Constants Classes

Robots contain many values that need to be tuned during development:

• Motor directions
• PID coefficients
• Servo positions
• Physical dimensions
• Speed limits

Instead of placing these values throughout the code, they should be stored in constants classes.

The Problem With Magic Numbers

Example:

hood.setPosition(0.37);

What does 0.37 represent?

A few weeks later, it becomes difficult to remember.

Using Constants

Create a constants class:

public class ShooterConstants {

    public static final double HOOD_SCORE_POSITION = 0.37;
    public static final double TARGET_RPM = 3500;

}

Then use it:

hood.setPosition(
    ShooterConstants.HOOD_SCORE_POSITION
);

Now the meaning is clear.

Organizing Constants

A larger robot may have:

constants
├── DriveConstants.java
├── ShooterConstants.java
├── VisionConstants.java
└── AutoConstants.java

Separating constants by subsystem makes tuning easier.

Benefits

Constants classes:

• Make code easier to read
• Speed up tuning
• Prevent duplicated values
• Keep configuration separate from logic

A well-organized codebase treats tuning values as part of the robot configuration, not scattered numbers hidden throughout the program.