These LEGO parts arrived today, while I wait for other parts to be shipped from LEGO in Europe. I feel a new model coming on, or at least a series of prototypes as I figure out the engineering.
Category: LEGO
Exploring AI-driven LEGO design
Installed software from Carnegie Mellon and linked it to their AI Large Language Model for designing LEGO models. It takes text (I requested “Matterhorn”) then designs a LEGO model that’s physically stable and can be built. It lists bricks and their placement in a 3D grid, and produces a CAD drawing that can be digitally disassembled and reassembled, mirroring real-world construction. Currently, it doesn’t support LEGO Technic construction, my primary focus.
Cherry blossom time at Himeji Castle
The cherry blossoms have opened at Himeji Castle, Japan, prompting an update to our LEGO model today. When I visited exactly a year ago, the blossoms were late, allowing me to experience the castle without the usual crowds.
LEGO logic gates: a reliable binary adder
Serendipitously, I discovered a novel LEGO machine designed by Hiro Labo, a professor at a university in Osaka, Japan. This conceptually simple machine reliably performs binary addition on two single-bit numbers, without the excessive joint play and gear backlash I’ve experienced in other designs. Naturally, I had to replicate it: the plates on the left stack to form the adder on the right.
A day off from the world
It was a day for isolating ourselves from the world: the weather was still too frigid to go outside, plus we declared a no-news day. I prototyped a LEGO pneumatic AND gate that functions significantly better than the gates I built yesterday. However, I won’t be building a pneumatic adder any time soon because I don’t have enough pistons.
Stalled by joint play in a LEGO mechanical computer
All logic functions can be constructed using AND and NOT logic gates. Modern smartphones contain billions of logic gates. However, the LEGO machine I constructed today only has four AND and four NOT gates to perform binary addition on two single-bit binary numbers. As the signal propagates from the inputs on the left to the outputs on the right, the cumulative effect of joint play leads to unreliable output movements. I need to redesign the machine.
2125 LEGO Pieces Later…
Completed Himeji Castle today. It was a team effort, with Dwight building the top three floors. There’s a surprising amount of detail, including ancillary buildings and a walled courtyard. It can be opened to reveal an interior. I’ve taken this low-angle photo to highlight how the vertical tapering of the main building creates an illusion of extra height. Click through to see how tapered it is.
Revisiting Himeji Castle
Back in April the cherry blossom (sakura) would be late at Himeji Castle, providing an opportunity to check out the most visited castle in Japan before the crowds of sakura season. I arrived early in the day, my hunch was correct, I was able to walk straight in and explore without the usual crowds. Afterward, I ordered the LEGO model. It’s an engaging alternative to our usual fall-back at this time of year: a jigsaw puzzle.
A-Frame Challenge
Dwight was engrossed in the den, immersed in the world of architectural LEGO. His current challenge: constructing an A-frame for the Christmas village beneath the tree. Achieving an acute roof angle, while avoiding any “illegal techniques,” demands ingenuity.
Orchestra Hall at 50
At Orchestra Hall, admired a LEGO model of the venue, part of a display celebrating the building’s 50th anniversary. The model captures the auditorium’s angle relative to the rest of the building and the street grid, a tricky feat with LEGO. Inside the auditorium, we enjoyed a concert featuring Shostakovich, Bernstein, and a recent commission by Chinese American, Zhou Tian.