Front of Mindstorms box
Back of Mindstorms box
Open cover of Mindstorms box
Inside of Mindstorms box
RCX
Other Unofficial LEGO Mindstorms Sites
General Topic
Programming
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What I've learned so far (in no particular order)...
- Where to order Mindstorms in the United States.
- I called the LEGO US office at 800-243-4870.
Those residing in the US can also order it from LEGO's online catalog on the
Tiger Direct storefront.
The LEGO Mindstorms site leads directly to this store front.
- Current Prices (November 1998) is US Dollars.
- Robotics Invention System: $219.99. RoboSports: $49.99. Extreme Creatures. $49.99.
- Part #, Price, & Shipping Information.
- The Mindstorms part number is 9719.
The list price was $200 USD in August 1998.
My shipping cost was $19 USD.
It was shipped via USPS (United States Postal Service) Priority Mail.
- Time to deliver the product.
- I ordered my kit on the evening of September 2 (Wednesday).
It arrived on September 5 (Saturday).
- Compatible PC Operating Systems
- Windows 95 and NT (and probably 98). No support for Windows CE, Macintosh, Linux.
- Power Source
- 6 AA batteries for the RCX. 9V for the Infrared transmitter.
Alkaline batteries are recommended. No mention of pros or cons
of rechargeable batteries.
Non-polarized 9 to 12V A/C transformer input also available on RCX.
- Default power down time
- 15 minutes. Can be set to between 1 and 99 minutes.
Power down time can also be set to infinity.
This is useful when using the optional A/C adapter.
- Cable Interface
- DB9-to-DB9 serial cable. DB9 to female-DB25 adapter provided.
- Optimal distance between RCX and Infrared Transmitter
- 4 o 6 inches (approx. 10 to 15 cm).
However, it is possible to communicate up to 90 ft (approx. 27m)
using the Long-Range setting.
- RCX features
- Three input ports: Three gray 4-stud bricks above LCD labeled 1, 2, 3.
Three output ports: Three black 4-stud bricks below LCD labeled, A, B, C.
Four control buttons (View, On-Off, Prgm, Run).
LCD display.
- Number of built-in RCX programs
- Five (5). These programs can be overwritten.
- LEGO Mindstorms Membership Card
- What is it? A card with a membership number to allow you access
to special areas within the
LEGO Mindstorms website.
- Different Kits
- Robotics Invention System, RoboSports, Extreme Creatures, Exploration Mars.
- Inside Spirit OCX
- News article posted to rec.toys.lego by Patrick R. Gili.
Click here to read what Patrick found.
More information can be found at
Scott Holdren's Spirit.OCX web site.
Information about creating a wrapper using Visual C++ 5 can be found
in Bjarne Rene's newsgroup article linked here.
- Extra Mindstorm Set Pieces
- News article posted to rec.toys.lego by Dave Baum.
Click here to read what Dave found.
- Official LEGO Programmable Bricks Reference Guide
- This is a link to LEGO's Technical Reference Document (467KB)
and sample Visual BASIC project (4KB).
- RCX Internals
- Description and photos
on Kekoa Proudfoot's web site.
- Mindstorms Internals
- Russell Nelson's
description of LEGO Mindstorm internals
- Description of Electronic Components
- Ralph Hempel's
description of Mindstorm's electronic components
based on Kekoa's RCX photos.
- Technical overview of the H-8/3297/3296/3294/3292 CPU.
- Where to buy Dacta sensors for use with Mindstorms
- Pitsco LEGO Dacta
From a Lapsed LEGOer: First Things I Needed to Learn...
- How do the motors work? E.g, reversing the power connectors reverse the motor direction.
- How do I create a stable motor enclosure/mount? Lots of trial and error.
- How can I use the built-in RCX programs to quickly test ideas?
I.e., concentrate on the LEGO aspect before starting to program.
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