Ankoku
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Everything posted by Ankoku
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Okay, so a few changes here, but a few still required. I have reverted the lift arm at the bottom to the original Akiyuki design. It actually remains as a Technic Beam 1 x 11 Thick, but only 1 is used. At the end, 2x Technic Beam 1 x 3 Thick are used to extend the length by 1. The pivot point is also different. It is one closer to the piston end than in the instructions. This improves the height the balls are lifted, but still isn't the same amount as seen in the Akiyuki video. Either the area on the left needs to be raised on plate, or the tower, on the right, lowered one plate. Not sure which, but I suspect it is the former. -
One change which may help people out there with the ball lifter, is that the lifting arm is too short: Here, you can see that the arm protrudes out past the pillars in the Akiyuki version. In the instructions, that beam gets no where close. So changing what you currently have to something which is 2 holes longer, should make the balls lift that bit higher and thus less likely for them to drop before they should.
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Okay, so the ball dumper has quite a few differences which need remedying. First off, the Technic Axle and Pin Connector Perpendicular Double is on the wrong way around. Also, the height of the tiles on top is too low. This lack of height makes a bit of a clicking noise and thus friction as the arm at the front passes over the top. This is just a couple of quite a few changes needed as I post more later. The overall height of the tower is wrong, much like the rest of the machine, so that too needs adjusting.
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Onwards we go on to the ball dropper! Obviously, the design of it in the instructions is different to the original Akiyuki video and people seem to be having issues with it on occasions. Here are screen shots of the original design: As you can see, the two beams aren't connected with a pin as you might expect. One pushes the other down via a Technic Pin with Friction Ridges Lengthwise and Towball. This gives a larger overall view of what is going on, where the pivot point is located and shows the length of the main beam, which is using Technic, Plate 1 x 5 with Smooth Ends, 4 Studs and Center Axle Hole again. This is the hardest bit to see. I believe it is using a Technic Beam 1 x 3 Thin, then either a Technic Beam 1 x 3 Thin or a Technic Beam 1 x 5 Thin with Axle Holes on Ends at a 90°. I am guessing the length of it will be easy to work out upon construction.
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So, I decided to give the timings a quick go. I started with the timing video by @TheRebricker, but in the end, I got in patient and kinda just winged it by looking at a few key positions of certain elements in the Akiyuki video. So yeah, it is less than perfect, I am sure I will need to adjust a gear tooth or two here and there. Anyway, here is is working:
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TLG's disappointing 2017 financial performance
Ankoku replied to AmperZand's topic in General LEGO Discussion
I wonder who actually got to see this discount? "It said it had produced too many bricks, and had to sell off excess stock at a discount." -
Yeah, I didn't know about the universal joint alignment either. @Ludo Visser posted it in the Akiyuki Project thread, which was really helpful. This project is amazing, I can't wait to see the final running version! Thanks for all the updates, it is fascinating!
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Okay, so this is basically the final design for the ball dumper. It sits at the right height, the ball router works well and the axle housing is aligned correctly. As you can see above and below, I have added blockers to either side, which means that a renegade ball can't escape up hill. Balls can only pass when the router is in the correct position for that route. Inside is only 2 wide now and doesn't have any pins etc. Why no parts list, instructions etc.? Mainly because, as you can see it is a bit of a mess. Lots of black bits filling in for what should be grey and I am just working with bits that I have to hand. At some point later, I will take some photos for myself and work out the best parts required to build it optimally for strength and appearance. This is mainly to get the thing at the correct height, supporting the axle correctly and retaining the routing functionality.
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Been reworking the ball dumping area, whilst retaining the routing functionality. This try works okay, but I want to move the tilt mechanism down a little bit, but the axle mounting is in the way. So I will most likely make that beam a 5L and have the mountings further down. What you can't see here, is that behind the Technic Gear 40 Tooth is another 1x6 Technic Brick. This is from the Akiyuki design, which holds both axles in place, which should help, considering the kinda torque involved.
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Looking good. I am planning on building it, but hadn't appreciated just how large it is! :P Doing modifications to these things makes you appreciate the time and thought that goes into Akiyuki designs. Not just the mechanics, but the aesthetics.
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This has always bugged me, but I have only just worked out why. I liked the addition of having a housing for the axle on the other side, but when I was building it and now, rebuilding it, it has always bugged me that it never seemed to align correctly. It was always felt either too high or too low. It never seem right. The answer is really obvious, as it can never been correct via just bricks. The axle isn't entering a standard brick initially, it is sat in a vertically aligned beam. So the only way to fix it to the other side correctly, is to use another vertical beam! So yeah, gonna change that.
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Okay, on to the ball dump changes. I have changed the bottom of one side of the grabber to be the same as the original. With the change in position of the sliding area, I am guessing this is needed. Not tested it yet. I have also changed it back to 2 bricks wide for the tilting beams, rather than 3. Not sure why it was 3 or why it had pins sticking out. I haven't made it the same as the Akiyuki original, as I am guessing people want to keep the ability to offload them in one direction or the other. With this in mind, I am not using rams down 2 brick depth. Instead, I have keep it single depth, but 3 wide slope. Not tested it yet, but will let you know how it does.
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The slits at the side of the universal joints need to line up. If they are, then it is correct. You should see the difference in smoothness if they are. You may well find that you have it correct already. Like this: From this thread: https://www.eurobricks.com/forum/index.php?/forums/topic/49999-universal-joints-question-for-technic-experts/
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Here are videos of the incorrect and correct universal join arrangements for powering the first conveyor belt. I have also included the alternative, which doesn't use any universal joints, but a LEGO links instead. Incorrect Alignment: Correct Alignment: Alternative:
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Shifter Changes in action:
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It is really cool that he has created PDF instructions for these things. They are near the bottom: http://akiyuki.jp/en/works/845
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@Ludo Visser Your sig URL needs changing to: https://rebrickable.com/users/ludovisser/mocs/ Seems they changed it from profile to users.
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Great post, I did not know that. My little bit of OCD means I try and line everything up the same. Will try a few variations and report back.
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Every change is a notable improvement. My desire is for it to run as smoothly as it does for Akiyuki when he hand cranks it. His seems to have GBC dust in recent picks of it, which suggests he has been using it at GBC events, that hints at it being reliable enough. Will post a video of the final thing running once it is done.
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In all honesty, with some bits, I am just winging it. Recycling parts I have. As you can see, the black bits are where I don't currently have the right colour. The whole ball unload will just be a winging it job too. So even if I created a list, it would be very sub optimal. At some point, I am just going to buy a bunch more grey stuff and redo it properly.
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Because of how the back and forth piston is connected, there is no way it can work with the current instructions as the beam gets in the way of the mechanism powering part which moves the buckets off the wheel and on to the conveyor belt. In the original Akiyuki video, you can see at the bottom, how it is connected to the conveyor is different to the instructions. With this in mind, I set about trying to get it back to the original, in the hope that it would sort out the clearance issue. As you can see, it just uses a couple of Technic Brick 1 x 4 [3 Holes] at the bottom to hold it in place. I did incorporate an addition which I am guessing The ReBricker designed. It isn't in the Akiyuki original, but I like the stability the Technic Brick 1 x 2 [2 Holes] offers, so I kept it. The mechanism now sits higher than in the instructions, thus giving the clearance needed. It also allows for the same motion which is seen in the Akiyuki video, which was not possible before. I will also be incorporating the Technic Brick 1 x 2 [2 Holes] at the other end of the visible axle, which is a ReBricker addition (I am guessing), which is housed in the structure which takes the dumped balls. Again, I like the stability it offers.
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Here you can see how the shifter beam is connected. Again, I had basically worked this out, but it didn't work due to the height of the machine being wrong. As you can see, it is centred using a Technic Bush 1/2 Smooth with Axle Hole Semi-Reduced. The connector is a Technic Axle Connector with Axle Hole. The yellow beam is now a 13L rather than 11L.
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This is the new change to the Akiyuki machine: It seems he has reworked the pivot mechanism and beam length. This new approach removes any potential bend in what would have been an 8L axle. The new approach requires a shorter piston beam, a longer beam under the shifter. The brace is 2x Technic Beam 1 x 6 Thin. Here, you can see the positioning of the pivot point, the indentation in the conveyor tower, which is 2 bricks deep to allow the pivot arm to travel that far. You can also see the black axle instead of the grey one, as it requires that extra 1L for the back and forth arm to pivot one. At the top, you can see where the slider platform connects and how it is moved 0.5L across.
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Here you can see the back and forth connector. You can see the use of the Technic Axle and Pin Connector Perpendicular Double with the connection being made through the bottom hole using a Technic Axle 4 with Stop. You need the two Technic Bricks so that the left axle of the shifter isn't just floating in the air. Here you can see it from the other side: I have used a Technic Pin Connector Round 1L [Beam] between the piston arm and the pivot arm. Akiyuki uses a Technic Bush. The choice is yours. On the right, you can see the way Akiyuki has chosen to extend Technic Beams. He uses 2x Technic, Plate 1 x 5 with Smooth Ends, 4 Studs and Center Axle Hole. I had 4 kicking about, so I used them. You can just use a normal Plate 1 x 6, but it is a bit uglier. I like them as it makes the whole piston beam really rigid. Although you can't really see it in these images, there is no gap between beams on the left/right piston. There is a gap of 1L on the back and forth piston, which means the total length is odd.
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One of the most fundamental changes to the whole thing is the height. You can see it here: My original guess when it came to how the back/forth piston connector was actually correct, but didn't work because the height was wrong. Fixing the height allows it to work. Here you can see the two black Technic Bricks. They are 15L and make the whole thing more stable. It is also worth noting the indent at the bottom of the left tower. I will address that better in another image though. (This is an Akiyuki change.)