Product Description

LEGO Mindstorms robots can do more than you ever imagined! The secret: go beyond the built-in tools, and leverage the full power of Java -- the world's hottest programming language. Core LEGO Mindstorms shows you how, step-by-step -- as you build sophisticated robots and custom sensors that will amaze you. No matter what version of LEGO Mindstorms you own -- 1.0, 1.5, 2.0, even the USB version -- this book will take you farther than ever before. Brian Bagnall guides you through installing leJOS, a full-fledged Java Virtual Machine for the programmable RCX "brick" that gives LEGO robots their intelligence. Next, you'll master each key programming task step-by-step, with practical examples and photographs. You'll master behavior control programming, a simple but brilliant concept developed at MIT. Then, working from beautifully rendered 3-D plans, you'll walk through constructing five unique robots, each capable of increasingly powerful navigation. In later chapters, you'll walk through building and programming powerful custom sensors, including proximity sensors -- and even the "Holy Grail" of navigation sensors: the compass sensor. Bagnall concludes by introducing several powerful new techniques for advanced programmers.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #156832 in Books
• Published on: 2002-03-21
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 560 pages

From the Back Cover

• Complete 3-D plans for building five unique robots
• Advanced control techniques—including distance and compass sensors
• Behavior control programming, the breakthrough methodology invented at MIT
• For LEGO Mindstorms Robotics Invention System, versions 1.0, 1.5, and 2.0

Your LEGO Mindstorms robots can do more than you ever imagined. The secret: go beyond the built-in tools, and leverage the power of the Java platform—the world's hottest programming technology.

Core LEGO Mindstorms shows you how, step by step. Working from beautifully rendered 3-D plans, you'll construct five unique robots-each capable of increasingly powerful navigation. You'll build and program two powerful custom sensors-an accurate distance sensor and the "Holy Grail" of navigation sensors: the compass sensor.

Brian Bagnall, co-creator of the leJOS Java Virtual Machine for LEGO Mindstorms, starts with the absolute basics then teaches you sophisticated, never-before-published techniques for controlling LEGO Mindstorms robots. No matter what version of LEGO Mindstorms you own, this book will teach you how to build robots with remarkable intelligence and amazing power.

• Installing leJOS, the Java Virtual Machine designed for the LEGO Mindstorms RCX programmable controller
• Setting up your Java platform development environment for LEGO Mindstorms
• Programming rotation and custom sensors
• Using behavior control programming, the biologically inspired MIT breakthrough in robot control
• New techniques for improving navigation accuracy
• Gathering map data and transmitting it back to your computer
• For LEGO Mindstorms RIS versions 1.0, 1.5, and 2.0—including USB versions

About the Author

BRIAN BAGNALL is a Sun Certified Java Programmer and Developer and co-author of the Sun Certified Programmer for Java 2 Study Guide. He is a key programmer of leJOS, a Java SDK for Lego Mindstorms. Bagnall also develops distributed processing solutions for businesses with supercomputing requirements and has worked for IBM and other leading computer companies.

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.

Preface

There are 718 LEGO pieces in the latest version of the Robotics Invention System. Depending on how you look at it, 718 can either seem like a large number or a small number. In the grand scheme of things, 718 seems like a small number to me. Of those pieces, 129 are unique LEGO parts (not including color differences). Looking around me, I'd say the Robotics Invention System can build a decent representation of just about everything in this room. It can build a desk, a chair, a primitive speaker, a spinning globe, a blender, a clock (digital or analog), or probably even a simulation of a CD player. Outside my domain, the kit could produce models of automobiles, subway cars, boats, or almost any man-made machine. Looking to nature, it could create simulations of spiders, ants, scorpions, dogs, cats, and whales. True, the kit by itself can't reproduce everything in the world. It can't reproduce the envelope of a helium balloon or a complete BMW assembly line, but the things it can't do are far outweighed by the things it can. And there are probably things it can build that no one has ever thought of! I'm going to go out on a limb and estimate that 718 pieces can create an infinite number of models. From this logic, it's easy to see that 718 equals infinity.

It's no exaggeration to say that LEGO MINDSTORMS has done for robots what Henry Ford did for automobiles. LEGO has managed to put robots in the hands of ordinary people. The standardized parts and common languages means sharing of ideas in robotics is happening on a scale that has never occurred before. A brief search of the web to shows just how much MINDSTORMS has permeated through cyberspace.

If you already own the Robotics Invention System, congratulations! You have almost everything you need to create some amazing robots. The only remaining tool you need is a truly powerful programming language, and that is what this book will present to you. The language is Java, one of the most universally accepted programming languages in computers today, and this book will show how to use Java to push MINDSTORMS to the limit.

This book is not a compilation of projects, (of which there are several good ones on the market). The aim of this book it to give you the knowledge and tools you need to turn your ideas into reality, not someone elses. All the projects in this book are presented because they have some sort of lasting value. If this book has done its job, hopefully you will be surprised by what you didn't know MINDSTORMS could do.

This book will also solve the greatest mystery of the MINDSTORMS kit-what the grey foot-pedal looking part is for (see Figure below). To my know-ledge, no one has yet discovered what this part does or how it is used. Not even the actual LEGO MINDSTORMS engineers who designed the part understand what it is for. Chapter 5 will answer this age old mystery.

About this Book

Chapter 1 is an introduction to the Robotics Invention System. This chapter covers just the main components of the kit, including software, the RCX brick, and the IR tower. It also introduces other kits and products that can expand your MINDSTORMS universe.

Chapter 2 is a basic introduction to leJOS, the Java platform for the RCX brick. It covers a bit of background on leJOS, the basic features that distinguish it from other RCX development tools, and instructions on how to install leJOS as well as a powerful IDE.

Chapter 3 is a high-speed introduction to Java. Those who are familiar with Java may opt to just skim the Notes and Warnings, which point out differences between leJOS Java and Sun's Java.

Chapter 4 demonstrates, through code examples, how to access motors, sensors, and other components of the RCX brick using Java.

Chapter 5 is an encyclopedia of the Robotics Invention System parts. It goes through each of the 129 unique parts of the kit so you can put a name to the part and identify all the uses. If you ever wondered what the other versions of the kit contained, this is where you can find out. There is also a section on common LEGO structures that will help you to rapidly build key structures.

Chapter 6 introduces the concept of Behavior Control programming, a technique of programming insect level, behavior based intelligence. The leJOS API contains several classes for programming your own behavior control, making this an easy and powerful addition to robotics programming.

Chapter 7 begins the concept of navigation. The first part of the chapter lays out the fundamental concepts of navigation and tries to impress upon the reader a true understanding of just what it is about navigation that makes it so difficult for robots. It then moves on to real world examples of navigation programming using leJOS.

Chapter 8 continues the topic of navigation, but this time using a pair of rotation sensors to achieve even more accurate navigation than possible with timing methods.

Chapter 9 presents unique ways of detecting objects before the robot collides with them. The first part of the chapter shows how to build a simple proximity detector using only the pieces contained in the kit. More ambitious MINDSTORMS users can build an accurate distance sensor from raw electronic components. I have endeavored to make the instructions for assembly as clear, simple and precise as possible so even those completely unfamiliar with electronics will be able build this powerful sensor. The last part of this chapter shows how to build a classic robot project, the wall follower.

Chapter 10 is the third and final chapter dealing with navigation. This chapter shows how to assemble a compass sensor, which is useful for determining the orientation of the robot using the earths magnetic field. Though more difficult than the proximity sensor, this sensor worked the very first time I plugged the components into the bread board, so most readers shouldn't encounter any problems with this project.

Chapter 11 introduces the topic of communications. The RCX is capable of communicating with other devices that use Infrared signals. This includes the PC, the LEGO Remote Control, and other RCX bricks. The powerful java.io API is available on the leJOS platform, making communications with a PC that much easier. This chapter also shows how to control the RCX brick from a PC across the Internet using a remote program, an embedded applet, or from a plain old web page.

Chapter 12, the final chapter of the book, covers advanced topics. Here you can learn everything you never wanted to know about leJOS. Since memory is always on the mind of an RCX programmer, this chapter describes memory saving strategies that can help you squeeze that last little bit of code on board the RCX. Another interesting aspect of the leJOS JVM is that Java is not the only language that it can execute! The leJOS JVM is also capable of running other languages, such as Forth, NetRexx, and dozens of others. There is also a writeup on how to port leJOS to other processors, something for only the most advanced users.

The appendices will give you some valuable information on leJOS and the RCX. There is a section on ordering sensors, kits, and other parts you may not even have known existed. Ordering electronics parts can be such an art-form that an entire Appendix is dedicated to this topic. There is also a section on the burgeoning utilities available for leJOS. Finally, no book on LEGO MINDSTORMS would be complete without a section of web resources.

Companion Web Site

This book has a companion Web site to provide you with updates and other material. It is located at www.phptr.com/bagnall

Customer Reviews

I really enjoyed this book
Brian succeeds brilliantly in the difficult tasks of introducing the reader to the Java language, to the Mindstorms system and to some programming techniques peculiar to robotics, and he does this in such a pleasant way that he doesn't even realize he's learning new concepts.

The book gives you enough elements of the Java language to make you immediately productive in using it with your Mindstorms kit, without including details about the language which would have made the book unnecessarily heavy. It won't make you a professional Java programmer, but it's not its goal.

From this foundation, Brian introduces you to some of the most powerful programming techniques aimed at robotics - like behavior control and navigation - using simple and clear examples.

The robots are nice and very well documented, and I have no doubt you will find them instructive and inspiring. And their code is well tested and ready to use.

Brian's style is very pleasant: he is able to always keep the your attention, never boring you explaining obvious concepts nor entering complex maters without the necessary gradualness. A touch of thin humour here and there makes the reading of this book a great experience.

To conclude:
- If you already know Java and want to learn how to use it for your Mindstorms robots, this book is for you.
- If you don't know Java, but want to push your Mindstorms beyond the limits of the LEGO software and are challenged by the opportunity to learn a new language, this book is for you as well.

This book definitely deserves its place in your bookcase among the best Mindstorms books.

Java@YourCommand
This book is a great guide to using Lejos (the Java Virtual Machine for the RCX). It starts with a basic java tutorial and an introduction to Lego Mindstorms and Lejos. The tutorial is far from complete and is not "beginner proof". Therefore I recommend that you have some basic programming skills before reading this book. The book goes on to cover several cool topics including behavior control, navigation and communication. It has two electronic projects in which you make a proximity sensor and a compass sensor. Although it has very clear instructions(it has pictures and written descriptions), I think that these projects would not be easy for a person with little experience with electronics to do. Also to complete one section of this book you need to purchase two lego rotation sensors. These can be bought at the lego-pitsco dacta shop which is located at pldstore.com I particulary like the communication section which shows how to control a robot from a web page, how to make a robot that can plot its course on a map etc. I highly recommend this book.

Robotics? Start Here!
If you are at all interested in robotics and have made the perhaps surprising discovery that there is a relatively inexpensive but remarkably sophisticated robotic modelling kit readily available, then you have discovered the Lego Mindstorms Robotic Invention System. This is a system that incorporates motors, gearing and both touch and light sensors, to put it succinctly. Once you have got over the idea that this engineering kit masquerades as a child's toy, it may reassure you to know that the average age of a Mindstorms user is 30. Lego does provide a programming environment with the R.I.S. so that you can control the robots you construct from your PC, but if you want to take things a step further, then Brian Bagnall's book is the next essential item. Bagnall is co-author of the leJOS Java Virtual Machine, which is a stripped down version of Java, specifically designed for programming the Lego RCX processor (the heart of the R.I.S. system). leJOS can be downloaded from the internet and you can then download its firmware to the RCX brick, which affords you a much greater degree of control than that provided by Lego.
The book shows you how, and assuming no prior knowledge, guides you through all the necessary stages. Chapter 3 is a comprehensive Java primer and it is theoretically possible for someone with no Java experience at all to start here, although I wouldn't like to try it myself. On the other hand, if you know another programming language and something about the principles of Object Oriented Programming, then I'm sure that this chapter would be sufficient. The book contains a wealth of useful information concerning all matters Lego and Java - it not only tells you where to get more exotic sensors than those provided by Lego but also shows you how to make them. The importance of trigonometry in navigation is explained in such a way that even math phobics will be able to understand it - Bagnall's writing style is always crystal clear and avoids the jargonism of much `scientific' writing. The book is lavishly illustrated and there is a very sensible emphasis towards the practical side of things. It is a book that you will learn from, but it is also that rare thing, a book that makes learning a genuinely enjoyable experience.