ROBOTMAK3RS Blog

Facebook EV3 group member Pi Ksar has shared with us a pretty neat robot arm made out of LEGO MINDSTORMS - I asked him a little bit about himself and describe his project: Hi, I’m Pawel, 37 married, from Poland background : electrical engineer work : global consultant – 270 days per year in travel hobby : modern technologies, history, traveling   Always dreaming about having own Kuka style robot. Because of flat space I cannot buy real one. So decision about building my own was made. Why Lego ? Because it’s flexible system and many spare parts available. First attempt was 2 years ago with NXT 2.0 but without luck – I need at least 6 motors to be controlled. So waiting for EV3... ...When EV3 appeared – bought a few sets. Now available at my workshop : -        4xEV3 unit, 16 servo motors, 8 touch sensors, Gyro, more sensors from sets -        Lego Technic : Unimog, 4x4 RC, large buldoger and few ...

Some very special news, Steven Canvin, former manager of the MINDSTORMS robotics community, will be at OHM2013 to present the new LEGO® MINDSTORMS™ EV3 and hold a hacking contest. PRESS RELEASE Friday, July 5, 2013 LEGO® MINDSTORMS™ EV3 premiere to be hacked at OHM2013 On July 31, 2013 , former LEGO® MINDSTORMS™ community-manager Steven Canvin will reveal the new MINDSTORMS release, EV3, at Dutch outdoor hacker conference OHM2013: Observe. Hack. Make. His goal is to have the EV3 hacked before the end of the conference on August 4, 2013 . "I would love to see the EV3 hacked, and I mean properly hacked, at OHM2013", Steven says. He will provide information on the MINDSTORMS EV3 firmware and software to the visitors of OHM2013, when the LEGO Group’s embargo on this information lifts on August 1 . Befor...

On the web site of ABB , one of the world's leading engineering companies, I have found a nice page that lists ten reasons why robots are important today in industry and why manufacturers should invest in them. There's also a nice video :

On Sunday, Gizmodo published an article on the new MoonBots challenge (see post below), including a video of a nice first robot for it, created by NXTSTEP blog contributor BluetoothKiwi:

MCP Philo , well known for a lot of exciting robots, deep insight into the NXT internal electronics and as author of many LDraw parts and of a NXT book (just to name a few things), has published a new fascinating device: a NXT-based 3D scanner . It scans small objects using a needle mounted on a LEGO® linear actuator and reports the data to a computer where they can be used to generate a related 3D CAD model: Intriguing! Note that the scanner has been programmed with pbLua , the NXT programming language based on Lua. A lot of more information can be found on the associated web page .

These days, I pondered about a way to test new robots already during development phase to figure out reasonable and working usage of the NXT motors, without the need to write (and frequently adapt) a separate program each time. It occurred to me that (apart from approaches that use PC remote control) it might be a good strategy to create a NXT-based Bluetooth remote control that allows for separate control of each motor independently. And here it is: the NXT Switchboard . The program that actually runs on the robot in development (presently implemented in leJOS NXJ , the Java platform for the NXT) is a general-purpose one (it simply receives and handles the control signals sent by the remote control) and can be re-used for each robot. Of course, one can use the NXT Switchboard also to remotely control finished robots (if required). Addendum: in the video, the hand wheels are operated by my invisible Chesire Cat ;).

So here's another NXT robot based on the Black NXT limited edition : a black raven that can "talk" and (independently) move its head and wings. Next to a lot of black TECHNIC parts, I used three original NXT motors; as there are no black ones, I spent some effort in both hiding them from the view of the user as well as integrating them into the general scheme of the raven (with the intention not to spoil the overall bird-like appearance). The Raven also integrates a sound sensor and is programmed presently to react to loud sound events. Hence it might sit on the top of the wardrobe at night and scare away visitors ... ;)

Sometimes you need a robot. Fast. Just to run an experiment, or as a temporary base to use to start another project. This simple NXT Five Minute Bot can be built in about 5 minutes (see boring video ). It is reasonably sturdy and balanced, can turn easily on smooth floors, and has several basic attachment points for expansion. The building instructions will also work for the rechargeable battery pack as well as the AA batteries.

While the NXT is not list (it is neither Robot, or from 2007), there are some great robots. The Robot of the Year is about 2/3 down the page (might be easiest just to search for the word Robot). So... go vote for the 2007 Engadget Awards - Robot of the Year!

As promised, here are the building instructions and program for the NXT Beam Weapon. BTW, the pieces are not limited to one retail kit - there are several more - so you may have to substitute pieces or modify the design. Anyway, for this robot, I decided to try using LDD. It worked quite well. I really like the auto-snap feature, although at times it makes it hard to get a piece where you want it. It would be nice if you had the option to move pieces manually (like MLCAD) in case the auto-snap wasn't working. I also noticed a couple things with the gears. One of our forum members was having trouble with putting a gear on an axle, because the auto-snap feature kept putting the axle through the wrong hole in the gear. I worked around this by putting an axle in a gear separately, and then putting the combination into the correct spot. I also found a way to get gears to mesh - just use the hinge tool to rotate one or both gears in small increments until they fit. I don't know if t...

This is just a design I came up with while working on another project, which I'll post about if successful. Ultimately, this robot was a failure because it's not powerful and can't steer (the treads are too close together), but it looked interesting. Also, since the treads go all around the robot, it can still drive when it's upside down or on either end, so that was pretty neat too. Anyway, how useful/practical have you found these treads? I like their size and the fact that you can make them as long as you want, but then I don't like their slipperiness (although people have fixed that with stuff like liquid rubber), and they don't seem to "fit" very well on robots (lots of times they're either too long or too short). -Jonathan

Sorry for the delay, folks... here's more details on the Bionic Helmet. The Helmet fits on one's head (or rather, my head - it probably wouldn't fit on anyone else's!), and provides lights and SONAR. The Light Sensor provides the headlights (they actually aren't used for telling you when you're looking at the sun :-), and you can switch them on or off by pressing the Enter button. The US Sensors provide the SONAR capabilities. When you move close to an object on your left, a low-pitch sound will turn on, while an object directly in front of you would cause the NXT to make a medium-pitch sound, and an object on your right, a high-pitch sound. It works quite well actually, in terms of avoiding objects near your head - all objects lower than that become the shins' job of detecting (that's what shins are for, anyway - detecting furniture in the dark!). You're probably wondering what good the SONAR capabilities would be when you can simply flip the headli...

I like games… Do You? Here is yet another sample preview page from - The Lego Mindstorms NXT Idea Book: Design, Invent, and Build . Unfortunately, I splattered paint all over my PDF file when I was mixing the new color for my budget space rocket. Silly Me. I’ll have to remember to keep my PC away from the shop. I apologize for the mess but this is all I can offer at this time. So, what can you figure out from reading the full-sized image? The first person to figure out the subject of the chapter AND the function of the bot wins a wonderful opportunity to be the test pilot on the maiden voyage of my rocket when I complete construction. The keenest investigators will carefully examine all of the available evidence for any clues. Be careful! Each person is limited to 1 guess. However, if a correct answer is not posted by Monday morning I will throw in a hint and allow each person one additional guess. Everyone is welcome to talk about it... But try not to give away any answers before ...

On NXTLog, R2D2893 posted this gigantic Mecha, called Gibbous 8, whose head and arms are controlled by a NXT. Very impressive, R2D2893! Here's another picture of the head, chest, and arms of Gibbous 8, showing the NXT and servo motors: You can see more about this project here . -Jonathan UPDATE : There is also a Brickshelf folder with more pictures here .

In the latest edition of the Lego Magazine , there was this neat-looking NXT Snowcat made by LEGO Master Builder Dave Gold. It looks really neat, and I was wondering - why haven't I seen this anywhere else? Has anyone else seen it, other than in the Magazine? Here's another picture of the whole robot: -Jonathan