New Boards on the horizon?

Since the initial release, have there been any new boards or accessories for the CyberBrick ecosystem? I like that Bambu Labs sometimes gives us a preview of what may be on the horizon, so I thought I would ask.

Things like a new on/off switch with integrated charging feature shield?

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The existing switch will work if you use the extra pin on the switch and tack solder a charging cable to it. In that case you should always use the connector closest to the ‘Off’ silkscreen for the Battery, and then the switch contact closest to the Screw Mounting lug will connect to the charging cable when the switch is off.
All the ‘-’ pins are always connected.

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I had thought about doing something like this (for a switch modification).

But I was hoping Bambu would chime in here for any new boards on the horizon for the eco system in general.

There are many users who immediately “shy away” from anything when it comes to picking up a soldiering iron.

So this question was more for those users so it (as in a new charge shield board) can just be added to the great “plug and play” system Bambu have begun to create. :smile:

Plug-and-play is a basic requirement, and in the future, CyberBrick will continue to release more modules, more motors, and more motherboards

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I believe this as well! With all the new and exciting printer options coming out soon from Bambu, I am hoping they release new CyberBrick hardware as well.

Do you mean this?

That is a new bundle, but it is not anything new and provides nothing you do not already have available, unfortunately.

It is simply a battery, switch and cable already provided in the kits originally.

It is not a shield either.

We have (I have) asked for a rechargeable battery that can either:

  • Be removable without having to disconnect the battery. This would require the socket or plug to be directly mounted to the battery, so insertion lines up to the matching socket or plug in a model’s design.
  • A switch that has a USB socket on it that can be accessed externally (depending on model design) so the plug doesn’t have to be removed from a cable to then connect it to a charger.

Interestingly i did see that kit recently (it is a really good value for the price), but no, what I am thinking of is what you are describing. With either a charging plug that could utilize the existing CyberBrick kit charger, or even better, as you described a USB socket (with an appropriate SMD sized charging chip), this would be a really great upgrade in the design of the current switch assembly and provide designers greater freedom.

Years ago I built something like this. It fits in a very small form factor that would be same size as the switch assembly today with very little price difference.

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What do you think is missing from the CyberBrick ecosystem?

Tutorials… Debug advice… :neutral_face:

A valid question for sure. A few things that come to mind:

  • Power switch w/integrated charge plug (or charger) already mentioned.
  • Mini Micro JST SH 2 pin extension cables (for increase separation between receiver board and motors)
  • Mini Micro JSD SH 3 pin extension cables (same as above but for use with the SMD LEDs)
  • Rotary input shield (to be used for controllers with knobs instead of joysticks on the transmitter side)
  • Simple LED shields (to run descrete 3mm or 5mm LEDs) single color.
  • Feedback sensors such as: Micro Switch shield input, TCRT5000 Photoelectric Sensor shield.
  • An audio shield (such as a DFPlayer module) which you could use for sound effects with the current receiver boards.
  • brushless motor shield (people are already using brushless speed controls but it seemed like a natural fit for the ecosystem)
  • Simple display shield (for displaying text on either the transmitter side or receiver side)

Those are a few that come to mind. :slight_smile:

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Read what I wrote previously, this is one such list.

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That is very well said and thought out. :smile:

I was hoping, if even slowly, they would start adding new components and more documentation. A number of people I know got in on the Kickstarter also, but have shy’d away from making anything with the kit yet because of this.

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The other thing that needs to change is the constant differences in the connections and often the inability to purchase converters and if you can, they require lots of space in the model.

  • SH1.0
  • ZH1.50
  • PH2.0
  • XHR2.54

Try hooking up the rechargeable kit to things, it uses ZH1.5 and you can only convert that to SH1.0. If you need to hook it up to PH2.0, then you need a ZH1.50 to SH1.0 and then SH1.0 to a PH2.0 cable!

Now try running powering a CyberBrick model from the mains, it can’t be done. Why not?

Lots of great things could benefit from being mains powered with remote control.

You can’t get the rechargeable kit in the mix as there is no combination that gets you to its input socket XHR2.54.

Very little thought was put into this. The promise was that we would see new components.

It has stalled.

Agreed on the power supply for sure. It has probably been covered somewhere on the forum here, but I was wondering if the transmitter module (not the Rx) can be powered by a USB feed for use? Another accessory I would like to see is an AA battery module as an alternate to the AAA ones supplied in the kit. The AAA pack works, but I have found it seems to rapidly deplete the cells depending on what you are doing with the transmitter.

It can’t.

Things like motors do not get powered.

Right, not the receiver, but I was wondering about the transmitter module powering the bluetooth board just for communications to the receiver. :slight_smile:

It is designed to power the main board (where the USB socket is), not any connected boards.

Understood. Wow, that is unfortunate. :frowning:

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In my view, the ESP32 board is the only indispensable component of the kit. The other functionalities can be sourced at a lower cost, and in ways that more closely fit practical needs.

The ratio of components in the Cyberbrick kit also seems imbalanced. The Super Set I purchased included only one 180° servo, which isn’t sufficient to build even two complete vehicles.

Regarding charging, I acquired an XH2.54 1-female-to-2-male splitter cable for about $0.40. This allows me to charge the battery without needing to remove it from the switchboard. I am also currently sourcing additional components to convert the system to a Type-C charging method (which will require about $0.90 in materials).

That splitter cable is a fantastic find. :grinning: is that something obtainable on Amazon or another location? I am sure others would be interested as well.

Is it something like this?