BuWizz - High Performance LEGO Power Functions Controller and Battery

[sephiroth117]

I asked that question shortly after my preorder but when would we be able to have the Bluetooth protocol specifications for Buwizz 3.0. ? Rather than using a controller my objective is to have a small Rpi board managing the buwizz 3.0 :), if you have new information on this it would be cool. Also, should people want to develop their own controller or project it would really be useful.

Btw, I think it’s better to drop support of lego bluetooth product in the app like they did, I mean it’s time not spent where it matters because they keep changing the bluetooth API with their firmware, starting to think it’s on purpose…

my order was just shipped by the way, can’t wait to test it 

Edited June 18, 2021 by sephiroth117

[nugnug115]

On 6/13/2021 at 6:37 AM, Zerobricks said:

We had to drop support for the Lego Technic Powered Up hub, since it's not our product.

all my technic sets use 1 or 2 lego powered up hubs , from what im seeing the buwizz app can no longer be used to control them , is there any work around for this or another app we can use , please message me with any information , this app was working fine until i updated it 

[kbalage]

1 hour ago, nugnug115 said:

all my technic sets use 1 or 2 lego powered up hubs , from what im seeing the buwizz app can no longer be used to control them , is there any work around for this or another app we can use , please message me with any information , this app was working fine until i updated it 

You can use the Powered Up app but that requires some coding with visual blocks (complexity depends on your model). Another alternative is the BrickController2 app, that works fine with several different LEGO and 3rd party hardware, but it is designed to be used with a game controller. 

 

 

[nugnug115]

36 minutes ago, kbalage said:

You can use the Powered Up app but that requires some coding with visual blocks (complexity depends on your model). Another alternative is the BrickController2 app, that works fine with several different LEGO and 3rd party hardware, but it is designed to be used with a game controller. 

 

 

i see i see , is brickcontroller2 the only other option , i loved how simple buwizz was and how easy it was to create new profiles , ill definitely look into that controller app though , thank you for the help !

[kbalage]

@nugnug115 there are some alternatives like Controlz, I've seen others having a topic on Eurobricks as well.

[HectorMB]

@Zerobricks, I just realized that in the app, there is no possibility of measuring the rotation degree of a certain motor neither limiting the rotation of a motor between certain angles. As long as this feature is indeed quite helpful for gearboxes (among many other stuff), is it intended to include this feature in the app?

[Igor1]

On 6/19/2021 at 9:04 AM, nugnug115 said:

i see i see , is brickcontroller2 the only other option , i loved how simple buwizz was and how easy it was to create new profiles , ill definitely look into that controller app though , thank you for the help !

Yes, BrickController2 is a truly awesome solution for controlling different electrics from one application! I really hope BuWizz will open up protocols for 3.0 soon so that these apps can continue to support universal electrical control solutions. I really hope that BuWizz will not go down the TLG path in terms of limiting software support for their solutions.

[Zerobricks]

3 hours ago, HectorMB said:

@Zerobricks, I just realized that in the app, there is no possibility of measuring the rotation degree of a certain motor neither limiting the rotation of a motor between certain angles. As long as this feature is indeed quite helpful for gearboxes (among many other stuff), is it intended to include this feature in the app?

We are currently working on adding a gearbox module and supporting the large flat motor steering so that the Volvo hauler and such models can also controlled with BuWizz.

Later we plan to add more modules like limiting the travels for linear actuators, constant speed module, etc...

2 hours ago, Igor1 said:

Yes, BrickController2 is a truly awesome solution for controlling different electrics from one application! I really hope BuWizz will open up protocols for 3.0 soon so that these apps can continue to support universal electrical control solutions. I really hope that BuWizz will not go down the TLG path in terms of limiting software support for their solutions.

The plan is to release the protocol, but first we need to add more functionality to the app and see if we need additional FW updates. Once the app and FW are mature enough we will release the protocol.

[HectorMB]

That's sounds really good. I look forward for those modules! 

[Mantarri]

Hi, a friend and I have been thinking about getting BuWizz 3.0 after buying 2x BuWizz 2.0s last year, and we were wondering when/if a 2x pack will be available for order like BuWizz 2.0.

[Zerobricks]

35 minutes ago, MisteryMan said:

Hi, a friend and I have been thinking about getting BuWizz 3.0 after buying 2x BuWizz 2.0s last year, and we were wondering when/if a 2x pack will be available for order like BuWizz 2.0.

Please ask about order-related and marketing things on BuWizz's website. This topic is more about technical discussion.

[Mantarri]

1 hour ago, Zerobricks said:

Please ask about order-related and marketing things on BuWizz's website. This topic is more about technical discussion.

Oh, OK. Sorry about that.

[sephiroth117]

Finally received my Buwizz 3.0.

The mold quality is really top-notch, the Buwizz clips well and around the usb-c there's close to no mechanical play at all. Although I owned the (great) buwizz 2.0, still impressed frankly, that was meticulously designed, you must have had many mold iterations to achieve this I think :) but it was worth it seeing the result.  
The LED are BRIGHT too

Just tried turning it on, will need more time to really test since it's for a MOC but build quality wise, good job. The final target is to have an embedded small raspberry pi connected to the buwizz 3 so will wait for the protocol/potential new firmwares to go public like you said. 

Also received the buwizz motors, never had the original lego RC motors to compare but the flatter design is great, less space wasted (I think the original take 1/2 stud more ?), we'll see, especially thermal-wise how it fares. 

[ScT]

33 minutes ago, sephiroth117 said:

Finally received my Buwizz 3.0.

<snip>

Awesome! Glad to hear the quality appears to be great. When did you place your order?

[sephiroth117]

3 hours ago, ScT said:

Awesome! Glad to hear the quality appears to be great. When did you place your order?

December 1st

[keymaker]

I finally received my package. I haven't test unit yet, it is charging, but motors are working :) All looks very solid and profesional. I have a question for people, who also received their buwizz 3.0 Does your on/off button look like mine? It is made from rugged and LBG plastic. I am not very concern about this, but I decided to ask.

Edited July 2, 2021 by keymaker

[HectorMB]

@keymaker, yes, i have the same. Got 2 BuWizzes and both are the same regarding the on/off button.

Also, yesterday, one of the BuWizzes started to blink in red and green and it was impossible to turn it off, being also impossible to be connected to the app. I tried to connect it to charge, pressing for long time, but nothing. Neertheless, the speed of the blinking was changing over time and, at the end, it turned out. But when I tried to connect again, it appeared as OPA0000 (or something similar). After use, I tunred off and on again and appeared with the original name thatit had at the beggining. The other brick, also, now is not possible to turn it off manually: connected or disconnected from with the app, it is not responding to press of the on/off button. 

I will see how the issues evolve and see if they happen again...

 

 

[rocklego]

Has anyone noticed that the latest BuWizz app is unable to connect to original BuWizz hub ?  That was what happened to me after updating to the latest version. 

[mudseason]

Got mine Yesterday, really nice and working great.

Unfortunately I discovered that one of my four Power up motors is broken and I cannot yet check the model.

I have a question, did I get It right that the Speed modes are no longer effective even if I can select them in the application?

 

 

 

[frechettemj]

4 hours ago, mudseason said:

 

I have a question, did I get It right that the Speed modes are no longer effective even if I can select them in the application?

 

 

 

The speed function does not work with mine either. I have a 3.0 and the latest version of the Android app. 

[Aerolight]

just got the 3.0 and seam to be hitting the overload protection, is this something that could be increased via software update or is it a hard part of the circuitry. Even if it is already at its max it is a still a great step up.

[992bricks]

Still waiting on my 3.0 order, hoping it will come soon though, as I have builds just sitting there, gathering dust as they wait for power.

[Zerobricks]

4 hours ago, frechettemj said:

The speed function does not work with mine either. I have a 3.0 and the latest version of the Android app. 

BuWizz 3.0 no long uses speed modes due to a different architecture, but we are planning to add simulations io them in the app. 

2 hours ago, Aerolight said:

just got the 3.0 and seam to be hitting the overload protection, is this something that could be increased via software update or is it a hard part of the circuitry. Even if it is already at its max it is a still a great step up.

Current is limited by battery's hardware to around 7 Ampers. I suggest you use ramp options to reduce the current spikes generated by motors. 

 

Thank you for the praise! 

[ScT]

Mine arrived today, appears to be charging (?) now. :) Slow red flashing on the first port.
The motors look amazing too! Can't wait to try them out!

 

Ok, a little later, and i've now got the Buwizz motors hooked up, the app paired and a test profile. All very easy and working flawlessly so far! Mega-hyped. Now i just need time to build stuff... Kid's off for summer, but too young for all this.

Edited July 16, 2021 by ScT

[dlee98]

Finally received my 2 buwizz 3 and 2 motors. They work great but disappointed that the latest version of the buwizz app doesnt support technic hubs. Also the latest brickcontroller 2 cant talk to buwizz 3. So no way to control a hybrid technic hub/buwizz creation from a single app. 
 

There also seems to be a bug with return to center steering not calibrating. Hopefully this gets worked out soon. 
 

congrats on finally shipping these in any case during a pandemic!