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Captainowie

Eurobricks Knights
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Everything posted by Captainowie

  1. Captainowie
    The question of "How many motors can I power from one <battery pack/train regulator>" isn't particularly easy to answer. Each device can provide a limited amount of current draw (typically about 1A), and each motor draws a different amount of current depending on how heavily it's loaded. From the figures here, you could run 10 XL motors from one battery box, as long as they weren't actually driving anything. Or, they could be working quite hard powering conveyor belts and whatnot, and you will only be able to have two of them on the same battery box. As far as being able to draw from mains power, you have a couple of options, most of which have already been covered. Everything has so far been limited to one power point per battery box (or if you're modifying extension cables rather than battery boxes, one power point per SBrick). A while ago I converted an old PC power supply to be able to power three battery boxes from one power point. My writeup is here, and the Eurobricks discussion is here. I've since expanded that system so that I can power three battery boxes and 10 train controllers from two power points. Hope that helps! Owen.
  2. Captainowie
    Some of the larger gears have off-centre axle holes. You might be able to get away with just having a gear loaded on an offset axle that only engages with another gear for a short time each rotation. You'll probably need to have some kind of limiter to keep the final output to 180 degree increments. I'm sorry that I've described that poorly - if it's not clear let me know and I'll have another go. Owen.
  3. Captainowie
    And here I thought it was just me! Firefox on Windows 10.
  4. Captainowie
    23:10 17:6 5:4 36:3 32:2 16:1
  5. Captainowie
    I wonder if maybe in future competitions we could limit the number of photos in the entry topic to something much smaller, like three photos instead of the current 10. The TC10 entry topic is a monster to try and navigate, and takes ages to load. Surely the discussion topic is the place for all the detailed photos, the entry topic really only needs a 'glory shot' and maybe one or two other perspectives. Owen.
  6. Captainowie
    If you're going to stick with Brickshelf, then you can use the deeplinks (keep clicking on your picture until you are at a URL that ends with .jpg (or whatever extension your image is) rather than ?i=[number]), which will work straight away. But Bricksafe is a better alternative.
  7. Captainowie
    18. Pneumatic Lift GBC Module Functions Transports Soccer/basketballs from an input area 10 bricks high and 10x10 studs wide, to an output of the same dimensions. Can handle balls incoming at 1 ball per second. Powered with a hand-pump on a long umbilical. This is so that at a display it can be powered by the crowd, to make the GBC a more interactive exhibit. Images The pump will probably get redesigned if it is every actually used at a public display. Moving tray at its lowest point, ready to accept a load of balls. Moving tray at its highest point, ready to move its balls on to the next module. View from the side, showing the panel that prevents wayward balls from dropping into the innards of the module. Because there always has to be a shot from underneath. The internals. Video Discussion topic Good luck everyone!
  8. Captainowie
    Well, I got the Heisenleak sorted out, apparently by just messing around with things. Compared to the previous images, I have moved the pistons to the inside, added another switch/piston to form a repeating sequence, and finally rebuilt it in a more consistent colour scheme - black grey and yellow, with highlights in red and blue. Some more photos: Moving tray at its lowest point, ready to accept a load of balls. Moving tray at its highest point, ready to move its balls on to the next module. View from the side, showing the panel that prevents wayward balls from dropping into the innards of the module. Because there always has to be a shot from underneath. The internals. So, it's done. It meets much more of the spec than its predecessor, but as to how it will perform in an actual GBC circuit, only time will tell. Once again, best of luck to all contestants, there are some great models in the competition! Owen.
  9. Captainowie
    Aargh, suffering a terrible case of Heisenleak - each component, and each combination of components, seems sufficiently airtight - but put it all together and *poof*, a leak. So frustrating!
  10. Captainowie
    The one from the Arocs that Rohan mentioned is here and I made one a while ago from the Unimog (the thread even contains instructions - kinda) But I second what Dr Spock has said: The GBC module is a fickle beast, and limiting your parts palette to only one set makes a challenging topic even more difficult. I wouldn't recommend this for a newcomer to GBC. Owen.
  11. Captainowie
    This argument does not convince me. If a 7yo attempts something that has "16+" written on the box as an age recommendation and doesn't need help, then either that 7yo is a genius, or else the product is too simple for its intended audience. That's not to say that 7yos shouldn't attempt to build flagship technic models, only that they shouldn't expect to be able to do it without assistance. Owen.
  12. Captainowie
    Ok, I'm finally able to report some significant progress. It's a little bit colourful at the moment, but that's normal for prototypes! Hopefully this series of still images gives an indication of how it works. My next priority is to try and get a switch mounted in there, that gets flipped as the platform is raised and lowered. It also has some significant faults as a GBC module: it doesn't handle a large batch of balls particularly well, and when balls do spill, they easily get into the internals of the module. But I think it's good progress nonetheless.
  13. Captainowie
    I have a number of thoughts here: Firstly, asking for help but then deliberately hiding relevant details is not "Brilliant", it's rude. All the usual guidelines relating to asking for help apply just as well here as they do to other forums, particularly using a helpful and specific subject line. Secondly, you aren't going to be able to construct a speedometer-like device using differentials. Differentials do ADDING (and SUBTRACTING), whereas measuring the rate of turn of an axle requires DIFFERENTIATION, a fundamentally different operation. Thirdly, be very careful about making claims that something has never been before. If it's a physical machine, there's a pretty good chance someone has reproduced it in LEGO.Finally, while connecting directly to the train remote might work (as suggested by Rascko above), I am concerned that it'd be too easy to get the position of the control knobs misaligned with the state of the motors - e.g. if you turn the knobs then press the button, the motors will be off but the levers will not be reset to their origin. A better approach would surely be to link the "control" levers directly from a servo motor (bypassing the LAs entirely), with the servo motor connected to the same receiver as the XL motor that drives the wheel. Then you can just hold the train remote directly, rather than mess around with a stepper motor, and instead of having to find space in your MOC for a train controller plus 2x(stepper motor, drive motor, LA+motor, IR receiver, servo, switch), you only need one receiver, and 2x(drive motor, servo), which is surely not too much. Owen.
  14. Captainowie
    Depending on what you're using to write, you might be able to get a LaTeX plugin to show the math. In a pinch, you could always use an external LaTeX renderer to make little pictures full of mathematics, and then embed those in your text. Owen.
  15. Captainowie
    I don't think this argument is valid - I mean, a compressor is nothing but a cylinder with a valve instead of a top port. It is certainly possible to construct a compressor from a normal cylinder and some switches (as I posted about a decade ago! http://news.lugnet.com/technic/?n=15434) - this construction also would be outlawed under the current ruling, even though it's functionally identical to (if vastly bulkier and less efficient than) a normal compressor. In any case, KvM, I'd like to see what you were planning. Owen.
  16. Captainowie
    That's true. Also, I'm hoping the fact I've got a sequence in there (so that as long as there is a supply of pressure, it will keep operating forever) will buy me some votes too. But that Flight Sim is going to be hard to beat!
  17. Captainowie
    Hi. With the quality of entries I've seen so far, I don't like my chances of winning, but it would be nice to get a badge! I'm going to use this contest as an excuse to redo a previous model of mine - a GBC module powered by pneumatics. This is what the old version looked like: I have used it in a previous display, but it has numerous shortcomings as a GBC module. The output is not in line with the input, violating the spec. It was what I needed at the time, but it's not suitable for general use. The output is impolitely high. Again, it was what I needed at the time, but I couldn't put this into a normal circuit. It would frequently jam. It spilled lots of balls. I will be using the same sequencing (basically the simplest alternating sequence possible). I had toyed with the idea of something more complicated, but 1) I couldn't get my head around how to make the sequence I wanted, and 2) it would have been too slow anyway. I probably won't make a compressor for this one, leaving it hand-operated. The idea being that in a display it can be somewhat interactive - the audience gets to power the Contraption (or at least some portion of it). Best of luck to all entrants! Owen.
  18. Captainowie
    So presumably you can have as many motorised functions as you like - so long as the motor is a pneumatic engine! (NB this is probably a bad idea - I'd be surprised if the torque you can get out of a LPE powered by a LEGO compressor is anything to write home about. But it'd be cool nonetheless) Also presumably you can use cotton (under the "3rd party string is permitted" rule) to tie the springs compressed in the hand pump, rather than removing the springs entirely. I'm looking forward to being able to participate in this one. Owen. P.S. The rules as they currently are say that the deadline is "Sunday 31st of October, 2016". My calendar says that this date is a Monday.
  19. Captainowie
    Is that an easy operation to undertake? We experienced a little of that squealing, intermittently, on the weekend, so I might have to delve into that in the not too distant future. Are there any gotchas you wish you had known before you started? Owen.
  20. Captainowie
    Ah yes, that's probably a better interpretation of that post - how to improve on the current design, rather than how to implement it. In which case you're right and I retract my objection :-)
  21. Captainowie
    No, a ratchet is not your solution here - the blades are never free-spinning (it's an easy mistake to make - I made it myself until I read LXFs post about the flywheel). To operate this fan, you need to give enough of a squeeze on the handle that the momentum of the fan blades carries the 40t gear around so that it's in a position for the next squeeze to keep the fan blades moving.
  22. Captainowie
    Nice! Some really neat modules that I hadn't seen before. I particularly like the ratchet tooth thing at 4:51 in the Day 1 vid.
  23. Captainowie
    As a GBC display coordinator I hate it when people do this - it means I can't run another module off the same controller, unless that module also has low power requirements. If you're just building for yourself then you can of course do whatever you want, but if you're intending to partake in a display, please give some thought to adding some gears so that you can run from a fully-powered motor. Owen.
  24. Captainowie
    That shouldn't have been a concern - if you haven't put an additional switch in the feed system (so you can choose between manual and automatic pumps), all the pressure upstream of the switches will equalise amongst all the components. That is to say, the motorised pumps are pushing air into the tanks anyway! Owen.
  25. Captainowie
    Hi Doug. My apologies, it seems I latched onto the word "synchronise" in your post, and didn't actually read what you were asking. If you're finding that the trolley doesn't quite get back to where it started after one cycle, then your problem is likely that your direction-changing gearbox is spending slightly more time in one direction than in the other. If that's the case, then I don't think there's any combination of drum diameter and gear ratios that will compensate for that. I'd suggest having a closer look at the positions of the cams that switch the changeover catch back and forth to see if there's any unevenness there. Hope that helps Owen.
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