NXT Monster Truck - Part 1

Have you ever picked up your NXT kit and decided to build just a robot with no sensors, no autonomy and pure fun?

That is what I did over the weekend. Inspired by a Monster Truck in the latest 'V' energy drink advert, I decided to build a remote controlled monster truck robot.
The picture on the left is the real remote controlled monster truck from the advert, and the one on the right is the NXT version !

The only thing the NXT is doing in the truck is to provide power to the motors and act as a Bluetooth receiver for my my mobile phone I was using to control the robot!


To get the real feel of a Monster truck, I used 4 TECHNIC tractor wheels, and 4 PF-XL motors. You can use the adopters available from the LEGO Shop @ Home to connect the 4 PF motors to the 2 motor ports. The second picture shows how the two left hand motors are connected to the same port in the NXT.

With 4 direct drive wheels, the vehicle can handle any terrain. The giant tractor wheels are amazing - it is great to watch it climb over rocks, mud and ride through long grass - that normal NXT robots struggle with.

Check out the video ...


In the coming weeks, I will be extending this vehicle with more autonomy, more features .....