Controlling Lego Trains from a PC! (Brick Automation Project)
Vložit
- čas přidán 29. 10. 2022
- In this video we will be taking a look at the Brick Automation Project software. While the software can be used for automating Lego trains and other Lego Powered Up devices, this video is just a introduction to the basic functions.
The software can be downloaded here
lgauge.com/article.php?articl...
These are the Bluetooth adapters I tested
ASUS BT400: www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00...
Plugable: www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00...
My video on how I control my Lego trains using Powered Up and PyBricks
• Controlling Multiple L...
My video on controlling Lego train switch tracks remotely
• Controlling Lego train...
Join my discord channel! / discord
Follow me on Twitter for updates / bpbricks
Instagram: / batterypoweredbricks
Music: "Starmachine2000, Valentine, Moon and Star" by Wintergatan
These tracks can be downloaded for free at www.wintergatan.net
Free License to use these tracks in your video can be downloaded at www.wintergatan.net - Věda a technologie
Excellent. You get an A+ from Mom!
deffintly going to try this when i have my set up ready
This looks great! I’m definitely going to have to try this, especially when I need to control multiple trains at the same time. Thank you for making this video!
No problem! When I find something like this I have to share it. It's going to be a game changer for my layouts. Could be useful for crash videos as well, you could tie all the hubs together on one slider 😅. I'm just not sure how the Bluetooth communication would handle that
If only this where available for mac
Looks great ❤
This is so epic, I love this video! Very informative indeed
Thanks! My train tutorial videos are quite a lot of work, but I try to fill the gaps for cool concepts that don't have tutorial videos already
Sounds to good to be real, cant wait to try it out tonight
This seems to be a very helpful guide 👍.
The powered up hubs can also be controlled on Scratch, I don't think it's necessarily easier 🤷♂️. But it's the way I do it if I want to control from my laptop.
Cool video! Thank you for sharing
Thanks for the comment! I'm glad it's continued to get views despite the subpar thumbnail 😅
cooool :D i wonder if you can make a musical box on a train that works as it rolls :D
Thanks for sharing. Finally a solution without having to cut and solder wires :)
Sure thing! I'm no stranger to soldering / custom solutions but I like to share simple solutions as well. I still use this software quite a bit for different projects
Thanks for this, I'm one step closer to setting up so my twitch viewers can activate the train!
ohhh, sounds awesome! Glad to help!
You deserve more subscribers
Thanks! I generally don't ask viewers to subscribe, my video topics vary quite a bit. If they watch my train tutorials (the videos I've put the most work into) they should be recommended the others without having to be subbed. I've heard CZcams kind of punishes channels with large numbers of subs that don't watch their videos in the algorithm. I'm happy that the number of subs I do have were organic, they clicked on their own 😀. Whether or not that's the best strategy is anyone's guess 😅
Super cool! One question: is there a similar setup for the older IR Remote Control?
Not that I've seen, but I would imagine someone has done it with an Arduino or Raspberry pi. The problem with the PF IR system will always be range / interference. Not that Bluetooth can't have interference of its own 😅. If I find anything on that front I'll be sure to share it!
@@BatteryPoweredBricks Makes sense. Thanks!
OK, so I have down loaded the software. Hopefully this weekend I can play around with it.
A nice and versatile piece of software. Is there any need to update the firmware of the hubs?
Btw: I like your videos but there is no necessity for background music, it makes it harder to follow for non-native english speakers like me.
The software communicates with the official Lego firmware. I tend to connect the hubs I acquire to the Lego app at least once to make sure it is using the latest version. I've had issues with direct connection to controllers before updating, but I haven't had any issues with this software so far.
Thanks for the feedback, I'll keep that in mind for my next tutorial. I often watch these videos dozens of times before uploading so I feel the background music makes them a little less dry. If nothing else I could lower the volume of the music more, but it will always be at different levels depending on the device it is played back on.
Wow, thank you very much. Never knew about this piece of software. Basically, all i want it my 'out of box' 3 trains will be controllable from a single device + something makes available primitive (start - stop) programming using sensor and color.
This software is great! I haven't had time to make a dedicated video yet but the Brickrail project looks very promising as well for more more advanced automation. Going all the way back to the Mindstorms RCX the Lego community has always blown me away with the custom software / solutions over the years, they are the real heroes!
@@BatteryPoweredBricks Thank you
Very cool :) how much hubs are you able to connect to? Cheers and thx
12 ... to fast :D
Way ahead of ya 😅 Again 12 was with a USB BT adapter, otherwise it was 6 or oddly enough sometimes 7
Can you share instructions for track switch ? Have you bild different from TrixBrix switches ? Regards !
Links don't always work in comments, check out "Controlling Lego train switch tracks remotely (part 2)" it has instructions for a modified version of Tom Cook's design linked in the description. I still haven't found a solution for TrixBrix that I am happy with, I've been doing so many 9v projects I haven't tried in a while.
Do you have a full parts list for the switches? So I can find them on bricklink? I don't know what gears to get? Thanks
I need to build some more of them, I can lay out the parts when I get that far. I built them a bit differently than they did and used some parts I had a ton of from Pick-a-Brick. The link to the LGauge website in the description has pictures of them partially disassembled. Click the picture of the switcher and there are 10 pictures from different angles. The gears are 12 and 20 tooth
@@BatteryPoweredBricks thanks mate
How can you connect servos/ trixbrix track switches to BAP. BAP apparently has a function, but I'm wondering as how to wire it.
I'm not sure, I've never owned any of the TrixBrix servos. I've made various attempts to motorize the TrixBrix switch tracks but I'm still not really happy with them. If I find the info on the servos I'll let you know. One of the reasons I made this tutorial and didn't get too deep into it is because I couldn't really find much information on the software. Also the fact it hasn't been updated in years kept me from going further with it.
@@BatteryPoweredBricks any suggested alternatives?
I've had a few shiny objects distracting me from trains for a while. I feel like I've seen a few solutions on CZcams, many seem to come from Germany where model trains are much more prevalent
Will the remote save like it would on PyBricks?
I'm not sure what you mean by save
@@BatteryPoweredBricks On Py Bricks, when you turn the train on again the code saves.
No code is saved to the hubs or remotes. It uses the stock firmware as well. Everything is controlled by the PC
I don't get, why you don't have more subscribers, than what you have. And I bet that 90%+ watching your videos don't get the mention in the outro :) I do, but I grew up just a little over 50 miles from where Lego is from.
For some reason this comment was marked as spam and I didn't see it, maybe they thought you wanted to sell me more subscribers 😂. Thanks for the kind words! I always think to myself, surely there are more people on this planet that would enjoy these videos, but it just takes time to reach them. I just try to be unique and true to myself, over time growth has been increasing across the channel, but it does feel slow sometimes 😅
@@BatteryPoweredBricks YT has funny ideas. It happens. And yes .. peeps do enjoy the videos. I'll be uploading some myself soon, seeing that i've got back into Lego trains and our little one has reached the age to enjoy them.
can I connect sensors, for example tilt sensors to control speed of the train?
I haven't messed with it much but it does support using boost / wedo 2.0 sensors.
@@BatteryPoweredBricks by any chance do you know if the Wedo 2.0 sensor work with the standard hub? that comes with the train sets?
Pretty sure it will work with any software. I know the sensors work with BAP and PyBricks, I think it works with the Powered Up app as well. I don't really use the PU app much. I just got the tilt and motion sensors in, I'll give it a try with BAP
@@BatteryPoweredBricks thank you
What hub do you use for trains
The standard "city hub" that is included with Powered Up train sets
Thanks.
Do I have to use a powered up motor hub?
Yes and no. Brick Automation Project is "compatible" with BuWizz 2.0 as well as the SBrick, but I have had issues using them. I typically only use Lego Powered Up hubs
Can I use a Powerfunctions hub
@@BatteryPoweredBricks
Is it Chrome OS Supported?
I don't think so. I only see the msi installer for Windows and the download in the Microsoft store. The software hasn't been updated in years so I wouldn't hold my breathe for support on non-Windows environments 😔
Will this app work on a Android phone?
Unfortunately no. You can use the Powered Up app to create a custom control panel, I'm not sure how many trains could be controlled at the same time. I really don't use the app much. Most of what I do is to avoid using phones