Mr Hobbles

I would agree, I don't see much reason for Lego to release a 4 port version for train enthusiasts. What I do see them doing is suggesting that we use two 2 port hubs in our trains and updating the Powered UP software to support this combination, such as allowing reversing of motor polarity, etc.

No problem, and thanks. :)

Hi, could you post this as an issue on the GitHub repo please? (I’m the creator of that project). Just so we don’t spam this forum with support requests for other software. :)

Fun fact - The Powered UP hub's internal device name is "HUB NO.4" and the 2018 bluetooth Duplo Train Base has "HUB NO.5" printed on the bottom of it. Also, on the Lego replacement parts website the Powered UP train controller is called "HANDSET NO.2". I'm expecting even more over time! EDIT: In my own curiosity I looked up the Boost move hub on the Lego replacement parts website, and it's known as the "HUB MOTOR NO.1"

It’s already been confirmed in another thread, by someone who actually held the hub in their hands at the event, that it is not the Boost move hub. It has 4x external ports (no internal motors) and is powered by 6xAA (not AAA) batteries, similarly to the current technic battery box. No internal motors. It also is roughly the same shape and size as the EV3 brick.

Yep, you just described the Duplo train base, but as you say, I think it's unlikely they'll do it for this, as they're reusing the hub for multiple models.

Ah yes, I didn't realise that the current Power Functions Technic battery pack uses 6x AA batteries. So that makes sense. :) Re. Speaker, yep, only stored sounds on the Duplo train, but I wonder how feasible it is to send short audio clips over the BLE connection. For example the WeDo 2.0 hub has an inbuilt piezo buzzer you can send tones to. (Not a full blown speaker though). Yes I know, I'm still wishful thinking. :)

Thanks! Do I understand that the hubs be connected together physically then, like with a wire? Glad to hear the motors are not integrated. :) That makes me breathe a sigh of relief.

Thanks for the details on the hub! So, does it it look more like the Technic battery box or the PF system/Powered UP battery box? And do I read correctly that you're saying it has built in motors? How many ports does it have for plugging in more motors?

Interesting. The Boost Move hub in a Technic appropriate shape would be quite disappointing. If two of the ports are integrated motors, then that makes life difficult, especially if the LIEBHERR R 9800 uses two of them. Where did you read about the tilt sensor? Also - the Duplo train hub has an inbuilt speaker, so it's not unprecedented for there to be an inbuilt speaker. :) But I agree, it's more likely in this scenario it comes from the app. EDIT: One of the guys in the Technic subforum had hands on with the hub today. No integrated motors, four ports for motors. As you say, similar size (if a bit smaller) than the EV3 brick. Makes me wonder what all that space is going to...

So at the Toy Fair today Lego has announced a new Technic LIEBHERR R 9800 excavator set containing a new app controlled system called "TECHNIC Control+", and including "7 motors and 2 smart hubs". My thoughts: 1. Probably an extension of Power Functions 2.0 (WeDo 2.0/Boost/Powered UP/Duplo trains) 2. 7 motors and 2 smart hubs = A new 4 port smart hub? This could be the Boost move hub, but I think it's more likely they've created a new one with four external ports and made it more "Technic'y" as opposed to "System'y" like the Boost hub. 3. "Data feedback". Interesting. Are the motors tacho motors (Like the Boost motor) that report angle rotation? Not quite sure what they mean by this yet. 4. They mention "real life sounds". While I'm holding out a little hope that the new smart hub has an inbuilt speaker, I think it's more likely it comes out of the smartphone with the app. 3. That's gonna need a LOT of batteries! EDIT: Apparently there is also a Technic "Extreme 4x4" containing two motors, a servo motor, and a hub. So a new motor! :D

The Boost Hub, PUP Hub, and PUP Remote all report both. It provides both voltage and battery level as a percentage. Its not exposed what algorithm they use to calculate the percentage but I’ll assume this is the number they use to display the battery level in the official apps.

Ah good, glad you found something! I am still trawling through that document and adding support for various features to my library. :) I do wish it was more detailed into the various commands that can be sent to the various attached devices. While it does a pretty good job of detailing the protocol, it mentions very little about sensor modes and message parsing, special motor control modes (ie. swing mode), etc.

Very very cool! Super detailed for a 6-wide, I love it. Do you have some more pictures of the bogey and motor design?

For completeness sake, I've discovered how to get the firmware revision from the WeDo 2.0 Smart Hub too. As usual, it's completely different. BLE Service 0x180a, Characteristic 0x2a26 freely reports requesting the firmware revision as a string. My hub reports [0x31, 0x2e, 0x30, 0x2e, 0x30, 0x39, 0x2e, 0x30, 0x30, 0x30, 0x30], which is simply "1.0.09.0000". In fact, service 0x180a and characteristic 0x2a26 are standard parts of the BLE spec. It was nice when TLG followed specs. :) https://www.bluetooth.com/specifications/gatt/viewer?attributeXmlFile=org.bluetooth.service.device_information.xml https://www.bluetooth.com/specifications/gatt/viewer?attributeXmlFile=org.bluetooth.characteristic.firmware_revision_string.xml I doubt the revisions of this are related to that of the Boost/PUP hubs though as the firmware is clearly different. It's likely a completely different project (read: older) within TLG.

Thank you for this! I was having trouble grokking the format used in the firmware reports. :) FYI, here's what one of my PUP Hubs reports: 1.0.03/0000 Here is one of my PUP Remotes: 1.0.00/0004 And here is one of my Boost Move Hubs: 1.0.00/0547 Not sure what exact functionality you're looking for, but [0x03, 0x00, 0x02] seems to force a disconnect from the hubs side. But it doesn't turn it off - so it immediately goes back into searching mode, and if you're still scanning, you'll reconnect a second or two later. Usually though I just disconnect from my side and let the hub turn itself off. :)

Maybe...in my preliminary testing there's a command to retrieve it, but I'm unsure of the format of the returned data. Also the command doesn't seem to work on the Boost Move Hub. More testing required. :)

As a follow up, as promised, I tested your problem out this evening, and, can confirm, it happens to me too! So, the bug is not just limited to Boost motors, but to both the Boost motor and Boost color sensor too. So: Plugging 2x Boost devices into a PUP Hub will crash it and cause it to restart. :) 1x Boost device (and any other device) should work fine.

The PUP motors and hub have this built in, this is what speed value 127 triggers (As opposed to value 0, which lets the motors float to a stop).

2x WeDo motors work fine as they are an output device only. Same with LED lights and train motors. All multiplex to port AB fine with no issues. It is only Boost motors that cause issues as they are an output device (you can sent motor drive commands to) and an input device (you can receive rotation angle notifications from) at the same time.

Glad you found the library useful! That's a very good point though, I don't have an example for the Duplo train yet, and I don't document the motor strings in use (Sidenode, it's "MOTOR" as opposed to "A" or "B" because it's not a port that can be unplugged or replaced with something else). I'll add it to my to-do list for this week to dig out my Duplo train and make an example. :)

Yes, that *might* be related to the existing bug you mention, but I'm not sure. The PUP Hub has two ports, port A and port B, that you can individually send commands to. When you plug in two identical devices (eg. two train motors or two led lights), internally, the hub creates a new virtual port, AB, that you can send a single command to, to control both motors at the same time. The problem is, that Boost motor is both an output device *and* and input device, so when it tries to create the virtual port, it crashes, as multiplexing two input devices doesn't make sense. :) Apparently Lego will fix this in the future, but they haven't yet. So, in your case, plugging in a Boost motor and a Boost sensor would be two input devices, but I don't think it should try to multiplex them though, as they aren't identical devices (they have different device ids). I'll do some testing tonight to see what it does, just out of curiosity. :)

Speed value 127 is a hard stop/"brake". :) Obviously there will still be a bit of a "float" depending on the weight of the train and the speed it is going, but it's the closest you'll get without using sensors and a slowly decreasing speed to stop at an "exact" spot.

Thanks for the run down! Seems like a very cool system. :)

I am very intrigued with this! Can you describe the mechanism/parts a bit more? Do you use Lego 9v track? How do you connect the wheels to the battery box (PF I presume)?