An app to control the Shark Rover as built by the Mad Scientist Lab.
To install on Apple Products grab Mad Scientist Controls from the Apple Store.
For Android you need to side load the APK. You may need to modify your phone settings to allow installation via an APK.
To install an APK from an unknown source on Android (Android 8+), go to Settings > Apps > Special access > Install unknown apps, then select the app you'll use (like Chrome or a File Manager) and toggle "Allow from this source" on. Older Android versions used a single "Unknown sources" toggle in Security settings.
Find our Android APK in Releases . Just Grab the latest app-release.apk.
You can use a browser to control the rover as well, assuming your browser allows bluetooth control. This may require changing browser settings to allow this. Here is the link to the web controls: Web: https://javaplus.github.io/mad_scientist_app/index.html
When you launch the Mad Scientist Controls app, it should start scanning for Shark Rovers via bluetooth so do make sure you allow the app to use your bluetooth.
If you don't see your rover in the list, give it a minute or two. If it still doesn't come up in the list, try turning the rover off and on again. Also, check that the app has permissions to use Bluetooth. Once you see your shark in the list, click the "Connect" button to the right of it's name.
Once connected, the main screen has a virtual joystick at the bottom right to move the shark rover. The Joystick is proportional, that is, the further you move the stick the faster the rover will move. So, for slow movement, just barely move the stick from the center position. For fastest movement drag the stick the furthest from the center.
At the bottom left, is the fire button (button with the shark head). This button usually turns the laser on. Depending on the Game Mode selected, the fire button when pressed may fire the laser for a few seconds before automatically turning off. However, the Game Mode selected ultimately controls what the fire button does.
Game Modes can be changed by hitting the "Game Modes" button in the top right and then selecting the Game you want.
Game modes are described in the Game Modes section.
If you need to change the direction your shark goes when you use the virtual joystick or other settings, you can do that in the settings menu (Gear icon from Main screen)
You can change the color of the shark's eyes with this option.
Swap the direction the shark rover turns when you move the joystick. If the shark turns right when pushing left, toggle this option.
If the shark goes backwards when you move the joystick forward, toggle this option.
If your shark keeps detecting a "hit" when it shouldn't, you may want to hit this option to have it immediately recalibrate the base level for a hit. A "hit" is whenever the photoresistor detects a significant increase of light from the base value. When the shark is powered on, it calibrates the base value to whatever the current light level is. So, if you turn it on in a low light area and then move to an area with more light, it could detect a hit. So, using this Calibrate option, will force it to set a new base level with the current light levels.
This setting determines how much of an increase in light triggers a "hit". A higher value should increase the amount of light required to trigger a "hit". A lower value requires less light to trigger a hit. Adjust this based on the light where you are operating your shark to get the best performance. "Best performance" typically means your shark triggers a "hit" when another shark's laser hits your shark's tail.
When moving your shark forward or backward, if you notice it does not go in a straight line, but veers to one side or the other, this can be used to change the power distribution from the right or left sides when moving forward or backwards to keep your shark moving straight. NOTE: Moving the slider to one side does not mean the shark will move more to that side. Direction of the motors is hard to determine because of so many variables (way it's wired, way it's connected, and your "swap options"), therefore, you just have to test out different trim settings to get your shark to move straight. If you slide the trim fully to one side and then try to drive your shark straight forward, it should be pretty obvious which direction it's trimming the shark. From there, you can make smaller adjustments in the appropriate direction with the trim to get it going nice and straight.
The "Virus" game starts your shark with blue eyes and moving at full speed. When your shark is "hit", then your shark's eyes turn green like a zombie and then your movement is slowed. The idea is that you have many sharks playing this game and they start out as "Not infected" and then you pick one or two sharks to be the "zombies" and they try to "infect" the others by shooting them. The last shark left with blue eyes wins or when the time ends. The non infected sharks can shoot and if they score a hit on a zombie shark, then it spins out of control for a second or two before being able to move again. Any shot to a non infected shark turns it into a zombie.
Get ready to boogie! In this high-energy mode, getting tagged triggers a dazzling disco fever. Your shark will go into a spinning frenzy while your RGB lights erupt in a vibrant rave show. It's a party in the laser tag arena, even if you're temporarily out of the action.
Currenty Not Implemented. Does nothing... Do NOT Recommend hitting this game mode... You probably still will try, but, hey, at least we warned you.
WTF Mode - "Whatever the fantastic" idea is you have for a game mode can go here! If you edit the wtfgame.py file in your Shark, then it will run that code when you switch to the WTF game mode. Learn how to edit the game modes by looking a the Game mode tutorial.