lego News - CNX Software - Embedded Systems News

December 23, 2022December 23, 2022 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 6 Comments

LEGO brick with Raspberry Pi RP2040 runs Doom

James Brown (aka Ancient) has built a tiny computer inside a LEGO brick with a Raspberry Pi RP2040 microcontroller and a 0.42-inch OLED display. And yes, it runs Doom. So finally, the LEGO minifigures have access to a computer suitable for their size :). James did not post a lot of information to reproduce the build by yourself, but he still released the “uGrey” code, written in Micropython, to display greyscale on a monochrome OLED. We can learn from the design in a mesmerizing video (embedded at the end of this post) showing how he made a Raspberry Pi RP2040 computer fit into a LEGO brick. The tiny design is comprised of five main boards/modules: Raspberry Pi RP2040 module The micro USB module Two side modules with other components A 0.42-inch OLED display with 72×40 resolution (SSD1306) Since soldering the four modules together by hand only would be really challenging, […]

October 19, 2021October 20, 2021 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 3 Comments

LEGO Technic meets Raspberry Pi with the Build HAT

Raspberry Pi Build HAT with LEGO Technic

A new official Raspberry Pi expansion board is introduced today. The Built HAT provides four connectors for LEGO Technic motors and sensors from the SPIKE Portfolio, as well as an 8V DC jack to power both the Raspberry Pi and LEGO motors, sensors, LED matrix, and more. Designed in collaboration with LEGO Education, the Build HAT features the Raspberry Pi RP2040 dual-core ARM Cortex M0+ MCU for I/O control, and will enable more complex models benefiting from more powerful Broadcom BCM2xxx processors, as well as a Python library for easy programming. Build HAT key features and specifications: MCU – Raspberry Pi RP2040 microcontroller for low-level control of LEGO Technic devices 4x LPF2 connectors for LEGO Technic motors and sensors included in the SPIKE Portfolio 40-pin GPIO header for connection to Raspberry Pi 4 Model B, 3B+, 3B, 3A+, or Pi Zero family (Raspberry Pi 400 not supported) Misc – 2x […]

January 16, 2020February 22, 2021 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 4 Comments

Snekboard Controls LEGO Power Functions with CircuitPython or Snek Programming Languages (Crowdfunding)

LEGO has provided robotics kit for years, and LEGO blocks and accessories in general are great to build all sort of projects, so it’s not surprising third-parties have come up with LEGO-compatible boards and accessories for makers which include DFRobot BOSON kits, STEMTera smart breadboard, Brixo LEGO blocks with built-in electronics, and more. Snekboard is another option with the Microchip SAMD21 board designed to work with LEGO Power Functions motors and switches are programmable with MicroPyhon based CircuitPython or Snek programming languages. Snekboard hardware specifications: Microcontroller – Microchip SAMD21G18A Arm Cortex-M0 MCU with 256 KB flash and 32 KB RAM. Storage – 2MB SPI flash USB – 1x Micro USB port for power and programming Motor Control – 4x TI DRV8800 DC motor drivers tp provide up to 2.8A for LEGO motors and servos I/O- 8x GPIOs (3.3V) Misc – 2x RGB LEDs, 1x blue LED Power Supply 5V via […]

June 21, 2019February 22, 2021 by Tiwalade Joanna Okedara - 3 Comments

LEGO Minifigure shaped Mini SAM M4 Board Supports CircuitPython and Arduino

If you are a fan of the Lego movie. Perhaps you have always wanted to use Lego bricks to make something innovative and techy. Then the Mini SAM M4 board is here for you, as it is a LEGO minifigure-sized development board. Additionally, the design and layout of the board is based around the classic 1980’s ‘spaceman’, and is made by Ben Shockley. Although the board is very small, it has a lot of wonderful features. It comes with an analog reference decoupling/filtering capacitors. Also, it has an analog to digital ferrite bead, as well as a debounce circuitry for the reset and user buttons. Furthermore, the board’s software and firmware can be developed using CircuitPython or Arduino. The development board is either based on the Microchip SAMD51G 48-Pin 32-Bit ARM – Cortex M4F MCU (Mini SAM M4), or features the Microchip SAMD21G 48-Pin 32-Bit ARM Cortex -M0+ MCU running […]

May 25, 2017May 25, 2017 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 1 Comment

Flexible & Adhesive LEGO TAPE Could Be Useful for Makers / DIY Projects

I remember when the Raspberry Pi board first launched, there was no case, and LEGO case designs were popular, and there are certainly various ways you could use LEGO in your projects. But I’ve just discovered LEGO tape that could bring much more flexibility to your design. It’s just like LEGO, but flexible, and with an adhesive flat side, so you can cut it to any size you want, and stick it anywhere. “Back to Realitee” shop sells those for $12.95 for 1 meter tapes. available in various colors. This allows kids to play differently with LEGO by sticking to wall, or making special shapes. If times are stuff, and you’d like to spend less, Aliexpress has similar LEGO tapes, with the cheaper ones without a sticky side, so you’d have to use you own double sided sticky tape. Prices start at $0.89 shipped for 25cm, and $3.79 for 1 […]

May 2, 2016May 2, 2016 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - No Comments

Brixo are LEGO Blocks for IoT and Robotics Applications (Crowdfunding)

Brixo, an Israeli start-up, has designed LEGO compatible blocks – also called Brixo – that conduct electricity, embed sensors, Bluetooth connectivity LED lights, or even motors. You simply use them as any LEGO blocks, but you can control them using light, sound, or your smartphone. There are three type of blocks Connector blocks – Made of chrome and used to connect the trigger blocks to the action blocks. They act like wires. Trigger blocks – They include Bluetooth connectivity, a proximity sensor, a light sensor, or/and a sound sensor Action blocks – LED lights or motors blocks They also have a smart battery block with Bluetooth LE designed for a 9V rectangular battery. Now get some of your existing LEGO accessories, and start having fun. The demo below shows the battery block on the right, some connector blocks, and various triggers and action blocks. You don’t even need any smartphone […]

January 9, 2013 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 4 Comments

Lego Mindstorms EV3 Hackable Robots Run Linux

The LEGO Group has announced LEGO MINDSTORMS EV3, a new platform for consumer robotics designed for both younger generation and robotics enthusiasts, at CES 2013. MINDSTORMS system is powered by the new EV3 Intelligent Brick, that comes with more memory (64 MB + 16 MB internal flash memory) and a faster processor (ARM9 @ 300MHz), and runs a Linux-based firmware. EV3 Intelligent Brick also features an infrared port, a 178×128 LCD interface, a USB host port and SD expansion slot, and is now compatible with iOS and Android for remote control via Bluetooth 2.1. Thanks to 6 buttons present on the EV3, users can now program many functions directly, in addition to the ability to download programs from a desktop computer. Lego claims a simple robot can be built in 20 minutes without having to plug it into a PC. Beside EV3 intelligent brick, the set comes with 550 Lego Technic […]

October 14, 2011October 14, 2011 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 1 Comment

CubeStormer II Solves The Rubik’s Cube in 5.352 Seconds

Do you remember the ARM Android Based Rubiks Cube Solver ? Last year it could solve the puzzle in an average of 15 seconds. David Gilday has upgraded its robot with the help of Mike Dobson and named the device CubeStormer II. They released a video showing the CubeStormer II solve the Rubik’s Cube in 5.352 seconds, faster than the human world record (5.66 seconds). The mechanics are constructed entirely from LEGO, including four MINDSTORMS NXT kits, with the addition of a Samsung Galaxy S II smartphone running a custom Android app as the robot’s brain. The app uses the phone’s camera to capture images of each face of the Rubik’s Cube which it processes to determine the scrambled colours. The solution is found using an advanced two-phase algorithm, originally developed for Speedcuber (originally developed by Mike Dobson), enhanced to be multi-threaded to make effective use of the smartphone’s dual-core […]