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Hi,
I'm really into pneumatics because they can allow you to make "smart"
mechanisms that do not require the RCX and sensors.
When I first found out about LEGO pneumatics, I got quite excited because I
thought I could map much of what I know about computer and digital logic design
to pneumatics allowing me to create complicated and advanced technic and
robotics models.
It took me a while to map things from the computer technology to pneumatics,
but I've got a good handle on it now.
I figured out two things: how to make boolean AND and OR logic gates using
pneumatic pistons and switches, and how to make synchronous pneumatic logic.
I originally made a pneumatic adding/subtracting machine using an OR gate
design that was mechanically complex, and slow. My original design was named
PneumAddic.
http://www.users.qwest.net/~kclague/pneumaddic/index.htm
One day it hit me that I was making the gate design too complex, and came up
with a much simpler, faster, more reliable gate design, that didn't require as
high a pressure as my original design. I also realized that it was easy to
make either an AND or an OR gate just by making a minor change to the
mechanism. Using these new gate designs, I was able to create a much faster
PneumAddic that performed more of the arithmetic in penumatics. My new design
is called PneumAddic II.
Using synchronous techniques, I was able to reduce my original pneumatic
capterpillar:
http://www.users.qwest.net/~kclague/caterpillar/index.htm
From two cyliners and two switches per caterpillar body segment, down to
http://www.users.qwest.net/~kclague/synchropillar/index.htm
one switch and one piston per caterpillar body segment.
Also the synchronous caterpillar walks faster than the asynchronous version
(the original), because the asynchronous circuit spends half its time cycling
back to the walking phase. Synchropillar does not.
Synchropillar is a *very* simple example of synchronous pneumatic design.
I've got many more things to create using this.
My question is: Are people interested in a technical talk at BrickFest about
these pneumatic design technigues?
Kevin
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