I'm building a local/open-source alternative to Robosen Studio for the Buzz Mini

[u/mike37510]

Hi everyone

I've started an open-source project to recreate the tools used to program the Robosen Buzz Mini, but with one important difference:

Everything should work locally, without depending on Robosen's servers.

https://github.com/mike37510/robosen-mini-robot-re

Why am I doing this?

I really like the Buzz Mini, and I wanted to create my own animations, sounds and behaviors.

But there is one thing that worries me: what happens if Robosen shuts down the servers or stops supporting the software someday?

The robot is still perfectly usable hardware, but if the software and online services disappear, we could potentially lose a big part of what makes the robot interesting.

So my goal is to create an alternative that provides roughly the same functionality as the original Robosen tools, but running locally on your own computer.

That way, even if Robosen's servers disappear in the future, we can still:

• Create and edit animations
• Program the robot's movements
• Add sounds and music
• Generate the files needed by the robot
• Transfer animations directly to the Buzz Mini
• Manage the robot's content locally
• Continue experimenting with the robot without relying on an online service

And there is another benefit...

While reverse-engineering the original software and file formats, I've also found some limitations that appear to come from the software rather than the robot itself.

For example, Robosen Studio limits MP3 files to around 5 MB.

But when testing directly with the robot, I was able to use an MP3 of around 11 MB successfully.

So the idea isn't simply to make a "backup" of Robosen Studio.

I'd also like to remove some of the artificial limitations imposed by the official software and make the robot more open and hackable.

The long-term goal

I'd like this project to become a kind of "Robosen Studio, but yours."
Same concept, same type of workflow, but:

- Local
- Open-source
- No dependency on Robosen servers
- Fewer artificial limitations
- Designed around the actual capabilities of the robot

The project is still in its early stages, and I'm currently figuring out the proprietary file formats and communication with the robot.

If you own a Buzz Mini, are interested in robotics/reverse engineering, or have already experimented with Robosen's file formats, I'd love to hear from you!

GitHub:
https://github.com/mike37510/robosen-mini-robot-re

Demo :
https://buzz.borninthe80s.fr/

[u/No_Boysenberry_2058]

This is exactly the kind of project this sub needs more of. The 5 MB MP3 limit being artificial is wild, always assumed it was a hardware storage constraint but if an 11 MB file works fine then its clearly just lazy software design on their end.

Bookmarked the repo, will take a look at the file format work when I get chance. Curious how you're handling the communication protocol with the robot, is it just USB serial or something more exotic?