In previous LEGO robotic arm builds I’ve used servo motors to move each joint in the arm. However, the weight of the motor and related mechanism meant each arm needed to be reinforced to the point it became too bulky and exhibited excessive inertia. By contrast, pneumatic cylinders are light, and can apply significant force…… Continue reading Continuously Variable LEGO Pneumatic Control
Category: LEGO
Gold Plating
Last week a friend emailed: “Release 2 [of my pneumatic machine] should have some AI to know when there’s something to load and when it’s done.” He was teasing, but I liked the challenge. Today I got the AI working. Next, I’ll add code to operate the air valve with a servo motor.
It Hisses
Completed a proof-of-concept LEGO machine entirely powered by compressed air. Click through to watch the video. https://youtu.be/9D_PtmjexMU
Iterative Design
The setting sun bounced off a prototype LEGO pneumatic machine I’ve been building. Today, I finally got it to go through all the correct motions. Now, comes refinement, which may involve taking the whole thing apart and starting afresh, yet again.
Try Again…
A mechanism was not working to my satisfaction this afternoon, so I worked on improving it. One step forward, two steps back.
Akiyuki’s Mind
It was time to get reacquainted with my LEGO and build a mechanism designed by Akiyuki, a brilliant young Japanese engineer. Realized I didn’t have 3 hard-to-substitute parts, so put in an order with BrickLink: soon I’ll be checking the mailbox like an excited kid.
Measuring Angles
Worked on my latest “science project.” I’m trying to move an arm smoothly to any angle using a pneumatic piston. This brings together LEGO Mindstorms and Pneumatics, as well as 3rd-party digital sensors to measure air pressure and angles. This is proving surprisingly challenging.
Angles
Spent a few minutes building a rig to evaluate a LEGO Mindstorms sensor that measures angles. Spent a few hours trying to read the angles from a computer program. Eventually a simple test suggested the sensor is defective. My next LEGO creation needs to “know” its joint angles.
LEGO Pneumatic Prototype
Built a quick prototype of a pneumatic mechanism. The yellow baseplates are a new LEGO Technic part that makes it easier to explore a mechanism before incorporating it into a more formal beam structure.
Remnant of WWII
On my cycle ride: World War II guard tower built to protect a Norden bombsight factory. Today, tenants of the old factory buildings include a distillery and a company that develops LEGO military model kits. (The LEGO Company has a strict policy against selling military models.)