Hi, I’m wondering whats the best way to get this up and running in my technology classroom. I can afford 10 to start.
I just started a school club using 9 robots. The remote controls seem to interfere with one another so playing games will be hard. There are no bluetooth apps on ipad or andorid that seem compatible for joystick/control options. Not sure the next step.
Can you share the chart? I haven’t seen it.
I will install the mBlock software onto a Mac on Monday to check compatibility.
Arduino works on the Mac well so I see no reason why it would not work with mBlock or the Arduino IDE, however, also being a teacher I can see that you would begin students off with the graphical language.
There is no Cromebook solution that I know of.
There is also no iPad or Android programming solution.
See the download link to the programming software.
http://www.mblock.cc/download/
I’ve used the mBlock software on a 10.6.8 Macbook with no issues. I don’t remember whether or not I needed to do the kernel hack to put it into dev mode, but that’s documented all over the forums (search for El Capitan). I ran a class last week using WiFi with no issues (each WiFi module binds to a single mBot), but most of the programs the children wrote were uploaded to the mBot, not run from within mBlock. They used the IR remote and each of them chose a different set of keys to control their mBots, ignoring any other keys and that seemed to work fairly well.
I’m working with a Middle School with 14 mBots using the 2.4G USB dongle. Makeblock assured us that they would NOT interfere with each other. I’m not sure how they do it but so far they are right. The school had all small MacBook laptops running LION OR MOUNTAIN LION. I like the 2.4G as it works as soon as you plug it in on Macs and PCs alike.
I did not have a lot of luck with getting the bluetooth working on the Mac. Getting the pairing CODE is pretty hard to figure out.
The other MAJOR problem for Mac users of Yosemite and higher is that the driver for USB direct connection is not properly signed so the Mac will not recognize the driver. The Makeblock work around is to use TERMINAL to shut off the security feature that checks for the sign. That I was NOT going to do. Anyone know if there is yet available a signed MAC driver??
Back to the 14 mBots. This is a full semester class and the teacher is developing the curriculum. Once we are all done in the spring I’ll see if it is OK to upload it to the forum. The kids LOVE the mBots and hare having lots of fun coding them and running from the keyboard etc.
The dongles are like the nano dongles Logitech uses for its wireless mice. They will only pair with one device (although Logitech now offers nano dongles that will pair with multiple devices, i.e., mouse + keyboard). Bluetooth should do the same, but I haven’t received my Bluetooth module yet so I can’t test that.
You should be aware that there is a signed driver available now (looks like WinChipAhead recompiled their driver and signed it). You can get it for free here. The driver should work with Yosemite, and I’m using it with El Capitan. You may need to uninstall any other USB drivers and there is a link to a page in this thread that discusses that process.
UPDATE:
I received my Makeblock Bluetooth module for the mBot today. I was able to connect to the Makeblock app on my iPhone, but no luck with my Macbook or iMac. I tried using a 3rd party Bluetooth dongle in both, and was still unable to stay paired (the device would pair and then immediately disconnect). There was a pop-up dialog with a pairing code, but I’m not sure if that’s an Apple security thing or not. Still investigating to see what’s up although El Capitan has a lot of bugs that Apple is still fixing especially with regard to Bluetooth and WiFi.
Regardless, my recommendation is that if you are planning to use mBots in a large scale that you go with the WiFi versions if you are planning on having the kids run programs through mBlock. Bluetooth does not appear to be reliable at this time in El Capitan (OS X 10.11.3).
there is a bluetooth ipad/iphone App - Makeblock HD at: https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/makeblock-hd/id907736227?mt=8
Hi I have had several issues with Mac OSx 10.6 and 10.7. It has difficulties connecting via usb. I have downloaded all drivers and still have issues. We can connect via network or bluetooth. It is fustrating because as an elementary school we use macs. Our macs are older as you can tell by the OSx . With my hp laptop there have been no issues. So if you are goin to participate in a competition make sure you can rely on your device for connectivity. As far as apps we use mblock and makerblocks through mgoogle play.
One more update: After consulting with tech support at Makeblock, I was told (and confirmed) that the mBot doesn’t automatically connect via Bluetooth. The steps are:
At this point, you should have the same connectivity as from the WiFi dongle and can run programs from within the mBlock environment. However, you still need to use the USB cable (and disconnect from the Bluetooth or WiFi serial port before connecting with the USB cable) to upload programs, update the firmware, or reset the default program.