Welcome to the patch notes, a compiled list of all changes and updates made to Protobot!

Beta 1.3.1 - July 17th, 2022

Welcome to Beta 1.3.1! A smaller update with lots of very useful changes / additions and a few important bug fixes.

Main Features

• Transform Tool Snapping

  • Snapping now enabled by default
  • Rotations are included, meaning you can disable rotation snapping all together
  • Rotation snapping now based on 15° increments instead of 45°

• New Parts! Over 30 new parts available to build with!

  • Gussets (finally!)
    • Coupler ⇒ Angle, C-Channel, and Angle Corner
    • 30 Degree ⇒ Flat and Bent
    • 45 Degree ⇒ Flat, Bent, and Plate
    • 60 Degree ⇒ Flat and Bent
    • 90 Degree ⇒ Flat, Bent, Plate, and Angle
    • Pack ⇒ Pivot, Angle, Plus
  • U-Channels (Sizing from 1 - 20 holes)
  • Plastic Spacers
    • 4.6mm and 8mm
  • Nut Variants
    • Hex, Keps, and Low Profile
  • High Strength Gear v2
    • 24T, 36T, 48T, 60T, 72T, 84T
  • Flex Wheels
    • 1.625in, 2in, 3in, and 4in (with options to include adapters)
  • Spin-up Disc (a competition part, more coming soon!)

  

• Smoother Camera Controls

  • Smoother Pan, Zoom, and Orbit movement
  • Panning speed now adjusts with zoom distance
  • Focus shortcut is now set to ‘F’ key by default

• Better Hole Placement

  • Parts no longer flip when getting close to a hole during shaft positioning
  • Flipping the direction of a part during shaft positioning now works by pressing ‘Space’ by default
  • All hole placements now align properly with hole rotations (including gussets)

Bug Fixes

• Standoffs don’t form connections on both sides
• Tooltips can appear offscreen
• Moving a hole rotates it along forward direction

Beta 1.3 - March 14th, 2022

Welcome to Beta 1.3! The biggest release to date.

Here’s an update video, which goes over all of the most important changes:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cAWValvXOmY

Main Features

• Updated File System

  • Introduced new top bar with options for saving and other buttons
  • New Splash Screen shows a list of recently opened files and other options
  • Allows for saving and opening of individual “.pbb” files

  

• Revamped Tools

  • Combined all previous move tools (besides Transform) into one comprehensive “Move Tool” which can accurately position:
    • Screws
    • Shafts
    • Holes
    • Any object with a center hole on a shaft
    • Nuts at the end of a screw
    • Shafts into motors
  • Move tool rotation can be toggled by pressing “R”
  • The same functions involved in the move tool are also activated when adding a new object, so moving a screw cause the same positioning as adding a new one

  

• Intuitive Connections

  • Connections between objects now form more realistically
  • For screws:
    • All that is required is that a nut is added to a screw and all objects on the screw will connect together
  • For shafts:
    • Any object on a shaft that is within two shaft collars will form a connection with the shaft

  

• Overhauled Add Menu

  • Improved the sidebar interface

    • Smaller overall size and can be hidden
    • New small buttons for the parts used in connections: screws, nuts, shafts, and shaft collars

  • Added special parameters

    • Selecting a part from the list will now show more options for the part
      • A dropdown for choosing from a list of specific part options
      • A text field for typing in specific custom values
        • Appears for C-Channel, Plate, Angle, and Shaft
      • Using the scroll wheel on a dropdown or text field will quickly scrub through options

    

• Preferences Menu

  • All main shortcuts are now accessible in a fully featured preferences menu
  • Click to change a shortcut to whatever you’d like
  • Camera settings options have moved here as well
  • Automatically saves as you change inputs

  

• Undo / Redo

  • You can now press the Undo / Redo shortcuts or buttons to do just that
  • Most actions you make whether it be moving or selecting will have the ability to be undone or redone

  

• Other Features

  • Reduced total poly count of over a dozen parts, allowing for more objects in a single build
  • Optimized group / connection calculations
  • Duplication is now achieved by holding the “Alt” key or duplication shortcut and moving a selection
  • Rotations are now animated
  • New button for toggling the grid (Shortcut: G)
  • New button for allowing the selection of holes through other parts (Shortcut: H)
  • Shaft Inserts now appear automatically on normal shafts
  • Removed a few discontinued parts
  • Removed current selection menu
  • Improved lighting

Bug Fixes