Motors and servos are the primary actuators of an FTC robot. This guide covers how to program them in Java using the FTC Robot Controller app.
DC Motors
DC motors provide the power for your drivetrain and other mechanisms like arms or linear slides.
1. Initialization
Use the hardwareMap to initialize your motor.
DcMotor leftDrive = hardwareMap.get(DcMotor.class, "leftDrive");2. Setting Direction
Depending on how your motor is oriented, you might need to reverse its direction.
leftDrive.setDirection(DcMotor.Direction.REVERSE);3. Basic Control
You can control the motor’s power from -1.0 to 1.0.
leftDrive.setPower(0.5); // 50% power forward4. Zero Power Behavior
Choose how the motor should behave when power is set to zero.
- Brake: Resists movement (better for precision).
- Float: Free to spin (better for some intakes).
leftDrive.setZeroPowerBehavior(DcMotor.ZeroPowerBehavior.BRAKE);Servos
Servos are used for precision movements, like grippers or small rotations.
1. Standard Servos
Standard servos move to a specific position from 0.0 to 1.0.
Servo gripper = hardwareMap.get(Servo.class, "gripper");
gripper.setPosition(0.5); // Move to the middle position2. Continuous Rotation (CR) Servos
CR servos rotate continuously and are controlled like a DC motor.
CRServo intake = hardwareMap.get(CRServo.class, "intake");
intake.setPower(1.0); // Full speed forward- Testing: Use a simple test OpMode (like the FTC Dashboard servo test) to find the correct positions and directions for your motors and servos.