Movement

The robot has two wheels, each with its own motor: left wheel motor and right wheel motor on the starter robot. You drive it by setting the speed of each wheel:

Left wheel	Right wheel	The robot…
Forward	Forward	Drives forward
Backward	Backward	Drives backward
Backward	Forward	Spins to the left
Forward	Backward	Spins to the right
Fast	Slow	Curves to the right

Speeds are in radians per second, up to 6.28 (one turn of the wheel per second). Negative speeds turn the wheel backward.

Driving

1. Get each motor by its name.
2. Set its position to infinity, so that it turns without limit.
3. Set its velocity.

The motors keep the last speed you set, so the robot keeps moving while your program does other things. This program drives forward, backward, and spins to the left, for one second each:

Python

from controller import Robot

robot = Robot()
timeStep = int(robot.getBasicTimeStep())
maxSpeed = 6.28  # The maximum speed of the wheels, in radians per second

leftWheel = robot.getDevice("left wheel motor")
rightWheel = robot.getDevice("right wheel motor")
leftWheel.setPosition(float("inf"))
rightWheel.setPosition(float("inf"))

def drive(left, right, seconds):
    # Set the speed of each wheel, and keep it for some time
    leftWheel.setVelocity(left)
    rightWheel.setVelocity(right)
    start = robot.getTime()
    while robot.step(timeStep) != -1:
        if robot.getTime() - start >= seconds:
            break

drive(maxSpeed, maxSpeed, 1.0)    # Forward
drive(-maxSpeed, -maxSpeed, 1.0)  # Backward
drive(-2.0, 2.0, 1.0)             # Spin to the left
drive(0, 0, 0.1)                  # Stop
print("Done")

C/C++

#include <iostream>
#include <cmath>
#include <webots/Robot.hpp>
#include <webots/Motor.hpp>

using namespace webots;

Robot *robot;
Motor *leftWheel, *rightWheel;
int timeStep;
const double maxSpeed = 6.28; // The maximum speed of the wheels, in radians per second

// Set the speed of each wheel, and keep it for some time
void drive(double left, double right, double seconds) {
  leftWheel->setVelocity(left);
  rightWheel->setVelocity(right);
  double start = robot->getTime();
  while (robot->step(timeStep) != -1) {
    if (robot->getTime() - start >= seconds)
      break;
  }
}

int main() {
  robot = new Robot();
  timeStep = (int)robot->getBasicTimeStep();

  leftWheel = robot->getMotor("left wheel motor");
  rightWheel = robot->getMotor("right wheel motor");
  leftWheel->setPosition(INFINITY);
  rightWheel->setPosition(INFINITY);

  drive(maxSpeed, maxSpeed, 1.0);   // Forward
  drive(-maxSpeed, -maxSpeed, 1.0); // Backward
  drive(-2.0, 2.0, 1.0);            // Spin to the left
  drive(0, 0, 0.1);                 // Stop
  std::cout << "Done" << std::endl;

  delete robot;
  return 0;
}

Note

Angles in Webots are in radians. To convert: radians = degrees × π / 180.

Measuring how far a wheel turned

Each motor has a position sensor, also called an encoder, which counts how far the wheel has turned, in radians. It is useful to drive a fixed distance. Turning backward makes the count go down.

Python

from controller import Robot

robot = Robot()
timeStep = int(robot.getBasicTimeStep())

leftWheel = robot.getDevice("left wheel motor")
rightWheel = robot.getDevice("right wheel motor")
leftWheel.setPosition(float("inf"))
rightWheel.setPosition(float("inf"))

# Each wheel has a position sensor, which counts how far it has turned
leftEncoder = leftWheel.getPositionSensor()
rightEncoder = rightWheel.getPositionSensor()
leftEncoder.enable(timeStep)
rightEncoder.enable(timeStep)

robot.step(timeStep)  # Step once, so that the sensors have a value
start = leftEncoder.getValue()

leftWheel.setVelocity(5.0)
rightWheel.setVelocity(5.0)

while robot.step(timeStep) != -1:
    turned = leftEncoder.getValue() - start
    if turned > 10.0:  # Stop after 10 radians
        break

leftWheel.setVelocity(0)
rightWheel.setVelocity(0)
print("Left wheel:", round(leftEncoder.getValue() - start, 2), "rad")

C/C++

#include <iostream>
#include <cmath>
#include <webots/Robot.hpp>
#include <webots/Motor.hpp>
#include <webots/PositionSensor.hpp>

using namespace webots;
using namespace std;

int main() {
  Robot *robot = new Robot();
  int timeStep = (int)robot->getBasicTimeStep();

  Motor *leftWheel = robot->getMotor("left wheel motor");
  Motor *rightWheel = robot->getMotor("right wheel motor");
  leftWheel->setPosition(INFINITY);
  rightWheel->setPosition(INFINITY);

  // Each wheel has a position sensor, which counts how far it has turned
  PositionSensor *leftEncoder = leftWheel->getPositionSensor();
  PositionSensor *rightEncoder = rightWheel->getPositionSensor();
  leftEncoder->enable(timeStep);
  rightEncoder->enable(timeStep);

  robot->step(timeStep); // Step once, so that the sensors have a value
  double start = leftEncoder->getValue();

  leftWheel->setVelocity(5.0);
  rightWheel->setVelocity(5.0);

  while (robot->step(timeStep) != -1) {
    double turned = leftEncoder->getValue() - start;
    if (turned > 10.0) // Stop after 10 radians
      break;
  }

  leftWheel->setVelocity(0);
  rightWheel->setVelocity(0);
  cout << "Left wheel: " << leftEncoder->getValue() - start << " rad" << endl;

  delete robot;
  return 0;
}

Timing a move is simple, but the result changes with the speed. Encoders measure the move itself, so they are more reliable. For precise turns, the gyro is better still.

Next, learn to read the sensors.