Release Notes & Version History
RWTH - Mindstorms NXT Toolbox version 2.00 (stable)
- New Features:
- Support for new digital sensors:
- HiTechnic Infrared Seeker
- HiTechnic Acceleration Sensor
- HiTechnic Magnetic Compass Sensor
- New function COM_ReadI2C for easy implementation of more digital sensors
- New utility OptimizeToolboxPerformance to use binary versions of some lowlevel functions
- New tools for benchmarking and testing, more demos and examples
- Added an optional NXT-handle argument to almost all high-level functions (easier multi-NXT support)
- Added direct command NXT_MessageWrite for access to mailboxes and inter-NXT Bluetooth communication
- Improvements:
- Improved I2C performance of digital sensors (including ultrasound) by about 100%
- Various lowlevel performance improvements in different functions
- Overall performance after calling the tool OptimizeToolboxPerformance up to 3 times faster (depending on machine)
- Updated GUI_WatchMotorState to new toolbox release
- Updated GUI_WatchSensor to new toolbox release, now also supports Ultrasound (and US-compatible digital sensors)
- Updated libusb and fantom library prototype files to new MATLAB 2008a syntax.
- Updated documentation
- New toolbox layout
- Bugfixes:
- Fixed a bug in ResetMotorAngle that would cause an error
- Fixed a bug in SwitchLamp that caused it to not work properly
- Fixed a bug that lead to errors when using NXT system commands with USB in Linux
- Fixed a condition with unclear warnings in COM_OpenNXTEx
- Known bugs and limitations:
- Programs working with toolbox version 1.00 are not working out of the box with version 2.00. The code for opening
and closing connections to the NXT brick has to be updated (programs written for version 2.00beta do not have to be modified).
See help-section "Guideline for new v2.00 features".
- System functions, especially the new I/O Map Module functions, do not work with USB-connections in Windows.
- Old limitations from version 1.00 regarding hardware compatibility and problems with various Bluetooth adapters still apply.
- September 25th, 2008
To see which version of RWTH - Mindstorms NXT Toolbox is currently installed, you can type
info = ver('RWTHMindstormsNXT')
The result should look like this:
info =
Name: 'RWTH - Mindstorms NXT Toolbox'
Version: '2.00'
Release: ''
Date: '25-Sep-2008'
If your application requires a certain toolbox release, you can use this command to ensure the requested version is present:
if verLessThan('RWTHMindstormsNXT', '1.01')
error('This program requires the RWTH - Mindstorms NXT Toolbox version 1.01 or greater.')
end
Version History
RWTH - Mindstorms NXT Toolbox version 2.00beta
- New Features:
- Added support for USB communication to the NXT brick (for both Windows and Linux systems):
Performance about 10 times faster than with Bluetooth communication.
- Restructured communication layer: New functions for Bluetooth and USB communication.
- Full support for multiple NXTs from one program, mixed connections via Bluetooth and USB are supported.
- New NXT-handle holds useful information about the currently connected device.
- Added "snapshot mode" for ultrasonic sensor: Send single pings and record multiple echos.
(See functions OpenUltrasonic, USMakeSnapshot, and USGetSnapshotResults)
- Added support for I/O Map Module access of NXT internal registers: See MAP-functions.
- New function DebugMode for easier access to debug messages generated by textOut.
- Bug fixes and improvements:
- Performance improvement (roughly factor 10) of lowlevel functions wordbytes2dec and dec2wordbytes.
- Fixed a minor bug in SpeedRegulation that occured when working with value 255 for all motors.
- Added and rewrote some internal helper / lowlevel functions.
- Added and rewrote some error / warning messages.
- Files removed:
- Old BT-functions (Bluetooth) have now been replaced by COM-Functions that also support USB-connections.
- Removed some private lowlevel functions that were not needed anymore.
- Known bugs and limitations:
- Current documentation might be outdated (still from version 1.00 at various places).
- Programs working with toolbox version 1.00 are not working out of the box with version 2.00beta. The code for opening
and closing connections to the NXT brick has to be updated.
- System functions, especially the new I/O Map Module functions, do not work with USB-connections in Windows.
- Under heavy load / small intervals between successive sensor polls (when using USB connections), the NXT might send
an error message back to the host computer, leading to a warning. This was not reproducable realiably.
- Old limitations from version 1.00 regarding hardware compatibility and problems with various Bluetooth adapters still apply.
- July 17th, 2008
RWTH - Mindstorms NXT Toolbox v1.00
- New Features:
- Extended and updated toolbox documentation.
- Functions features based on modules release-1.00 (January 22nd, 2008)
- Features added:
- Warning- and Error-identifiers for all warnings and errors
- Contents.m (Toolbox and version identification)
- Performance improvements in various private lowlevel functions
- Features changed:
- readFromIniFile.m (completely new rewritten code, more reliable, better understandable, GPL license)
- Changed, improved and added lots of comments
- Changed default Bluetooth parameters to lower (i.e. faster) values
- New version naming scheme: x.yy, where x = major version (ensuring backwards compatibility) and yy = release number, e.g. 1.01
- Bugs fixed:
- January 24th, 2008
RWTH - Mindstorms NXT Toolbox v0.3
- New Features:
- Extended syntax help documentation.
- Removed syntax lightning macros in help descriptions.
- Functions features based on modules release-0.3.5 (November 20th, 2007)
- Features added:
- BT_MakeConfigFile.m (Add timeout parameter for ini file in GUI)
- BT_OpenHandle.m (Considers timeout parameter of ini file or set default value)
- Bugs fixed:
- BT_SetDefaultHandle.m (Correct comments)
- GetSound.m (Correct comments)
- GetUltrasonic.m (Correct comments)
- SendMotorSettings.m (Handles synchronization and speed regulation enable and disable issues)
- SpeedRegulation.m (Speedregulation('off') does not reset all synchronization parameters anymore)
- SyncToMotor.m (Handles synchronization and speed regulation enable and disable issues (add warning))
- November 26th, 2007
RWTH - Mindstorms NXT Toolbox v0.2
- New Features:
- Extended syntax help documentation.
- Functions features based on modules release-0.3.4 (October 16th, 2007)
- Files added:
- MotorRotateAbs.m (function to rotate an absolute angle)
- Features added:
- Add MATLAB conform help documentation for each file
- BT_SendPacket display the hexadecimal debug output in a better way
- Bugs fixed:
- NXT_StopProgram.m (No file name is needed)
- All motor functions (with using SetMotor(255)) (NXT_SetOutPutState.m, SendMotorSettings.m, SetMotor.m, SetPower.m, SpeedRegulation.m)
- SwitchLamp.m (Power is really turned off and ist working for all lamps as well (255))
- October 16th, 2007
RWTH - Mindstorms NXT Toolbox v0.1
- New Features:
- First toolbox version
- Functions features based on modules release-0.3.3 (October 7th, 2007)
- Files added:
- NXT_StartProgram.m (Start an embedded program on the NXT Brick)
- NXT_StopProgram.m (Stop an embedded program on the NXT Brick)
- Files removed:
- NXT_RequestBatteryLevel.m
- NXT_CollectBatteryLevel.m
- NXT_RequestInputValues.m
- NXT_CollectInputValues.m
- NXT_RequestOutputValues.m
- NXT_CollectOutputValues.m
- NXT_LSRequestRead.m
- NXT_LSCollectRead.m
- NXT_LSRequestStatus.m
- NXT_LSCollectStatus.m
- Features added:
- BT_SendPacket.m (Add display Bluetooth packet content with textOut)
- NXT_GetBatteryLevel.m (Add NXT_RequestBatteryLevel.m and NXT_CollectBatteryLevel.m functions as subfunctions)
- NXT_GetInputValues.m (Add NXT_RequestInputValues.m and NXT_CollectInputValues.m functions as subfunctions)
- NXT_GetOutputValues.m (Add NXT_RequestOutputValues.m and NXT_CollectOutputValues.m functions as subfunctions)
- NXT_LSRead.m (Add NXT_LSRequestRead.m and NXT_LSCOllectRead.m functions as subfunctions)
- NXT_LSGetStatus.m (Add NXT_LSRequestStatus. and NXT_LSCollectStatus.m functions as subfunctions)
- SendMotorSettings.m
(Add optional function parameters to send a motor command as one command. Functions arguments are: Port, SyncToMotor, Power, AngleLimit, SpeedRegulation, TurnRatio, RampMode.)
- textOut.m (Set DisableScreenOut to true as default value!)
- Bugs fixed:
- SendMotorSettings.m (If SetPower = 0 the memory counter is not resetted anymore)
- BT_OpenHandle.m (Removed double fopen command under LINUX)
- BT_SendPacket.m (Replaced tic-toc commands with clock and etime)
- BT_CollectPacket.m (Replaced tic-toc commands with clock and etime)
- October 7th, 2007