Celebrating MINDSTORMS with a Remix - Part 2

The ROBOTMAK3RS continued their celebration of the 25th Anniversary of MINDSTORMS through these summer and fall remix projects. Each ROBOTMAK3R was tasked with selecting one LEGO set of their choice and combining it with a MINDSTORMS set. Below are the five amazing models they came up with.

Remote controlled material handler by Jozua van Ravenhorst (aka Mr Jo)

This remix combines the LEGO Technic Material Handler (42144) with MINDSTORMS EV3 (31313) It uses the power of pneumatic cylinders to move objects around. By using a bluetooth remote control, very precise movements can be made with this model. Touch sensors in the base chassis prevent the turret twisting the cables that go through the turntable to much. The program has several protections to prevent over pressurizing the system for each of the 3 individual pumps and valves that control the 2 booms and claws. The real version of this machine is mostly used in waste material sites to bring the material to machines that sort and recycle the scrap material. This LEGO version can bring mixed Technic pins to a hopper so an other machine can sort these pieces for a circular economy. You can see the remix in action here.

Set Review: The Material Handler set was something I really enjoyed to build. I like pneumatic and complex mechanical machines, as I build/service big industrial machines for my work as well. This set met my expectations to be able to motorize it, although it was a fairly small machine with little space. The difficult part was putting the MINDSTORMS brick inside the build, as it is so big compared to the chassis. But eventually I managed to get 4 motors inside with 3 individual pumps/valves for smooth control over this great design. It offers a great playability, and I will take it to many LEGO shows so children will be able to control it and feed the other machines. I hope I can keep expanding my growing size of machines, and make them all work together, for material handling/sorting/storage and distribution.

MINDSTORMS Cake Stand by Anika Vuurzoon

In this remix, Anika combines LEGO Disney The Little Mermaid Royal Clamshell 43225 and MINDSTORMS Robot Inventor 51515. She reimagines the Disney set into a cake stand that rotates a 25th Anniversary of MINDSTORMS cake. Based on what color is shown, the stand rotates such that you can cut the desired number of cake pieces (6, 8, or 12). In addition, the cake topper (made up of two miniature models from the 51515 set) also rotate.

Set Review: The shell shape was really inventive. It was nice to see how this shape was designed and is very inspirational. You can watch the video of this model here.

LEGO Hockey by Guilherme Lima

This remix combines Robot Inventor set 51515 and LEGO set 42154. Gui's idea was based on an existing hockey game that is playable using xbox controllers. He wanted to use the panels in the LEGO set as the shooters and ball launchers.

Set Review: As a medium-sized car, it uses interesting techniques to integrate the chassis to the wheels, a new "hand of God" mechanism, good shock absorbers, and many others. Aesthetically, the white stripes have recreated the car shapes. Personally, I think that step 220 is a bit strange as it could be done with different pieces, but overall, it looks good. The new panels were really well used creating the curves and shapes that we could not do before, which is one of my favorite things in this set. As a grown-up, the car looks amazing in my room, and as a kid, I loved to play with it and see all the features this set has provided. You can learn more about this remix project here.

Blue Beetle by Nino Guba

Nino combines the LEGO Technic Ford GT (42154) and MINDSTORMS Robot Inventor (51515) set in this model. In addition, he adds two elements from the Concrete Mixer Truck 42112 as the beetle's shell. Powered by MINDSTORMS Robot Inventor, this beetle can sense when something is close, extends its wings to fly, and then crawls using its six legs to safety. Once at ease and at rest, it closes its hard wing cases back.

Set Review: The Ford GT set is a very technical and detailed build packed in relatively smaller scale than the usual Technic sports and hyper cars. A lot of the pieces are in dark blue and is very much a nice treat for those wanting to design MOCs in this color! There are also some new interesting parts on this set that surely will prove useful. Once the set is built, satisfaction is almost guaranteed for any car-enthused Technic fans. You can see a video of its features here.

Playing Catch By Nard Strijbosch

Nard uses two LEGO MINDSTORMS robots to play catch with the water pieces from the LEGO Technic Firefighter Aircraft 42152. Set Review: The mechanism to rotate the propellors of the Firefighter aircraft is very original and is a great functionality. This makes the set a must have from the Technic line up. The size is quite impressive. Moreover the large number of pieces in the common red en yellow colors make it a great addition to my collection to build new robots. You can watch the robot playing catch here.