Mindboards

I was scrolling through Youtube the other day and I cam upon this...



I think it's the best idea ever! I makes it so you can be lazy and mom would like it because the lack of germs you get.

I have seen this before. But it is still cool.

The problem with these things is that you have to turn them on and off every use, (which uses more energy than just pressing the lever) and, unless you are only using it temporarily, you have just wasted $250 on a toilet flusher.

Don't get me wrong, it's a cool concept, just not practical.

You wouldn't need to switch it on and off if you have a battery pack and charger Problem solved!

- Xander

sqiddster wrote:The problem with these things is that you have to turn them on and off every use, (which uses more energy than just pressing the lever) and, unless you are only using it temporarily, you have just wasted $250 on a toilet flusher.

Don't get me wrong, it's a cool concept, just not practical.

You wouldn't need to switch it on and off if you have a battery pack and charger Problem solved!

Xander is right you don't need to keep turning it on and of.

Hmm, I never considered that possibility
I guess the only thing then, is that I couldn't bear wasting a whole NXT set on something like this... I would itch to use it for another project. Although some other people hae more willpower then me, in these cases

Or, you could use a 9V power adapter like Philo did here. And, instead of using a $140 dollar NXT that could well be used elsewhere, I'd stick in a ucontroller like a Picaxe 08M or an ATiny into a project box along with a Sharp distance sensor and a servo or something to "actuate" the handle. Of course, then it's not Mindstorms .

Exactly, nxtreme, that was my whole point. Typically long use, useful robots are not a job for lego. Of course there are exceptions (It's mindstorms after all) but this is generally the case from my experience.

sqiddster wrote:Exactly, nxtreme, that was my whole point. Typically long use, useful robots are not a job for lego. Of course there are exceptions (It's mindstorms after all) but this is generally the case from my experience.

Cost aside, regular Lego/Technic pieces just aren't made to stand up to long term use either. Several creations I've made for display at science fairs and such have run for an hour or two and by then any moving piece is coated in ABS plastic dust. It just wears too fast. You could use some sort of lubricant to keep parts from wearing so fast but it's usefulness is limited as well (Vaseline might work too). The best way to reduce wear is to reduce strain on parts by creating redundant gear trains ect. but that can get complicated.

The upside of Lego is you can create a "concept" in hours instead of days. Machining all your own parts can get tiresome and problematic.

nxtreme wrote:Cost aside, regular Lego/Technic pieces just aren't made to stand up to long term use either. Several creations I've made for display at science fairs and such have run for an hour or two and by then any moving piece is coated in ABS plastic dust.

Maybe that also depends on how you design and build. I have had GBC modules working for 10 hours over the course of two days and not sustaining any noticeable damage whereas others did show signs of wear, but only after really long periods of continuous use.