Assign Motor IDs

Program all 25 motors with their joint IDs, one at a time, before the robot is assembled.

Every motor arrives not knowing which joint it belongs to. You tell each one, using the number printed on its sticker, before any of them go into the robot.

Set aside about an hour and a half. This is the longest step in the whole build, and the one that has to happen in a particular order.

Before assembly only

Programming an ID writes to whichever motor is connected to the setup connector. Once the harness is in place and every motor shares a bus, the tool cannot tell them apart and the wrong motor can be silently re-programmed. Do this with loose motors on the bench.

Before You Start

Both computers are flashed, cabled together, and powered — see Open the Dashboard.

Asimov Manager shows the RPU online.

All 25 motors, with their numbered stickers, sorted where you can reach them.

Start Setup

Open Robot Setup. A robot that has never been through setup shows its cover — the model, and how many motors that means.

Select Start setup. That records the robot model on the RPU and opens the four steps. The firmware stays stopped throughout: it owns the CAN buses when it runs, so every setup step is refused while it is running.

Arm the Step

Step 1 opens behind a warning. Read it, then select I understand — enable programming.

The left-hand map is the robot, joint by joint. Each motor is waiting, next up, or assigned, so you can always see how far along you are.

Program Each Motor

The wizard walks the stickers in order and tells you which one it wants next.

For each of the 25 motors:

Connect exactly one motor to the setup connector. Only one — with two or more on the bus, programming fails or hits the wrong motor.

Check that Next sticker matches the motor in your hand. It shows the number and the joint it belongs to, for example 09 · R_Hip_Yaw.

Select Detect & Program as N, then confirm.

The confirmation offers Don't ask again this session. Ticking it is reasonable once you have the rhythm — the arming and the sticker readout still stand between you and the wrong motor.

Wait for the confirmation that the motor now holds that ID, then unplug it and connect the next one.

The map fills in as you go:

Keep the programmed motors in order as you set them aside — it makes assembly considerably easier.

Out of order is fine

Program a different sticker lets you pick any ID rather than the suggested next one, for when a motor is easier to reach out of sequence. The wizard tracks which of the 25 are done, not the order you did them in.

If Something Goes Wrong

Symptom	What to check
Nothing is detected	Exactly one motor connected, powered, and cabled. Motors reject commands while starting up — wait a second and retry.
Programming fails to verify	The motor must be stationary and not reporting an alarm. Leave it undisturbed and try again.
Two motors answer at once	More than one is connected. Disconnect all but the one you are programming.
The whole page is inert	The firmware is running and owns the buses. Stop it from Firmware, then come back.
A sticker is missing or duplicated	Stop and resolve the labelling before you assemble anything.

With all 25 programmed, power everything down and build the robot, fitting each motor into the joint matching its sticker.

Come back to Calibrate Actuators when the robot is assembled and wired to check and calibrate the motors. Then continue to First Start to start the firmware.