Managing a Smartphone Driver Station
In order to comply with game manual rule <RS01>, the name of the Robot Controller's smartphone should be changed.
This tutorial demonstrates how to rename a smartphone using the Android Settings activity of the phone.
You can also use the FTC app to change the Robot Controller phone's name.
Important Note: Once the name of your Robot Controller is changed, you might need to reconnect your devices (Driver Station and programming laptop/Chromebook) to the newly changed network.
| Changing the Name of a Robot Controller |
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| 1. On the Robot Controller phone, touch the three dots in the upper right hand corner to display a pop-up menu.
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| 2. Select the Settings menu item from the pop-up menu.
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| 3. Click on Robot Controller Name on the ROBOT CONTROLLER SETTINGS page.
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| 4.Specify the new Robot Controller Name and press OK to accept the changes.
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It is important to know how to update the Robot Controller app that is installed on your smartphone. FIRST periodically releases new versions of this app, which contain improvements and fixes, as well as season-specific data and features.
Note that you can see the Robot Controller app version number through the Robot Controller or Driver Station user interface. Select the About menu option on the Robot Controller or Driver Station and note the App Version number under the ABOUT ROBOT CONTROLLER section.
If you use the FTC Blocks Development Tool or the FTC OnBot Java Tool to write your op modes, then the easiest way to update the Robot Controller App is using the Google Play store. To be able to use the Google Play Store to update your software, you will first need the following items:
- A Google e-mail account (available for free from Google).
- Access to a wireless network that can connect to the Internet.
- Your Android smartphone.
Important Note: If you update your Robot Controller, then you should also update your Driver Station software to the same version number.
Important Note: if you are an Android Studio user, then you cannot use the Google Play Store to update your Robot Controller app. Instead, by updating to the newest version of the FTC Android Studio project folder, you will update the Robot Controller app when you build the project and install it on your smartphone. For the Skystone season, you can download the newest version of the project folder here.
| Updating the Robot Controller App (Using Google Play) |
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| 1. Connect your Android phone to the wireless network that has access to the Internet. |
| 2. Launch the Google Play Store app on the Android device.
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| 3. In the Google Play Store, if you haven’t signed into your Google account yet, follow the onscreen instructions to log into your Google account. |
| 4. In the search window of the Google Play Store type in the words “FTC Robot Controller” to find the app in the Play Store.
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| 5. If more than one app appears in the search results, then select the app (“FTC Robot Controller”) that you want to update on your Android phone. |
| 6. If you do not have the most current version of the Robot Controller app, then the Google Play Store listing should have a button that reads “UPDATE”. Press the “UPDATE” button and follow the onscreen instructions to update your app.
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| 7. The update process might prompt you to accept request for permissions that are needed in order to run the app on your Android phone. If prompted, hit the “ACCEPT” button to accept the request and to continue with the update process. |
| 8. Once the update process is complete, the “UPDATE” button on the screen should change to an “OPEN” button. You can press the “OPEN” button to launch the new app.
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| 9. After you have updated the software, you must forget the wireless network that you used to connect to the internet to access the Google Play store. You do not want to have your Android devices configured to connect to anything other than each other during a competition.
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