Microsoft Robotics Developer Studio 4 / On Windows 8 / WTF MANG

[GrimBot]

Hello, I've been trying to mess with MRDS on Win. 8 and am having minimal luck. I am new to this so keep that in mind.

I've followed this tutorial and ran into the problem mentioned in the video.  I have recreated the example as an attachment. Not sure how to fix it.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U5mzODNQSQc


Problem:
 "Duplicate name specified for entity or one of its children. Not adding to simulation:ReferencePlatform2011 "

Other tips:
I think that if you copy and past stuff they are not new instances and those instances are all connected. I don't think that is a problem with this example though.  If you can fix it, upload the fixed sample please.

Also, there is that "RUN" log that starts when you run the simulation. I think it would be good to share these logs for trouble shooting but I am not sure how to export that log. Is there an error log generated somewhere?

[GrimBot]

Additional Thoughts:

I'm thinking the simulation environment is flimsy? Perhaps using the "Compile as Service" option would add more sturdiness to playing with the little robot guy..  but after compiling it I have no idea on how to run the service. I think it tried to open Visual Studio (which I don't have a license for, still on the 30 day trial).

Speaking of that.. is there an alternative to visual studio that will work with MRDS?

What I'm REALLY looking for is software where I can drag and drop some parts onto a moldable frame and assign all those parts to a control panel so I can operate it with button clicks.. but I doubt creating new robots and environments (what if I want dirt to dig in? or bricks to lift? Or to pour water? Weight sensors, etc. into this simulation?... Thats what I really want.. but this looks like the best I can get so far.

Anyway.. would the visual studio version matter? Would it being a trial matter?

Thanks for noodling my rambles.

[mklrobo]

  Hello!
I looked at the website about the tutorial, and the Magic Monk did a good job.
The software looks like you control an AI character, like in a Dungeon and Dragon game.
No specifics in programming the robot, just manipulating the direction and generic movements.
Good software, taking into account the robotic stage  society is at now, and $$ cost.
BUT, I think something like this, or what maybe you want, could be made in DarkBasic, as
made by theGameCreators. After all, any weights that the robot would move, would have to
obey the constants of gravity, the loads associated with it, and any parameters that consume
energy. THAT would be a pretty complicated program, paralleling our universe, and making a
virtual (calculated) reality. Don't think we are quite there yet (working on it), but maybe the
software is going to be out soon. I do like the software, just do not have the time to play in it.

[GrimBot]

Awesome suggestion.  Thanks. I've given up on the MSRobotics program because I couldn't really get it to work for me. I'll look into that FPS Creator and Dark Basic thing.

[Robo_Pi]

This is interesting but I just found on Wikipedia the following:

Microsoft Robotics Developer Studio has not been updated or patched since version 4.0, which was released on March 8th, 2012. On September 22nd, 2014, as part of Microsoft's restructuring plan, the Robotics division of Microsoft Research was suspended, according to a tweet from Ashley Feniello, the then-current head of the division. It is now highly unlikely that MRDS will ever be updated again, however forum members (MVPs) may still offer limited support

By the sounds of this it may be already obsolete and discontinued.

I would also have a whole lot of questions.

1. Does is support user-created robots?

In other words, could I actually design a robot that emulates the robot I'm hoping to build?

2. How flexible is the floor plan?

Could I redesign that to be an actual floor plan of my own home?

3. Can external programs be used to control this robotic simulator program?

I'm working on writing programs in C# and in Python on my notebook and Raspberry Pi computers.  Would those programs be able to run this simulation?

The reason I ask this is because I'm actually preparing to create a simulation of my own for my programs to simulate.  But if I have to do all the graphics myself it's just going to be a  2-dimensional floor plan that basically just shows the location and orientation of the robot.   It wouldn't include the fancy 3-graphics.

So if I could use this program as my graphic simulator I could  have a better simulation model.   But it worries me that it's basically been discontinued by Microsoft (if that is indeed the case).

It could be that some sort of gaming software might better suit my purposes?

I haven't started on this part of my robotics project yet.  But originally I was thinking of just laying out a simple 2-D floor plan for position and orientation only.   It would be visually crude, but in some ways it would be far easier for me to program.   

4.  Can the robot dynamically change the floor plan based on its own actual sensory input?

Later, when I get the physical robots up and running I could have them interact with my 2-D graphics and basically re-design it using their actual sensors.  In this way the robots themselves would actually be creating the floor plan from the perspective of their own sensors.   I kind of like that feature which may not be available in a full-blown 3-D simulation.

The idea of starting out with a blank slate and allowing the robots to build up the floor plan of my house based on their actual sensors and experience is exciting.   And that's what I currently have in mind with my simple 2-D graphics.

Whether I could find a 3-D graphic program that would be that flexible is hard to say.  I have no clue what's available out there.  I also don't want to have to spend a lifetime learning how to program in 3-D when I already know how to do it in 2-D so easily. 

The Microsoft Robotic Development Studio sounds promising, but it also sounds like they gave up on it already.  Too bad if that's the case.   

[mklrobo]

  It is sad that the software has been discontinued.
BUT,  ,  This looks like a job for.......... MINECRAFT! 
(Well, maybe it could work....?  )

[Robo_Pi]

It is sad that the software has been discontinued.
BUT,  ,  This looks like a job for.......... MINECRAFT! 
(Well, maybe it could work....?  )

It is a bummer, because Microsoft tends to do really great stuff.   It might still be worth using if the existing version will do the job.  The problem is finding the time to look into all this stuff.   I'd hate to waste a lot of time looking into it only to discover that it's not going to do what I need.   From what I've seen so far it seems to  be pretty specific to only a certain kind of robot architecture and uses kinect sensor product.

Welcome to Robotics Developer Studio

If that's the case then it may not be versatile enough for doing robotics in general. 

Maybe this is why they've discontinued it.  It's simply not versatile enough and so there wasn't a lot of interest.  I'm thinking of writing an email to Ashley Feniello and suggesting that if they simply expand the versatility they might obtain a far greater following.

If the user could build a robot from scratch that would be far better than forcing them to use something like kinect.  That limitation could kill the project right there.  Other than this limitation it sounds like an interesting development studio.

I might think about looking into MINDCRAFT.  The only problem there is again TIME.  How long does it take to learn how to use Minecraft, and, again, will it actually do what I need? 

[mklrobo]

  Minecraft! 
I am working on using REDSTONE, an integral part to creating devices in Minecraft. I have
just started playing with it, recently. They have made computers, timers, clocks, spacecraft, and
an assortment of other nifty categories, IN the game, minecraft. I did not know this was even possible with a "game".
Pistons, switches, levers, and other mechanisims can be used in Minecraft.
Creating a robot could be possible, and make it mobile. But how to make it compatable to the real world robot.
I investigated using this for my Chemical Engineering project; but may serve more than one purpose.
Interesting, is it not? 

[GrimBot]

I'm trying to work with SPUDAI and macros so that the AI can control macros, and the macros control a desktop control panel that controls the hardware.

I'm not too far along on the hardware part. I have some cheap pieces to mess with and was hoping to use the MeArm and MeCon software but even after everything was wired up and connected the control software still didn't move the servos. I'm trying to find a way to build my own control panel but the learning curve is a bit steep so it will take a while.

Hmmm...  I was hoping with the MSRD to use the AI to control the robots control panel but it just never panned out.

[GrimBot]

I just wanted to add to this post that I have been able to get the MeArm and MeCon control software working on windows xp, I'm pretty sure it will work on other versions of windows. I thought I had everything wired right but ended up getting the positive and negative terminals backwards.