22
votes
Accepted
Export LEGO MINDSTORMS EV3 Lab Code
Update:
I have written a tool to disassemble EV3 programs. The EV3 software compiles the .ev3 file to a .rbf file and sends that to the EV3 brick. The disassembler can convert the .rbf file into a ....
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13
votes
Accepted
How to install Firmware 1.10E on an EV3 home/retail edition brick
New answer (2020)
The V1.10E firmware is installed using the EV3 Device Manager web page. The instructions are not entirely clear, but if you visit the web page with Chrome (recommended), Safari, Edge,...
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12
votes
Accepted
Where can one find the documentation for the LEGO Mindstorms Robot Inventor software?
Official Docs
Word Blocks
The Word Block Descriptions for the block language (Scratch) are under Help & Support in the Settings.
Settings are found by clicking on the gear icon on the home page.
...
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11
votes
How to use Power Functions with Mindstorms EV3?
As mentioned by @guestguy123 and @eficker, it is easy to combine an EV3 cable and a PF cable to make a custom cable that allows the EV3 to control. This can even be done without soldering - I just ...
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11
votes
Accepted
Old RCX Wires Have Become Grey and Brittle
This is a common issue with the older Lego 9V cables. Lots of sources, including myself, have experienced the same thing - this particular chemistry of insulation ages poorly, no matter how well it's ...
- 1,330
10
votes
Accepted
Programming Mindstorms on a chromebook
Update Dec 2016
There is now an app for chromebooks on the chrome store:
https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/lego-mindstorms-education/jhnhfnolmcleankdkhfklakpchnccipg?hl=en-US
I have used it ...
- 216
10
votes
Accepted
What's the easiest way to build a delta robot using LEGO Mindstorms 51515?
What are the parts used for the [Hirolabo delta robot's] arms and circular base (labelled as parallel links and universal joints) ?
Let's see another still from that video:
There I see:
2736 ...
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9
votes
Accepted
Can you program Lego Mindstorms with the Scratch programming language?
If you wish to program the EV3 with Scratch, then check out this project on github:
https://github.com/koen-dejonghe/ev3-scratch-helper-app
This software is a so-called helper app, that interfaces ...
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9
votes
How can a Mindstorms robot lift something very heavy?
I'm assuming that you meant "the motor is not powerful enough".
Surely you can use a gearing ratio & leverage to assist? Essentially you want the motor to turn many times for each small amount of ...
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9
votes
What are some good purist rotacaster / omni wheel designs?
Here's a design I've been using, based on this model by Lambert Varias:
It's not a perfect circle, but it is relatively small all things considered:
It's pretty simple, but here's a partial ...
- 12.7k
8
votes
Pass sensor or motor port number as a parameter
Yes, it is possible to pass the port number as a parameter to a sensor or motor block via data wire. It's just that it's manually selected by default. To change this, go to the port of the sensor or ...
- 2,770
8
votes
What are the various LEGO motors that have been produced over the years?
For a comprehensive enumeration and measurements on all motors, refer to Philo's excellent page on this topic: http://www.philohome.com/motors/motorcomp.htm
There are some LEGO motors that are ...
- 13.8k
8
votes
Accepted
List of parts to buy for to "upgrade" existing Mindstorms NXT 1.0 to Mindstorms EV3 set?
I don't know of such a list, but you can find the inventory for the EV3 on Bricklink and other similar sites.
However, it would be more economical to buy an entire EV3 set. The 31313 retail set is ...
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8
votes
LEGO Mindstorms 9797 (NXT Education base set) Software Download
I contacted Lego and they gave me this link for a PC:
https://fileshare.corp.lego.com/node_share_links/119233?token=7a9527d5-cd94-491c-88b3-689587eae5ae
I don't have the link for a Mac, but you can ...
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8
votes
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How to load an RCX from a modern system?
Buy a USB to Serial adapter. There are USB IR Towers, but the drivers are only for older version of Windows. A new USB/Serial adapter, on the other hand, should be compatible with Windows 10 (Windows ...
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8
votes
Lego Mindstorms Ev3 home edition on Mac OS Mojave bug - bricks sometimes go blank
I contacted Lego support and they got back to me with a fix, which worked great. It also has greatly improved the performance of the application.
For this issue fix, please install Mono for Mac OS ...
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8
votes
Accepted
What are some good purist rotacaster / omni wheel designs?
I have copied a design by Isogawa Yoshihito
I prefer it over the Lambert Varias design as the wheels are positioned more radially
More pictures in this EuroBricks thread:
https://www.eurobricks.com/...
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8
votes
Accepted
How do the Infrared Towers work?
IR Transmitter Tower exist in both USB version as well as Serial cable version.
Page 7 of instructions for one of the sets (3804) that was using USB version has following explanation:
Transcription:
...
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7
votes
Accepted
Robot that builds a copy of itself
This seems pretty much bordering on the impossible, given the current state of (LEGO) engineering capabilities. What you are describing is a Von Neumann Machine and as far as I know nobody succeeded ...
- 13.8k
7
votes
Virtual LEGO / Technics / Mindstorms simulation environments
Recently I met with TeamSim. Its possibilities are impressing:
you can make own robot via LDD and export it to the program
you cam make own mat (FLL, WRO, sumo mats are already available)
you can ...
- 437
7
votes
Accepted
EV3 parallel MyBlocks, but only one working
I could not find this in the help file, but according to this thread "Another little known characteristic of MyBlocks is that they aren't re-entrant. No two copies of the same MyBlock can be running ...
- 8,678
7
votes
How can a Mindstorms robot lift something very heavy?
Pulleys and gears
With a range of pulleys and gears you can build something capable of lifting as much as 100 kilos with LEGO parts, albeit at the risk of putting enormous amounts of stress on the ...
- 17.3k
7
votes
Lego Mindstorms EV3: programming language recommendation
In general, would you recommend switching to a normal programming language (I am quite "fluent" in languages like C/C++, Python and Java) in order to avoid having to use blocks when building more ...
- 12.7k
7
votes
Does LEGO no longer support NXT 2.0 at all?
LEGO officially stopped supporting NXT in 2015, however, as of 2019, the original NXT programming software is still available on the official LEGO MINDSTORMS web page.
The original NXT programming ...
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6
votes
How to locate objects, and move towards them, without pre-programming the path
If the ultrasonic cannot echo-locate the objects because they're too small, even with the sensor suspended very close to the floor, I suggest using a very sensitive feeler out front. It can be ...
- 61
6
votes
Accepted
Dimensions of Mindstorms NXT pieces
Just measured them myself. Some of the dimensions might be just a little bit off, but I hope this suffices:
NXT:
Length: 111 mm
Width: ~71.7 mm
Height: 40 mm (extra 8 mm if you have a rechargeable ...
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6
votes
Does the Mindstorms EV3 software run on OS X El Capitan?
I've recently upgraded to OS X 10.11 El Capitan (as a matter of fact, I have the exact same model of computer). I've done some basic tests with the EV3 software without running into any issues. I've ...
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6
votes
EV3 Ultrasonic Sensor block is not availible in the Home Edition software
You can download the Ultrasonic sensor block (and Gyro sensor too) from the official MINDSTORMS website.
Look for "Ultrasonic Sensor Block" near the bottom of the downloads page.
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6
votes
What is the use of a single ultrasonic signal?
I'm not an EV3 expert, but my understanding is that continuous mode stores results into a buffer that can be read nearly instantly. Single mode will need to wait to hear a ping back before reporting ...
- 34k
6
votes
Accepted
Missing parts in a Lego Mindstorms box
If you have a brand new set, and a few parts are missing, you should definitely contact LEGO Customer Service, so they can send you the parts you are missing.
New sets with missing parts
We’re really ...
- 12.7k
Only top scored, non community-wiki answers of a minimum length are eligible