Skip to main content

Introducing 51515: the Next Generation of MINDSTORMS

Exciting news for LEGO robotics fans! Today, LEGO announced the newest member of the MINDSTORMS family. LEGO 51515 MINDSTORMS Robot Inventor set is a 5-in-1 set for ages ten and up. Get ready to build, code, play, and rebuild as many times as you want!

The new MINDSTORMS set features five unique designs you construct using the 949 elements available in the set. Robot Inventor even features a remote control that allows you to use your own controller using Bluetooth. There are more than 50 built-in coding challenges and activities using a drag-and-drop coding language based on Scratch. In addition, more advanced users can now program in Python. This allows MINDSTORMS to grow with your child and opens up many new possibilities for adult fans as well.

The five main models are:
Blast – an action hero model that stands over 36cm tall
Charlie – a playful sidekick
Tricky – an athlete who enjoys playing sports
Gelo – a four-legged robot that can perform tricks
M.V.P – a Modular Vehicle Platform that transforms into a buggy, crane, shooter turret or brick-eating truck

Robot Inventor’s new Hub features a 5X5 light matrix, a 6-axis gyro sensor (3-axis gyro and 3-axis accelerometer), a micro USB port, a speaker and a rechargeable battery. Connectivity is via Bluetooth.

The set will come with four medium motors, a color sensor, and a distance sensor. These new motors have an integrated rotation sensor with absolute positioning. The color sensor recognizes eight colors and measures both reflected and ambient light. Finally, the distance sensor has programmable LED lights surrounding it and has an integrated 6-pin adapter for third-party sensors, boards and DIY hardware. This feature is likely to open up some great new opportunities for building, programming, and learning with MINDSTORMS.

You can learn more by visiting the LEGO website and reading the official press release. The 51515 Robot Inventor is expected to be available for purchase in Autumn 2020.

The ROBOTMAK3RS community hopes that the new LEGO MINDSTORMS Robot Inventor 51515 inspires even more children and adults to explore the world of LEGO robotics. We are excited to see what you will create with this newest generation of MINDSTORMS.

Please share your ideas and creations in our newest group LEGO Robot Inventor Community.

Popular posts from this blog

Celebrating 25 Years of MINDSTORMS

In celebration of the 25th Anniversary of MINDSTORMS, we take a trip through history. Please also visit ROBOTMAK3RS Community every week as we highlight different projects all through 2023 in celebration of the anniversary. Some of the early history is based on the content shared by  Coder Shah  in our  MINDSTORMS EV3 Community Group . Some of the text and links may have been edited from his original posts for consistency and clarity.  1984 - Kjeld Kirk Kristiansen watched a TV program called "Talking Turtle," where MIT professor Seymour Papert demonstrated how children could control robot "turtles" using LOGO, a programming language he developed. 1988 - The collaboration between MIT and LEGO resulted in LEGO TC Logo in 1988, which allowed students to control LEGO models using computer commands. The video shows Papert demonstrating TC Logo. 1990 - LEGO TC Logo was hampered since the robots you built had to be tethered to a personal computer. LEGO and MIT...

ROBOTMAK3RS Review: LEGO River Steamboat

I thought the LEGO River Steamboat would be an interesting set for a ROBOTMAK3R review for a few reasons. First, the LEGO designer of the model is Marina Stampoli, a long-time collaborator of the late ROBOTMAK3R Vassilis Chryssanthakopoulo s. From earlier collaborations with Vassilis, I  knew Marina was incredibly talented, with an eye for aesthetics and functionality. Her background in architecture is particularly useful for her relatively new position at LEGO. Her other sets include the Magic of Disney (21352), Message Board (41839), and Red London Telephone Box (21347). Second, watching Marina's reveal video  and reading her designer interview made this set even more tempting to build. The gearing mechanisms running through the model gave way to many opportunities for automation using LEGO robotics elements. Since ROBOTMAK3RS is all about adding interactivity and automation to LEGO brick, I thought it would be fun to see where and how LEGO robotics could be added to this s...

Ghostbusters R.T.V Remix

Nino Guba is from Torrance, California, USA. He played with LEGO as a kid, but growing up in the Philippines, it wasn’t something he had easy access to. He only got reintroduced to LEGO when he moved to the US and had kids of his own. When his sons were younger, they received LEGO sets as gifts, but as they grew older, the sets got put into storage as their interest faded. Fast forward a few years, he started coming up with his own product ideas and thought about how he could quickly prototype them. That’s when he discovered LEGO MINDSTORMS—and was hooked! He raided his kids’ old collection, got everything organized, and now he's designing and building his own creations, blending his coding skills with LEGO robotics to bring ideas to life. Tell us about your Ghostbusters Remote Trap Vehicle (R.T.V) project. This project is a LEGO Technic adaptation of the Ghostbusters R.T.V.—a ghost trap converted into a remote-controlled vehicle. Its companion build is a prop replica of the Futaba...