LEGO Mindstorms and Robotics General Discussion

[Jim]

The new IR remote looks cool!

[imajor]

I think the two types of threads will be part of the set and you can actually build most of the models. The models don't consist of that many parts. They are pretty basic with some added panels and spikes etc to make them look cool.

I think I read somewhere, that there will be building instructions for 17 different robots, but you can only build 5 of them with the standard kit. For the remaining 12 you need additional parts, probably the extension kit.

[Jim]

I think I read somewhere, that there will be building instructions for 17 different robots, but you can only build 5 of them with the standard kit. For the remaining 12 you need additional parts, probably the extension kit.

That makes sense. Looking at the Youtube video, those are probably the original 5 of the retail version (snake, scorpion, etc).

Bluescrn is probaly right

[matias bendtsen]

The new IR remote looks cool!

is that pf compatible?

[kieran]

is that pf compatible?

Hope so looks good,

[skppo]

is that pf compatible?

It seems to have the same channel system so I think it would be moronic not to have it PF compatible

[Jim]

It seems to have the same channel system so I think it would be moronic not to have it PF compatible

My thoughts exactly. Don't see any reason why it would not be compatible.

[Porty]

Very nice! Do we really have to wait another six months or so :(

The movement and sounds of the snake look very cool!

Gives us enough time to stack that paper.

[Jim]

Gives us enough time to stack that paper.

Lol. It needs to be a pretty big pile this year

[hrontos]

The PF remote seems to be easier to rebuild using beams/pins into custom stick or wheel based controls.

This one has 4 buttons, no direct posibility to attach a pin or axle to buttons, so custom remote will have to rely only on pushing, no direct connection.

Edited January 8, 2013 by hrontos

[GRogall]

This been posted?

[DLuders]

"Nerd culture...gains mainstream acceptance."

[Jim]

This been posted?

Not yet. Very nice infographic. So being a scifi nerd playing role-games finally becomes mainstream

Edited January 8, 2013 by Gekke Ted

[freakwave]

This been posted?

Very interesting, thanks!

In general, this EV3 looks like it is going to be a great product, love it! Some of the already included functionalities will make it harder for HiTechnic and others to claim their spot, i.e. with the supposedly included PF-IR support which currently is all done through third parties.

fW

BTW what's the limit on picture size

Edited January 8, 2013 by freakwave

[DraikNova]

There's a remote? Finally! The absence of a way to actually control the robot once you had programmed it is what really put me off buying the first two versions. I think this might reduce the contents of my wallet... severely.

[AVCampos]

Actually, the first version did have a remote control, albeit bought separately:

http://www.bricklink.com/catalogItem.asp?P=x124

[Jim]

There's a remote? Finally! The absence of a way to actually control the robot once you had programmed it is what really put me off buying the first two versions. I think this might reduce the contents of my wallet... severely.

The HiTechnic sensor was great to accomplish this with the current NXT. It makes controlling your robot a lot more fun.

Providing their own EV3 IR sensor and remote is obviously a wise choice TLC made.

[legolijntje]

It's funny that Lego always advertises in their instructions not to shoot on people, but in the video that kid is shooting his friend

[Jim]

Actually, the first version did have a remote control, albeit bought separately:

http://www.bricklink...Item.asp?P=x124

The good old days. I remember going to a local toy store to buy the Mindstorms RCX to get me out of my dark ages. Little did I know about this set not being available at your average retailer.

[Jim]

Looking at the video on TB I noticed something peculiar. Check out the EV3 unit in the back. It has a different color scheme. Light bluish grey is red on this one.

[legolijntje]

I noticed some more: they have a pile of Lego laying in the back worth like 100s if not 1000s of euros/dollar

[legolijntje]

You can get all kinds of information by downloaded the product sheets on this Lego Education page.

The products with lego technic parts also have parts lists.

In this documents, you can also see photos of even more models to make

Also something that I'm wondering; it seems there's a ultrasonic sensor and a IR sensor. They look very similair, which one comes with the normal kit?

[Porty]

You can get all kinds of information by downloaded the product sheets on this Lego Education page.

The products with lego technic parts also have parts lists.

In this documents, you can also see photos of even more models to make

Also something that I'm wondering; it seems there's a ultrasonic sensor and a IR sensor. They look very similair, which one comes with the normal kit?

The ultrasonic will come with the educational version, and the IR will come with the normal. I think the educational version will be the only one with rechargeable battery included. What shocks me is that NO SOFTWARE is included with the educational version!!! Maybe it will in the regular version...

[Jim]

You can get all kinds of information by downloaded the product sheets on this Lego Education page.

The products with lego technic parts also have parts lists.

That's a nice link, thanks!

The sensors now have auto-ID, so the EV3 unit will recognize them automatically, I presume.

The Elephant is clearly made with the expansion pack.

It looks like the retail version will suffice. Maybe a battery pack and some extra sensors.

Nice article, with nice pics, including some box art!

http://mashable.com/2013/01/07/lego-taking-robotics-to-next-level-with-mindstorms-ev3/

(Don't know how to include images on an iPad, anyone?)

The 3D building guide is also for iPad, nice!

The set number is 31313, so it's not the missing 42003.

Edited January 8, 2013 by Gekke Ted

[Brickthus]

If there is a standard expansion pack then that would interest me. I had not ventured much beyond the standard kit with NXT 1 or 2 and did not mix my NXT kits with the rest of my collection. I would certainly like to try out the elephant. Whilst I have enough NXT2s and sets of sensors for them, it would not make an NXT3 purchase "urgent" for me, but the expansion pack might be hard to resist! We will have to see whether the retail kit is as expandable as the education kit, since the expansion pack is designed for that. Looking through the expansion pack parts table I probably have most of those parts already! A building expansion pack is something that was lacking for NXT2: There was a good range of extra sensors to try but you had to be a dedicated NXT fan to build much further in the same studless style beyond the standard kit. Another hurdle was that it was more difficult to get the special light grey beams for colour matching. Otherwise it was more difficult to integrate the NXT with standard LEGO bricks and plates.

My best endeavour to integrate NXT into the brick and plate environment was to mount the RFID sensor behind a 1x4x3 panel, using the old z14 bevel gears as spacers to place the sensor as close as possible to the back of the panel in order to hide it in a wall, so that it could recognise the tags on passing trains. The NXT could then sound the right bell code in the signal box and could send a PF IR speed signal to the train with the IR Link sensor.

PF control has been my main interest in the NXT so far, so each of my NXTs will have an IR Link sensor and IR receiver so that they become intelligent PF devices. I have also done machine to machine IR interaction with just PF on its own, but obviously the NXT allows more variation and intelligence in the interpretation of the signals received.

Since the NXT3 IR sensor has two sides (presumably Tx and Rx) and comes with the retail kit, I assume the hardware will be capable of performing the functions of the HiTechnic IR receiver and IR Link sensor. My guess is that an NXT3 could control many NXT 1 or 2 units via the PF protocol even if no other daisy-chaining is specified as standard in the backward compatibility. It will just be a matter of sending the right codes from the NXT 3 IR sensor and having different programs to interpret them in each NXT 2 unit. Whether the codes are similar to PF codes, the same with a different header or completely different remains to be seen. The IR beaon has shorter range than a PF remote, probably because it uses just 2 AAA batteries, not 3.

I hope we will soon have NXC programmability for the NXT3, given its different processor. That is a key to backward compatibility. It looks like the sensor ports will have the same electronic protocol and would be able to use NXT2 sensors, but that most NXT3 sensors will be digital (perhaps even the touch sensor as the data sheet says it can count pulses, perhaps taking on that role to unburden the NXT brick). The motor ports might be more different; The NXT2 ones frove the motor with 2 pins and I think this will be the same except for a beefier motor driver (like the one in the PF V2 IR Receiver), but I think the other 4 pins might fulfil the digital sensor function rather than the simpler quadrature sensor of the NXT2 motors. After all, the literature does say the NXT3 will recognise motors and sensors as you plug them in, which requires digital communication unless standard resistor values are used (they were used as switch recognition on the Cybermaster, to recognise different tools for the tracked robot; the white, yellow and red switches contained different resistors).

The use of two types of motor is good. The smaller one like a PF medium motor with encoder, fitting more easily in place of an M-motor in Technic models, which makes for easier upgrading of Technic model intelligence. I think the large one is mainly a digital upgrade from the NXT2 motor; the casing appears larger at the motor end, perhaps to accommodate the digital circuit in place of the NXT2's simple quadrature encoder.

Mark

Edited January 9, 2013 by Mark Bellis