6e 73 20 |cess, and scans | 000009b0 74 68 65 20 63 6f 75 72 74 20 66 6f 72 20 62 61 |the court for ba| 000009c0 6c 6c 73 20 61 67 61 69 6e 2e 20 4f 6e 63 65 20 |lls again. Once | 000009d0 61 67 61 69 6e 2c 20 74 68 65 20 72 6f 62 6f 74 |again, the robot| 000009e0 0d 6f 6e 6c 79 20 66 69 6e 69 73 68 65 73 20 77 |.only finishes w| 000009f0 68 65 6e 20 69 74 20 73 75 63 63 65 73 73 66 75 |hen it successfu| 00000a00 6c 6c 79 20 72 6f 74 61 74 65 73 20 74 68 72 6f |lly rotates thro| 00000a10 75 67 68 20 33 36 30 20 64 65 67 72 65 65 73 20 |ugh 360 degrees | 00000a20 77 69 74 68 6f 75 74 0d 73 65 65 69 6e 67 20 61 |without.seeing a| 00000a30 20 62 61 6c 6c 2e 0d 0d 54 68 69 73 20 74 69 6d | ball...This tim| 00000a40 65 2c 20 74 68 65 20 72 6f 62 6f 74 20 68 65 61 |e, the robot hea| 00000a50 64 73 20 6f 66 66 20 74 6f 77 61 72 64 73 20 74 |ds off towards t| 00000a60 68 65 20 70 6f 69 6e 74 20 77 68 65 72 65 20 69 |he point where i| 00000a70 74 20 69 73 20 74 6f 20 64 75 6d 70 20 74 68 65 |t is to dump the| 00000a80 0d 62 61 6c 6c 73 20 2d 20 63 75 72 72 65 6e 74 |.balls - current| 00000a90 6c 79 20 69 6e 20 74 68 65 20 6d 69 64 64 6c 65 |ly in the middle| 00000aa0 20 6f 66 20 6f 6e 65 20 6f 66 20 74 68 65 20 73 | of one of the s| 00000ab0 69 64 65 73 20 6f 66 20 74 68 65 20 63 6f 75 72 |ides of the cour| 00000ac0 74 2c 20 61 6c 74 68 6f 75 67 68 0d 74 68 69 73 |t, although.this| 00000ad0 20 77 69 6c 6c 20 70 72 6f 62 61 62 6c 79 20 62 | will probably b| 00000ae0 65 20 63 68 61 6e 67 65 64 20 6c 61 74 65 72 2e |e changed later.| 00000af0 20 54 68 65 6e 20 69 74 20 64 75 6d 70 73 20 74 | Then it dumps t| 00000b00 68 65 20 62 61 6c 6c 73 20 68 65 72 65 2c 20 62 |he balls here, b| 00000b10 65 66 6f 72 65 0d 68 65 61 64 69 6e 67 20 6f 66 |efore.heading of| 00000b20 66 20 74 6f 77 61 72 64 73 20 6f 6e 65 20 6f 66 |f towards one of| 00000b30 20 74 68 65 20 6e 65 74 20 70 6f 73 74 73 2c 20 | the net posts, | 00000b40 77 68 65 72 65 20 69 74 20 73 69 74 73 20 64 6f |where it sits do| 00000b50 72 6d 61 6e 74 20 75 6e 74 69 6c 0d 61 73 6b 65 |rmant until.aske| 00000b60 64 20 74 6f 20 64 6f 20 61 6e 6f 74 68 65 72 20 |d to do another | 00000b70 63 6f 6c 6c 65 63 74 69 6f 6e 2e 0d 0d 54 68 65 |collection...The| 00000b80 20 43 6f 6d 70 75 74 65 72 20 53 69 6d 75 6c 61 | Computer Simula| 00000b90 74 69 6f 6e 0d 0d 54 68 65 20 42 61 6c 6c 42 6f |tion..The BallBo| 00000ba0 74 20 61 72 74 69 66 69 63 69 61 6c 20 69 6e 74 |t artificial int| 00000bb0 65 6c 6c 69 67 65 6e 63 65 20 6d 6f 64 75 6c 65 |elligence module| 00000bc0 20 77 61 73 20 64 65 76 65 6c 6f 70 65 64 20 69 | was developed i| 00000bd0 6e 20 42 41 53 49 43 20 6f 6e 20 61 6e 0d 41 63 |n BASIC on an.Ac| 00000be0 6f 72 6e 20 41 72 63 68 69 6d 65 64 65 73 2c 20 |orn Archimedes, | 00000bf0 75 73 69 6e 67 20 61 20 63 6f 6d 70 75 74 65 72 |using a computer| 00000c00 20 73 69 6d 75 6c 61 74 69 6f 6e 20 6f 66 20 61 | simulation of a| 00000c10 20 74 65 6e 6e 69 73 20 63 6f 75 72 74 2e 20 54 | tennis court. T| 00000c20 68 65 0d 73 69 6d 75 6c 61 74 69 6f 6e 20 74 61 |he.simulation ta| 00000c30 6b 65 73 20 74 68 65 20 72 6f 62 6f 74 20 69 73 |kes the robot is| 00000c40 20 62 65 69 6e 67 20 61 74 20 61 20 70 6f 69 6e | being at a poin| 00000c50 74 20 77 69 74 68 20 63 6f 2d 6f 72 64 69 6e 61 |t with co-ordina| 00000c60 74 65 73 20 28 78 2c 79 29 20 6f 6e 0d 74 68 65 |tes (x,y) on.the| 00000c70 20 63 6f 75 72 74 2c 20 61 6e 64 20 66 61 63 69 | court, and faci| 00000c80 6e 67 20 61 20 64 69 72 65 63 74 69 6f 6e 20 6f |ng a direction o| 00000c90 66 20 62 65 61 72 69 6e 67 20 64 2e 20 54 6f 20 |f bearing d. To | 00000ca0 66 69 6e 64 20 74 68 65 20 75 6c 74 72 61 73 6f |find the ultraso| 00000cb0 6e 69 63 0d 64 61 74 61 20 74 6f 20 70 61 73 73 |nic.data to pass| 00000cc0 20 74 6f 20 74 68 65 20 41 49 20 6d 6f 64 75 6c | to the AI modul| 00000cd0 65 2c 20 69 74 20 73 79 73 74 65 6d 61 74 69 63 |e, it systematic| 00000ce0 61 6c 6c 79 20 63 79 63 6c 65 73 20 74 68 72 6f |ally cycles thro| 00000cf0 75 67 68 20 65 76 65 72 79 0d 6f 62 6a 65 63 74 |ugh every.object| 00000d00 20 6f 6e 20 74 68 65 20 63 6f 75 72 74 3a 20 74 | on the court: t| 00000d10 68 65 20 62 61 6c 6c 73 2c 20 74 68 65 20 6e 65 |he balls, the ne| 00000d20 74 20 70 6f 73 74 73 2c 20 74 68 65 20 6e 65 74 |t posts, the net| 00000d30 2c 20 61 6e 64 20 61 6e 79 20 68 75 6d 61 6e 73 |, and any humans| 00000d40 2e 0d 46 6f 72 20 65 61 63 68 20 69 74 20 66 69 |..For each it fi| 00000d50 6e 64 73 20 74 68 65 20 64 69 73 74 61 6e 63 65 |nds the distance| 00000d60 20 74 68 61 74 20 74 68 65 20 6f 62 6a 65 63 74 | that the object| 00000d70 20 69 73 20 66 72 6f 6d 20 74 68 65 20 72 6f 62 | is from the rob| 00000d80 6f 74 2c 20 75 73 69 6e 67 0d 50 79 74 68 61 67 |ot, using.Pythag| 00000d90 6f 72 61 73 27 20 74 68 65 6f 72 75 6d 2c 20 61 |oras' theorum, a| 00000da0 6e 64 20 74 68 65 20 62 65 61 72 69 6e 67 20 75 |nd the bearing u| 00000db0 73 69 6e 67 20 74 72 69 67 6f 6e 6f 6d 65 74 72 |sing trigonometr| 00000dc0 79 3a 0d 0d 49 74 20 74 68 65 6e 20 64 65 63 69 |y:..It then deci| 00000dd0 64 65 73 20 77 68 69 63 68 20 73 65 6e 73 6f 72 |des which sensor| 00000de0 73 20 74 68 61 74 20 70 61 72 74 69 63 75 6c 61 |s that particula| 00000df0 72 20 6f 62 6a 65 63 74 20 77 6f 75 6c 64 20 62 |r object would b| 00000e00 65 20 64 65 74 65 63 74 65 64 20 62 79 2e 0d 49 |e detected by..I| 00000e10 66 20 69 74 20 69 73 20 6f 75 74 20 6f 66 20 73 |f it is out of s| 00000e20 69 67 68 74 20 6f 66 20 61 6c 6c 20 6f 66 20 74 |ight of all of t| 00000e30 68 65 20 73 65 6e 73 6f 72 73 2c 20 69 74 20 69 |he sensors, it i| 00000e40 73 20 69 67 6e 6f 72 65 64 2c 20 61 6e 64 20 74 |s ignored, and t| 00000e50 68 65 0d 73 69 6d 75 6c 61 74 69 6f 6e 20 6d 6f |he.simulation mo| 00000e60 76 65 73 20 6f 6e 74 6f 20 74 68 65 20 6e 65 78 |ves onto the nex| 00000e70 74 20 6f 62 6a 65 63 74 2e 20 54 68 69 73 20 6f |t object. This o| 00000e80 62 6a 65 63 74 20 77 69 6c 6c 20 6e 6f 74 20 61 |bject will not a| 00000e90 66 66 65 63 74 0d 42 61 6c 6c 42 6f 74 27 73 20 |ffect.BallBot's | 00000ea0 69 6e 70 75 74 20 66 72 6f 6d 20 61 6e 79 20 6f |input from any o| 00000eb0 66 20 74 68 65 20 73 65 6e 73 6f 72 73 2e 20 49 |f the sensors. I| 00000ec0 66 20 69 74 20 69 73 20 69 6e 20 73 69 67 68 74 |f it is in sight| 00000ed0 20 6f 66 20 6f 6e 65 20 6f 66 20 74 68 65 0d 73 | of one of the.s| 00000ee0 65 6e 73 6f 72 73 2c 20 69 74 20 63 6f 6d 70 61 |ensors, it compa| 00000ef0 72 65 73 20 74 68 65 20 64 69 73 74 61 6e 63 65 |res the distance| 00000f00 20 6f 66 20 74 68 65 20 6f 62 6a 65 63 74 20 77 | of the object w| 00000f10 69 74 68 20 61 6e 79 20 6f 74 68 65 72 73 20 77 |ith any others w| 00000f20 68 69 63 68 20 61 72 65 0d 61 6c 72 65 61 64 79 |hich are.already| 00000f30 20 6c 6f 67 67 65 64 20 61 73 20 62 65 69 6e 67 | logged as being| 00000f40 20 64 65 74 65 63 74 65 64 20 62 79 20 74 68 61 | detected by tha| 00000f50 74 20 73 65 6e 73 6f 72 2e 20 49 66 20 69 74 20 |t sensor. If it | 00000f60 69 73 20 63 6c 6f 73 65 72 2c 20 74 68 65 0d 70 |is closer, the.p| 00000f70 72 65 76 69 6f 75 73 20 65 6e 74 72 79 20 66 6f |revious entry fo| 00000f80 72 20 74 68 61 74 20 73 65 6e 73 6f 72 20 69 73 |r that sensor is| 00000f90 20 72 65 6d 6f 76 65 64 2c 20 61 73 20 69 74 20 | removed, as it | 00000fa0 77 6f 75 6c 64 20 62 65 20 68 69 64 64 65 6e 20 |would be hidden | 00000fb0 62 65 68 69 6e 64 0d 74 68 65 20 6e 65 77 20 6f |behind.the new o| 00000fc0 62 6a 65 63 74 2e 20 49 66 20 69 74 20 69 73 20 |bject. If it is | 00000fd0 66 75 72 74 68 65 72 20 61 77 61 79 2c 20 74 68 |further away, th| 00000fe0 65 20 6f 62 6a 65 63 74 20 63 75 72 72 65 6e 74 |e object current| 00000ff0 6c 79 20 62 65 69 6e 67 0d 63 6f 6e 73 69 64 65 |ly being.conside| 00001000 72 65 64 20 69 73 20 69 67 6e 6f 72 65 64 2c 20 |red is ignored, | 00001010 61 73 20 69 74 20 77 6f 75 6c 64 20 62 65 20 68 |as it would be h| 00001020 69 64 64 65 6e 20 66 72 6f 6d 20 73 69 67 68 74 |idden from sight| 00001030 2e 20 54 68 69 73 20 77 61 79 2c 20 74 68 65 0d |. This way, the.| 00001040 63 6c 6f 73 65 73 74 20 6f 62 6a 65 63 74 20 74 |closest object t| 00001050 6f 20 74 68 65 20 72 6f 62 6f 74 20 69 73 20 66 |o the robot is f| 00001060 6f 75 6e 64 2e 0d 0d 57 68 65 6e 20 74 68 65 20 |ound...When the | 00001070 73 69 6d 75 6c 61 74 69 6f 6e 20 68 61 73 20 66 |simulation has f| 00001080 69 6e 69 73 68 65 64 20 70 72 6f 63 65 73 73 69 |inished processi| 00001090 6e 67 20 61 6c 6c 20 6f 66 20 74 68 65 20 6f 62 |ng all of the ob| 000010a0 6a 65 63 74 73 20 69 6e 20 74 68 69 73 0d 77 61 |jects in this.wa| 000010b0 79 2c 20 74 68 65 20 75 6c 74 72 61 73 6f 6e 69 |y, the ultrasoni| 000010c0 63 20 69 6e 70 75 74 73 20 61 72 65 20 63 6f 6d |c inputs are com| 000010d0 70 6c 65 74 65 64 2e 20 54 68 65 79 20 61 72 65 |pleted. They are| 000010e0 20 70 61 73 73 65 64 20 74 6f 20 74 68 65 0d 61 | passed to the.a| 000010f0 72 74 69 66 69 63 69 61 6c 20 69 6e 74 65 6c 6c |rtificial intell| 00001100 69 67 65 6e 63 65 20 6d 6f 64 75 6c 65 20 66 6f |igence module fo| 00001110 72 20 70 72 6f 63 65 73 73 69 6e 67 2e 20 42 61 |r processing. Ba| 00001120 73 65 64 20 75 70 6f 6e 20 74 68 69 73 20 64 61 |sed upon this da| 00001130 74 61 2c 20 74 68 65 0d 6d 6f 64 75 6c 65 20 64 |ta, the.module d| 00001140 65 63 69 64 65 73 20 77 68 61 74 20 74 6f 20 64 |ecides what to d| 00001150 6f 20 6e 65 78 74 2c 20 61 6e 64 20 74 68 65 20 |o next, and the | 00001160 6f 75 74 70 75 74 20 64 61 74 61 20 74 6f 20 74 |output data to t| 00001170 68 65 20 6d 6f 74 6f 72 73 20 69 73 0d 63 61 6c |he motors is.cal| 00001180 63 75 6c 61 74 65 64 2e 20 41 6c 74 68 6f 75 67 |culated. Althoug| 00001190 68 20 74 68 65 20 41 49 20 6d 6f 64 75 6c 65 20 |h the AI module | 000011a0 69 73 20 72 75 6e 6e 69 6e 67 20 6f 6e 20 74 68 |is running on th| 000011b0 65 20 73 61 6d 65 20 63 6f 6d 70 75 74 65 72 20 |e same computer | 000011c0 61 73 20 74 68 65 0d 73 69 6d 75 6c 61 74 69 6f |as the.simulatio| 000011d0 6e 2c 20 69 74 20 6f 6e 6c 79 20 61 63 63 65 73 |n, it only acces| 000011e0 73 65 73 20 74 68 65 20 75 6c 74 72 61 73 6f 6e |ses the ultrason| 000011f0 69 63 20 64 61 74 61 20 70 61 73 73 65 64 20 74 |ic data passed t| 00001200 6f 20 69 74 2c 20 61 6e 64 20 64 6f 65 73 0d 6e |o it, and does.n| 00001210 6f 74 20 75 73 65 20 61 6e 79 20 64 61 74 61 20 |ot use any data | 00001220 63 6f 6e 63 65 72 6e 69 6e 67 20 74 68 65 20 63 |concerning the c| 00001230 6f 2d 6f 72 64 69 6e 61 74 65 73 20 6f 66 20 69 |o-ordinates of i| 00001240 74 73 65 6c 66 20 6f 72 20 61 6e 79 20 6f 74 68 |tself or any oth| 00001250 65 72 20 6f 62 6a 65 63 74 0d 6f 6e 20 74 68 65 |er object.on the| 00001260 20 63 6f 75 72 74 2e 20 54 68 69 73 20 77 6f 75 | court. This wou| 00001270 6c 64 20 62 65 20 63 68 65 61 74 69 6e 67 2c 20 |ld be cheating, | 00001280 61 6e 64 20 77 6f 75 6c 64 20 6d 61 6b 65 20 74 |and would make t| 00001290 68 65 20 6d 6f 64 75 6c 65 20 75 73 65 6c 65 73 |he module useles| 000012a0 73 20 69 6e 0d 61 6e 79 20 72 65 61 6c 20 6c 69 |s in.any real li| 000012b0 66 65 20 73 69 74 75 61 74 69 6f 6e 2e 20 54 68 |fe situation. Th| 000012c0 65 20 6f 75 74 70 75 74 20 64 61 74 61 20 69 73 |e output data is| 000012d0 20 72 65 74 75 72 6e 65 64 20 74 6f 20 74 68 65 | returned to the| 000012e0 20 73 69 6d 75 6c 61 74 69 6f 6e 2c 0d 77 68 69 | simulation,.whi| 000012f0 63 68 20 75 73 65 73 20 69 74 20 74 6f 20 75 70 |ch uses it to up| 00001300 64 61 74 65 20 74 68 65 20 76 61 6c 75 65 73 20 |date the values | 00001310 6f 66 20 78 2c 20 79 20 61 6e 64 20 64 20 28 74 |of x, y and d (t| 00001320 68 65 20 70 6f 73 69 74 69 6f 6e 20 6f 66 20 74 |he position of t| 00001330 68 65 0d 72 6f 62 6f 74 29 2e 20 49 74 20 66 69 |he.robot). It fi| 00001340 72 73 74 20 68 61 73 20 74 6f 20 66 69 6e 64 20 |rst has to find | 00001350 74 68 65 20 73 70 65 65 64 20 61 74 20 77 68 69 |the speed at whi| 00001360 63 68 20 74 68 65 20 72 6f 62 6f 74 20 69 73 20 |ch the robot is | 00001370 74 72 61 76 65 6c 6c 69 6e 67 2c 0d 61 6e 64 20 |travelling,.and | 00001380 74 68 65 6e 20 75 73 65 73 20 74 72 69 67 6f 6e |then uses trigon| 00001390 6f 6d 65 74 72 79 20 74 6f 20 75 70 64 61 74 65 |ometry to update| 000013a0 20 78 20 61 6e 64 20 79 3a 0d 0d 49 74 20 74 68 | x and y:..It th| 000013b0 65 6e 20 63 61 6c 63 75 6c 61 74 65 73 20 77 68 |en calculates wh| 000013c0 65 74 68 65 72 20 6f 72 20 6e 6f 74 20 74 68 65 |ether or not the| 000013d0 20 72 6f 62 6f 74 20 69 73 20 74 75 72 6e 69 6e | robot is turnin| 000013e0 67 20 61 74 20 61 6c 6c 2c 20 61 6e 64 20 69 66 |g at all, and if| 000013f0 20 69 74 0d 69 73 2c 20 69 74 20 75 70 64 61 74 | it.is, it updat| 00001400 65 73 20 74 68 65 20 76 61 6c 75 65 20 6f 66 20 |es the value of | 00001410 74 68 65 20 62 65 61 72 69 6e 67 20 64 20 62 79 |the bearing d by| 00001420 20 61 64 64 69 6e 67 20 6f 72 20 73 75 62 74 72 | adding or subtr| 00001430 61 63 74 69 6e 67 20 61 20 63 65 72 74 61 69 6e |acting a certain| 00001440 20 6e 75 6d 62 65 72 20 6f 66 0d 64 65 67 72 65 | number of.degre| 00001450 65 73 20 66 72 6f 6d 20 69 74 2e 20 57 68 65 6e |es from it. When| 00001460 20 74 68 69 73 20 69 73 20 63 6f 6d 70 6c 65 74 | this is complet| 00001470 65 64 2c 20 74 68 65 20 63 79 63 6c 65 20 62 65 |ed, the cycle be| 00001480 67 69 6e 73 20 61 67 61 69 6e 2e 20 54 68 65 20 |gins again. The | 00001490 73 61 6d 65 0d 63 79 63 6c 65 20 77 69 6c 6c 20 |same.cycle will | 000014a0 61 6c 73 6f 20 62 65 20 75 73 65 64 20 62 79 20 |also be used by | 000014b0 74 68 65 20 66 69 6e 61 6c 20 72 6f 62 6f 74 2e |the final robot.| 000014c0 20 54 68 65 20 6f 6e 6c 79 20 64 69 66 66 65 72 | The only differ| 000014d0 65 6e 63 65 20 69 73 20 74 68 61 74 0d 74 68 65 |ence is that.the| 000014e0 20 6d 61 6e 69 70 75 6c 61 74 69 6f 6e 20 6f 66 | manipulation of| 000014f0 20 74 68 65 20 6d 6f 74 6f 72 73 20 61 6e 64 20 | the motors and | 00001500 74 68 65 20 63 61 6c 63 75 6c 61 74 69 6f 6e 20 |the calculation | 00001510 6f 66 20 75 6c 74 72 61 73 6f 6e 69 63 20 64 61 |of ultrasonic da| 00001520 74 61 20 77 69 6c 6c 0d 62 65 20 63 61 72 72 69 |ta will.be carri| 00001530 65 64 20 6f 75 74 20 62 79 20 68 61 72 64 77 61 |ed out by hardwa| 00001540 72 65 2c 20 6e 6f 74 20 73 6f 66 74 77 61 72 65 |re, not software| 00001550 2e 0d 0d 54 68 69 73 20 73 69 6d 75 6c 61 74 69 |...This simulati| 00001560 6f 6e 20 61 6c 6c 6f 77 65 64 20 6d 65 20 74 6f |on allowed me to| 00001570 20 64 65 76 65 6c 6f 70 20 74 68 65 20 73 69 6d | develop the sim| 00001580 75 6c 61 74 69 6f 6e 20 76 65 72 79 20 65 61 73 |ulation very eas| 00001590 69 6c 79 2c 20 61 6e 64 20 61 73 0d 74 68 65 20 |ily, and as.the | 000015a0 41 49 20 6d 6f 64 75 6c 65 20 77 61 73 20 69 6e |AI module was in| 000015b0 20 42 41 53 49 43 20 69 74 20 63 6f 75 6c 64 20 | BASIC it could | 000015c0 62 65 20 61 64 61 70 74 65 64 20 74 6f 20 6f 76 |be adapted to ov| 000015d0 65 72 63 6f 6d 65 20 66 61 75 6c 74 73 20 77 69 |ercome faults wi| 000015e0 74 68 0d 6c 69 74 74 6c 65 20 64 69 66 66 69 63 |th.little diffic| 000015f0 75 6c 74 79 2e 20 41 74 20 66 69 72 73 74 20 49 |ulty. At first I| 00001600 20 70 6c 61 63 65 64 20 74 65 6e 6e 69 73 20 62 | placed tennis b| 00001610 61 6c 6c 73 20 6f 6e 20 74 68 65 20 63 6f 75 72 |alls on the cour| 00001620 74 20 62 79 20 63 6c 69 63 6b 69 6e 67 0d 77 69 |t by clicking.wi| 00001630 74 68 20 74 68 65 20 6d 6f 75 73 65 2c 20 61 6e |th the mouse, an| 00001640 64 20 74 68 65 6e 20 77 61 74 63 68 65 64 20 74 |d then watched t| 00001650 68 65 20 72 6f 62 6f 74 20 6d 6f 76 65 20 72 6f |he robot move ro| 00001660 75 6e 64 20 74 6f 20 63 6f 6c 6c 65 63 74 20 74 |und to collect t| 00001670 68 65 6d 2e 0d 4c 61 74 65 72 2c 20 77 68 65 6e |hem..Later, when| 00001680 20 74 68 65 20 72 6f 62 6f 74 20 77 61 73 20 6d | the robot was m| 00001690 6f 72 65 20 72 65 6c 69 61 62 6c 65 2c 20 49 20 |ore reliable, I | 000016a0 61 64 64 65 64 20 61 20 66 65 61 74 75 72 65 20 |added a feature | 000016b0 74 6f 20 74 68 65 0d 73 69 6d 75 6c 61 74 69 6f |to the.simulatio| 000016c0 6e 20 77 68 69 63 68 20 61 6c 6c 6f 77 65 64 20 |n which allowed | 000016d0 74 68 65 20 63 6f 6d 70 75 74 65 72 20 74 6f 20 |the computer to | 000016e0 72 61 6e 64 6f 6d 6c 79 20 70 6c 61 63 65 20 62 |randomly place b| 000016f0 61 6c 6c 73 20 6f 6e 20 74 68 65 20 63 6f 75 72 |alls on the cour| 00001700 74 0d 69 74 73 65 6c 66 2c 20 77 69 74 68 6f 75 |t.itself, withou| 00001710 74 20 74 68 65 20 75 73 65 72 2c 20 61 6e 64 20 |t the user, and | 00001720 74 68 65 6e 20 73 65 74 20 74 68 65 20 41 49 20 |then set the AI | 00001730 6d 6f 64 75 6c 65 20 74 6f 20 74 72 79 20 74 6f |module to try to| 00001740 20 63 6f 6c 6c 65 63 74 0d 74 68 65 6d 2e 20 54 | collect.them. T| 00001750 68 65 20 73 69 6d 75 6c 61 74 69 6f 6e 20 70 72 |he simulation pr| 00001760 6f 64 75 63 65 64 20 61 20 6c 6f 67 20 6f 66 20 |oduced a log of | 00001770 61 6c 6c 20 6f 66 20 74 68 65 20 72 75 6e 73 2c |all of the runs,| 00001780 20 77 69 74 68 20 61 20 6a 75 64 67 65 6d 65 6e | with a judgemen| 00001790 74 0d 6f 66 20 68 6f 77 20 77 65 6c 6c 20 69 74 |t.of how well it| 000017a0 20 77 65 6e 74 2e 20 49 66 20 74 68 65 20 41 49 | went. If the AI| 000017b0 20 6d 6f 64 75 6c 65 20 73 75 63 63 65 73 73 66 | module successf| 000017c0 75 6c 6c 79 20 63 6f 6c 6c 65 63 74 65 64 20 61 |ully collected a| 000017d0 6c 6c 20 6f 66 20 74 68 65 0d 62 61 6c 6c 73 2c |ll of the.balls,| 000017e0 20 61 6e 64 20 72 65 74 75 72 6e 65 64 20 74 68 | and returned th| 000017f0 65 2c 20 74 6f 20 74 68 65 20 22 68 6f 6d 65 22 |e, to the "home"| 00001800 20 73 70 6f 74 2c 20 69 74 20 67 61 76 65 20 61 | spot, it gave a| 00001810 20 22 50 41 53 53 22 2e 20 49 66 20 69 74 0d 66 | "PASS". If it.f| 00001820 61 69 6c 65 64 20 74 6f 20 63 6f 6c 6c 65 63 74 |ailed to collect| 00001830 20 61 6c 6c 20 74 68 65 20 62 61 6c 6c 73 20 69 | all the balls i| 00001840 74 20 72 65 74 75 72 6e 65 64 20 22 46 41 49 4c |t returned "FAIL| 00001850 22 2e 20 4f 74 68 65 72 20 72 65 73 70 6f 6e 73 |". Other respons| 00001860 65 73 20 77 65 72 65 0d 67 69 76 65 6e 20 66 6f |es were.given fo| 00001870 72 20 63 72 61 73 68 69 6e 67 20 69 6e 74 6f 20 |r crashing into | 00001880 74 68 65 20 6e 65 74 20 6f 72 20 72 65 61 63 68 |the net or reach| 00001890 69 6e 67 20 61 20 70 6f 69 6e 74 20 6f 66 20 69 |ing a point of i| 000018a0 6e 64 65 63 69 73 69 6f 6e 20 28 69 2e 65 2e 0d |ndecision (i.e..| 000018b0 74 68 65 20 72 6f 62 6f 74 20 6a 75 73 74 20 66 |the robot just f| 000018c0 72 6f 7a 65 20 75 70 29 2e 20 4c 61 74 65 72 20 |roze up). Later | 000018d0 49 20 63 6f 75 6c 64 20 77 61 74 63 68 20 74 68 |I could watch th| 000018e0 65 20 66 61 69 6c 65 64 20 72 75 6e 73 20 6d 79 |e failed runs my| 000018f0 73 65 6c 66 2c 20 61 6e 64 0d 73 74 75 64 79 20 |self, and.study | 00001900 74 68 65 6d 20 74 6f 20 66 69 6e 64 20 6f 75 74 |them to find out| 00001910 20 77 68 61 74 20 77 65 6e 74 20 77 72 6f 6e 67 | what went wrong| 00001920 2e 20 49 20 66 6f 75 6e 64 20 69 74 20 75 73 65 |. I found it use| 00001930 66 75 6c 20 74 6f 20 64 65 76 65 6c 6f 70 20 74 |ful to develop t| 00001940 68 65 0d 41 49 20 6d 6f 64 75 6c 65 27 73 20 63 |he.AI module's c| 00001950 6f 64 65 20 64 75 72 69 6e 67 20 74 68 65 20 64 |ode during the d| 00001960 61 79 74 69 6d 65 2c 20 61 6e 64 20 74 68 65 6e |aytime, and then| 00001970 20 6c 65 61 76 65 20 74 68 65 20 63 6f 6d 70 75 | leave the compu| 00001980 74 65 72 0d 73 69 6d 75 6c 61 74 69 6f 6e 20 72 |ter.simulation r| 00001990 75 6e 6e 69 6e 67 20 6f 6e 20 69 74 73 20 6f 77 |unning on its ow| 000019a0 6e 20 6f 76 65 72 6e 69 67 68 74 20 73 6f 20 74 |n overnight so t| 000019b0 68 61 74 20 49 20 63 6f 75 6c 64 20 73 65 65 20 |hat I could see | 000019c0 77 68 61 74 20 61 72 65 61 73 0d 73 74 69 6c 6c |what areas.still| 000019d0 20 6e 65 65 64 65 64 20 61 74 74 65 6e 74 69 6f | needed attentio| 000019e0 6e 2e 0d 0d 54 68 69 73 20 63 6f 6d 70 75 74 65 |n...This compute| 000019f0 72 20 73 69 6d 75 6c 61 74 69 6f 6e 20 72 75 6e |r simulation run| 00001a00 73 20 69 6e 20 72 65 61 6c 2d 74 69 6d 65 2c 20 |s in real-time, | 00001a10 73 6f 20 74 68 61 74 20 74 68 65 20 72 6f 62 6f |so that the robo| 00001a20 74 20 6f 6e 20 74 68 65 0d 73 63 72 65 65 6e 20 |t on the.screen | 00001a30 6d 6f 76 65 73 20 61 72 6f 75 6e 64 20 69 6e 20 |moves around in | 00001a40 74 68 65 20 73 61 6d 65 20 74 69 6d 65 2d 73 63 |the same time-sc| 00001a50 61 6c 65 20 61 73 20 77 6f 75 6c 64 20 74 68 65 |ale as would the| 00001a60 20 72 65 61 6c 20 72 6f 62 6f 74 20 69 6e 0d 72 | real robot in.r| 00001a70 65 61 6c 69 74 79 2e 20 54 68 69 73 20 67 69 76 |eality. This giv| 00001a80 65 73 20 6d 65 20 61 20 62 65 74 74 65 72 20 6a |es me a better j| 00001a90 75 64 67 65 6d 65 6e 74 20 61 73 20 74 6f 20 77 |udgement as to w| 00001aa0 68 65 74 68 65 72 20 6f 72 20 6e 6f 74 20 74 68 |hether or not th| 00001ab0 65 20 73 70 65 65 64 0d 69 73 20 61 63 63 65 70 |e speed.is accep| 00001ac0 74 61 62 6c 65 20 74 68 61 6e 20 77 6f 75 6c 64 |table than would| 00001ad0 20 73 74 61 74 69 73 74 69 63 73 20 61 6c 6f 6e | statistics alon| 00001ae0 65 2e 20 49 6e 20 6f 72 64 65 72 20 74 6f 20 6d |e. In order to m| 00001af0 61 6b 65 20 74 68 65 20 73 69 6d 75 6c 61 74 69 |ake the simulati| 00001b00 6f 6e 0d 72 65 61 6c 2d 74 69 6d 65 2c 20 49 20 |on.real-time, I | 00001b10 68 61 64 20 74 6f 20 72 65 73 65 61 72 63 68 20 |had to research | 00001b20 74 68 65 20 65 78 61 63 74 20 64 69 6d 65 6e 73 |the exact dimens| 00001b30 69 6f 6e 73 20 6f 66 20 61 20 74 65 6e 6e 69 73 |ions of a tennis| 00001b40 20 63 6f 75 72 74 20 74 6f 0d 6b 6e 6f 77 20 68 | court to.know h| 00001b50 6f 77 20 66 61 73 74 20 74 68 65 20 72 6f 62 6f |ow fast the robo| 00001b60 74 20 77 69 6c 6c 20 6d 6f 76 65 20 72 65 6c 61 |t will move rela| 00001b70 74 69 76 65 20 74 6f 20 6c 61 6e 64 6d 61 72 6b |tive to landmark| 00001b80 73 20 6f 6e 20 74 68 65 20 63 6f 75 72 74 2e 0d |s on the court..| 00001b90 0d 57 68 65 6e 20 49 20 68 61 64 20 64 65 76 65 |.When I had deve| 00001ba0 6c 6f 70 65 64 20 74 68 65 20 41 49 20 6d 6f 64 |loped the AI mod| 00001bb0 75 6c 65 20 69 6e 20 42 41 53 49 43 20 73 6f 20 |ule in BASIC so | 00001bc0 74 68 61 74 20 69 74 20 77 61 73 20 77 6f 72 6b |that it was work| 00001bd0 69 6e 67 0d 63 6f 6e 73 69 73 74 65 6e 74 6c 79 |ing.consistently| 00001be0 2c 20 49 20 68 61 64 20 74 6f 20 74 72 61 6e 73 |, I had to trans| 00001bf0 6c 61 74 65 20 74 68 65 20 6d 6f 64 75 6c 65 20 |late the module | 00001c00 69 6e 74 6f 20 36 35 30 32 20 6d 61 63 68 69 6e |into 6502 machin| 00001c10 65 20 63 6f 64 65 2e 0d 41 6c 74 68 6f 75 67 68 |e code..Although| 00001c20 20 42 41 53 49 43 20 69 73 20 65 61 73 69 65 72 | BASIC is easier| 00001c30 20 74 6f 20 77 6f 72 6b 20 77 69 74 68 2c 20 69 | to work with, i| 00001c40 74 20 77 6f 75 6c 64 20 6e 6f 74 20 62 65 20 66 |t would not be f| 00001c50 65 61 73 61 62 6c 65 20 74 6f 20 72 75 6e 20 74 |easable to run t| 00001c60 68 65 0d 63 6f 64 65 20 69 6e 20 74 68 65 20 66 |he.code in the f| 00001c70 69 6e 61 6c 20 72 6f 62 6f 74 20 6f 72 20 74 68 |inal robot or th| 00001c80 65 20 70 72 6f 74 6f 74 79 70 65 20 69 6e 20 42 |e prototype in B| 00001c90 41 53 49 43 2e 20 4d 61 63 68 69 6e 65 20 63 6f |ASIC. Machine co| 00001ca0 64 65 20 6e 6f 74 20 6f 6e 6c 79 0d 72 75 6e 73 |de not only.runs| 00001cb0 20 66 61 73 74 65 72 2c 20 62 75 74 20 69 73 20 | faster, but is | 00001cc0 61 6c 73 6f 20 74 68 65 20 6f 6e 6c 79 20 6c 61 |also the only la| 00001cd0 6e 67 75 61 67 65 20 77 68 69 63 68 20 6d 69 63 |nguage which mic| 00001ce0 72 6f 70 72 6f 63 65 73 73 6f 72 73 0d 63 61 6e |roprocessors.can| 00001cf0 20 69 6e 74 65 72 70 72 65 74 20 77 69 74 68 6f | interpret witho| 00001d00 75 74 20 73 70 65 63 69 61 6c 20 73 6f 66 74 77 |ut special softw| 00001d10 61 72 65 20 62 65 69 6e 67 20 70 72 65 73 65 6e |are being presen| 00001d20 74 20 28 77 68 69 63 68 20 77 69 6c 6c 20 6e 6f |t (which will no| 00001d30 74 20 62 65 0d 74 68 65 20 63 61 73 65 20 69 6e |t be.the case in| 00001d40 20 74 68 65 20 74 68 65 20 66 69 6e 61 6c 20 72 | the the final r| 00001d50 6f 62 6f 74 29 2e 0d 0d 57 68 65 6e 20 74 68 65 |obot)...When the| 00001d60 20 6d 6f 64 75 6c 65 20 68 61 64 20 62 65 65 6e | module had been| 00001d70 20 63 6f 6e 76 65 72 74 65 64 20 69 6e 74 6f 20 | converted into | 00001d80 6d 61 63 68 69 6e 65 20 63 6f 64 65 2c 20 49 20 |machine code, I | 00001d90 62 65 67 61 6e 20 74 65 73 74 69 6e 67 20 69 74 |began testing it| 00001da0 0d 6f 6e 20 61 20 42 42 43 2c 20 61 73 20 6f 70 |.on a BBC, as op| 00001db0 70 6f 73 65 64 20 74 6f 20 61 6e 20 41 72 63 68 |posed to an Arch| 00001dc0 69 6d 65 64 65 73 2c 20 61 73 20 74 68 69 73 20 |imedes, as this | 00001dd0 63 6f 6d 70 75 74 65 72 20 72 75 6e 73 20 6f 6e |computer runs on| 00001de0 20 61 20 36 35 30 32 0d 70 72 6f 63 65 73 73 6f | a 6502.processo| 00001df0 72 2c 20 61 6e 64 20 73 6f 20 61 63 63 65 70 74 |r, and so accept| 00001e00 73 20 74 68 69 73 20 66 6f 72 6d 20 6f 66 20 6d |s this form of m| 00001e10 61 63 68 69 6e 65 20 63 6f 64 65 2e 20 46 69 72 |achine code. Fir| 00001e20 73 74 20 49 20 75 73 65 64 20 61 0d 63 6f 6e 76 |st I used a.conv| 00001e30 65 72 73 69 6f 6e 20 6f 66 20 74 68 65 20 73 69 |ersion of the si| 00001e40 6d 75 6c 61 74 69 6f 6e 20 74 6f 20 63 68 65 63 |mulation to chec| 00001e50 6b 20 74 68 61 74 20 74 68 65 20 63 6f 6e 76 65 |k that the conve| 00001e60 72 73 69 6f 6e 20 68 61 64 20 62 65 65 6e 0d 73 |rsion had been.s| 00001e70 75 63 63 65 73 73 66 75 6c 2e 20 49 20 66 6f 75 |uccessful. I fou| 00001e80 6e 64 20 74 68 61 74 20 65 76 65 6e 20 77 69 74 |nd that even wit| 00001e90 68 6f 75 74 20 68 61 76 69 6e 67 20 74 6f 20 72 |hout having to r| 00001ea0 75 6e 20 74 68 65 20 41 49 20 6d 6f 64 75 6c 65 |un the AI module| 00001eb0 20 69 6e 0d 42 41 53 49 43 2c 20 74 68 65 20 42 | in.BASIC, the B| 00001ec0 42 43 20 73 69 6d 75 6c 61 74 69 6f 6e 20 72 61 |BC simulation ra| 00001ed0 6e 20 73 6c 6f 77 6c 79 20 61 74 20 6f 6e 6c 79 |n slowly at only| 00001ee0 20 31 2f 32 30 74 68 20 6f 66 20 72 65 61 6c 20 | 1/20th of real | 00001ef0 73 70 65 65 64 2e 20 45 76 65 6e 0d 73 6f 2c 20 |speed. Even.so, | 00001f00 49 20 77 61 73 20 61 62 6c 65 20 74 6f 20 75 73 |I was able to us| 00001f10 65 20 69 74 20 74 6f 20 66 69 6e 64 20 61 20 66 |e it to find a f| 00001f20 65 77 20 62 75 67 73 20 77 68 69 63 68 20 68 61 |ew bugs which ha| 00001f30 64 20 63 72 6f 70 70 65 64 20 75 70 20 64 75 72 |d cropped up dur| 00001f40 69 6e 67 20 74 68 65 0d 74 72 61 6e 73 66 65 72 |ing the.transfer| 00001f50 2c 20 61 6e 64 20 72 65 6d 6f 76 65 20 74 68 65 |, and remove the| 00001f60 6d 20 66 72 6f 6d 20 74 68 65 20 63 6f 64 65 2e |m from the code.| 00001f70 0d 0d 44 65 76 65 6c 6f 70 6d 65 6e 74 20 6f 66 |..Development of| 00001f80 20 74 68 65 20 42 61 6c 6c 42 6f 74 20 4d 4f 53 | the BallBot MOS| 00001f90 0d 0d 57 68 65 6e 20 74 68 65 20 41 49 20 6d 6f |..When the AI mo| 00001fa0 64 75 6c 65 20 68 61 64 20 62 65 65 6e 20 73 75 |dule had been su| 00001fb0 63 63 65 73 73 66 75 6c 6c 79 20 63 6f 6e 76 65 |ccessfully conve| 00001fc0 72 74 65 64 20 74 6f 20 74 68 65 20 42 42 43 2c |rted to the BBC,| 00001fd0 20 49 20 62 65 67 61 6e 0d 64 65 76 65 6c 6f 70 | I began.develop| 00001fe0 69 6e 67 20 61 20 4d 4f 53 20 28 4d 61 63 68 69 |ing a MOS (Machi| 00001ff0 6e 65 20 4f 70 65 72 61 74 69 6e 67 20 53 79 73 |ne Operating Sys| 00002000 74 65 6d 29 20 75 6e 64 65 72 20 77 68 69 63 68 |tem) under which| 00002010 20 69 74 20 77 6f 75 6c 64 20 6f 70 65 72 61 74 | it would operat| 00002020 65 2e 0d 54 68 69 73 20 72 65 61 64 73 20 69 6e |e..This reads in| 00002030 70 75 74 20 66 72 6f 6d 20 61 6e 20 55 6c 74 72 |put from an Ultr| 00002040 61 73 6f 6e 69 63 73 20 6d 6f 64 75 6c 65 2c 20 |asonics module, | 00002050 61 6e 64 20 74 68 65 6e 20 70 61 73 73 65 73 20 |and then passes | 00002060 74 68 65 20 64 61 74 61 20 74 6f 0d 74 68 65 20 |the data to.the | 00002070 41 49 20 6d 6f 64 75 6c 65 2e 20 57 68 65 6e 20 |AI module. When | 00002080 74 68 65 20 41 49 20 6d 6f 64 75 6c 65 20 68 61 |the AI module ha| 00002090 73 20 66 69 6e 69 73 68 65 64 20 70 72 6f 63 65 |s finished proce| 000020a0 73 73 69 6e 67 20 74 68 65 20 64 61 74 61 2c 20 |ssing the data, | 000020b0 69 74 0d 74 61 6b 65 73 20 74 68 65 20 6d 6f 74 |it.takes the mot| 000020c0 6f 72 20 63 6f 6e 74 72 6f 6c 20 64 61 74 61 20 |or control data | 000020d0 61 6e 64 20 73 65 6e 64 73 20 69 74 20 74 6f 20 |and sends it to | 000020e0 74 68 65 20 42 42 43 27 73 20 6f 75 74 70 75 74 |the BBC's output| 000020f0 20 70 6f 72 74 73 20 74 6f 20 62 65 0d 61 63 74 | ports to be.act| 00002100 65 64 20 75 70 6f 6e 20 62 79 20 74 68 65 20 68 |ed upon by the h| 00002110 61 72 64 77 61 72 65 2e 0d 0d 54 68 69 73 20 73 |ardware...This s| 00002120 6d 61 6c 6c 20 6d 6f 64 75 6c 65 20 69 73 20 61 |mall module is a| 00002130 63 74 75 61 6c 6c 79 20 61 20 76 65 72 79 20 73 |ctually a very s| 00002140 69 6d 70 6c 65 20 70 69 65 63 65 20 6f 66 20 63 |imple piece of c| 00002150 6f 64 65 20 2d 20 69 74 73 20 73 6f 6c 65 0d 70 |ode - its sole.p| 00002160 75 72 70 6f 73 65 20 69 73 20 74 6f 20 70 61 73 |urpose is to pas| 00002170 73 20 64 61 74 61 20 66 72 6f 6d 20 6f 6e 65 20 |s data from one | 00002180 6d 6f 64 75 6c 65 20 74 6f 20 61 6e 6f 74 68 65 |module to anothe| 00002190 72 2c 20 61 6e 64 20 74 6f 20 6b 65 65 70 20 61 |r, and to keep a| 000021a0 6c 6c 20 6f 66 20 74 68 65 0d 6d 6f 64 75 6c 65 |ll of the.module| 000021b0 73 20 77 6f 72 6b 69 6e 67 20 74 6f 67 65 74 68 |s working togeth| 000021c0 65 72 20 69 6e 20 74 69 6d 65 20 77 69 74 68 20 |er in time with | 000021d0 6f 6e 65 20 61 6e 6f 74 68 65 72 2e 0d |one another..| 000021dd