LEGO MINDSTORMS Internals A note to the reader: some of these links may be unreachable. I'm leaving them here if only to give credit where credit is due. Newer items are added to the bottom of each section, so look there for news. The LEGO® MINDSTORMS(tm) (#9719) product is a robot-kit-in-a-box. It consists of a computer module (the "RCX(tm)"), and an inventory of many TECHNICS(tm) parts. It appears to be a productized version of the MIT Programmable Brick, as the following table will show you. The LEGO-Robotics Mailing List A group of people have figured out how to talk to the RCX from operating systems unsupported by The LEGO Group. This group of people gathers at the lego-robotics mailing list. General MINDSTORMS Info You can buy the MINDSTORMS RIS (Robotics Invention System) at the stores listed below (presuming they have it in stock), and many fine toy outlets. Places to buy MINDSTORMS (not a comprehensive list): Erik Brok has an introduction to programming with MINDSTORMS page. Kin W. Books Notes Patrick R. legOS
NXT Tutorial This tutorial for LEGO Mindstorms NXT is divided in two sections. The “Essentials” are things every NXT programmer should know. Some of these movies have exercises directly under them. The “Advanced” section is for reference purposes. These lessons assume you have a basic robot with two drive motors, a touch sensor and a light sensor. If you need to run this tutorial at a location with poor internet service, you can download a special copy here. This tutorial was designed, and maintained by Dale Yocum, Engineering Program Director at Catlin Gabel School. LEGO®, the LEGO logo, Mindstorms and the Mindstorms logo are trademarks of the LEGO Group, which did not create and does not sponsor or endorse this tutorial. NXT Programming Software NXT Programming Software These are different ways of writing programs that will execute on the LEGO NXT brick. This list doesn't include all features, but should include enough information to provide a good starting point for you to figure out which software best suits your needs. Notes (1) RoboLab and RobotC both use firmware that comes Standard with some LEGO software Software Suggestions If you're looking here to find the "best" software, it's not that easy. NXT Off-Brick controllers (Remote Controls) These are different types of "remote control" systems for the NXT. (1) RobotC uses firmware that comes Standard with some LEGO software (2) LEGO's Mobile Application can send messages to a program running on an NXT Other Team Hassenplug NXT stuff
Hacking the LEGO NXT If you are a millionaire and able to buy a LEGO Mindstorms NXT, you may find kind of difficult to hack it or create homemade sensors. I believe you already noticed the particular jack that comes with the NXT. It looks like a telephone jack, but the latch is located in one side, making difficult to connect any other cable. That is not a big problem; filling off the latch from a 6-wires telephone connector (RJ-12) may do the job. Once I was able to connect a telephone cable to the NXT, I started to test the signals. Holding the connector as the picture shows. White wire - Used with the black wire, this pin provides power to the motor. Welcome to the MindBOARDS website! Free Lego NXT MindStorms NXT-G Robotics Challenges Tutorials At the request of Tasmanian teachers Miss Clare Neilson and recently retired Mrs. Juanita Airey, activities using Lego's NXT 1 MindStorms Robots have been developed for use in School-based 2-hour sessions. Some, but not all, will work with the new NXT 2 kit (click here for more information). The tutorials are presented as a series of Challenges, which are gradually being converted for Web use. Challenges with an "M" after the challenge number include mentor notes. Challenge numbers greater than 100 use components that are not in the NXT 1.0 Retail or Educational Lego kits, but are available for separate purchase. First Challenge (NXT 1) - Building Robot 1.1 "TuftsBot" - click here. First Challenge (NXT 2) - Building Robot 1.2 "MiniBot" - click here. First Challenge (Apple videos) - Building Robot 1.2 "MiniBot" - click here. Challenge 2M - Teaching your Robot (NXT 1 & NXT 2) - click here. Challenge 2M (Apple videos) - Teaching your Robot (NXT 1 & NXT 2) - click here.
Microsoft Robotics Studio and Lego Mindstorms NXT | Coding4Fun Articles The Lego Mindstorms NXT kit is an amazing upgrade to the original Lego Mindstorms product. While the building blocks are not the traditional plastic stud blocks everyone is used to, the new construction parts allow for some very complex designs. Additionally, Microsoft Robotics Studio supports the Lego NXT kit right out of the box, so it's quite easy to get up and going using MSRS with the Lego kit to start coding a robot in C# or VB.NET. With that in mind, this article will demonstrate how to use MSRS with the simple TriBot robot that can be easily built using the instructions included in the Lego NXT kit. LegoNXT TriBot Building The instructions for building the TriBot are located in the LegoNXT kit. Plug the wires into brick as follows, looking at the front of the bot so the LCD screen is facing you: A - Middle B - Left C - Right Additionally, I added the push button sensor to the front of the TriBot which is plugged into port 1 at the bottom. LegoNXT and Bluetooth Configuration Bio
Science Through LEGO Engineering Curricula The following four curricula are designed to introduce students (in Grades 3 to 5) to various science concepts through design-based LEGO projects. The first several lessons of each unit engage students in scientific explorations sometimes using the LEGO tool-set as a resource. The students are then charged with an open-ended design challenge where they use the science they learned alongside the engineering design process to design and build LEGO creations that meet criteria that the students can observe and test. Intro Unit This series of introductory lessons should be completed before beginning a Science Through LEGO Engineering curriculum unit. Download Introduction Unit (PDF, 2.3MB) Design a Musical Instrument: The Science of Sound This curriculum engages students in explorations about the science of sound, which culminates with students designing and building a musical instrument that plays at least three different pitches. Design a Model House: The Properties of Materials Related posts