FAQ

The robot isn't travelling straight.

If you've ever programmed a real robot, you'll realize that a real robot don't travel all that straight either. This is due to many factors, including tire slippages, differences in motor power, uneven surface friction, etc. If you want the robot to travel straight for anything more than a very short distance, you should make use of the gyro or a line to align the robot.

That said, the wheels of a GearsBot tends to slip more than a real robot when travelling at high speed. For best performance, keep speed below 50%. At 20% speed, GearsBot looks to be more accurate than a real robot (...didn't measure this, so if you find differently, let me know).

Sometimes my robot can complete a challenge successfully, but when I repeat the run, it fails.

This happens to real robots too. Improve your program to make it more reliable. Slowing down will often help (...for both simulated and real robots).

I programmed my robot to stop when it detects a black line, but it misses the line sometimes.

The simulated robot reads the color sensor much slower than a real robot, especially if you have a slow CPU and GPU. If your robot is moving fast, this may cause one reading to be taken before the line and another reading after the line, without any readings on the line itself. Try moving slower.

There's no difference between 90% speed and 100% speed.

If you're using a real EV3 robot, there's no difference in 90% and 100% speed either. A real EV3 robot is physically capable of reaching only about 80% to 90% speed. The software allows you to set a higher speed, but the motor isn't capable of reaching it. A GearsBot max out at around 80% speed.

Can I create my own custom robot or game world?

Yes. See the Customization Guide.

I think I found a bug.

Open a new issue on Github or drop me an email.

I'll like to pay you large sums of money to teach GearsBot at our school.

Sure. My work at A Posteriori keeps me fed. It's hard to keep working on Gears if I'm starving.

I'll like to use GearsBot at my school, club, robotics learning center without paying you any money.

It's a Free and Open Source software. Go ahead.