Support

For TechNexus 1.0 on iPhone and iPad. Updated 27 September 2026.

Contact

Email Jerry at [email protected] with a question, a bug or an idea. For a bug, say which event you were following and what you saw; a screenshot helps.

TechNexus is made by Jerry, Raphaël and Samy, of FIRST® Robotics Competition team 3990.

Your event

Which event does TechNexus show?

The one chosen under Event in the Settings tab. Choose Event lists every current and upcoming event on frc.nexus: search by name or event code, and tap yours. An event leaves the list once it's over.

TechNexus starts on demo1815, a demo event on frc.nexus that we use for testing, so there's something to see before your event.

My event isn't in the list

The list is frc.nexus's own, and it holds only current and upcoming events. If it's empty or won't load, try again in a moment.

Where does the information come from?

Everything TechNexus shows comes from frc.nexus. The queuing statuses are set there by your event's queuing team as they call each match, so they're as current as the queue itself.

Why aren't my team's matches highlighted?

The team number in Settings marks your pit on the Pit tab and picks which robot card is yours. It doesn't change the schedule. To pick out your team's matches, and to see your team on the Lock Screen, add it under HIGHLIGHTED TEAMS at the top of the Schedule tab: tap +, type the number, choose a colour, and tap Add. Add as many teams as you like, your alliance partners for instance. The list stays the same from one event to the next.

The schedule

What do the statuses mean?

The queuing team can skip a step or go back one, and the schedule shows what they set.

How up to date is it?

TechNexus checks for changes every 15 seconds while the Schedule tab is open, as soon as you come back to the app, and when you pull down on the schedule. The chip at the top shows how old the data is; after 90 seconds without an update, it turns orange with a crossed-out cloud.

The times on each card are frc.nexus's estimates, and they move as the event runs early or late.

Does it work without a connection?

As far as it can. The last schedule is saved on the phone and stays on screen, countdowns running, under a banner saying it's the last update. It's there even when you open the app offline. The Pit tab keeps its last complete load the same way.

Which time zone are the times in?

Your phone's, in its 12- or 24-hour setting.

Where are the scores and rankings?

TechNexus doesn't show them: it's about what's queuing, and where. The Blue Alliance has them.

What do A3 and A? mean?

In playoffs, the red and blue rows show alliance numbers. A? means the alliance for that match isn't known yet.

The Live Activity

How do I get it on my Lock Screen?

It's on unless you turn it off: Settings → Live Activity → Show on Lock Screen. It starts by itself when you open the Schedule tab and your event has matches still to play, and it ends once none are left. On an iPhone with a Dynamic Island, it shows there too.

If nothing appears, check the iPhone's own switch: in the Settings app, TechNexus → Live Activities.

Why does iOS ask twice?

Both questions come from iOS, not from TechNexus. The first time the card appears, iOS asks on the Lock Screen whether to allow Live Activities from TechNexus; a while later, it asks whether to keep allowing them. Allow it both times: the second time, with Always Allow.

Does it keep updating while the app is closed?

Yes. The card signs up with our server, which hears from frc.nexus as soon as anything changes at your event and updates the card through Apple's push service, usually within a second. The one thing it can't do is start on its own: open TechNexus at the venue, and the card starts from there.

iOS ends every Live Activity after 8 hours, and takes it off the Lock Screen within 4 more. On a long day, open the app again for a fresh one.

Why did the card turn grey, with a crossed-out cloud?

It may be out of date. It turns grey when there's been no news for ten minutes and its match is five minutes past its start time, so a quiet stretch over lunch doesn't set it off, but a late match with no news does. Opening the app brings it up to date.

It stopped updating

• Open TechNexus: it refreshes the card and signs it up again.
• Check both switches: Show on Lock Screen in TechNexus, and Live Activities for TechNexus in the iPhone's Settings app.
• Turn Show on Lock Screen off and back on, for a fresh card.
• When TechNexus updates from the App Store, iOS ends the card; open the app to start a new one.
• After the last match, the card can stay until you open the app, since nothing tells it the day is over.

How do I get rid of it?

Turn off Show on Lock Screen. Swiping the card away only hides it until TechNexus next refreshes.

What's More Frequent Updates?

A switch in the iPhone's Settings app, under TechNexus → Live Activities. On, iOS lets urgent changes through more often; off, it holds more of them back to save battery. Leave it on for the quickest card.

What does the Dynamic Island show?

The match in its status colour, and the countdown to its start. When it shares the Island with another app, it shrinks to the match, sometimes with two letters for the status: OF on field, OD on deck, NQ now queuing, QS queuing soon. Q is a qualification match, P practice or playoff, F a final, and an R at the end a replay.

What's YOUR TEAMS on the card?

Your highlighted teams, up to three, soonest first, each with what's next for it: "On deck in 5m", for instance.

The Pit tab

Why is there no pit map?

Not every event draws one on frc.nexus. Without a map, the Teams list still shows each team's pit when the event has assigned them. A map drawn during the event shows up within about 30 seconds; changes to it can take up to 15 minutes.

On the map, your team and your highlighted teams are filled in colour, and a team within 15 minutes of queuing gets a coloured outline.

Robot cards

How do I make my team's card?

Enter your team number in the Settings tab, then tap Make 3990's card on the Pit tab, with your number in it. Only the team number is required; fill in whatever else you like. Or have a teammate who has made it show you its code, and scan it.

How do I share a card, or scan one?

To show yours, tap the QR button beside it: its code fills the screen, at full brightness. To scan another team's, go to the Pit tab → View all → Scan. TechNexus asks for the camera the first time.

Cards go from phone to phone, work without a connection, and never pass through our server.

A team doesn't have TechNexus

Make their card by hand: Pit tab → View all → Other teams → Add a card by hand.

What happens when I scan a card I already have?

A card you've only ever scanned is replaced without asking: that's how a team hands out an update. If you made or edited that team's card on your phone, TechNexus asks before replacing it.

Devices

What does TechNexus run on?

iPhone and iPad, with iOS or iPadOS 16.2 or later. The Dynamic Island needs an iPhone that has one, and an iPad shows the Live Activity on its Lock Screen from iPadOS 17.

An Android version is in the works, and isn't out yet.

Does it work on Apple Watch?

The Watch shows the Live Activity in its Smart Stack, in iOS's standard layout for now.

Settings

What does Reset to defaults do?

It puts the event back to demo1815, clears your team number and your highlighted teams, turns the Live Activity back on, sets robot card units back to As entered, and deletes the saved schedule and pit map. Robot cards stay on the phone.

Is there an account?

No, there's nothing to sign in to. What TechNexus keeps, and what it sends, is in the privacy policy.