Bricklet Cars - A game using the Bricklets

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#1

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Hey guys, this morning I had time to test out my wonderful xmas present. It’s the education package of Bricklets and Bricks from tinkerforge.

This game is called “Bricklet Cars”. It’s written in java and it’s a game, that’s why I thought of publishing it here. I guess almost nobody of you has a bricklet at home, so I guess it doesn’t make sense to give any jar to you.
This project didn’t make any sense at all anyways. It could have been done much better, and in the end you need a pc connected to the bricklet anyways ;D

Why that?
The bricklet come with a bit of software: The Bricklet Daemon (runs on all systems).
The daemon communicates with the Bricklet over USB. You can see it as a driver… a python driver… for the bricklet.
The daemon also listens on the 4223 port for messages from applications. They use a super easy protocol for executing super easy functions, which tell the bricklet what to do, or return some input.
Around that Protocol they built lots of libraries in all kinds of languages. For example Java. Using a simple Tinkerforge.jar I am able to communicate with the brick over TCP/IP.
Now actually I don’t run the game on my brick. I run it on my PC. There it continues getting and sending messages from and to the brick daemon, which sends messages to the brick, which sends messages to the bricklets (brick = part with the “super”-cpu of the bricklet system, bricklets = input / output stuff, for example joystick, LCD display, Linear potentiometer, temperature sensor, ambient light sensor, digital IO and much much more).

So I have my application running on the pc doing all the stuff and the Bricklet giving the Joystick input to the pc and getting the information about what to print to the LCD display from the pc.

Here is a vid of the game or you wouldn’t see anything. I think of building the same game in the Console, but therefore I have to learn to use JCurses somehow… I can’t “overwrite” stuff in the console with the usual java :confused:

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I’m sorry. You almost can’t see anything at all… This is the best video camera I can use… Hopefully I’ll be able to create that console version soon :slight_smile:

#2

Is that Bricklet, a credit card sized, educational micro computer like rasberryPie? :clue:

#3

Actually… in the video you can’t see the brick from the bricklet system itself. You can only see the LCD display and the Joystick connected to it and the cables.

Yes, the tinkerforge brick is somehow something comparable to the raspberry PI. But it’s very different. Not only the architecture, but also the way you use the tinkerforge brick is very different. It itself doesn’t run your code. It runs its own operating system doing what it gets told by the USB connection, and therefore the PC.

#4

Sweet!!! ;D

Next Praxis version has TinkerForge bindings. I think they’re great. I’ve only got the starter kit - must get some more things! Don’t have the joystick so couldn’t use your code as is if you posted, though I have the rotary poti so might be adaptable.

#5

Hey! There are guys out there having Bricklets too? :smiley:

#6

I’ll stop spamming your post now! ;D

#7

That is too freaking cool…

#8

OK, I lied - forgive me! :wink:

Lot’s of stuff going on in the Praxis LIVE and TinkerForge area at the moment. Hope you’re still having fun with them.

n2OOZsY-mj0

#9

OK, I lied - forgive me! :wink:

Lot’s of stuff going on in the Praxis LIVE and TinkerForge area at the moment. Hope you’re still having fun with them.

n2OOZsY-mj0