Plano has come out with a new line of colorful tackle box designs geared for arts and crafts storage. These are the Creative Options
line of Storage Boxes and Organizers. The color scheme is a avocado green base with a purple lid and gold handles. These storage units are excellent for storing small LEGO collections while providing portability.

Here are some of the available models:

Grab N’ Go Rack System with 2 Deep #2-3630’s and 1 #2-3650 -Avocado Base/Purple Lid/Gold Handle

It comes with Two Deep #2-3630’s and One #2-3650 Prolatch Utility Boxes and Bulk Top Storage. It has dimensions: 13.1 x 9.9 x 13.6 inches

Multi-Craft Rack System

This includes three 2-3650 and two 3449 utility boxes and a compartmentalized top access storage on lid and large bulk storage area. Its dimensions are 17-3/4-Inch (Length) x 9-3/4-Inch (Width) by 11-Inch (Height).

Creative Options Grab & Go Storage Box/Organizer

This includes four #2-3500’s Prolatch Utility Boxes and Bulk Top Storage. ITs dimensions are 11-Inch (Length) by 7-1/4-Inch (Width) by 10-Inch (Height)

Be sure to check out some new ideas at:
New LEGO Storage Opportunities

The Blossoming Lotus Kinetic Art

It is about 4 feet in diameter when completely extended and is pretty impressive. Its relatively easy to make. My design consists of constructing each petal with two interlocking pieces: a single-claw arm and a double-claw arm. The parts needed to make the two arms are illustrated below.

Parts for a Single Lotus Petal

To make the entire circle of petals, one needs 20 copies of each petal. The job then is to put them all together. I will post detailed instructions on a website in the near future. For now, here is a closeup of the blossom when completed.

Close Up of the Lotus Blossom

And of course, the project wouldn’t be complete without that animation above made with MLCAD, L3PAO, and POV Ray. The animation was straightforward—once you get the geometry right (which is not straightforward). I will post a lesson on the geometry and the animation of this creation in the future as well. For now, enjoy.

2. Build strong connections
We all know that when stacking bricks to make a wall, you need to stagger the bricks so that the next layer of bricks holds the bricks in the lower layer together by covering up the cracks.  This is one way to build strong connections.  You can do even better by bracing the wall with a beam by pinning it to technic bricks embedded in the wall.  By adding a few carefully chosen pieces, it is possible to significantly strengthen a structure.  Just be careful not to go crazy and violate Tip #1.

3. Be aware of design constraints
Every time you add a LEGO part to your creation, you limit the possibilities of what you can make.  When you have nothing you can make anything.  When you grab a brick, you can now only make things that have that brick in it.  Each part constrains the creation. Be aware of parts or constructs or mechanisms that place too strong of a constraint on your design.  You dont have to get rid of them, but just be aware of the role they play in constraining what you do next.

4. Dont become TOO attached to your creation.
Sometimes we find that we really really like a certain aspect of the construction or a set of parts, but nothing else works. The tendency is to get rid of everything else and then build up around those parts we really like. However, these parts are placing strong constraints on the design… often too strong, which is why nothing else works. The solution is to get rid of the problem. In this case, you have to get rid of the set of parts you like because it is over-constraining the rest of the design. You dont have to destroy it (see Tip #9)… just set it aside, but be sure to remove it from your creation.

5. Be open to new ideas.
There is always more than one way to solve a problem. Be open to new, and seemingly crazy ideas. Sometimes these lead to ingenious solutions. If you suspect that you are having problems similar to those described in Tip #4, take some time out to brainstorm and see if you can come up with a new idea!

6. Build in stages.
Designing a complex structure or mechanism in one step is almost impossible. Break the construction up into stages, and consider each stage separately. Sometimes a given stage will still be too complex. If so, break that construction up into stages as well. Just be aware of the dangers in Tip #4 above. Your solution for one stage might be awesome, but if it doesn’t work well with your solution as a whole… it has to go. Again, if you have enough parts, keep your creations. Otherwise, at the very least preserve their memory by building them in a LEGO Computer Aided Design (CAD) system.

7. Watch for opportunities.
Sometimes we get lucky and we find that a part or a set of parts can serve two or more functions. This is an excellent situation as it saves you both parts, size and weight. Watching out for these opportunities, and taking advantage of them when you can, can really help make an elegant and efficient design. Just be careful not to become too attached to the idea, as you could end up in trouble as described in Tip #4.

8. Study your design.
When you are all finished, take some time to study and test your design. Consider both form and function. When considering form, you are concerned mainly with aesthetics (beauty). What do you like about the design? What dont you like? Is it too big? Is it bulky? Can it be made smaller, sleeker, more elegant? When considering function, you are concerned mainly with its operation and effficiency. Does it do what it is supposed to? Do the parts go together well? Does it vibrate? Do the gears mesh properly? Does it get stuck? Is there too much friction in the system? Could it be smoother? Is it safeguarded against parts breaking in high torque situations? Then consider the big picture. What did you do right? What did you do wrong? If you could do it over again, what would you change?

9. Keep your designs
I have mentioned this tip several times above. If you have enough parts, and enough room, keep your creations. Otherwise, at the very least preserve their memory by building them in a LEGO Computer Aided Design (CAD) system and generate building instructions. That way you can keep a good idea. Who knows if it will come in handy later?

10. Do it over again!
When building mechanisms that require careful consideration of either form or function, you should plan to make several prototypes (a prototype is a first design). Don’t destroy what you just constructed. You may need to refer to it by copying a part of the design that worked well. You may also need to see if you have improved the form or function by comparing it to your first attempt. I personally plan to make at least three prototypes until settling down with a final design.

11. Color coordinate your creation
I dont apply this rule to my first prototypes, but as I settle in on a final design, I work to choose the brick colors carefully. Of course, we do not always have enough parts to do this, but it is worth the extra effort. Colors scattered all over a design leads the eye to seeing it as haphazard rather than elegant. A careful choice of colors can really enhance the form of your creation. You can also use colors to enhance the function by color-coding functional segments of your design. This is maybe better for illustrative purposes (as in a LEGO CAD design), but usually I choose the latter and aim for an elegant coloration.

Kevin Knuth
Albany NY

LEGO Technic Tora no Maki is a new book by ISOGAWA Yoshihito and is available on the internet for download.  He asks $10 to be paid, which is more than a fair price as this book boasts over 200 pages of images of over 1700 LEGO constructs.

Here is a sample page:

Download it from:
http://www.isogawastudio.co.jp/legostudio/toranomaki/en/

And don’t forget to pay the $10 if you can afford it.

Small Box Plano No. 2-3500-20 9-1/8″ Wide. x 1-1/4″ High x 5″ Deep Up to 9 adjustable compartments Order from Amazon.com These fit into the Plano 1354 Tackle Box below

Medium Box Plano No. 2-3650-20 11″ Wide x 1-3/4″ High x 7-1/4″ Deep Up to 18 adjustable compartments These fit into the Plano 1364 Tackle Box below

Large Box Plano No. 2-3750-20 14″ Wide x 2″ High x 9-1/4″ Deep Up to 20 adjustable compartments These fit into the Plano 1374 Tackle Box below

Plano 1354 Tackle Box (3500 size) I have found that the 1354 Tackle Box is a bit on the small side for even the smallest collections. You will be surprised at how many distinct kinds of Lego parts there are, when you find that they will never fit into the 9×4 compartments. However, this tackle box can hold 4 utility boxes, and you often can put an additional box in the top compartment. Order at Amazon.com

Plano 1364 Tackle Box (3650 size) This is a really nice size for a tackle box. I can easily store at least two NXT sets in this tackle box as well as many extra parts. Four Plano ProLatch 3650 stowaway boxes fit in the tray resulting in 4×18 = 72 compartments. I also manage to keep an additional 3650 box in the top of the tackle box. I can often work with just this subset of my collection. In addition, it makes travel easy. Plano 1364 Tackle Box at Amazon.com

Plano 1374 Tackle Box (3750 size) This tackle box can hold a large number of parts. The top bulk storage compartment is sufficiently large and deep to actually hold smaller robots! The 3750 size utility boxes are very spacious, and this tackle box comes with one of the newer Custom Divider System (CDS) utility boxes, and one flip-sider, which is good for fishing tackle, but not so useful for LEGO parts. For this reason, you may need to buy an extra 3750 box to replace the flip-sider. And you may want an extra 3750 to fit in the top compartment. Plano 1374 Tackle Box at Amazon.com

Akro-Mills 10724 24 Drawer Storage This organizer can hold a healthy supply of small LEGO parts. The organizer comes with partitions that can be inserted into the drawers allowing one to keep more parts.Overall Size: W=20″ H=15.81″ D=6.38″ (inches) Drawer Size: 4.25″ W x 5.25″ D x 2.0″ HI have three of these. One holds all of my pins and connectors. The second holds all of my axles and axle connectors, and the third holds all of my gears.

Akro-Mills 10124-2 44 Drawer Storage This organizer can hold a healthy supply of small LEGO parts. The organizer comes with partitions that can be inserted into the drawers allowing one to keep more parts.Overall Size: W=20″ H=15.81″ D=6.38″ (inches) Large Drawers: 4.38″ W x 5.25″ D x 2.0″ H Small Drawers: 2.13″ W x 5.25″ D x 1.50″ H

Akro-Mils 10764 64-Drawer Storage This organizer can hold many small LEGO parts. The organizer comes with partitions that can be inserted into the drawers allowing one to keep even more parts.Overall Size: W=20″ H=15.81″ D=6.38″ (inches) Small Drawers: 2.13″ W x 5.25″ D x 1.50″ H

Three Drawer Organizer I have found the Sterilite ClearView™ Wide Three Drawer Organizer 2093 to work very well. Its dimensions are suffciently large to hold a large number of brick. Or one could make partitions (they do not come with the drawer) to store a wide array of parts in a single drawer. At this point, I use 20 of these to store my bricks, plates, liftarms, wheels, and specialized NXT parts. The clear drawers make it easy to see what is inside, and one can easily afix large easy-to-read labels.The dimensions of the three drawer organizer is: 14 5/8″ L x 14 1/2″ W x 10 5/8″ H.

This tool chest when packed full holds: 4 large Plano 3750 compartment boxes 3 medium Plano 3650 compartment boxes 6 small Plano 3500 compartment boxesThis is in addition to the large top tray that can hold Mindstorm NXT bricks, a great deal of cabling, and other tools that you might need.The tool chest has a handle and wheels, which makes for easy transportation. Order from Amazon.com here.

See the more recent posts: COLORFUL LEGO STORAGE IDEAS and New LEGO STORAGE OPPORTUNITIES for more ideas.

Axle Joiner Perpendicular Constructs I
These LEGO constructs are even more sturdy and can be used as extremely strong braces. These are especially good for LEGO Mindstorms NXT projects.

Axle Joiner Perpendicular Constructs II
This figure shows the wide array of constructs that can be made with both the axle joiner perpendicular pieces. These pieces are constructed from either two or three of these joiners. An example showing seven of them is below. The number of combinations is staggering.

I have found such LEGO constructs to be especially useful in robotics applications.

Planar Constructs
This is a strange set where the construct has round holes that lie in a plane. Some of these constructs are quite strong, but the next set is even stronger still.  These construct provide alternative ways to stabilize axles.

Rectangular Constructs
The following rectangular constructs are typically much stronger than the previous constructs. These examples sport round holes at either the corners of the side centers.

Square Constructs
These squares are quite sturdy, and can be constructed to have a good number of round holes in the square interior. The constructs in the lower row enable one to firmly attach two beams at 90 degree angles to create cross shapes.

The LEGO Mindstorm NXT robotics system is an excellent testbed for research in machine learning and artificial intelligence.  At Knuthlab Robotics at the University at Albany, we are developing intelligent instruments using LEGOs.

Our first instrument is a robotic arm that is designed to locate a characterize a white circle on a black background using the LEGO light sensor.  It relies on Bayesian inference, which is implemented using a technique called Nested Sampling, which was developed by John Skilling.  This software allows the robot to learn the characteristics of the circle using the light sensor data that it has collected.  The real advance here is the inquiry engine, which uses Bayesian adaptive exploration to decide which measurements to take next.  It does this by considering all the possible measurements that it could take, and computes the expected gain in information from each possible measurement.  It then chooses to take the measurement with the greatest expected information gain.  The process then repeats as the robot learns about the circle.

The system is easily generalized to solving other problems, such as exploring rooms, interpreting people’s emotions, and doing real science.

We recently presented our research at the MaxEnt 2007 workshop in Saratoga Springs NY.  Below are links to a video of the talk, my slides, and our research paper.

Video: Designing Intelligent Instruments, K.H. Knuth

Slides: Designing Intelligent Instruments, K.H. Knuth

Research Paper:
Knuth K.H., Erner P.M., Frasso S. 2007. Designing intelligent instruments. K.H. Knuth, A. Caticha, J.L. Center, A. Giffin, C.C. Rodriguez (eds.), Bayesian Inference and Maximum Entropy Methods in Science and Engineering, Saratoga Springs, NY, USA, 2007, AIP Conference Proceedings 954, American Institute of Physics, Melville NY, In press.

Complex structures are almost always constructed hierarchically. Small parts are combined to create more complex medium-sized parts. Medium-sized parts are combined to create even more complex larger parts. To help speed up the process, it often helps to have a library of small useful constructs.
Think of these as META-PARTS.

Here we present a library of constructs that can in many cases act as liftarms for bracing various structures. Note that these designs can easily pull apart when you apply forces in certain directions—usually within the plane of their design. They will not be stable for constructions requiring that they withstand forces in those directions. However, if you need to brace against forces that are directed out-of-plane, or to prevent torsion (twisting). These constructs may help. If you are desperate, and are willing to sacrifice purity, a drop of superglue will do wonders.

The Concepts
There are three L-shaped pieces that LEGO produces: 2 x 4 L-shaped Liftarm, 3 x 5 L-shaped Liftarm, and the 3 x 3 L-shaped Liftarm Thin. These are shown in the top row of the figure below.

One can construct pieces that act like the L-shaped liftarms, although they have only two holes. Two such constructs can be seen in the bottom row of the figure above. These pieces can easily come apart if pulled in the right direction, so some considerations must be made as to whether they are appropriate. They are also not quite as stable as the liftarms (although in desperate situations, where precision and permanence is required, some superglue would take care of both problems).

Below, is a library of LEGO Meta-Parts. Clearly, some will be more useful than others. This library is in no way exhaustive, as there are very many ways to combine parts. For an interesting discussion on the number of ways to combine 2 x 4 LEGO bricks consult:

“On the Entropy of LEGO (TM)” by Bergfinnur Durhuus and Soren Eilers, 2005, arXiv:math/054039v2″

L-Shaped Constructs
Here are five L-shaped constructs: 2 x 3 , 3 x 3 , and 4 x 4.
Note that the ends of the 4 x 4 L-shaped construct can be replaced by the Technic Connector with cross hole (the blue pieces elsewhere in this figure). These pieces can also be extended as long as you wish by adding the 180 degree Technic Angle Connector #2.

T-Shaped Constructs
Here are five T-shaped constructs. Because the two on the top row (and the one on the bottom left) use an axle pin, they can twist, which may make them unsuitable for some applications. As you can see from the example on the bottom right, this is just the construct on the top left with the Technic Angle Connector #2 inserted.

S, U, W -Shaped Constructs
Here is a set of constructs that are shaped like the letters S, U, and W. The ones with two pin Axle Joiners are typically a little more wobbly than the others.

The next installment will describe other meta-parts.