Capstone

A modular robot control and visualization UI for a modular robotic system. Capstone provides a unified interface to visualize, control, and program robots built from connectable modules (servos, hubs, DC motors, sensors, etc.) through three main modes: Live View, Inverse Kinematics, and Programmed Movements.

Overview

Capstone is designed for:

Visualizing robots built from modular components (servos, hubs, DC motors, grippers, sensors, etc.)
Controlling modules in real time via a native C library (libc_control) or mock JSON configs
Programming movement sequences via a timeline-based editor

The application supports both hardware-connected operation (with a native control library) and a mock mode for development and testing without physical hardware.

Requirements

Requirement	Version
Unity	6000.3.6f1 (Unity 6)
Platform	Windows, macOS, Linux

Supported Platforms

Windows (x64)
macOS (x64)
Linux (x86_64)

Getting Started

1. Clone and Open

git clone <repository-url>
cd ui

Open the project in Unity Hub using Unity 6000.3.6f1.

2. Run Without Hardware (Mock Mode)

To run without the native control library:

Open ProjectSettings or locate the TopologyBuilder component in your scene.
Enable Use JSON File and Mock Control Library.
The app will load topology from JSON files in Assets/Resources/ (e.g. mockData.json, mockDataSimple.json, mockDataWithDC.json).

3. Run With Hardware

Ensure libc_control is built and available in the appropriate platform directory (e.g. Plugins/).
Disable mock mode in TopologyBuilder.
Use the Discovery overlay to select a connected robot leader.

4. Main Scene

SampleScene (Assets/Scenes/SampleScene.unity) – primary scene for robot control and visualization.

Project Structure

ui/
├── Assets/
│   ├── Scenes/                    # Main scenes (SampleScene, Playground)
│   ├── Resources/                 # JSON configs for mock mode
│   │   ├── mockData.json
│   │   ├── mockDataSimple.json
│   │   ├── mockDataWithDC.json
│   │   └── ...
│   ├── Module/                    # Topology, Hub, Discovery
│   ├── IK/                        # Inverse kinematics
│   ├── ProgrammedMovements/       # Timeline-based movement
│   │   └── SavedTimelines/        # Saved timeline JSON files
│   ├── ControlLibrary/            # P/Invoke bridge to libc_control
│   ├── FlatBuffers/               # FlatBuffers runtime
│   ├── Flatbuffers_generated/     # Generated types (RobotConfiguration, etc.)
│   ├── StarterAssets/             # Third-person controller, input
│   ├── StandaloneFileBrowser/     # Cross-platform file dialogs
│   ├── SyntyStudios/              # Polygon assets (PolygonCity, etc.)
│   └── Editor/                    # Build scripts
├── ProjectSettings/
├── Packages/
└── README.md

Technical Architecture

Unity Version & Packages

Package	Version
Cinemachine	2.10.3
Input System	1.14.0
Universal Render Pipeline (URP)	14.0.12
TextMeshPro	3.0.7
Timeline	1.7.7
UGUI	1.0.0
Visual Scripting	1.9.4
Collab Proxy	2.8.2
Development	1.0.1

Native Integration

The ControlLibrary communicates with the native C library libc_control via P/Invoke:

Function	Purpose
`init()`	Initialize the control library
`cleanup()`	Cleanup resources
`send_angle_control(module_id, angle)`	Send angle command to a servo module
`send_string_control(module_id, s)`	Send string command to a module
`get_distance_control(module_id)`	Get distance sensor reading
`get_configuration(out size, leader_id)`	Get robot configuration (FlatBuffers)
`get_leaders(out length)`	Get list of connected robot leaders
`control_sentry_*`	Sentry error reporting integration

If libc_control is missing, native calls are disabled and the app falls back to mock/JSON mode.

Data Flow

┌──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│                     ViewBannerUI (3 modes)                       │
├─────────────────┬─────────────────────┬──────────────────────────┤
│   Live View     │ Inverse Kinematics  │  Programmed Movements    │
│ LiveViewPanel   │ IKController +      │  ProgrammedMovementsCtrl │
│ ModuleSelector  │ PositionControlGizmo│  Timeline (4 tracks)     │
└────────┬────────┴──────────┬──────────┴──────────────┬───────────┘
         │                   │                         │
         ▼                   ▼                         ▼
┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│              ModuleBase (Servo, DC, Hub, Sensor, etc.)          │
│                    SendToControlLibrary()                       │
└─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
                              │
                              ▼
┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│  ControlLibrary (P/Invoke)  ←→  libc_control (native C library) │
│  getRobotConfiguration, send_angle_control, get_leaders, etc.   │
└─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘

Major Features

1. View Modes

The top banner (ViewBannerUI) provides three modes:

Mode	Description
Live	Real-time control of individual modules (sliders, buttons)
Inverse Kinematics	Drag a 3D gizmo to move the end-effector; IK solves joint angles
Programmed Movements	Timeline-based sequences (up to 10 seconds, 4 tracks)

2. Module System

Module Type	Description
ModuleBase	Base class for all modules; sends commands via `ControlLibrary`
Hub modules	`HubModule_MMMM`, `TriangleHubModule_MMF`, `TriangleHubModule_MMM`, `HubModule_MMMF`
Servo modules	`ServoBendModule`, `ServoStraightModule`, `GripperModule`
Actuators	`DCMotorModule`
Sensors	`DistanceSensorModule`, `IMUSensorModule`
Other	`DisplayModule`, `SpeakerModule`, `PowerModule`, `Battery`

3. Topology Builder

Builds the robot graph from JSON or from ControlLibrary.getRobotConfiguration().
Uses ModuleSpawner to instantiate prefabs and connect them.
Options: useJsonFile, skipControlLibraryCalls, mockControlLibrary.

4. Discovery

Lists robot leaders from ControlLibrary.getRobotLeaders().
Mock mode uses JSON files in Resources/.
Selecting a leader loads its topology.

5. Live View

Side panel for the selected module.
Servo: angle slider (0–180°).
DC motor: direction and rotation controls.
Sensors: readouts (e.g. distance).
Uses ModuleSelector for selection.

6. Inverse Kinematics

CCD-based IK solver for kinematic chains.
Builds chain from selected module to root (GeneratedTopology).
PositionControlGizmo: 3D gizmo for dragging end-effector position.
Supports ServoStraightModule joints with configurable deadzone and smoothing.

7. Programmed Movements

Timeline: 4 tracks, 0–10 seconds.
Movement blocks per second per track.
Run: plays timeline and sends commands to modules.
Save/Load: JSON files in Assets/ProgrammedMovements/SavedTimelines/.
Uses StandaloneFileBrowser for cross-platform file dialogs.

8. File Browser

StandaloneFileBrowser – cross-platform open/save dialogs (Windows, Mac, Linux).

Data Formats

Topology JSON

{
  "Modules": [
    { "Id": "splitter1", "Type": "Splitter4", "Degree": null },
    { "Id": "servo1", "Type": "Servo1", "Degree": 45 }
  ],
  "Connections": [
    {
      "FromModuleId": "splitter1",
      "ToModuleId": "servo1",
      "FromSocket": "MaleSocket1",
      "ToSocket": "FemaleSocket",
      "Orientation": 0
    }
  ]
}

Programmed Movement Timeline JSON

{
  "Timeline": [
    {
      "Second": 0,
      "Movements": [
        {
          "ModuleId": "11",
          "ModuleType": "Servo",
          "Degree": 180.0,
          "Direction": 1,
          "Track": 0
        }
      ]
    }
  ]
}

Robot Configuration

FlatBuffers format: RobotConfiguration, RobotModule, MotorState, ModuleConnection, etc.
Generated types in Assets/Flatbuffers_generated/.

Building

Build targets are configured in Assets/Editor/BuildScript.cs:

Platform	Output
Windows	`Builds/Windows/botchain.exe`
Linux	`Builds/Linux/botchain.x86_64`
macOS	`Builds/macOS/botchain.app`

Default Resolution

1920×1080 (configurable in Project Settings)

Key Scripts Reference

Script	Purpose
`ModuleBase.cs`	Base for all modules; sends commands to ControlLibrary
`ModuleSpawner.cs`	Spawns module prefabs by type
`TopologyBuilder.cs`	Builds topology from JSON or native config
`TopologyGraphModel.cs`	Graph data structures
`ModuleSelector.cs`	Tracks selected module
`ControlLibrary.cs`	P/Invoke bridge to `libc_control`
`ViewBannerUI.cs`	Top banner and view switching
`LiveViewModulePanel.cs`	Live view side panel
`InverseKinematicsController.cs`	CCD IK solver
`PositionControlGizmo.cs`	3D drag gizmo for IK
`ProgrammedMovementsController.cs`	Timeline UI and playback
`DiscoverOverlayController.cs`	Discovery overlay UI

Name		Name	Last commit message	Last commit date
Latest commit History 79 Commits
.sentry-native		.sentry-native
Assets		Assets
Packages		Packages
ProjectSettings		ProjectSettings
UserSettings		UserSettings
.DS_Store		.DS_Store
.gitattributes		.gitattributes
.gitignore		.gitignore
LICENSE		LICENSE
README.md		README.md
convert_tmp_to_text.py		convert_tmp_to_text.py
ignore.conf		ignore.conf
ui.slnx		ui.slnx

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Capstone

Table of Contents

Overview

Requirements

Supported Platforms

Getting Started

1. Clone and Open

2. Run Without Hardware (Mock Mode)

3. Run With Hardware

4. Main Scene

Project Structure

Technical Architecture

Unity Version & Packages

Native Integration

Data Flow

Major Features

1. View Modes

2. Module System

3. Topology Builder

4. Discovery

5. Live View

6. Inverse Kinematics

7. Programmed Movements

8. File Browser

Data Formats

Topology JSON

Programmed Movement Timeline JSON

Robot Configuration

Building

Default Resolution

Key Scripts Reference

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