Use LEGO Sensors and Actuators with the Build HAT
Frankenstein Pi
© Lead Image © lineartestpilot, 123RF.com
The Build HAT combines the latest generation of LEGO electronics with the Raspberry Pi. This enables significantly more complex projects and breathes new life into LEGO bricks that might otherwise have reached the end of their usefulness.
For just EUR27 (~$31), the Raspberry Pi Build HAT lets you connect the world of LEGO to the Raspberry Pi. LEGO sensors, motors, and lights attach to the Build HAT's four gray connectors at the top (Figure 1). You can then activate and control all of the connected components using Python on the Raspberry Pi. Python, in particular, enables significantly more complex applications than what LEGO sets were actually designed for, while at the same time making LEGO building blocks more interesting for adults. Having said this, the Build HAT developers have placed several hurdles in the way of exciting DIY projects.
Figure 1: The Build HAT connects a motor and a color sensor from the Spike set to the Raspberry Pi.
In addition to its classic legacy blocks – which have caused many a painful moment for parents walking barefoot through the living room – LEGO offers several robot construction kits. These kits are primarily designed to introduce younger students to science and programming in a playful way. Besides numerous LEGO Technic parts, the kits also contain a handful of sensors and motors, which are typically controlled by a central brick that children can program with a colorful app that's modeled on the Scratch visual programming language [1].
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