The LEGO MINDSTORMS EV3 Idea Book: 181 Simple Machines and Clever Contraptions

Until we came across this book my six year old and I had been following the typical routine of following a book or internet instructions adding a few creative modifications here and there at the end. Building this way does give you experience and teaches you tricks and principles but it can also make robotics seem more daunting than it should be because you can't help but be awed and intimidated by the intricate designs of people who are expert builders. Your six year old is not going to try to modify that complicated steering mechanism which took four pages of book instructions to explain.In contrast most of the things built in Isogawa's book are explained in just one or two picture frames. Everything is a mechanism, beautifully and simply presented to invite you to want to understand the ideas at work and experiment and tinker yourself. My son started flipping through the almost entirely visual book on his own and was immediately drawn in. The first thing he built were a few of the designs for changing motor rotations into 'lifting' motions. Before very long it felt like both of us had crossed a threshold into a new world with endless new possibilities, learning and exploration ahead.It is said that the Japanese are known as master craftsmen and for the beautiful functional simplicity of their designs. This book proves it so.

I've bought several books on EV3 robot building and programming for my children, and this is truly one of the best. The mechanisms in this book are amazing and my children and I have been able to combine them in really interesting and fun ways. For example, you can combine one of the winged mechanisms with one of the tank tread mechanisms to make a robot that climbs piles of legos, appearing to fly as it does it. You can also build a wide variety of fighting robots with these mechanisms and then use the EV3 remote control to have frankenstein-like battle bot competitions. This book is somewhat understated, but awesome. I highly recommend it for those EV3 builders who are transitioning from building robots from plans to building their own robots.

This book is just amazing! Students are introduced to many types of simple machines that can be built and used with the EV3 set. I have the educational Core and Expansion sets, but this could easily be used with the retail version.The full color format is fabulous! Every simple machine is displayed with all the steps and a graphic part list. Awesome!For FLL teams that need inspiration and practice on building attachments, this will be invaluable. There is also information on using the sensors.Of note, this book is entirely simple machines (attachments) for your EV3. If your students need direction on attaching these assemblies and creating an entire bot, I'd recommend The Art of Lego Mindstorms EV3 Programming by Terry Griffin and The Lego Mindstorms EV3 Discovery Book by Laurens Valk.

It's a great book, very good and detailed pictures. The ideas a great! And a good price for the resource.However, my son was gifted the new lego mindstorm set (51515). And while I think he could use it's ideas and adapt it with his different set he didn't want to try as he is just learning (only a 3rd grader). I didn't realize it didn't work with the set he had.I haven't decided yet if we will keep it or return it and buy a new version when one comes out or if his interest in robotics continues. It really is a great book, just hoping for one that incorporates the new mindstorm set soon!

I have 4 boys ages 4 through 14, so we're very into Legos - from Duplo to EV3. I got this book after reading a blog post.This book focuses on the mechanical portion rather than programming portion. It goes through every parts from EV3 and shows you how to use them in different ways. The pictures are great. It's not too detailed in step by step direction, but I actually like it a lot. It provides as little pictures as possible to help you build. (We sometimes find the Lego instructions too tedious.)My 9 year old is in a FLL team, so I went over first several pages with him. He understood the concept pretty easily. We are planning to go through most of the book with the rest of the team as it will benefit all of them.Check out the TOC:Part 1 Basic MechanismsGear ratiosCompound gear systemsChanging the angle of rotationUsing worm drivesSwinging mechanismsReciprocating mechanismsCam mechanismsIntermittent motionTransmitting rotation with rubber bandsTransmitting rotation with caterpillar treadsTransmitting rotation over a long distanceOff-center axes of rotationChageover mechanisms using rotational directionUniversal jointsPart 2 VehiclesDriving wheels with a motorDriving wheels with two motorsCaster wheelsCrawlersSuspended wheelsSteeringPart 3 Moving without TiresWalking machinesMoving like an inchwormMoving through vibrationPart 4 Arms, Wings, and Other MovementsFlapping wingsGripping fingersLifting thingsShooting thingsAutomatic doorsRaking up or outCreating windSwinging a pendulumUsing attachments to change motionMeshing gears diagonallyChanging the angle of rotation freelyPart 5 SensorsIdeas for using the touch sensorIdeas for using the buttons of the Intelligent EV3 BrickIdeas for using the color sensorPart 6 Something extraUsing the Pythagorean theoremTry building something handy!