LEGO Mindstorms and SPIKE Prime are great products with vast capabilities, but are often so complex that many people don't know how to use them. LEGO provides a walk-through of a few projects to build, which are cool, but after building these many people get stuck on "now what?" This book answers that question by showing the underlying principles required to build their own ideas.

This book is a hands-on tour of how machines work with LEGO-there's nothing like building a machine with your own two hands to understand how it works. It includes aspects of software engineering, mechanical engineering, and electrical engineering. As parts and associated engineering concepts are presented, they will be shown in their practical use with graphical step-by-step assembly instructions.

The concepts conveyed are mostly learned through building examples, with text explanation to reinforce the ideas being learned. Every engineering concept has a building example to go with it, in a quick build of less than 15 assembly steps. At the end of each chapter there's a project to tie the concepts of the chapter together of a little more complexity, involving 15 to 30 steps. These assembly steps are drawn with a computer aided design program that looks like the diagrams that LEGO produces for its products, so readers will be familiar with the look of the assembly directions.

What You'll Learn

• Layout a Word Blocks or Python computer program from scratch
• See how LEGO building elements are meant to be assembled
• Manipulate the power source of a rotating shaft from an electric motor
• Use gears to alter the speed and torque of a power train
• Change the motion from a rotating shaft to a desired action Basic mechanisms (turntable, differential, cam, ratchet, etc.) to
• Use sensors (motion, distance, light, color) to make interactive inventions
• Integrate mechanical, software, and electrical subsystems in a project

Who This Book Is For

The knowledge presumed in this book is basic familiarity in building with LEGO, having past experience with building a set of moderate complexity of more than a 100 pieces. Basic familiarity with operating a personal computer is also assumed, such as to install an app.

Likely interested readers are: LEGO fans looking for ways to build new and better inventions, middle-school and high-school age students who have an interest in science, math, and engineering, adults who like to learn how things work and tinker with inventions, and educators who use the SPIKE Prime set and are looking for new ideas for lesson plans.

Grady Koch is the author of several books about LEGO and the founder of the website hightechlego.com. He has a Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering and 35 years of experience as a research engineer at NASA Langley Research Center, where he has built optical and laser instruments that have been flown on aircraft and orbited the Earth. He has three patents in the field of lidar for studying the atmosphere and is the author or contributor of over 200 journal and conference publications. Throughout his career, Dr. Koch has mentored many interns and found that students sometimes need a little help in making the transition of what they've learned in classroom to real-world practice. These ideas of applying knowledge to practice are incorporated into his LEGO books.

Chapter 1: The Hub

Assembling and Charging the Hub

Controls and Displays

Front Panel Buttons

Displays and Speaker

LEGO Mounting Points

Exercise: The Motor Spinner

Building the Motor Spinner

Activating the Motor

Project: The Distance Spinner

Building the Distance Spinner

Using the Distance Spinner

Summary

Chapter 2: Programming

Using the Robot Inventor App

Installing and Updating the App

The Interface

Connecting the Hub

Updating the Hub Operating System

Exploring the Hub Screen

The Program Design Process

Writing the Algorithm

Drawing the Flowchart

Writing the Code

Coding in Word Blocks

Writing the Program

Writing Comments

Coding in Python

The Completed Program

Importing Code

Creating an Object and Assigning it to a Variable

Displaying Text on the Hub Screen

Beeping the Hub Speaker

Setting the Center Button Light

Waiting Ten Seconds

Ending the Program

Downloading and Running Code

Debugging and Troubleshooting

Project: The Dance Floor

The Word Blocks Code

The Python Code

Defining a Variable

Beginning the Loop and Checking for a Button Press

Setting the Center Button Light Color

Beeping the Hub Speaker

Lighting Up a Pixel

Setting the Tempo with a Delay

Incrementing a Variable

Checking the Value of a Count

Summary

Chapter 3: Building Elements

Liftarms

Straight Liftarms

Bent Liftarms

Rectangular Liftarms

Connecting Liftarms

Pins

Axles and Bushes

Exercise: Building Triangular Structures

Connectors

Exercise: Building Symmetric Objects with Connectors

Project: Mechanical Linkages

The Universal Joint

The Eccentric

Summary

Chapter 4: Gears

Gears in the MINDSTORMS Robot Inventor Set

Spur Gears

Beveled Gears

Speeding Up Rotation, or "Gearing Up"

Slowing Down Rotation, or "Gearing Down"

Exercise: The Many-Geared Machine

Direction of Rotation

Calculating the Gear Ratio for more than two Gears

Exercise: The Torque Demonstrator

Lowering Torque by Gearing Down

Increasing Torque by Attempting to Raise the Speed (and Failing)

Exercise: The Compound-Gear Spinner

Project: Two-Speed Transmission

Summary

Chapter 5: Mechanisms

Exercise: The Ratchet

Exercise: The Cam

Exercise: The Differential

Assembling the Differential

Building the Differential Demonstrator

Exercise: Turntables

Project: The Mechanized Cannon

Summary

Chapter 6: Motors

Speed and Angle

Exercise: The Speed and Angle Demonstrator

Controlling the Motor's Speed in Word Blocks

Controlling the Motor's Speed in Python

Setting the Motor's Angle in Word Blocks

Setting the Motor's Angle in Python

Exercise: Understanding Torque and Stall

Exercise: Powering a Vehicle with a Tank Drive System

Building the Tank

Programming the Tank

The Word Block Code

The Python Code

Exercise: Using a Motor as a Rotation Sensor

Building the Position Mimic

Programming the Position Mimic

The Word Blocks Code

The Python Code

Project: The Rear-Wheel Drive Car

Building the Rear-Wheel Drive Car

Programming the Rear-Wheel Drive Car

The Word Blocks Code

The Python Code

Summary

Chapter 7: The Motion Sensor

Tilt Angle: Yaw, Pitch, and Roll

Exercise: Programming with Tilt Data

Measuring Tilt Angles in Word Blocks

Measuring Tilt Angles in Python

Orientation

Exercise: Generating Cat Sounds Based on the Hub's Orientation

The Word Blocks Code

The Python Code

Other Motion Sensor Measurements: Gyro Rate and Acceleration

Project: The Up Pointer

Building the Up Pointer

Programming the Up Pointer

The Word Blocks Code

The Python Code

Summary

Chapter 8: The Distance Sensor

Using the Distance Sensor

Exercise: The Ultrasonic Tape Measure

Programming the Ultrasonic Tape Measure

The Word Blocks Code

The Python Code

Project: The Scanning Cannon

Building the Scanning Cannon

Programming the Scanning Cannon

The Word Blocks Code

The Python Code

Summary

Chapter 9: The Color Sensor

Exercise: The Brightness Beeper

Programming the Brightness Beeper

The Word Blocks Code

The Python Code

Project: The Color Sorter

Building the Color Sorter

The Baseplate

The Chute

The Pusher

The Basket

Final Assembly

Programming the Color Sorter

The Word Blocks Code

The Python Code

Summary

Appendix: Parts lists for Exercises and Projectsapter 1: The Hub.- Chapter 2: Programming.- Chapter 3: Building Elements.- Chapter 4: Gears.- Chapter 5: Mechanisms.- Chapter 6: Motors.- Chapter 7: The Motion Sensor.- Chapter 8: The Distance Sensor.- Chapter 9: The Color Sensor