LEGO Mindstorms and Robotics General Discussion

[Jim]

18 hours ago, dr_spock said:

I think having a Mindstorm subforum could be useful. The Mindstorm indexes are out of date.  New Mindstorm threads get buried in the sea of  Technic discussions.  Maybe it could include Boost, WeDo, and any other programmable LEGO electronics.  Recently, I won an EV3 at a silent charity auction and still learning to use it. I should use Mindstorm where possible since my LUG is puristy.    They don't seem all that into using inexpensive Arduino, Esp8266, STM32 microcontrollers for automation and control. I'd be interested in topics to flash custom firmware on the PUP's STM32F04 too.   

Exactly. We could consider going a bit more generic in the robotics department, allowing Arduino etc.

[Jim]

I have discussed this with other staffers and they are okay with a separate Mindstorms forum, if I feel there is a need

[Great Ball Pit]

A "Programmable Lego" sub-forum would interest me, as I've started working with BOOST, and will pick up some more powered up sets soon as well.

[Jim]

 

Just now, Great Ball Pit said:

A "Programmable Lego" sub-forum would interest me, as I've started working with BOOST, and will pick up some more powered up sets soon as well.

Exactly!

I’m thinking forum, instead of subforum, to improve visibility.

[tsf]

Hi guys

Hope you don't mind me just turning up and posting. I was so excited about my first Mindstorms EV3 creation that I had to share.

Sorry the video is a bit cheesy - I got a bit carried away with the whole thing.

Since finishing it last week I've been looking around for more inspiration... and have been surprised how little online chatter there is around Mindstorms. I could see me getting very into it when I get the time. A dedicated forum sounds good..

 

[Carefree_Dude]

What is the scope of everything you can do with Mindstorm? Professionally I'm a software engineer, and would love to make smart creations. For instance, could I create an excavator with a claw arm that goes around, picking up red objects and putting them into a red bucket, blue objects into a blue bucket, etc? Make it so if an object is too heavy, or if it can't grip said object, then it will ignore it in move on? 

[BusterHaus]

11 minutes ago, Goldenmasamune said:

What is the scope of everything you can do with Mindstorm? Professionally I'm a software engineer, and would love to make smart creations. For instance, could I create an excavator with a claw arm that goes around, picking up red objects and putting them into a red bucket, blue objects into a blue bucket, etc? Make it so if an object is too heavy, or if it can't grip said object, then it will ignore it in move on? 

Yes to all the questions about the claw arm project. Mindstorms is a toy version of an industrial programmable logic controller (PLC). The controller brick can be daisy-chained, accepts inputs and has outputs. Programming can be done through the official Mindstorms software, or through a variety of popular languages. 

The inputs take signals from sensors: color, distance, infrared, gyroscope/tilt - there are even third party sensors like cameras (for object tracking or recognition), heat/barometric pressure, force, etc. 

Outputs go to servo motors, of which there are two sizes. Since they are servo motors, position can be controlled and used as another input - for example, you can measure its change over time and determine if the claw arm has managed to move an object. 

The Mindstorms system is great because it allows simple projects, but can be scaled to really large, complex ones. You can check Arthur Sacek's creations on YouTube, or David Gilday's Mindcuber and Cubestormer 3 (Rubik's cube solvers). 

Like Lego bricks, Mindstorms has some limitations - one of the most notable is the low processing power in the controller brick, which can be circumvented by offloading heavy calculations to a computer (Sacek 360 milling machine) or cell phone (Cubestormer). However, most users will probably never need so much processing power, so it's not a huge issue. 

[tsf]

7 hours ago, Goldenmasamune said:

What is the scope of everything you can do with Mindstorm? Professionally I'm a software engineer, and would love to make smart creations. For instance, could I create an excavator with a claw arm that goes around, picking up red objects and putting them into a red bucket, blue objects into a blue bucket, etc? Make it so if an object is too heavy, or if it can't grip said object, then it will ignore it in move on? 

The mindcub3r was one of the first projects we did as a family when we got the mindstorms kit. The model blew me away with it's ability. The Mindcub3r is a fantastic example of how Mindstorms somehow provides exactly the right tools to unleash massive amounts of creativity and innovation - in kids and adults. Building models like the cube solver is what makes you realise that so much is possible... and will give the confidence to come up with your own designs (like our screen tapper above), without any robotics experience or skill whatsoever.

Programming is surprisingly simple too. I would suggest skipping the graphical language altogether and go straight to EV3Basic.

 

 

[Jim]

I am happy to announce the new Mindstorms forum. I am still pondering over the scope of the forum, but it's likely that the new forum will also be used for Power Function, Powered Up, Boost, etc. If you guys think that doesn't make sense, let me know. Another option would be to limit the new forum to Mindstorms and Robotics in General.

https://www.eurobricks.com/forum/index.php?/forums/forum/186-lego-mindstorms-programmablepowered-lego-and-electronics/

[oracid]

On ‎10‎/‎11‎/‎2018 at 10:08 PM, tsf said:

I was so excited about my first Mindstorms EV3 creation that I had to share.

This is very good !

Why you don't make a new topic about this ?

[Jim]

Yes, please create a new topic! 

[Rudivdk]

I have no idea if this is the correct topic, but I just had to share this here as well: dutch website bol.com has mindstorms ev3 31313 on sale just today for €245. Only 6something hours left: Link to website (all dutch so use google translate)

[bluatigro]

i wood like to have a script language in ev3 mindstorms ide whit [ at least ] :

loops , choises , recursion ,  arrays , subs , functions , file i/o [ on brick ] , include and random

OOP wil be nice but is not nessesery

i don't care whitch language 

i m a c++ , python and basic programmer [ i don't get payed ]

[ basic i do from  1988 so that has my biggest suport ]

Edited February 4, 2020 by bluatigro

[Coder Shah]

On 2/4/2020 at 10:14 PM, bluatigro said:

i wood like to have a script language in ev3 mindstorms ide whit [ at least ] :

loops , choises , recursion ,  arrays , subs , functions , file i/o [ on brick ] , include and random

OOP wil be nice but is not nessesery

i don't care whitch language 

i m a c++ , python and basic programmer [ i don't get payed ]

[ basic i do from  1988 so that has my biggest suport ]

https://education.lego.com/en-us/support/mindstorms-ev3/python-for-ev3

 

[Aris]

On 10/11/2018 at 11:08 PM, tsf said:

Hi guys

Hope you don't mind me just turning up and posting. I was so excited about my first Mindstorms EV3 creation that I had to share.

Sorry the video is a bit cheesy - I got a bit carried away with the whole thing.

Since finishing it last week I've been looking around for more inspiration... and have been surprised how little online chatter there is around Mindstorms. I could see me getting very into it when I get the time. A dedicated forum sounds good..

 

Impressive! I was planning to build a similar one long time ago and I see it now in action! 

On 10/6/2013 at 11:57 PM, rm8 said:

Gyus, what can you say about this part?

I prefer wheels because have better grip with ground and keep the robot stable. Usually I don't use treads.

[Bluehose]

So, I don't want to make a new topic because my project is not so avanced, but I need some informations on NXT which I can't find. 

 

I would like control the lego racer batterie pack (2.4ghz), at least the main output with proportionnal control, with a NXT, and control in the same time this NXT with a bluetooth, wifi or 2.4ghz gamepad

 

Does someone could point me on some ressource related ?

[Glaysche]

I did a test of Powered Up L and XL motors on the 51515.  The basic functions work like start and stop motor.  Some more advanced functions seem to work like “move to relative position” and “move 2 rotations”.  Reading the current position or relative position seems to always return zero. This seems strange that encoder would work for some things but not others.

Anyone else see this?  I just reported to Lego support but I’m sure a response will take a while.  Have any of you reported this?

[Glaysche]

9 minutes ago, Glaysche said:

I did a test of Powered Up L and XL motors on the 51515.  The basic functions work like start and stop motor.  Some more advanced functions seem to work like “move to relative position” and “move 2 rotations”.  Reading the current position or relative position seems to always return zero. This seems strange that encoder would work for some things but not others.

Anyone else see this?  I just reported to Lego support but I’m sure a response will take a while.  Have any of you reported this?

To follow up on my own post, this is what I am working on.

I’ve done most of my testing with Powered Up hubs and app.  The Spike Prime / RI hubs are much nicer and I would vastly prefer using those.  This robotic arm has a large angular motor for rotation which seems to work fine.  The XL motor is on the bottom tilt axis.  5 L motors control the other axes.  Oh, I should mention the Spike Prime hubs have 51515 firmware and I’m using the 51515 iPad app. I’m using these because I think the yellow looks better than the teal in this application. I suspect the RI hub will have the same behavior.

[Bluehose]

On 08/01/2021 at 4:38 PM, Bluehose said:

So, I don't want to make a new topic because my project is not so avanced, but I need some informations on NXT which I can't find. 

 

I would like control the lego racer batterie pack (2.4ghz), at least the main output with proportionnal control, with a NXT, and control in the same time this NXT with a bluetooth, wifi or 2.4ghz gamepad

 

Does someone could point me on some ressource related ?

Nevermind, I figured out by myself. I can use the auxiliaire output with the RC remote with short or long input, to a motor linked to a sensor of the nxt to send informations to the nxt by 2.4ghz.

[msx80]

Hi there, i have a couple of questions:

1) is there any way to submit a 51515 mindstorm robot to Lego, for eventual inclusion in the app? I've seen there has been a contest and some fan designed "activities" ended up on the app.

2) Has anyone opened a Spike/RI5 brick to see what's inside? like the microcontroller etc?

 

Thanks :)

[Paula 8]

Hi there! New to the forum.

I am a franchise business owner that uses LEGO technic bricks to build simple machines with kids ages K-5th grade. Many of our franchise owners around the world also incorporate Mindstorms classes and camps to their curriculum. I chose, 10 years ago, NOT to invest in Robotics because of the cost and the fact that the school districts that I work with already have many quality offerings for kids interested in Robotics. The niche I felt needed to be filled was the pre-robotic building stage that is underrepresented. 

I am here on the forum because several of our franchisees are going out of business due to the pandemic and that has presented the opportunity to purchase Mindstorms kits at a reduced cost. One of the owners is selling 4 complete NXT sets for $40 US/ each- so very cheap. I realize that the NXT is already 15 years old and the EV3 replaced it about 7 years ago so I am wondering if it is actually a good investment at this point. We would be using them for very basic Robotics classes for late Elementary students. 

What do you think? What are your concerns, if any? 

Thank you in advance for any advice offered.  

Sincere Regards, 

Paula 

Edited February 24, 2021 by Paula 8

[Coder Shah]

On 2/25/2021 at 4:02 AM, Paula 8 said:

What do you think? What are your concerns, if any? 

I feel the price is good. I would test everything before I paid for it though, as there is no longer any official support for this. This page may be of use: 

https://lehubbycodershah.blogspot.com/p/nxt.html

[Zerobricks]

Might be a bump, but got myself a 51515, because I wanted to learn to do some robotics along with the general building. So far it's been very fun and can't wait to progress enough to build and program my own creations.

[Jim]

7 hours ago, Zerobricks said:

Might be a bump, but got myself a 51515, because I wanted to learn to do some robotics along with the general building. So far it's been very fun and can't wait to progress enough to build and program my own creations.

Sweet! Looking forward to seeing some creations.

[Mr Jos]

17 hours ago, Zerobricks said:

Might be a bump, but got myself a 51515, because I wanted to learn to do some robotics along with the general building. So far it's been very fun and can't wait to progress enough to build and program my own creations.

Will be great to see your creations combined with mindstorms! You'll learn it step by step and push further everytime what the possibilities are. In my opinion there is so much possible with mindstorms, but it does take time. My builds are mechanically made in lets say 10% of total time, 5% is changing the design whilst programming, rest is thinking and searching how to program not just a 'start-stop' program, but a smart and functioning machine.

Have fun with your new set!