Dear Backers,
It’s almost halfway through 2021. How time flies! We have shipped 500 Kickstarter orders and 100 Indiegogo orders since the last update. Now we have only 70 orders left to send. They are either due to late survey completion or include some Nybble replacements for the repeat backers. We expect to ship them within this week to proceed to the next stage of our project. If you haven’t received your Bittle for specific reasons, please write to support@petoi.com.
According to the users’ feedback, there are a few common problems, and here are the fixes:
1. If you cannot find the serial port in Arduino IDE, you may need to install the driver for the programmer.
2. If Arduino tells you that it cannot find certain files, you need to change the folder name from OpenCat-main to OpenCat and move OpenCat.ino back to the folder’s root.
3. If your Bittle beeps after uploading OpenCat.ino, you need to connect the battery and turn it on.
4. You need to long-press the battery’s button to turn it on and off.
5. The silicone toes/paws included are not necessary for regular movements. They are designed for research on different surfaces when friction plays an important role.There are many other notes covered in the user manual. We highly recommend you read through it before operating the robot. It has a lot of detailed information that can fill up a college-level curriculum.
We have discovered and fixed a few bugs in the codes and will keep updating the GitHub repository.
We've released an alpha version of the OpenCat desktop controller as an open-source project. You can use the controller to calibrate servos and send built-in and custom action commands Bittle.
Recently, I just got a few hours to play with Bittle myself. I used the sound sensor to make Bittle listen to the environment. With a few lines of code, Bittle can react to my whistle. It’s so fun that I’m designing a more compact module to be installed in Bittle’s head, and I will make this piece of extension available in the standard OpenCat code. It will detect whether such a sensor is connected and add this fun reaction automatically.
Bittle was featured on Spanish TV “El Hormiguero” last month. Though I cannot understand the language, it seems that the audience immensely enjoyed the show. We also found a YouTuber’s remix of Bittle and Thomas the train. It got over 1 million views within ten days. That’s a pretty impressive performance showing great interest from the public.
We will launch the Petoi Challenge two months after clearing the current batch. We have some challenges in mind, and you can suggest your ideas. Please read the user manual and code carefully. You may help us fix the bugs and win great prizes and honor from the community!
Cheers!
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Rz and the Petoi Team