Message #2221

From: Brandon Wong <brandonc.wong55@ymail.com>
Subject: Re: [MC4D] Re: Lego robot solves Rubik’s Cube in 5 seconds?
Date: Thu, 31 May 2012 20:13:03 -0700

It’s CubeStormer II (http://www.speedsolving.com/wiki/index.php/List_of_cube_solving_robots#CubeStormer_II).  It uses a 2-phase method for solving cubes move optimally (not Fridrich) as used prominently by Cube Explorer 5.00 (http://kociemba.org/cube.htm).  It orients all the pieces, and then permutates all the pieces using only half turns on the left, front, right, and back faces, and quarter or half turns on the top and bottom faces.  This makes it easy for the robot’s four arms’ graplers to be about to turn the cube quickly without letting go of the cube.  I had made a human thistlethwaite algorithm for solving the cube in under 40 moves (HTM) and had worked on (and given up on) making a human 3-phase method for fewest moves that involves orienting the edges intuitively, orienting the front and back layer corners or top and bottom layer corners or left and right layer corners optimally, and then permutating all pieces optimally for an average 25
moves HTM (half turn metric).  I also have a LEGO Mindstorms NXT robotics kit (bought for about $400) which is used for the robot, but I only have one and CubeStormer II uses two NXT computers with six individual servo motors while I only have three individual servo motors.  Although I don’t have a camera, the additional NXT computer, and three additional servo motors, I managed to make a robot that solves the cube in less that 3 minutes on average with a light sensor (not colour sensor) that observes the shades of the stickers.  For a simple cube solving robot that uses the LEGO Mindstorms NXT robotics kit , go to http://tiltedtwister.com/tiltedtwister2.html  There are also other robots that solve bigger cubes and puzzles such as the megaminx and can be found at http://www.speedsolving.com/wiki/index.php/List_of_cube_solving_robots.

Hope this helps,
Brandon.

________________________________
From: Ray Zhao <thermostatico@gmail.com>
To: 4D_Cubing@yahoogroups.com
Sent: Thursday, May 31, 2012 7:28 PM
Subject: [MC4D] Re: Lego robot solves Rubik’s Cube in 5 seconds?

 
It seems legit, cuz there are so many motors…I bet the machine cost hundreds or something. Maybe it was the same position, like off-camera the machine scans it?

–

while(true)
Console.Writeline("HI!")