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Glossary

Nobody is born knowing what a subsystem is. Search a word you heard in the pit.

63 of 63 shown

  • Allocation exceptionweek 4
    The error you get when two objects try to claim the same port.
  • Arcade driveweek 4
    Driving with one stick for forward and one for turn.
  • Autonomous (auto)week 6
    The first 15 seconds of a match, no driver input.
  • Beam breakweek 6
    A light beam across a gap, and a sensor that says whether something is blocking it.
  • Booleanweek 1
    `true` or `false`.
  • Boolean operatorweek 2
    `&&` means and, `||` means or, `!` means not.
  • Brownoutweek 1
    The roboRIO shutting parts of the robot down because the battery voltage sagged too far.
  • CANweek 7
    Bus connecting motor controllers and sensors.
  • Clampweek 1
    Pulling a number back inside a legal range before anything uses it.
  • Classweek 3
    A blueprint for creating objects.
  • Commandweek 5
    An action performed by one or more subsystems.
  • Command factoryweek 5
    A method that creates and returns a command.
  • Comparison operatorweek 1
    A symbol that asks a question about two values and answers true or false: `<`, `>`, `<=`, `>=`, `==`, `!=`.
  • Compilerweek 2
    The program that reads your Java, checks it makes sense, and turns it into something the robot can run. Java's is called javac.
  • Compiler errorweek 2
    What the compiler says when it cannot make sense of your code. It names a file, a line and a reason.
  • Constructorweek 3
    Special method that runs when an object is created.
  • Deadbandweek 2
    A range of small inputs treated as zero.
  • Decoratorweek 6
    A method chained onto a command that hands back a new command with one thing added.
  • Default commandweek 5
    Runs whenever a subsystem has nothing else to do.
  • Deployweek 7
    Sending code from your laptop to the robot.
  • DifferentialDriveweek 4
    WPILib's class that turns forward and turn into two motor outputs.
  • DigitalInputweek 6
    WPILib's class for a sensor wired to a DIO port that reads true or false.
  • doubleweek 1
    The type for numbers with a decimal point.
  • Encoderweek 1
    Sensor measuring how far a motor or wheel turned.
  • Fieldweek 3
    A variable that belongs to an object and lasts as long as the object does.
  • finalweek 3
    Set once and never changed again.
  • Gitweek 3
    The tool that tracks every change to the team's code, so several people can work on the same robot without losing each other's work.
  • if / elseweek 1
    Runs one block of code when a question is true and another when it is false. `else if` asks a second question only when the first was false.
  • intweek 1
    The type for whole numbers: counts, ids, port numbers.
  • Integer divisionweek 1
    When both sides of a `/` are whole numbers, Java throws the remainder away instead of rounding.
  • Inversionweek 4
    Flipping the sign of a motor's output because its gearbox faces the other way.
  • Lambdaweek 5
    A small block of code written as a value, like `() -> setSpeed(0.5)`.
  • Methodweek 2
    A named, reusable block of code.
  • Method referenceweek 4
    A method handed over to be called later, written with two colons and no brackets.
  • newweek 3
    The word that builds an object from a class and runs its constructor.
  • Objectweek 3
    A specific instance created from a class.
  • onTrueweek 5
    Starts a command once, when a trigger becomes true, and then leaves it alone.
  • Parameterweek 2
    A value a method is handed when it is called. Inside the method it behaves like an ordinary variable.
  • PIDweek 6
    A control method that moves a mechanism to a target smoothly.
  • privateweek 3
    Only this class may read or change it.
  • Pull request (PR)week 3
    A request to merge your code, where others review it.
  • PWMweek 4
    An older, simpler way to control a motor, addressed by the port number it is plugged into on the roboRIO.
  • Return valueweek 2
    The answer a method hands back. The type in front of the method name says what kind, and `void` means it hands back nothing.
  • roboRIOweek 1
    The robot's main computer.
  • runEndweek 5
    Like startEnd, but its first piece of work runs every loop instead of once.
  • Schedulerweek 5
    Runs commands and prevents conflicts.
  • Sensorweek 6
    Anything that tells the code about the real world.
  • setInvertedweek 4
    Tells a motor controller to flip every number it is given from now on.
  • Simulation (sim)week 4
    Running robot code on your laptop without a real robot.
  • startEndweek 5
    Builds a command from two pieces of work: one when it starts, one when it is cancelled.
  • Stringweek 1
    The type for text. Text goes inside double quotes.
  • Subsystemweek 3
    A class that owns and controls a piece of robot hardware.
  • Tank driveweek 4
    Driving with one stick for the left side and one for the right.
  • Teleopweek 4
    The driver-controlled part of a match.
  • thisweek 3
    Inside a method, the object the method was called on.
  • toggleOnTrueweek 5
    Starts a command on one press and cancels it on the next.
  • Toleranceweek 1
    How far from a target still counts as arrived. Decimals never land exactly, so you pick a gap you are happy with.
  • Triggerweek 5
    A condition that starts or stops a command.
  • untilweek 6
    Ends a command the first loop a question comes back true.
  • Variableweek 1
    A named storage location for a value.
  • whileTrueweek 5
    Runs a command while a trigger is true, and cancels it the moment it goes false.
  • withTimeoutweek 6
    Ends a command after a number of seconds, whatever else is happening.
  • WPILibweek 1
    The official FRC software library.