A Lua system for the EVN Alpha platform.
Lua EVN makes it possible to write programs for the EVNAlpha board using the Lua language.
Lua is a simple, clean language used often for embedded systems and gaming. It provides memory management and a rich set of libraries for math, string manipulations, etc.
Lua EVN provides several advantages over programming directly in C/C++.
A) Lua is a higher-level language, and may be more accessible than C/C++.
B) It implements a serial port shell that allows interacting with the running Lua program in multiple ways:
- Displaying the value of variables.
- Changing the value of variables.
- Invoking Lua functions "on the fly".
- Modifying and updating the software without the Arduino build/download steps.
- Downloading programs is possible "over the air" if a BT similar wireless connection is made to one of the EVNAlpha serial ports.
C) Last but not least, the Lua EVN system allows modifying and updating code while the program is running.
This lets you adjust not just various settings and coefficients that may control your robot's behavior, but to even change program logic and behavior without a reboot.
The general structure of a Lua script is similar to the underlying Arduino structure, with a setup() function and then a loop() function (actually multiple loops).
The Lua Examples folder contains several useful example scripts.
This is a work in progress.
Currently, only some of the EVN Alpha hardware objects are supported, and the arduino library is also only partially complete.
See the Manual.md document for detailed status information.