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I'm mainly taking part in LEGO events as part of a Great Ball Contraption exhibit.

Most of the modules I make, and that's true for a lot of other builders, are purely mechanical in nature and driven by a single always-on motor. Since the motors have to run continuously for whole days, we usually connect them to 9V train transformers; which isn't a problem for PF motors thanks to the conversion cables available.

However, since LEGO will eventually phase out PF motors, I'm worried about the future - as there doesn't seem to be plans to provide conversion cables for Powered UP elements.

So, is there another way to somehow connect a Powered Up motor to a mains transformer and have it run continuously?

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3

There is at least one third-party Power Functions to Powered Up adapter available that can be used for this purpose:

Photo showed PUP motor controlled using 9V controller

Here's a video demonstrating it in action:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=96SxM-0UkVQ

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  • Nice find! It would be interesting to learn how does it work or how can one acquire / build one, but the video does not seem to hold any more information beyond proving that it exists and works. So even though it would be great to expand this link-only answer, it would be hard to include more information without serious research or asking the creator. – zovits Nov 21 '19 at 12:12
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    I´m the creator of the GBC-PUP shown in the video. My goal is to make these available to the community. I sell them as kits at the moment. Contact me at staffan(at)brickselectric.se and we can make it happen. – Staffan Ihl Dec 5 '19 at 18:40
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    @jncraton can I ask why you did delete Staffan's answer? I did ask him specifically to come and chime in since he had made the cable... Granted his answer as is would have worked better as comment, but the way it was handled doesn't feel very welcoming to me. – Joubarc Dec 7 '19 at 13:19
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    @Joubarc Thanks for your feedback on this. I believe that it was a mistake to delete this outright. I've converted it to a comment now. I initially deleted it as it had been flagged as spam 3 times and flagged as not an answer once. I believe that those flags are valid, but I'm comfortable leaving this as a comment, and I should have done that in the first place. – jncraton♦ Dec 7 '19 at 16:28
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    @StaffanIhl I apologize for deleting your initial answer. I've now converted it to a comment as I should have done originally. Our community has an aversion to direct marketing, as you may have deduced from the mix of upvotes and downvotes on your answer, but I believe that leaving your post here as a comment is a reasonable compromise. I've bungled the opportunity to roll out the red carpet and properly welcome you to our community, but I do hope that you are able to successfully bring this to market! I know that I'd certainly love to have a handful of these on hand. :) – jncraton♦ Dec 7 '19 at 16:34
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New answer given the current state op PUP and Control+:

Saw this picture floating around on FB:

enter image description here

It's from the side of the box of the upcoming Bell Boeing V-22 Osprey set (42113). No bluetooth, just manual switches...

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Perhaps too expensive and overkill, but it seems from the specs that a SPIKE prime would fit the requirements:

enter image description here

As I understand, the hub can be programmed and then runs independently, similar to an EV3. It has a rechargeable battery with a micro USB to charge it, but if this is similar as previous rechargeable batteries from Lego, the cable can be left in and connected to mains electricity. It remains to be seen if the hub will support PUP and Control+ Technic motors immediately, but I'm convinced it will over time...

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