Version: Latest

Quick Start Guide

This guide will help you get started with Brobot 1.1.0 using the new ActionConfig API.

Installation

Add Brobot to your project:

<!-- Maven -->
<dependency>
    <groupId>io.github.jspinak</groupId>
    <artifactId>brobot</artifactId>
    <version>1.1.0</version>
</dependency>

// Gradle
implementation 'io.github.jspinak:brobot:1.1.0'

Your First Brobot Application

Brobot uses a model-based approach with States and Transitions. Here's how to build a simple login automation:

Step 1: Define Your State

States organize UI elements that appear together:

import io.github.jspinak.brobot.annotations.State;
import io.github.jspinak.brobot.model.state.StateImage;
import lombok.Getter;
import lombok.extern.slf4j.Slf4j;

@State  // Includes @Component, registers as Brobot state
@Getter
public class LoginState {

    private final StateImage loginButton = new StateImage.Builder().addPatterns("login-button").build();
    private final StateImage usernameField = new StateImage.Builder().addPatterns("username-field").build();
    private final StateImage passwordField = new StateImage.Builder().addPatterns("password-field").build();
}

Step 2: Define Transitions

Transitions define how to navigate between states:

import io.github.jspinak.brobot.annotations.*;
import io.github.jspinak.brobot.action.Action;
import lombok.RequiredArgsConstructor;
import org.springframework.stereotype.Component;

@Component
@TransitionSet(state = LoginState.class)
@RequiredArgsConstructor
public class LoginTransitions {

    private final Action action;
    private final LoginState loginState;

    @IncomingTransition(description = "Verify login screen is visible")
    public boolean verifyLoginScreen() {
        return action.find(loginState.getLoginButton()).isSuccess();
    }

    @OutgoingTransition(activate = {DashboardState.class})
    public boolean login() {
        return action.click(loginState.getUsernameField()).isSuccess() &&
               action.type("user@example.com").isSuccess() &&
               action.click(loginState.getPasswordField()).isSuccess() &&
               action.type("password123").isSuccess() &&
               action.click(loginState.getLoginButton()).isSuccess();
    }
}

Now you can navigate automatically:

import io.github.jspinak.brobot.navigation.transition.StateNavigator;
import lombok.RequiredArgsConstructor;
import org.springframework.stereotype.Component;

@Component
@RequiredArgsConstructor
public class LoginAutomation {

    private final StateNavigator navigator;

    public boolean navigateToDashboard() {
        // Brobot automatically figures out the path and executes transitions!
        return navigator.openState("Dashboard");
    }
}

That's it! Brobot handles:

Finding the current state
Determining the path to the target state
Executing all necessary transitions
Verifying arrival at each state

Why This Approach?

Model-Based Benefits:

✅ Separation of Concerns: UI elements (State) separate from logic (Transitions)
✅ Automatic Pathfinding: Navigator finds the shortest path between states
✅ Reusable: Transitions can be reused in different navigation scenarios
✅ Testable: Mock transitions for unit testing
✅ Maintainable: UI changes only affect State definitions

Quick Actions (Without States)

For simple scripts or prototyping, you can use Brobot's Action API directly:

import io.github.jspinak.brobot.action.Action;
import io.github.jspinak.brobot.model.state.StateImage;
import lombok.RequiredArgsConstructor;
import org.springframework.stereotype.Component;

@Component
@RequiredArgsConstructor
public class QuickScript {

    private final Action action;

    public void simpleClick() {
        StateImage button = new StateImage.Builder().addPatterns("submit-button").build();
        action.click(button);
    }
}

Default behavior:

Similarity: 0.7 (70% match required) - from Settings.MinSimilarity
Search Strategy: FIRST (stops at first Pattern's best match ≥ 0.7 similarity)
Search Duration: 3.0 seconds
Click Type: Single left click
Search Region: Entire screen

Search Strategy Details

Each Pattern returns its BEST match - SikuliX finds the highest correlation for each pattern image
FIRST strategy - Stops after finding the first Pattern that has a match ≥ 0.7 (fast, good when Patterns are ordered by priority)
BEST strategy - Searches ALL Patterns and returns the one with highest similarity across all (slower, most accurate)

If your StateImage has multiple Patterns, FIRST returns the best match of the first Pattern found. BEST returns the best match across all Patterns.

When to Use Each Approach

Use States & Transitions (Recommended):

Production applications
Complex multi-screen workflows
When you need navigation between different UI states
Team projects requiring maintainable code

Use Direct Actions:

Quick prototypes or scripts
Single-screen automation
One-off tasks
Learning Brobot basics

Debug Images Not Saved by Default

Brobot does NOT save debug images or action history by default. Enable only when debugging:

# In application.properties
brobot.screenshot.save-history=true

Remember to disable after debugging!

Minimal Complete Example

Here's the absolute minimum code needed for a working Brobot application:

import io.github.jspinak.brobot.action.Action;
import io.github.jspinak.brobot.model.state.StateImage;
import org.springframework.boot.SpringApplication;
import org.springframework.boot.autoconfigure.SpringBootApplication;

@SpringBootApplication
public class MinimalBrobot {

    public static void main(String[] args) {
        var context = SpringApplication.run(MinimalBrobot.class, args);
        var action = context.getBean(Action.class);

        var button = new StateImage.Builder().addPatterns("button").build();
        action.click(button);
    }
}

That's all you need! Brobot handles:

Image loading from resources
Screen capture
Pattern matching with 70% similarity
Mouse movement and clicking
Error handling if image not found

Using Actions Directly (Without States)

For simple scripts that don't need the full States + Transitions architecture, you can use Brobot's Action API directly. See the Pure Actions Quick Start Guide for detailed examples and patterns.

Quick example:

@Component
@RequiredArgsConstructor
public class QuickScript {
    private final Action action;

    public void simpleTask() {
        StateImage button = new StateImage.Builder().addPatterns("submit-button").build();
        action.click(button);  // Finds and clicks
        action.type("Hello World");
    }
}

Next Steps

Explore the Examples: Check out the LoginAutomationExample for a complete working example
Read the Migration Guide: If upgrading from Brobot 1.x, see the Migration Guide
Learn State Management: Deep dive into States and Transitions
Advanced Features: Explore color-based finding, motion detection, and screen-adaptive regions for resolution-independent automation

Getting Help

Documentation: Browse the full documentation at jspinak.github.io/brobot
Examples: Find more examples in the /examples directory
Community: Join discussions and ask questions on GitHub

Tips for Success

Start Simple: Begin with basic find and click operations
Use Type-Safe Builders: Let your IDE guide you with auto-completion
Model Your Application: Think in terms of states and transitions
Handle Failures: Always check ActionResult.isSuccess()
Enable History: Use BrobotSettings.saveHistory = true for debugging
Avoid Thread.sleep(): Use setPauseBeforeBegin() or setPauseAfterEnd() in action options instead

Important: Pausing in Brobot

Never use Thread.sleep() in Brobot code. Instead, use the built-in pause options:

// ❌ Don't do this:
action.click(button);
Thread.sleep(1000);  // Bad practice in Brobot

// ✅ Do this instead:
ClickOptions clickWithPause = new ClickOptions.Builder()
    .setPauseAfterEnd(1.0)  // 1 second pause after clicking
    .build();
action.perform(clickWithPause, button);

// Or for pauses before actions:
PatternFindOptions findWithPause = new PatternFindOptions.Builder()
    .setPauseBeforeBegin(0.5)  // 500ms pause before searching
    .build();

This approach keeps pauses as part of the action configuration, making them mockable, testable, and part of the action history.

Happy automating with Brobot 1.1.0!

Installation​

Your First Brobot Application​

Step 1: Define Your State​

Step 2: Define Transitions​

Step 3: Use Navigation​

Why This Approach?​

Quick Actions (Without States)​

Minimal Complete Example​

Using Actions Directly (Without States)​

Next Steps​

Getting Help​

Tips for Success​

Important: Pausing in Brobot​