Slashdot Mirror

← Back to Stories (view on slashdot.org)

RIMM's LEGO Machines Test Blackberry

Posted by CowboyNeal on from the pirate-and-space-accessories-optional dept.

LEGO - my - Crackberry writes "Matthias Wandel is an engineer at Research in Motion (RIMM), the company that makes the Blackberry. What did RIMM turn to for testing the antenna reception of one of its 900MHz devices? LEGO machines. Specifically a device made of LEGO that could rotate a Blackberry about its horizontal & vertical axis in a pre-defined pattern."

9 of 69 comments (clear)

  1. Surprised? by VirusEqualsVeryYes · · Score: 5, Insightful

    I'm not. It seems like a logical choice.

    Want to test different angles precisely? Use some sort of robot.

    Only going to build it once, and want it to be easy to build? Use Legos.

    Need only rudimentary instructions (e.g. "rotate for 0.2 seconds") to rotate something on said robot? Use Mindstorms.

    Nothing beats the satisfaction of soldering one's own circuit board and programming in C, but for something quick, easy to use, and powerful, Legos are the best solution.

    1. Re:Surprised? by aadvancedGIR · · Score: 5, Interesting

      I think the hardest part of using lego for that kind of work is to have the beancounters accept the expense as work related. Usually, I had to use my own personnal stock when I needed to hold prototype boards together.

    2. Re:Surprised? by Oktober+Sunset · · Score: 5, Funny

      Thats why you put in a request for a 'configurable block-based modelling and prototyping system', rather than a 'box of lego'.

      --
      What if Tetris was invented by Nazis?
  2. RIM by What'sInAName · · Score: 5, Interesting


    That really *is* Research In Motion!

    Cool idea, but I wonder how long the device would hold out. LEGO isn't exactly designed for industrial apps. On the other hand, it is designed for small children, who provide perhaps the toughest test environment imaginable!

    1. Re:RIM by kokaneek · · Score: 5, Informative

      RIMM is their stock market symbol, so it is a valid name to call them by in my books.

    2. Re:RIM by dr_dank · · Score: 5, Funny

      In a fit of Samuel L. Jackson inspiration, it could mean Research In Motherfuckin' Motion.

      --
      Where does the school board find them and why do they keep sending them to ME?
  3. RIM by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Informative

    I figure if you're going to write an article about RIM's activities, you had best get the name right. It is 'RIM', not 'RIMM'. Both the /. article, and TFA have it wrong....

    I am astounded!

    anon

  4. I'm disappointed by Flying+pig · · Score: 5, Funny
    I once had an engineer working for me who could have designed that in no more than 6 weeks. At the very least he would have used PTFE for all the bearings, glass filled nylon for the articulating parts, industrial grade stepper motors and a couple of networked industrial controllers for the program. He would probably have designed a cover made from a single sheet of vacuum formed Makrolon to ensure nobody touched any rotating parts while it was in use, plus some sort of optical scanning system to stop it moving if anything came too close. And there would probably have been change out of $100000.

    Engineers today, what do they know? Make it too simple and too cheap and the boss will think anybody can do it.

    --
    Pining for the fjords
  5. Re:The guy's a very busy genius by Valacosa · · Score: 4, Interesting

    He is a busy genius - I stumbled across his site when I was told someone mapped the tunnel network below the University of Waterloo. And he did.

    IMHO, the coolest thing he ever built was converting a scanner into a digital camera. People, if you have a few free minutes, check his site out. Lots of cool stuff there!

    --
    "Live as if you'll die tomorrow." Ridiculous. You could die later today.