Cozmo Troubleshooting

This error message may appear if you have downloaded, installed or updated the Cozmo app while using an SD card in your device. When launching the app, you will not get past the loading bar screen. ANKI apps do not support devices with external memory (SD Cards, USB, etc.). See this FAQ for further information on compatibility.

The message may also appear because of a Google Play Store issue: "Stuck at Downloading".

Troubleshooting:

1. Restart your device
2. Uninstall the Cozmo app (tip: export your code lab projects first)
3. Remove the SD card
4. Reinstall the app
5. If the error persists, please repeat the steps and also clear your Google Play Store and Google Play Service cache and data before reinstalling the app

There are some situations when the Cozmo app might alert you that "Cozmo is having trouble seeing". 

This is typically due to lighting conditions that are just not ideal for Cozmo.  Should you see this message during gameplay, try to adjust the lighting in the room and if possible avoid shadows in Cozmo’s play area.

Please be aware that the Cozmo app may continue to alert you about light conditions even after you've made adjustments.  Don't be too concerned about these messages if Cozmo is going about his business and playing games.  Think of these messages as more of a suggestion from Cozmo rather than a problem.

 

Oh, if you’ve noticed that the picture quality in Explorer Mode seems dark, that's ok, it's by design.  Cozmo just sees the world a bit more dramatically than we do. That said, if Cozmo is unable to learn or recognize Faces, or identify Cubes in Explorer Mode and these difficulties are accompanied by "Cozmo is having trouble seeing" message, please contact us via email at support@anki.bot so that we may help you to troubleshoot the situation. 

Please remember, Cozmo learns faces best when you're looking at him straight on, and holding still. If the room is on the darker side, you may need to brighten it up. Be sure that the face Cozmo is trying to learn is well lit, evenly covered in light, and brighter than the background behind that face.

Note that Cozmo learns your face values as they are at time of scanning. If you change your appearance (growing or shaving a beard, wearing glasses), he will need to learn those new values: Cozmo will need to re-scan your face.

But what if Cozmo recognizes you as someone he's already met?

Since Cozmo doesn't see like we do, some confusion may be unavoidable.  What looks "identical" to Cozmo is not the same for us. Cozmo sometimes can have a difficult time telling the difference between people who look similar, like brothers or sisters.

If Cozmo keeps thinking he's re-meeting someone he already knows, but it's actually a different person, please try the following steps to help Cozmo out:

1. After Cozmo learns the first face, close the Cozmo App
   • How to close an app is documented here
2. Make sure that Cozmo can't see the first person he's already met
3. Relaunch the Cozmo App
4. Click on Meet Cozmo
5. Introduce Cozmo to the second person

Cozmo should now be able to learn the second person. 

Please remember, for these steps to help Cozmo, it's really important that Cozmo does not see the first person until after he's met and learned the second one.

When you're interacting with Cozmo, there are two place from which you can expect to hear sounds:

1. Your device
2. Cozmo himself

Note: applies only if Cozmo is not muted in Settings > Volume & General.

Your device

If you're not hearing music or game cues (things like narration during intro videos, prompts to play games, Cozmo detecting a cube, and the notes played by Cubes during Memory Match), check the Volume settings on your device (Volume Up/Down buttons) AND the Music level in Settings > Volume & General:

You also should take a look at the device itself to see if it has an issue and ensure the app is installed on internal memory.

If you hear no sound or distorted sound from your iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch speaker [support.apple.com]

FIX- How to fix no sound coming out from android phone [lifewire.com]

Cozmo himself

If you're not hearing Cozmo's voice when he wakes up, snoring when he goes to sleep, or when using Cozmo Says, try increasing his volume in Settings > Volume & General:

If changing the level of Cozmo's voice does not change or increase the sounds he's making, if you still don't hear any sounds coming from Cozmo, please contact us so we can help you further. 

To avoid damaging his lift please keep the following important guidelines in mind: 

• Do not lift anything that is heavier than 1 cube - it can damage the gearing
• When Cozmo is awake do not push down on the lift since this can also damage the gearing
• Ensure that Cozmo does not fall off the table (e.g. deliberately driving off cliffs in Explorer mode etc) 

A damaged lift can exhibit the following symptoms: 

• Cozmo recognises the cubes but is unable to move his lift to pick them up and/or stack them correctly
• Cozmo may be unable to Feed (more information in this article)
• His lift changes position when Cozmo is put on the charging platform or turned off
• Gently moving the lift when Cozmo is turned off exhibits any of the following:
  • The lift does not move smoothly but gets stuck / requires pressure
  • There is no consistent clicking when moving the lift
  • The lift drops if you let go of it (instead of staying in position) 

Important: 

• Cozmo's lift is not always 100% horizontal. Unless you experience any of above performance issues this is absolutely normal and not an issue that requires a replacement. 

If you have a new Cozmo and the message "Put cozmo on a flat surface", keeps appearing during the setup tutorial, you may have missed removing the clear plastic from beneath Cozmo's chin.  

 

Here's a photo of the plastic packing material, look for the red arrows and gently pull.

1) Feeding Cozmo for the first time in the Nurturing Tutorial

Please follow these steps to help feed Cozmo for the first time:

• Turn up your device's volume in the Cozmo app so you can clearly hear the music and all of the audible cues when interacting with Cozmo
• Remove the plastic guard form underneath Cozmo's chin and any other plastic supports
• Pull the clear plastic tabs out of each cube - the cubes will flash for a few seconds
• Let Cozmo detect his cubes:
  • If Cozmo successfully found his cubes, you'll see 3 check boxes
  • If Cozmo cannot detect and connect to any cubes, there will not be a green checkbox (see Section 2 for troubleshooting)

• Shake a connected cube to energize it (connected cubes will display a single blue cycling light). You will hear a "charging" sound from your device's speaker. Each of the cube's 4 lights will get brighter, glowing one at a time until they all become a SOLID Blue

• Place the cube down and allow Cozmo to feed

2) I can't feed Cozmo during the Nurturing Tutorial

Please perform the following steps:

1. Reset the cubes to check the batteries are working:
   1. unscrew the lid
   2. wait 10 seconds
   3. screw the lid back on
   4. the cube should flash red>green>blue
2. Move all 3 cubes to another room to stop Cozmo from trying to connect to them
3. Force close the Cozmo app (the cubes should still be in the other room)
4. Relaunch the Cozmo app. When the app reconnects to Cozmo, it will pick up where the app left off at feeding Cozmo
5. Give Cozmo a quick snack to bypass energizing a cube: 

    

3) I can't Feed Cozmo after completing the Nurturing Tutorial

If your cubes are not working, firstly follow the troubleshooting in this FAQ.

If your cubes are working, give Cozmo a quick snack:

1. tap the "x" on the top left of the Feed Cozmo screen
2. tap the "settings" icon on the top right of the main menu
3. swipe to the "cube status" screen
4. tap "get help"
5. tap "next" until slide 6 "Cozmo too hungry to play?"
6. tap "quick snack" then "ok" and exit the settings

Then:

1. check Cozmo's lift is working correctly by stacking cubes in Explorer Mode
2. check Cozmo is recognizing objects correctly:
   1. clean the around area around Cozmo’s camera with a cotton swab and a little rubbing alcohol (surgical spirit)
   2. in Explorer Mode, check that Cozmo can visually ID a face and can "greet" that person

4) I don't have an "x" on the top left of the Feeding screen

The "x" will only appear once you're completed the onboarding tutorial. If the "x" still does not appear after that, it is a transitory issue. Please try again later or uninstall and reinstall the Cozmo app.