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Posted
11 hours ago, amine said:

Hello,

I am looking for this Newletter below that I found back to your previous post.

Can you upload a scan ?

Thanks a lot

 

ebay2~2.png

Hi all and merry Christmas!

Could you please reference the exact post?

If it is the ebay one, we'd have to ask Daniel Schmatz because I didn't obtain those newsletters in printed form and the image above very much looks like a photo and not a screenshot. 

Still in touch with Daniel about the software BTW, so we might get a German version of Lego Lines some day. 

Posted (edited)

 

25 minutes ago, maehw said:

Hi all and merry Christmas!

Could you please reference the exact post?

If it is the ebay one, we'd have to ask Daniel Schmatz because I didn't obtain those newsletters in printed form and the image above very much looks like a photo and not a screenshot. 

Still in touch with Daniel about the software BTW, so we might get a German version of Lego Lines some day. 

It is from your own post just before.

Merry Christmas to everyone !

ebay2~5.png

Edited by amine
  • 4 weeks later...
Posted
On 12/24/2025 at 11:48 AM, amine said:

 

It is from your own post just before.

Merry Christmas to everyone !

ebay2~5.png

On the bottom right corner it reads "verkauft" — German for "sold". 

I didn't have the budget at that time. 

That has been sold to Daniel. 

  • 2 weeks later...
Posted (edited)

Sorry, you can disregard this post.  While doing more digging, I realised that it would probably be cheaper (than a Blocko card... $70USD?? Ouch!) and potentially easier for me to take already available info and just make my own 9767, then try to mod one of the two types of general I/O cards I recently acquired. 

Those cards will still be part of a personal project to figure out and find use for.  But as they will not be LEGO related (at least directly at first, if ever) it is not a topic for the forum.

Hey y'all.  I didn't want to clutter this topic with my latest wannabee project, but as it is somewhat content related, and I suspect I could benefit from the vast knowledge of many current members following this post... I wished to post my topic link here.  I hope that is OK.

 

Edited by Gunners TekZone
Posted
1 hour ago, Gunners TekZone said:

and save the multi I/O cards for different experiments.

BUT :pir-laugh:

This IS a totally relevant post to this thread!!! Sure you can use them for much more sophisticated stuff, but, also for talking/listening to Interface A! This thread is not about what can be done cheaper or less demanding, it is about what devices can interface to 9750! Your cards can do much more, but hey, I am absolutely sure that the chippies on these cards would be so happy when running 4.5V Technic machines.

Is there a chance that you repost the card pictures? I have no idea how the Apple works on its inside, but I saw (but did not take screenshots, when I was preparing for a nice, 3 beers night diving into Apple ][ hardware) the photographs, all the chippies, I am familiar with ... of course these cards will do, I thought, but then - gone ... 

Man, I am using the I/O port of an Atari 1040 to talk to 9570. Believe it or not, I can hear some sort of "snickering", when it does. A friendly sound, though.

This thread is about just doing or envisioning it.

Best
Thorsten

Posted (edited)
15 minutes ago, Toastie said:

Is there a chance that you repost the card pictures?

Certainly!!  And thanks for the invite to explore these cards potential Interface-A use here.

2026-01-26-17.03.46.jpg?rlkey=soyk6n1kz0

 

2026-01-26-17.03.30.jpg?rlkey=owfsf63e5n

 

2026-01-28-13.26.31.jpg?rlkey=e85xafql4y

 

I was planning on comparing them to the 9767 pin-out I found for the Apple II series... 

Apple-9767-schematic.PNG?rlkey=20ufxaycx

 

But there was enough differences that I figured it would be easier to start with a proto-board (if I can find some at a cheap enough price, including shipping) and try to make my own.

Edited by Gunners TekZone
Posted

Thank you very much @Gunners TekZone!

It will take some time for me plowing through the (to me) unknown Apple hardware - but what is time! I love these chips. And others may be way more educated to come up with ideas, proposals, solutions.

For sure: You can make it way less sophisticated, as said. On the other hand: You absolutely don't need an Apple or IBM PC/XT to control 9750. A ZX81 - the totally el cheapo Zeddy - is well suited to do so, with a little help from (again) dead cheap ancient TTL chips.

Not the point: This thread is not about saving here and there, it is about making it work. If someone figures out how to connect a Cray X-MP to 9570: It is >totally< relevant to this thread! And most probably, I will faint.

It is just fantasizing about what >could< possibly work, regardless of the approach. @evank will judge and approve or not, just for locking anything appropriate into his (wonderful!) website. How cool is that. But here on EB: Just go nuts.

All the best
Thorsten 

Posted (edited)
1 hour ago, Toastie said:

If someone figures out how to connect a Cray X-MP to 9570: It is >totally< relevant to this thread! And most probably, I will faint.

Hmmmm...   Perhaps after I have tackled my (totally new to me as well) Apple IIe clone to Int-A project (The Int-B partially pictured is another set of projects all together)  :pir-tongue:

2026-01-28-15.25.39.jpg?rlkey=tq2f2lpych

 

Meanwhile, I just ordered a couple of these...

Apple-IIe-proto-board.PNG?rlkey=bw228u0p

Edited by Gunners TekZone
Posted

LOL - Cray. Juuuuuuuuust a bit overkill.

It would be cool to see 9750 interfaced to that pocket computer! :)

@Gunners TekZone in case you haven't seen it already, here is a video I made about the current 9767 options: 

Posted

@evank  Hey Evan.  Yes I have been watching your stuff for awhile now.

I currently have my Interface-A running on my Commodore 128... Eventually the APCO IIe clone, and then, yes... the Pocket PC?!? :pir-oh: (Well, OK, via an Arduino)

LEGO-Interface-A-Robot-Arm.PNG?rlkey=etn

Posted (edited)

I did try the 4.5v motors, but so under-powered or slow, depending on gearing.  And the 9v ones still run with more torque on 4.5v and thus minimal need for additional gearing down.  And the Int-A handles them just fine (9750 as everyone else calls it... I should follow tradition, but thanks to dyslexic tendencies, I get confused by numbers, letters, words, people... :pir-tongue: )

2024-12-04-22.15.38.jpg?rlkey=x3f8dj8148

Edited by Gunners TekZone
Posted (edited)
On 1/29/2026 at 10:23 AM, evank said:

It would be cool to see 9750 interfaced to that pocket computer! :)

Well, that one (Sharp PC-1401) or similar, would only work with an Arduino doing all the heavy lifting.

This one however, has actual 8-bit PIO capabilities on it's 11-pin interface port... :pir-oh:  

https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/p70oq7wufvmtn53ytplv6/Sharp_PC-G850VS_Interface.pdf?rlkey=wy9vqu29363ua1l3x912gvgfk&dl=1

Quote

The 11-pin interface becomes a programmable 8-bit port. The logic levels (LOW/HIGH) can be set and read by the PIO-API (API = Application Programming Interface) in BASIC or C. Each of the 8 signals/bits can be configured individually to serve as input or output.

2026-02-05-14.10.16.jpg?rlkey=ycc0zmdr5w

I had actually purchased the newer version (PC-G850VS) on ebay from Japan (basically the same but improved display etc.).  But the seller actually shipped me a bonus PC-G650V for FREE!!, becasue it has some randomly failing vertical columns (you can see one in the image here) and I guess he just didn't want to bother listing it??  I am sure not complaining, nope not at all :pir-santa:

So I will use the V for initial testing... Just in case I fumble something and attempt a smoke check.

2026-02-05-20.02.46.jpg?rlkey=rttempc626 



 

Edited by Gunners TekZone
Posted
4 hours ago, Gunners TekZone said:

Well, that one (Sharp PC-1401) or similar, would only work with an Arduino doing all the heavy lifting.
...
https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/p70oq7wufvmtn53ytplv6/Sharp_PC-G850VS_Interface.pdf?rlkey=wy9vqu29363ua1l3x912gvgfk&dl=1

...

Hello,

very interesting document.

With an G850VS you have luck to have an PIO Harware on the 11-Pin Port

With an 1401 you can write Data (for example by LPRINT) to an external Interface to use them for Interface 9750
But the 2 Inputs might than be accessable only by Assembler-Code (or Peek/Poke Subroutine) ...

Is there a schematic drawing of the GV850VS available ? wher can I find ?

Or is there a Datasheet for the SC61680 Processor available ? how operates Xin/Xout there (especially the 2kHz/4kHz Mode and how to read Xin frequency)


Johannes

Posted (edited)
2 hours ago, BrickTronic said:

Is there a schematic drawing of the GV850VS available ? wher can I find ?

I don't know... As I understand it this was a Japanese only product back in the day, and I only just received mine.  I am still practicing my GoogleFu to find more like the part I listed, which was a major part in my determining that this was a worthy item to acquire.  BTW apparently that is just a segment of the whole english translated "non-official" manual floating around out there (The OG manuals are all in Japanese).

2 hours ago, BrickTronic said:

With an G850VS you have luck to have an PIO Harware on the 11-Pin Port

Yes... the Interface-A is rather simple to operate... So if something can toggle an LED or sense a switch, it can activate a port and read an input.

Edited by Gunners TekZone
Posted (edited)
On 4/10/2025 at 9:51 PM, Gunners TekZone said:

Ah Yes... I watched all your videos way back when, while awaiting for my 1st (and only) Interface-A to arrive.  You have an amazing collection!!  I too originally played around with coding some stuff in Commodore 64 BASIC  before finding the English version of LEGO Lines.

I recently acquired original 1090 "box/book" of instruction cards, and I think I have assembled all the needed parts from within my collection... One day, when feeling well enough, I will build one of the arms.

2025-04-10-12.42.48.jpg?rlkey=wuv2pj1a17ouy5frpvh4ld3wj&st=4i4gpma5&dl=1

I am curious how you can make a robot arm from the 1090 set knowing you have only two motors, All models I have seen use the 1092 set instead. How did you manage with those limitations.

Edited by amine
Posted
47 minutes ago, amine said:

I am curious how you can make a robot arm from the 1090 set knowing you have only two motors, All models I have seen use the 1092 set instead. How did you manage with those limitations.

Easy so far... I haven't gotten past the stage where I posted that :pir-tongue: 

Really, the parts are still in the same container, languishing in my LEGO room.  I have more desires and projects than I have energy and focus :pir-cry_sad:

But I am thinking that the arm pictured either finds a way with just two motors, or adds a third.  Of which I have in my collection, so I am sure that one way or another I will persevere... eventually... I hope...

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