LEGO.com MINDSTORMS Meet the MDP's Bryan Bonahoom

Bryan Bonahoom
From:
Fort Wayne, Indiana, USA (a.k.a. - middle of nowhere)

What I do besides building with MINDSTORMS:
As little as possible...okay...I play with LEGOs and strive to beat Steve Hassenplug in competitions. To support my LEGO "habit," I am an engineer & manager in the aerospace industry. I spent 18 years as (and this is true) a rocket scientist. My college degree is Computer/Electrical Engineering.

Why I signed up for the MDP:
I can think of two bad reasons and one good reason. You can choose which is which:
1) As John Brost said - To get my NXT before everyone else, duh!!
2) To keep up with Steve Hassenplug in competitions
3) To give back to the LEGO community that has given so much fun to me -
PLAY WELL!!

Experience with MINDSTORMS:
…is expanding quickly!!! I got my first MINDSTORMS kit a couple years ago (okay, now I have 2 NXTs, 5 RCXs and 2 Spybots). I used NQC for a while, but migrated to BrickOS and *real* C language programming. I was part of the MINDSTORMS Developer Program (MDP) and compete against both LEGO and non-LEGO robots whenever possible.

NXT Project: W.O.P.R.

About this NXT Project:
W.O.P.R. – The War Operations Planned Response computer from the 1980’s movie War Games is brought back to life in a tic-tac-toe playing robot. The difference – this robot actually plays pieces along with drawing the game board – and this robot does not have the ability to play a game of Global Thermonuclear War…though based on the advancement of computer technology, this W.O.P.R. probably has more computing power than the 80s movie computer.

This W.O.P.R. also has 3 levels of strategy (beginner, intermediate and expert) so that even the little kids can enjoy the game by beating it once in a while.


The robot is waiting for a challenger to step up.	Game play is ready to begin. The robot tracks the game on the NXT display.

W.O.P.R. makes a move, extending its eye and its arm to place a cube.	Ultimately, you make a mistake and W.O.P.R. wins the game!

NXT Project: Skidmark

About this NXT Project:
Skidmark was designed to maneuver over a 10 cm wall to compete in the MDP Grand Challenge. Skidmark successfully cleared the wall from 1.5 meters without touching the wall. The whole maneuver (start of the robot until the wall was cleared) took 1.9 seconds. This was enough to win the challenge.

Skidmark operated by approaching the wall and stopping at a set distance from the wall. Momentum would cause Skidmark to topple forward when it stopped. The forward wheel clears the wall, contacting the table surface. The weight of the NXT and the motor on top (used as a weight) caused the hinge at the base of the NXT to continue toward the table surface. This lifted the back wheels and drive motor high enough to clear the wall. Then the front wheel would lift off the surface and the momentum of the robot would cause it to skid forward until the robot was completely past the wall.

Watch the Skidmark Movie

NXT Project: CAS - stands for Collision Avoidance System

About this NXT Project:
CAS is a steerable vehicle that senses when it is approaching an object. CAS then backs up and turns to avoid the object. CAS can be programmed to resume it's original course after avoiding the object, but for now, it randomly turns left or right. In theory, this is a good way for a demo robot to work as it won't tend to run off in any one direction :)

CAS features a differential that is made from pieces in the standard NXT kit. CAS can run on carpet (not too deep of a pile) or on hard surfaces. CAS is geared up to move at a resonably fast speed.

NXT Project: NXT Lifter

About this NXT Project:
NXT Lifter was constructed to use in the Lego booth at the FIRST World Festival in Atlanta. It was constructed to be used as a remotely controlled vehicle. It employeed a homemade differential and front wheel steering. The third motor was attached to a fork lift mechanism that lifts vertically for a couple of inches and then tilts backwards. The RCX is being lifted and carried away by the NXT in the picture. The NXT Lifter was constructed using parts from the standard NXT kit.

NXT Project: FLL Rover

About this NXT Project:
FLL Rover was designed to complete the Ocean Oddessy missions with an NXT. The attachments (not shown) work in conjunction with the third motor on the front of the rover. FLL Rover is capable of scoring 400 points.

My Links

My Website