Lego Cuusoo

In case you do not know it yet (admittedly, I didn't until recently):  some time ago, LEGO® has set up an exciting web project, called LEGO® CUUSOO.


If you got an idea for a new model,  share it there. In case it gets at least 10.000 supporters, LEGO® will review it and maybe produce it as an official product (with you receiving royalties).

LEGO® CUUSOO is still in beta state, but check it out!

NXTLog new building Challenge

It has been a while since the last one, but there is finally another building challenge at NXTlog! This one sounds fun, dig up your NXT and get building!


"It’s been four years since NXTLOG has hosted a spooky Halloween challenge, and it’s time to get boo-ilding! Will you design a robot to dispense candy in a helpful way, or one that “tricks” you when you go to grab a “treat?” How about a robot that shows what your costume would be, or one that can carve a jack-o-lantern, or even a fright bot representing a classic Halloween icon, character, monster, or beast! There's no limit on amount of Spooktacular ideas there are or the amount of LEGO MINDSTORMS NXT sensors, motors, NXT programmable bricks, HiTechnic sensors, or Bluetooth communication you can use on your NXT Halloween Bot. All entries must be tagged "spooktacular." Entries must be submitted by Halloween! October 31, 2011. What will boo, um we mean "you" make?"
JUDGING CRITERIA
"Awards will be given in 3 areas. Award winners will be featured on LEGOMINDSTORMS News. 1) SPOOKTACULAR AWARD: This will be the Halloween robot that is so spectacular, so creative, and innovative that it spooks the judges silly! 2) THE TRICKSTER: This award will go to the trickiest robot on Halloween night. 3) THE TREAT: This award will go to the most iconic Halloween robot. How much does your robot really say, “Halloween?”"
Read more here

Omnibot

I have found a pretty cool robot built with Omniwheels.

The Ultrasonic Revealed

Xander over at Bot Bench has decided to take to another sensor with his sharp knife, in this case the Ultrasonic Sensor.

See all the gory details here: http://botbench.com/blog/2011/09/21/exposed-lego-ultrasonic-sensor/

NXT Warehouse

TheNiels17 has made a fantastic automated warehouse system.

There are 9 bays, each identified by a 3x3 matrix.  Each is identified by a 2 colour combination, so Blue:Green is row 1:column 2,  Yellow:Green is row 3, column 2 etc

By assembling a little 'swipe' card with the various colours,you can tell the robot what space you are referring to.  You can also tell the robot if it needs to place the 'palette' (white code) or pick the palette (black) code.

So a Green:White:Yellow swipe means - Place the palette at location 2:3
and a Yellow:Black:Blue swipe means - Pick the palette from location 3:1

Of course he's implemented error checking so you can place a palette in an occupied space and you pick a palette if there is nothing there in the first place.  Just totop it all off, there is a random function to place a palette in a random, unoccupied spot.

Automating testing of an iPad App

Not exactly NXT, but it's younger sibling the RCX (who remembers those?)

These guys needed to test their iPad app by taking 10,000 photos.  Either it's an *incredibly* boring job, or you build a robot to do it for you :)

Interfacing Android with LEGO NXT: Compass

Here is another example for using Android with your NXT

Here is another proof of concept to show Bluetooth communication between Android phone and NXT. It used the accelerometer and magnetic field sensors on the Android phone to calculate its compass heading, and used Bluetooth to send that information to the NXT. While this is not as stable as Brian Davis' Jenn Too, mostly due to magnetic interference from the NXT messing with the compass, it definitely shows the potential Android phones have acting as on-board sensors for autonomous robots.

NXT Claw Crane Game

As a pre-season project, FLL team BEBO made a Claw Crane Arcade Game using LEGO® MINDSTORMS NXT:

Pan and Tilt Time Lapse rig

A really nice way of pan and tilt setup for the camera.

First video shows how it works and the second video gives a example of what it collected.

LEGO MINDSTORMS Mac Software Available Online

Some Mac users may have problems installing the LEGO MINDSTORMS software for their NXT 2.0 robot from the CD included in the package, so we have the software available for download.
This article is from the mindstorms website
MINDSTORMS NXT 2.0 DOWNLOAD (642MB)


The link above will allow you to download a copy of the software for your set. You can either use your computer’s burning software to make a copy of the .ISO – the software should automatically recognize and prompt to burn it to a CD – or follow the steps below this link to proceed.

If you are on a Windows based machine:

1. Download Microsoft Virtual CD software here: http://goo.gl/rX4t

2. Run the VCdControlTool.exe program.

3. Select the downloaded .ISO image that you want to mount, and then click Open.

4. In Select Mount Options, click Ok.

5. The Autorun window should pop up and you can install normally by following the on screen instructions.

If the Autorun does not appear, open the virtual CD drive in My Computer and double click the “setup.exe”


If you are on an Apple Macintosh based machine:

1. Double click the downloaded file.

2. Right/Alternate click the .ISO file select ‘open with’

3. Browse to Disk Utility to mount disk image.

4. Run the Snow Leopard script file and the software will install automatically.


INSTALLING THE LEGO MINDSTORMS NXT SOFTWARE
Before you install LEGO MINDSTORMS NXT Software, please uninstall any previous version installed.

Administrator privileges are required when installing the LEGO MINDSTORMS NXT Software.

Microsoft Windows

To install the Software run "Autorun.exe" on the CD-ROM and follow the on-screen instructions.

When installed you may need to restart your system. When the system has been restarted, double click the MINDSTORMS NXT Software icon on your desktop. This will start the LEGO MINDSTORMS NXT Software.


Apple Macintosh

If you’re running on Leopard or Snow Leopard, please download the appropriate patch from:

http://mindstorms.lego.com/en-us/support/files/default.aspx#Patches

To install the Software double-click "Install" on the CD-ROM and follow the on-screen instructions.

When installed select Applications->LEGO Mindstorms NXT and click Mindstorms NXT. This will start the LEGO MINDSTORMS NXT Software.


The first time you start the LEGO MINDSTORMS NXT Software may take a couple of minutes. The start-up time will decrease the next time you launch the application.