https://archive.org/details/radio_electronics_1985-05/page/n...
Transactor Magazine volume 7, issue 4 (1987 ) had an article on interfacing it to a C64:
https://archive.org/details/transactor-magazines-v7-i04/mode...
https://colorcomputerarchive.com/repo/Documents/Magazines/Ho...
>By moving the joystick (a mechanical linkage), you select one of a series of rotating cams that connect a gear to the power shaft. This is probably the worst design possible for modification to electronic control.
At the time I was disappointed that it didn't use (non-existing) motors already in the Armatron but looking back at it with an understanding of the mechanical design, it's easy to see why they went with that decision. The only other choice would have been to connect to the joysticks themselves. The added motors probably improved the operation quite a bit.
It was like the sound of a pile of silverware dumped into a garbage disposal played at full volume over an AM radio.
Great controls, though.
Though Blip used batteries, it didn't go through them anywhere near the rate something like Head-to-Head football did. The baseball game was completely human powered, making them both far more useful in our rural area where batteries weren't available without a trip to town. Plus batteries were an added expense.
> “I didn’t have a period where I studied engineering professionally. Instead, I enrolled in what Japan would call a technical high school that trains technical engineers, and I actually [entered] the electrical department there,” he told me.
I think this approach is sorely needed again, in the US at least.
I did go to study CS after high school (despite getting a job midway through my senior year), but I still draw on the things I learned in high school every day. It was great. Gave me a lot of practical foundations.
Disclaimer: I work for a subsidiary of KUKA.
This toy probably equally inspired kids to go into robotics, or to design automotive transmissions.
It was a disappointing setup and I don't think I put it back together.
I was disappointed with how it worked as well. The motor was reused in a different project later, there was no hope in me putting this one back together.
They were marvels. The only "practical" way to convert them was to put solenoids on the controls to drive them and it was impractical for any repeatable fine grain control. If I ever get a chance to meet the person behind that design I'd certainly buy them a round of their favorite beverage.
I wonder how far you could get in 2025 with cnc routers/lasers and 3d printers.
"In 2020, LEGO introduced the SPIKE Prime kit as the next-generation successor to LEGO MINDSTORMS EV3, boasting upgraded hardware, a more robust processor, and an improved programming environment designed for enhanced user-friendliness and intuitiveness. Following this, in 2021, LEGO launched SPIKE Prime Essential, specifically tailored for elementary-level students, incorporating age-appropriate components like mini-figures and mini-figure props within the kit. Nevertheless, its deliberate simplicity, while catering to younger learners, results in a lack of complexity." [1]
[1] LEGO SPIKE Essential or SPIKE Prime?
https://www.cmu.edu/roboticsacademy/spike-essential-or-prime...
brudgers•9mo ago