To my shock, the corporate confirmed off another characteristic I didn’t see throughout my first demo, maybe essentially the most spectacular one ought to these bricks make their approach to grownup builders: exact distance measurement.
Lego Group design supervisor Maarten Simons whipped out a “Lego ruler” made of ordinary Lego bricks divided into segments that have been every 10 Lego studs, or roughly 8cm (3.15 inches) lengthy. He connected a Good Brick to 1 finish of the ruler, and dragged a second Good Brick alongside its size. The Good Bricks modified coloration each time one other 10 ten studs was handed, precisely on the dividing strains of every section.
Simons then moved the Good Bricks away from the ruler and carried out the identical trick. Utilizing only a pair of Good Bricks, he was in a position to measure the gap between two factors in 2D and 3D house. Simons says the bricks can precisely observe one another’s place at distances of as much as roughly 4 to five meters (12–16 toes) away.
Then, Simons rotated a brick in midair, and we watched it mild up as quickly because it was exactly dealing with the opposite brick.
From earlier briefings, I already knew the bricks might inform their very own orientation and in the event that they have been comparatively nearer or farther from one another. But it surely’s clearly extra highly effective than that, with extra potential than the primary three Lego Star Wars units will provide on launch day (assuming these precision options work in the true world with all its types of wi-fi interference).
The Lego Star Wars units very deliberately let youngsters blast one another’s ships with out them actually dealing with one another, as a result of the corporate’s analysis exhibits youngsters choose that. But it surely clearly doesn’t should be that manner. Low-hanging fruit: future Lego creations might have a exact blasting recreation.
They could have potential in Lego robots too. Lego Mindstorms was one of many toymaker’s most subtle constructing units, however even with drag-and-drop programming capabilities, its complexity restricted its attraction to youngsters. With the Good Brick’s capacity to know its location and orientation round different Good Bricks, Lego robots might probably navigate obstacles constructed with Good Tags, or autonomously discover their manner again to base stations with out the necessity for detailed programming, cameras for sensing, or pricier elements just like the Mindstorms’ Clever Brick.
Lego’s being extraordinarily quiet about future plans for its new Good Play system, however it’s getting increasingly more attention-grabbing, with extra potential makes use of, as the corporate reveals what the bricks are able to.