On the Home page of the HandiBot.com site there is the following statement:

Quote

The Handibot tool features an App-Driven, one-button “Start;” it can be run from a smartphone or tablet, as well as from PC's.

I think this statement is a little misleading without a statement about this feature being available at some point in the future when the new control software is finalized.

Are my assumptions correct or can we control the HandiBot from a smartphone at the current time?

You are correct at this point in time, windows only. Sounds like Android and iOS is still a ways off.

The good news is windows tablets have come way down in the last few months.

Windows tablets work great for the Handibot, and they've come WAY down in price, you no longer need a $900 dollar Surface pro to run one, you can do it on a $200 dollar Dell tablet.

In fact, the Venue Pro 8 that I use to run mine actually performs really well, I use Sketchup and VCarve on it with no problems at all.

As far as the Android and iOS control, it's not available now, and I don't know when it's coming...

I know that the HandiBot will run with a Windows Pro Tablet, I happen to already own a Surface Pro but the topic is strictly about the web site statement that you CAN use a smartphone to control the HandiBot.

The fact is YOU CAN'T.

IMO the statement is misleading and should state that it is not available right now.

Hi gclayton,

Thanks for calling that to our attention. On the “Developer Edition” purchase page and in our note to Handibot enthusiasts, we tried to stress that we were still in the early stages of our development of the “Smart Tool” capabilities; that today, the Handibot worked as a small CNC tool and that the added use of the tool via “apps” was still a work in progress. We’ll jump in and make that more clear on the home page.

David

@David, Thanks for your response.

As a purchaser of the HandiBot Developer Edition, I did know that the smartphone was not supported at this time but I felt the HandiBot site should be more clear that the option was not available at the current time.

Can you state when this option will be available?

When I purchased the HandiBot Developer Edition I was willing to pay more to have early access to the HandiBot to be able to develop apps and hopefully make them available for purchase by others. But it seems that the "HandiBot Developer Edition" really doesn't offer any additional resources to be used for developing apps than what will be offered with the consumer version, that will presumably be less expensive as indicated on the site.

Will early access to the new controller board be offered to those of us who have purchased the 'Developer Edition'?

Will the new controller have Wifi or Bluetooth capability? How else could the smartphone communicate to the HandiBot without connecting through a PC?

Also, what about access to the App Store, how long will it take to get this feature online?

gclayton,


Can you state when this option will be available?

After our new controler is finished, we'll release a framework for how early adopters like yourself can create apps for Handibot that run on mobile devices. Given the complexity of the project, it is difficuly to pin down a date for you. The controller is coming along well, and we'd like to have something to show this spring.

When I purchased the HandiBot Developer Edition I was willing to pay more to have early access to the HandiBot to be able to develop apps and hopefully make them available for purchase by others. But it seems that the "HandiBot Developer Edition" really doesn't offer any additional resources to be used for developing apps than what will be offered with the consumer version, that will presumably be less expensive as indicated on the site.

As of today, early adopters have access to all of our 3D models, BOM, and other files on GitHub. We think these resource are helpful for developers who are interested in participating in the open source hardware side of the Handibot project. As soon as the software developers kit is ready, you as an early adopter will be the first to know.

Will early access to the new controller board be offered to those of us who have purchased the 'Developer Edition'?

We know that our updated control board will be best put to use in the hands of our developer community, so we are making it a priority to get them to you as early as possible.

Will the new controller have Wifi or Bluetooth capability? How else could the smartphone communicate to the HandiBot without connecting through a PC?

That decision hasn't been finalized just yet.

Also, what about access to the App Store, how long will it take to get this feature online?

The app store will come nearer to when we release the developer framework.

David

Hi gclayton,

I’ll just elaborate on a couple of David’s responses because we are very excited about the Smart Tool “apps” and defining the development framework for them.

We have probably been a bit too distracted in the last couple of months with the physical side of Handibots – in particular, finalizing a basic design to begin development work that would be stable for some period for those doing accessories and apps. We wanted to make sure that the Handibot mechanicals were as supportive as possible for developers depending on processes such as registering between positions and tiling larger files. You’ll soon see in the store some simple jigs to help illustrate our thinking on how these functions can be readily accomplished.

As well, we have wanted to make sure those accessories such as a rotary indexing axis and an automated “creeper” (for registering across a board) would be available to help define some of the additional functionality that can be driven through a Handibot. I’m expecting you will see a final version of these accessories in the next month, as well, in the store and fully documented so they help contribute to other projects.

With respect to app development, we’ll soon be releasing a first descriptive explanation of the process that outlines how we expect apps to emerge and options for distributing them. You will see that fundamentally, most job- or task-oriented apps will accomplish their purpose by generating and passing a toolpath file to the Handibot – much as a toolpath file can be passed from the V-carve, CAM software. Ultimately, the app will greatly simplify or hide the CAD/CAM process from the user. In the short run, though, we felt that the V-Carve software did a good job of illustrating for anyone interested in development of Smart Tool apps the basic underlying workflow that would need to be accomplished and the nature of the entity, the toolpath file, which would need to be passed to the tool. Watch for a more complete early description of this framework in the next few weeks. We will also be providing an example of how a simple app works – and a discussion of formats and strategies for toolpath files.

The new Control Card (and open source motion control) is coming along well. We hope to have the first version ready for testing by late spring. We will make the new card available to all Handibot owners at our cost. With respect to the wireless, because the card is being developed for all ShopBots in general, the wireless connectivity for Handibots (and other optional functionality) will probably be available as a “shield” type of device that is added onto the card.

For those interested in seeing Handibots doing a variety of things, many of which are not already posted, you might want to check out the video that Bill Young is working of for use at the upcoming JLC show in Providence: Handibots in Action

Look forward to more information on app development in coming weeks.

Ted

@David, @Ted
Thank you for the very detailed updates.

I did receive access to my software keys today and am hoping my HandiBot will be delivered later today also.

Can't wait until I get started.

Gil