Programming instructions

Reference
Project Lead The Way © and Carnegie Mellon Robotics Academy © / For use with VEX
®
Robotics Systems
Glossary • 2
Glossary continued
Code: General term for any command or group of commands in a program.
Comment: A written note in the program that explains something about that portion of the program. Comments do not
actually change the way the robot behaves, but are very important to the programmer’s ability to remember what the code
does.
Commercialize: To bring into the commercial market. In a robotics project, commercialization (if it occurs) begins with the
completed robotic prototype and ends with a product which is mass-produced and sold on the commercial market.
Communication: The process of sending and/or receiving information by two or more parties.
Communication, One-way: One-way communication occurs when one of the two or more communicating parties
functions only as the sender of information, and the other(s) only as the receiver(s) of information.
Communication, Remote: Remote communication is communication occurring over some distance, and typically by a
specialized technology, like Bluetooth.
Communication, Two-way: Two-way communication occurs when all of the communicating parties function as both
sender(s) and receiver(s) of information.
Compiler: The compiler is a part of the VEX Programming Software that takes the code in a program and converts them
into machine language that the VEX brick can understand and run. The compiled code is not exactly the same as the
code written on your computer; this is why you cannot load the program back onto the computer once it is compiled and
downloaded to the VEX.
Condition (experimental): A portion of an experiment corresponding to one specic setting of the independent variable. If
your experiment involves large wheels and small wheels, for instance, the part of the experiment where you use the large
wheels is the “large wheel condition.” Condition can also refer to the setting of the variable itself (“large wheels”). See also
Conditional Statement (programming).
Conditional Statement (programming): A programming block that chooses to run different pieces of code, depending
on some user-dened factor (for example, it may choose to run straight ahead if the robot does not detect an obstacle, but
turn to the left if there is a nearby object).
Cross-Multiplication: A mathematical procedure used to solve an equation
of the form X/A=Y/B (one fraction equals another fraction, with no other terms
outside the fractions). The result of cross-multiplication in the example to the
right is BX=AY.
Crystal: Crystals are the channels used to send signals from the transmitter
to the reciever. The transmitter’s frequency module and the matching receiver
crystal determine the control frequency for a robot. Each robot operating at the
same time should be on a different control frequency.
Data: Factual information, like the weight of a robot or the value of a sensor.
Note that the word data is plural. A single piece of factual information is a datum.
Data Analysis: The process of manipulating data to increase understanding of a certain topic or issue.
Data Flow: The process of moving data around inside of a program.
=
BX
AY
=
X
A
Y
B
Cross-Multiplication
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