See? Aren't you glad you watched that? [Lego Computer]

[Ian mackinnon via Brothers Brick]

The seven robots were designed to achieve seven different missions:

Brian Davis, Indiana, USA
Project: Little Joe
This robot will perform an automated free-fall in an attempt to set the record for the longest MINDSTORMS NXT free-fall. The robot will be detached from the main balloon near maximum altitude and will free-fall until the parachute deploys.

Project: Gypsy
The robot will be an automated camera platform that will take both video and still images. The MINDSTORMS NXT will control all image timing as well as pitch angle

FLL Team 90/David Levy (Coach), Virginia USA
Project: FLL Team Challenge: Climate Connections
A FIRST LEGO League Climate Connections team will build a robot to measure UV radiation as a function of altitude. The MINDSTORMS NXT will not only data log the UV sensor readings, but will also be used to rotate the UV filters in position as well as control the robot heater with a temperature sensor.

Barbara Bratzel & Chris Rogers, Tufts University, Massachusetts, USA
Project: Fourth Graders
A group of 4th grade students will investigate the impact of flight conditions on yellow marshmallows (a.k.a peeps). The MINDSTORMS NXT will be recording temperature and pressure during the mission.

David Martinez, Jurgen Leitner, Sweden
Project: SpaceMasters
The robot will be measuring the change in G-forces as a function of altitude. The robot will repeatedly drop a tethered Wiimote at different altitudes to measure the acceleration experience.

Claude Baumann, Francis Massen, Jean Mootz, Luxembourg
Project : LUXPAK
The robot will be using an RCX to measure ozone concentration, air pressure, temperature (inside and outside) and reflected light from Earth during the descent.

Eugene Tsai, Taiwan
The robot will be using filtering papers to capture particles and/or chemicals in the air during the balloon ascent and descent periods. The LEGO Mindstorms NXT will be used to provide a mechanism to switch filtering papers to capture the materials in the air and then keep the papers in a secured compartment. The filtering papers will be retrieved and analyzed to see what chemicals and particles exist in different altitudes.

[More info will be posted soon at the Lego Mindstorms site]

Looking at the time it's taking me to finish the Falcon, I'm not going to try this unless I can get Lindsay Joy someone to help me. [Lego in Gizmodo]

This video was recorded in NetDevil's second Lego Universe Project event. According to Scott Brown, NetDevil's president, in the first LUP event they asked these Lego users to give them an idea of what the game should be like, which of course resulted in them building hundreds of actual Lego models of monsters, places, and all kinds of devices, machinery, and vehicles.

After that session, NetDevil started to program the software tools and the models needed to design Lego Universe terrains and structures. Now, in the second LUP event, they have trained those Lego people on the tools themselves, which they are using to create the virtual worlds. Apparently, NetDevil is very impressed by how fast these people—who in their day jobs are mostly engineers—got into the tools after just a three-hour class. Hopefuly that means things are progressing fast and we will see this game—which seems to have great potential—sooner than later.

The models include cross-sections showing the actual building structure and installations. The effect is particularly impressive in the Water Cube, full of minifigs like the Sport Village and the residence buildings. [KLUG via Brothers Brick]

A one-of-a-kind official LEGO version of Mead's "Spinner" flying car from Blade Runner, presented to Syd by LEGO when he attended a design summit in Billund. Syd let me pick it up and swoop it around my head like a child.

You should have ran away with it, Joel. Crime pays. They are still looking for their Galaxy Explorer at the Lego Secret Vaultin Denmark. [Boing Boing TV]

The exclusive tour is divided into three parts

While the storage areas are the most impressive part of the factory, I have to admit that nothing had prepared me for the scope and complexity that is required to make and pack 19 billion bricks every year. The scale of this factory, specially compared to the tiny bricks it produces, is absolutely breathtaking.

The warehouse and the mold room

We started in the main warehouse, which is half a kilometer long. Here they house the silos holding the raw plastic granulate. Through them, 60 tons of this material is processed every 24 hours. These towers are connected to the molding machines through a labyrinth of tubes that push the granulate mixtures in a permanent tin-pitched rumble.

It's the digestive system of the enormous factory, always feeding the molding lines through the tubes and moving big boxes full of pieces—using conveyor belts—into the storage area in an endless and precise dance which never ends: this factory works around the clock to fulfill the worldwide thirst for Lego.

The molding machines

Everything is recycled in the factory. The plastic granulate itself is a by-product from diesel, and whatever is discarded in the manufacturing process gets recycled. The leftover parts from the mold—the plastic that fills the channels that take the hot plastic into the piece negative—fall down the machine, gets ground up, and put back into the production cycle. Any other waste, like faulty pieces or the transparent plastic used to clean the inner tubes when they need to change the production color of a molding machine, are also ground up and sold to other companies for the production of other things, like pipes and even heating oil.

The machines produce more than two million pieces per hour, churning incessantly into color- and bar-coded boxes. I looked around and I couldn't see many people. A woman was in one of those endless aisles looking at a few molding machines with big "QT" signs on them. She was in charge of quality testing, making sure that the production was going perfectly.

At one point I was taking photos of a box of full of yellow bricks, and suddenly the machine stopped working. Fearing I had done something wrong, I saw a big wonky box coming from the distance, some kind of weird transport with strange sensors on the top, straight from a moisture farm on Tatooine or a spice mine in Dune. I stepped back, instantly realizing it was one of the many factory robots.

This transport bot was answering the call of the central mainframes, the brains of the Lego body that control every aspect of the process at all times. The mainframes had stopped the production of the machine, following the signal of the sensor next to the box and sending the signal to the robot, alerting it that it had to harvest the crop of bricks. The robots travel down the aisles autonomously, picking up boxes and leaving empty ones so production can be resumed.

The storage cathedrals, decoration and packaging

The robots then put the boxes in the conveyors, which move them into the storage cathedrals (click here to see a complete report on them, the following video only has a brief summary). There, the huge cranebots lift them to the heavens, placing them in endless towers of boxes. There are four of these cathedrals in the Lego factory, and no humans are inside. The mainframes know what it is inside at all times, and order the cranebots to retrieve boxes and send them to decoration and packaging, where Lego sets take their final form.

Here, the Lego pieces may take two ways. One is to go straight to the packaging lines. The other is to go into decoration. Decoration is the most expensive part of the Lego process. Here, the pieces are individually painted with absolute precision, like you can see in detail in this video.

In the packaging lines the pieces are distributed: they are dumped into the machine, which separates them one by one, then counts them using optical sensors, and placed in a generic small box. I watched in amazement, seeing how the pieces fell into these small boxes on a very small conveyor. At every step, one, two, three or whatever amount of pieces will fall into the box, according to the instructions of the set in production.

Along the way, high precision scales measure the weight of the box. The computers know exactly how much a box has to weigh at any stage, indicating that the correct number and kind of pieces are inside. If there's a variation of a few micro-grams, the alarm jumps and an operator grabs the box, sorts the pieces, and puts the box back into production.

Once the box is complete, the contents are dropped into the plastic wrapping machine, which makes a bag with the pieces inside. The box are then dropped inside another box, and passed into another production line, where more bags would be added until all the set pieces are in place, ready to be packaged and sent to shops all around the world.

As I watched the boxes going away, being wrapped for shipping, I couldn't help to have this feeling of absolute marvel. From plastic grains to full sets, everything controlled by computers and robots, in a scale that—given the size of most of these piece—stunned me. Next time you look at that Lego box full of bricks, or your collection of mini-figs, think about how complex and elegant the whole production process is. Your "toy" will have then a completely new dimension.

[Space Elevator Blog]

I bought the Lego Egg Timer while visiting Legoland in Denmark, at the end of my visit to the Lego factory. Since then I've used it many times and its design doesn't cease to entertain me. The top half of the mini-fig head rotates as it counts time, changing the expression as the minutes pass. Nothing else can be said about it, really, except that it's cute and it works great.

By the way, I will resume the chronicles of the Lego trip next week, after giving you a week of respite. Coming soon: an inside look at how the Lego bricks and sets are made, how they are designed from concept to final product, and what it's like to work there, among many other things. Stay tuned. [Lego]

A Lego employee group of Lego UK employees built the Clone Trooper army in just six and a half hours to raise money for The National Autistic Society. The National Autistic Society is a British organization dedicated to helping "people with autism and Asperger syndrome live their lives with as much independence as possible."

Instructions on how to become your own LEGO arms dealer can be found in Hüdepohl's book, LEGO for Adults. The book features construction plans for the two weapons, detailed operating instructions, and a Thriller Automatic mini poster. According to the website, only 1,050 copies of the book were made because of LEGO's rules against using their trademark in connection with guns. So grab the book quick, before you're on the losing end of a LEGO showdown. [Xubor via Boingboing]

I’m proud of the overall proportions, but the eyes are still a bit too off for me...Having stared at this robot for 3+ years, I was extremely familiar with the proportions and functionality of Wall•E. It helped to know his design, but that made it hard to make the usual compromises when converting items to LEGO form.

But from our untrained eyes, it appears that MacLane is being far too hard on himself. [The Brothers Brick via bbGadgets]

When they started to explain the capacity of these storage areas, designed to accomodate the 19-Billion-piece-per-year production, I realized the unbelievable scale of all this. I just couldn't believe what I was seeing and hearing.

Watch the video and multiple that vision by 32. Try to imagine a 65.6-square-mile area (170 square kilometers) distributed among thousands of shelves. Looking down one of the aisles—there are four per building—I realized I was looking at tens of thousands of boxes full of Lego bricks and pieces. All of them completely full: "There are approximately half a million boxes here," they told me. Later I found out that it was 162.240 boxes in each of the old cathedrals (which went up to 13 meters high) and 262.128 in the new ones (the 20 meter high ones).

Up in the distance I could see a robot working. I zoomed with my camera and saw how it took some boxes out, then put others in. "They are taking the boxes to packaging and decoration," Jan—one of the Lego PR guys in Billund—pointed out, "every time there's a production run, computers order the robots to retrieve whatever boxes are needed," according to the number of bricks necessary for a set. Everything is done on demand," he said with a big smile, proud of the efficiency of their system.

Then, without any warning, the robot started to move up there in Lego heaven, accelerating almost immediately as it descended from the top of the building to the bottom, at the end of one of the aisles. The speed was staggering for such a giant metal thing, and we all watched in silence as the gigantic crane moved the bot gracefully, like a male dancer would hold a ballerina in The Nutcracker.

We kept walking and one of them came towards us, stopping smoothly at the end of aisle. My first thought was about jumping into it and waiting for the next request from the production computers to feel the thrill of going up through that massive space, holding my breath and watching the multi-colored boxes blur in front of my eyes, like a Lego Silver Surfer on top of that yellow bot. Probably thinking the same, Jan turned to me: "you know, if you cross that line, the entire production process will stop. It's a security measure." Yeah, on second thought it was probably for the better. Later I learnt there were four robots per cathedral, one per aisle, moving at 2.5 meters per second in the new buildings, and 1.5 meters per second in the old ones. It doesn't seem a lot, but watching they zooming in every direction it didn't look very safe for humans.

But as we walked out of the storage, continuing with our visit to the factory, I just couldn't stop imagining myself flying on top of that bot in one of those long trenches, looking for the exhaust port on the Lego Death Star, probably with Jan and the Lego security chasing me like Darth Vader and his two TIE fighter wingmen. Lego Star Wars", I thought, at the end everything comes full circle. And then I said to myself: "Jesus, you are such a dork." I was. Albeit a very happy, smiling one. [Giz's Lego Trip]

I have organized all your questions in groups: about the company, environment, design, trivia, crazy questions, and the future.

Trivia

Why is there a whole in the head of the mini-figs now?
We added this hole on the top of the head just in case any kids got one of the heads stuck on their throat. That way they would be able to keep breathing.

• Why did I always have pieces left over when I built my castle sets? Do they just do that to jack with kids?
For two reasons: first, because some pieces are so small that they weigh too little to be measured by their scale, during packaging (you will see this when I publish the factory tour. J.) Second, because it's better to have too many of those pieces than have one of them missing. Since we statistically know what pieces may get lost, we include some extras when appropriate.

• Why there are no blonde minifigs in the regular Lego sets?
Because they will look bad with the yellow heads. There are blondes, however, in the licensed lines, like Star Wars or Harry Potter.

• Why aren't Lego figures ever sold separately from the sets?
Minifigures can be purchased separately on a limited basis. Some of our Lego stores sell the minifigures separately. You can also purchase minifigure pieces through Lego.com in the Pick-a-Brick wall. Additionally, there is a set called Community Workers which features nothing but classic minifigures. However, watch shelves in the coming year, you never know what you might find! (What I want to know is where the heck can I buy stormtroopers helmets for all my minifigs. J)

• What do you call the different pieces internally? Any other name beyond bricks, like "flats" for the flat pieces or something similar?
We refer to the standard pieces as bricks. Flat pieces are either plates (these have studs and are 1/3 the height of a Lego brick) or tiles (these are the flat pieces with no studs). Everything is referred to by its stud count, so a classic Lego bricks is referred to as a 2x4. Carry that out, and you can see there are 1x2s and 2x3s and 1x8s and on and on and on…

• Why did you change the color palette?
The color palette changes as our themes change. However, our basic brick colors—red, yellow, blue, green, black and white—will always remain as staples in the assortment.

• Why don't Duplo blocks integrate with Quatro blocks like the regular Lego bricks integrate with Duplo?
Duplo bricks are indeed compatible with Quatro bricks, just as Lego bricks are compatible with Duplo bricks. Lego provides the only building system that is compatible from birth to collector!

• I want you to ask the Lego gang for the definitive answer on the plural for Lego bricks. Is it, as we Brits say, simply Lego, or is it, as some Americans insist, Legos?
Actually both the Brits and the Americans are wrong—but are all forgiven! “Lego” is an adjective and is not meant to be a standalone name. It should always be Lego bricks, Lego building, Lego products, etc.

• Why there are no black minifigs?
When the minifigure was first introduced 30 years ago, it was given the iconic yellow skin tone to reflect the non-specific and transcendental quality of a child’s imagination. In 2002, as more licensed properties were added to the assortment, the decision was made to introduce ethnic and skin tones more in keeping with the actual characters and personalities who were being replicated. This included the introduction of black minifigures. However, these ethnic minifigures are only used in our licensed sets, all Lego playthemes continue to use the generic yellow face.

About the company

•How many Lego bricks are produced each year?

Approximately 19 billion Lego elements are produced per year. 2.16 million are molded every hour, 36,000 every minute.

• Approximately, how many bricks they've ever made since Lego started to produce them?
More than 400 billion Lego bricks have been produced since 1958. There are about 62 Lego bricks per person of the Earth’s population.

• How many Lego sets do they manufacture per year?
The number of sets varies per time of year and per year. In the U.S., we launch on average 130 new sets per year. Approximately 7 Lego sets are sold every second around the world.

• How much money do they make per piece?
Because we have so many specialized pieces, the average cost per piece is difficult to name. For example, a 2x4 Lego brick does not require the complexity to produce as a Lego minifigure or a Lego fence piece. The molds that we use to create Lego elements are very expensive to design and produce.

• When can we buy ANY Lego element on shop.Lego.com (and maybe get recommended replacement suggestions if they are not available). If I will pay $300+ for a GREAT Lego Technic model used on eBay, I certainly would have no problems dropping the same into one of my own creations?
We are always working to improve the assortment of pieces available through our Pick a Brick service. Right now we have over 900 elements available. Unlike the traditional toy retail business, it’s more difficult for us to project which individual pieces or elements will be in demand in a given time period. For example, we know that kids like Lego sets with wheels. So if a new set has wheels, we look at other sets historically that have wheels to predict the demand. But in an individual brick fulfillment, we have no way to know when someone may decide to build a six-foot monster that is orange, thereby requiring a huge amount of orange bricks. As a result, we currently limit the number of bricks available so that we can maintain healthy inventory and prevent consumer frustration, but also test to see what people want the most on a piece by piece basis.

• Why is Lego so expensive?
Quality and safety are the top concerns for the Lego Group. To ensure the best and safest products, Lego bricks are made with the highest quality materials, which does factor into the cost. Using premium materials ensures that the product is not only safe, but that it is durable enough to hand down from generation to generation. [I was told in the factory that their tests show that no bricks have ever decomposed or released any chemical substances. -J]

• I'd like you to ask the Lego guys, why they don't have all the parts available for order as singletons or in bulk on their web site?
See above.

• I'm curious as to why they discontinue series and sets more rapidly now than they did in the past. It used to be that a series could be counted on for multiple years, now it's barely 12 months and they're "no longer produced." Is this marketing? Logistics? Or are trends really changing that fast in their market these days?
The toy business has become a very fast-paced and competitive world—almost mimicking the fashion industry in how quickly things come and go as fads. The life of a typical Lego play theme line can range anywhere from one to three years. However, there are certain themes—like Space and Castle—that we consider evergreen themes, and those are rotated in and out over the course of a few years. When a theme is a classic, we often maintain the theme, but rotate the new models on a shorter term to maintain novelty and interest in the market.

• Will Lego sell bulk bricks again?
The Lego Group has never stopped selling bulk bricks. Our Creative Building buckets and tubs are available at all major and specialty retailers. New boxes of bricks are also available. Additionally, if you’re in the area of a Lego store you can stop at a Pick-a-Brick wall or visit the Pick-a-Brick section of Lego.com.

• Has the Mindstorm's investment paid off?
The Mindstorms product line has been an incredibly successful venture for the company. The Mindstorms RIS 2.0 is the #1 selling product in the company’s history, and there are over 1 million RCX bricks that have been sold. Mindstorms NXT, the next generation of the original robotics toolset, also has been very successful.

• What country buys the most Lego sets per person?
Germany is the number-one Lego market, in fact, Lego is the number-one toy company in Germany. The top-selling lines in Germany are Lego TECHNIC and Lego CITY. The U.S. is the second largest market, with the top-selling lines being BIONICLE and Lego Star Wars.

• How did they re-launch the company when it was almost bankrupt?
As a company we were very lucky to have survived our crisis. We had some very rocky years, but it was our fans who got us back on track. We were trying to do too many things and deviated from what we do best: classic building. To regain our footing, we went back to basics and focused on the brick and those core themes on which our company foundation was built, like City and Castle. We also shed the things that were not related to the toy business—we licensed out our video game development to the best partners and we sold off our theme parks. Thankfully for us, our fans were patient and welcomed us back with open arms. Fortunately, no matter how much the market changes and kids tastes vary, there will always be room for classic Lego play.

• What is the best selling Lego set ever made?
The Lego Mindstorms Robotics Invention System set is the best-selling Lego set ever. Over 1 million of these have been sold globally since their launch.

• What theme was the worst selling one they have made?
A few years back, we strayed too far from our core product line when we entered into an action figure line called Galidor. With no traditional Lego construction elements, it proved to be unfamiliar to Lego fans who expect a certain kind of play experience from the Lego brand.

• What theme is the best seller, excluding Basic sets and town?
Every country has a different best-seller and as we rotate themes in and out different themes rise to the top. Over the last 50 years we have seen that Town, Space, Castle and Pirates are the evergreen themes that seem to always have a place in the hearts of Lego fans. Right now, Lego CITY is the number-one theme around the world, and other global best-sellers include Lego Star Wars, BIONICLE and Lego Indiana Jones.

• Why don't they (Lego online shop) ship Lego to Hong Kong?
We are always looking to extend the reach of our Lego products and where they are sold and shipped. Currently, Lego products are sold in stores in Hong Kong.

Environment

• What happens to all the bad pieces? Is there a Lego heaven? Do they recycle them?
Due to the precision of the brick molding machines, there are very few “bad” pieces—only 18 elements in every million produced fail to meet the company’s high standards. Extra pieces or pieces from boxes that are caught on the line and identified as missing pieces or have boxes that are slightly damaged are used for donation boxes that are distributed to underprivileged children’s organizations around the world.

• Why there is no recycling program for all the plastic they produce?
Lego Bricks are recyclable, just not in the way that most people think of recycling. Lego bricks are one of those things that never break and most people pass them down from generation to generation, thus keeping them alive. Also, during production we recycle all of the residual plastic used. In the molding machines, we crunch any faulty elements and put the granulate back in to the mold. Plastic that we can no longer use is sold to industries that can make use of them.

• Is the plastic currently used to form Lego the same as it was 20 years ago?
The plastic is almost the exact same plastic used 20 years ago. Slight changes to the mix have occurred, but the quality has remained the same.

Design

• How much the tooling costs are? Who makes them?
The price of a single mold is very high. Most of them are made in Germany.

• How much is Lego considering the Adult fans vs the children when designing sets?
When we design sets, we take both children and adults into consideration. Children are our primary audience, especially as it relates to the core play theme sets; however, much of what appeals to children in today’s Lego sets has strong appeal among adult fans as well. With Lego Star Wars, adults are equally considered. In designing any set, it’s about the balance between the building experience and the play experience. We do also leverage our direct to consumer channels to provide ultimate collectors sets, special exclusives, sculptures and models that are designed with skilled builders and adult fans in mind. We sometimes even invite our adult fans to help us design new sets.

Mindstorms NXT is a great example of how we worked together with adult fans to determine what the set would include, with a particular focus on ensuring that the end result was as compelling for a child as it was for an adult user. We continually look to our community of both kids and adults to ensure that we are meeting and exceeding expectations.

• Why did they changed the founders rule to never make gun like elements?
The company still has a no gun policy when it comes to realistic or military play scenarios. However, in order to stay true to the strong licensed properties we incorporate to the Lego portfolio, we need to stay true to those properties and sometimes that involves including weapons. In our own play themes, some element of good vs. bad conflict is typically considered to provide for role play opportunities. In those instances, the setting is very clearly a fantasy world. (Fortunately, there are third-parties who do this, like the amazing people from Brickarms. J)

• I would like to know why they are using so many specialized pieces in their sets now instead of using more "basic" bricks that allow for greater building outside the set the pieces came in. Why have Lego sets for the latest few generations been dummied down?
This is an impression that many people have but, in fact, the piece count has been reduced drastically and there's a move back to roots in Lego, not only for creativity but to save money. Lego went from 12,000 different pieces to 6,800 in the last few years—a number that includes the color variations.

• Why do they use so many 'cheater' bricks... i.e., instead of stacking 4 1x2 bricks they produced a 1x2x4 brick. Or those HUGE chunks uses for castle walls. Sure it speeds construction, but it reduces creativity/playability.
Sometimes larger bricks are used to help kids ease into building and help them complete the model faster so that they can get to the play experience. We have learned that there are many different types of builders out there—some are all about the building experience, but some are about the play experience. We try to balance our portfolio to appeal to both groups.

• Has the decision to make faces other than the smiley face caused problems in any markets?
Changing the minifigure faces first happened in 1989 with the introduction of the Pirates line. Since that time, we have had very few questions from consumers. For those Lego purists out there, we have left the original smiley in the assortment so that a familiar face is always there.

• I would like to know what happened to the good old days of really complex, lifelike models? I have some of the old classics still like the Semi Truck with the pneumatic crane on the back, the JCB Excavator, the all wheel steer sports car, the Ferrari esque car with the 4 speed gearbox... Where did models like this go?
We still have awesome Lego TECHNIC sets and models that carry extreme levels of detail and functionality. They aren’t always available in the mass retail channels, so you often need to look for them on Lego.com or other specialty retailers.

• How long do they take to develop a theme, all the sets, start to finish?
Over the past few years we have been able to dramatically decrease the time it takes to develop and produce a new set. The average development period is now about 12 months from start to finish, down from 2-3 years previously.

• What's with all the stickers lately? Don't they pre-print anything anymore? And if you have to take the stickers off to disassemble the sets, why not have replacement sheets available on Shop-at-home?
Certain elements are still pre-printed; however, we find that the stickers allow for even more details and more realism in any given set. We understand that it can be frustrating sometimes, and encourage anyone with questions to contact our Consumer Services department.

Crazy questions

• Any plan to sell real-life brick-size Lego pieces? I want to build an actual house.
We have no plans at this time to sell real-life brick-size Lego pieces. You’ll just have to build your house of normal materials for the time being.

• Why do Lego look so delicious but taste so bad?
As your parents probably told you when you were young, there are some things that shouldn’t be eaten. Lego bricks are one of them. Please keep them away from your mouth.

• Are bricks available in truly staggering quantities, for artists wishing to explore the possibilities of Lego as a medium for large scale sculpture?
We always encourage creativity and love our Lego artists. Unfortunately at this time we don’t have a system put in place to sell staggering quantities. Pick-A-Brick and buckets and tubs are the best solution for those looking for large quantities of classic bricks.

• Where can I buy a legit golf shirt with the Lego logo embroidered on it?
Lego shirts tend to come in and out of the assortment. Currently, we do not have a golf shirt in the assortment, but keep checking back!

• When will Lego’s produce a beer stein kit complete with a tap?
We love your creativity, but the Lego Group probably won’t be producing a beer stein kit in the near or distant future; however, if you are so inclined, you can design your own on LegoFactory.com.

The future

• Any plans to refresh old sets like Blacktron or the monorail?
We are constantly looking back at the past to help shape the sets of the future. As of now there are no plans to refresh these sets, but what’s to come is always a mystery.

• Would you include Mindstorm technology in normal Lego sets?
In 2007 we introduced the Lego Power Function system, which allows models to come to life using motors and sensors without the programming feature of Mindstorms. For those looking to combine Lego building with Mindstorms technology everything is compatible.

• Why don't you use LEDs?
Currently we do not use LEDs, but our designers are always coming up with new and exciting ways to enhance the building experience.

• I know you do Lego Ferris wheels, but have you ever consider a Lego roller coaster?
In deciding what products will go to market, there are numerous factors that we have to consider. As a global company, we try to pick products that have global appeal. We also look for models that have the best building and play experience. Our model designers are always coming up with new and great ideas, roller coasters may be included in that, it’s just a matter of making sure it works in the current assortment.

• Would you consider doing Lego sets based on famous history scenes, for education?
Anything is a possibility with the Lego System. We have created models of famous landmarks, like the Statue of Liberty and the Eiffel Tower, and we have an Education division that is always coming up with new ideas. But if you don’t want to wait for this one to surface, there’s always Lego Factory where you can design and build your own historic scenes.

• I really wish they weren't discontinuing their 9V electrified rail train sets. My question is why?
As a company, we are very focused on the core bricks and developing the “system of play.” With the recent development of the Lego Power System, we are able to replace several non compatible applications with one electric system. Unfortunately, this means that we are moving from two systems with trains to one coherent system.

• Will Lego continue to reach out to a more adult audience with more intricate and larger sets?
Our adult audience is very important to us and we will continue to produce the larger, more intricate sets, which are typically found in our direct to consumer channels and other specialty retailers. The latest introduction is the Lego Star Wars Death Star.

• Where are the clear Lego? Glow-in-the-dark? Recycled? Corn Plastic? Rubber? LED Illuminated? Rustic?
New products and elements are always in development. We have had glow-in-the dark parts in several sets in the last few years, and we also have light bricks in select sets. We use rubber to produce Lego tires—did you know we’re the world’s largest producer of vehicle tires?

• When will the 9v train tracks and motors be coming back to factory?
Unfortunately, the 9v train tracks are being phased out and we are moving toward a more coherent system using the Lego Power System.

• Does Lego have plans for Wi-Fi connections for Mindstorm?
Mindstorms NXT includes Bluetooth capability for wireless communication and downloads.

• Will Lego produce trikes and the old bikes again?
As of now there are no plans to produce trikes and old bikes.

We have a very strong licensing department who are always working with leading manufacturers to identify new categories and products that can carry the Lego brand name.

• When will the new train sets be introduced?
Our designers, as well as some faithful fans are working hard to get the new trains ready for market. We expect that these sets will be on sale in 2009. More details to follow!

• Why don't we get the serious RC stuff in the US?
RC models are available in the U.S. Check your local retailer, or visit the Lego shop.

• i just started to get into the Lego trains and purchased the remote control set with extra tracks...now they are not available! There was talk of a new series of trains but I can't find the reference now. The question is simply: what's the plan for Lego train sets?
See question above

• Why won't they bring back for good the space theme?
The space theme is an evergreen theme for us. We currently have Lego Star Wars and Lego Mars Mission themes to satisfy consumer demand for space themed building.

• Are there any chances that Lego will ever start producing modern day warfare Lego, with tanks and helicopters and what not?
We have a strict policy regarding military models, and therefore, we do not produce tanks, helicopters, etc. While we always support the men and women who serve their country, we prefer to keep the play experiences we provide for children in the realm of fantasy.

• Could you ask them if they plan to do another Star Wars robots Mindstorms set please?
As of now there are no plans to come out with a new Star Wars robot kit; however, we encourage all of our fans to create their own.

• I am a major fan of the Star Wars Lego, I have the Death Star on my coffee table, and I was wondering I they were ever going to make models based on the expanded universe?
With the Star Wars franchise, anything is possible! Keeps your eyes open for exciting new things.

• When are they going to be releasing an advanced model of the Batman rambler?
As of now there are no plans to release this model.

Thanks to all the readers who submitted all these questions. Please note that some of the questions you sent about licenses were not included because the Lego people are as secretive about their future products as Apple is. [Giz's Lego Trip]

I didn't know that when I was curiously ogling the oldest sets, from the 1950s. Jette Orduna—the curator for the Idea House, Lego's history museum set in the old family house of the owner, Kjeld Kirk Kristiansen—was explaining the first Lego sets, obviously enjoying my enthusiasm. "Here's the wooden box that some shops around Denmark had, usually hairdressers or general stores" she would say while carefully opening it for me to see its contents, simple red and white bricks without tubes, some of them with windows on them, "they contained individual Lego bricks. Back then, parents bought them regularly to their children, so they could keep expanding their Lego system." Then she would turn her attention to another set, as I kept asking what was this or that. "Yes, it's called 'electronic' because this train could be activated by whistling," she would explain, whistling herself.

I was just enjoying it like an archeologist. Her explanations, the cool box designs, the quick evolution of the first years... I was amazed by the ingenuity of it all, curious about the origins of the myth. But that was it. Just simple curiosity. Until we got to the 1970s.

Knowing my previous comments, Jette went straight to one of the shelves, at the end of the long aisle. She looked up and down, her lips pressed together, concentrated in finding something. While she was doing this I was filming around, eyes wide open, thinking "oh, is that?" and "nah, that can't be... can it?" my excitement growing by the second. It was then when she took out a large rectangular box with yellow sides, saying "a-ha! Here it is."

I turned around and I saw what she had in her hands: the Lego Space Galaxy Explorer.

And then it hit me. Lift off. Godspeed. Boom.

A wave of emotions took control, hitting my head like a Lego Airbus 380. Dozens of images started to appear in my head, Polaroids of Xmas and birthdays that I thought were faded, completely fresh, color-corrected, and restored by the damn Lucasfilm for a Blu-ray re-release. I could even see the Hollywood quote whores saying "Better than ever!", "The past never looked so good!", and "Five stars!" embossed in silver on the special edition boxed set. There was my mother and father—who built a huge Lego ferris wheel and the Blue Train for us when we were too young to build it, then never stop giving us new sets every year—and then my two brothers and my sister, playing on the rug, building all kind of new and wonderful constructions populated by the strangest creatures. And that smell. The perfect smell of Lego bricks.

You know what I'm talking about, those were the days and all that jazz. But for real. Feelings and moments from times when everything was innocent and your only concern was your bike, a big carpet full of Lego bricks, and the amount of cocoa in your cereals.

After that, it was one wave after the other, jumping from Lego Space to Lego Technic to Lego Town to Lego Castle and Lego Pirates and Lego Star Wars. Each set a memory, a particular Kodak moment blurred by the occasional teary eye.

Soon, too soon, it was over. And as I was walking up the stairs, back to the present, slowly letting the past fade back into the treasure chest, I thought: "This must be it. This must be reason why Lego is so loved by almost everyone in the planet." Sure they are fun. The details, the incredible designs, the way you physically touch them, how they make you use both your hands, creativity, and logic. All that is there, all are parts of their universal appeal.

But there's a lot more. Something more fundamental, bigger than the sum of all those qualities. Underneath all that there's a primal connection, something that makes everyone tune into the childhoods when they see the bricks, and get back into brighter, careless moments, even at the subconscious levels.

And thinking that, I joined Jette and Jan in the Real World, with a grin on my face. Life wasn't that bad, after all. Not if something as simple as a colored brick can make me smile again.

I couldn't think of a better song to go with this story than the Johnny Cash version of Memories Are Made of This, from the album Unchained. Sadness and happiness at the same time, bringing so many other memories on its own. You can buy it at Amazon or the iTunes Music Store. In fact, get the whole album while you are it, because it's amazing (and so are the rest of the American Recordings series).

[Giz's Trip to Lego]

The Allianz Arena Lego model was built following the original plans from Swiss architects Herzog and de Meuron, using 4,209 hours of work and over a million pieces. It can glow red, blue, and white using interior LEDs, achieving the same lighting effects of the original stadium thanks to a special translucent brick specially manufactured for the project. [Giz's Lego Trip]

With that amount of bricks, and knowing how long my Falcon is taking, I'm not surprised that it took 600 hours for the entire team of professional Legoland model builders to assemble this beast. [Giz's Lego Trip]

Perhaps the sense of humor is a requirement to work there. Or maybe a consequence of the amazingly fun and light atmosphere that I found everywhere around the company. Personally, I think they put some kind of happy-clappy drug in the food—more on that later—because everyone seems to be smiling and having fun while working, even the people checking the bots at the factory.

And for the people who didn't get the reference at the end of the clip, watch this:

Again please! [Giz's Lego Trip]

#10188 Death Star™
Ages 12+. 3,803 pieces.
$399.99

Recreate the action and adventure of the Star Wars™ movies with the ultimate Death Star™ playset! This detailed battle station features an incredible array of minifigure-scale scenes and accessories from Episodes IV and VI. Its different decks include the Death Star control room, moving turbolaser turrets, hangar bay with TIE Advanced starfighter, tractor beam controls, Emperor’s throne room, detention block, Imperial conference room, droid maintenance facility, and the powerful Death Star superlaser, plus much more! Swing across the chasm with Luke and Leia, face danger in the crushing trash compactor, and duel with Darth Vader for the fate of the galaxy. With over 3,800 pieces, the Death Star measures 16” tall and 16½” wide when completed. Includes 25 Star Wars minifigures and droids!

Death Star is a LEGO Exclusive available for pre-order on www.LEGOshop.com starting July 1, 2008 and can be found in LEGO Brand Retail Stores starting September 1, 2008!

Includes the following 7 new and exclusive Star Wars minifigures and droids only found in this set!
Luke Skywalker™ (Stormtrooper outfit)
Han Solo™ (Stormtrooper outfit)
Death Star Trooper (x2)
Phlutdroid™
Interrogation Droid
Death Star Droid

Other minifigures and droids include:
Obi-Wan Kenobi™
R2-Q5™
Emperor Palpatine™
Darth Vader™
Grand Moff Tarken™
Emperor’s Royal Guard™ (x2)
Stormtrooper™ (x2)
R2-D2™
C-3PO™
Princess Leia™
Chewbacca™
Luke Skywalker™ (Jedi Knight)
Mouse Droid
Dianoga (Trash Monster)
Luke Skywalker™
Han Solo™

Product Features:
Death Star Control Room
Death Star Turbolasers
Hangar Bay Control Room
Superlaser Control Room
Death Star Superlaser & Weapons Bay
Manned Turbolaser
Emperor’s Throne Room
Hangar Bay
Detention Block
Tractor Beam Control
Trash Compactor Scene
Swing over the Gap
Meeting room
Droid maintenance

The printing of these mini-figs is one of the most expensive and delicate processes at the Lego factory. The rubber stamping has to be done in a very precise way—printing feature by feature in layers—until it's done. [Giz's Lego Trip]

Finally she [Susan Kare] came across a floral symbol that was used in Sweden to indicate an interesting feature or attraction in a campground. She rendered a 16 x 16 bitmap of the little symbol and showed it to the rest of the team, and everybody liked it. Twenty years later, even in OS X, the Macintosh still has a little bit of a Swedish campground in it.

It certainly marks the spot in this case.

I'm back from Lego's headquarters in Denmark, frantically writing features, editing video, and preparing images showing the amazing brick manufacturing process, the Lego cathedrals with billions of pieces in them and giant robots moving them around, the Lego secret vault with every single set ever produced, and many more awesome things. I've to say that I've been blown away and, trust me, it's not just fanboyism. [LEGO in Gizmodo]

On Tuesday I'm getting an exclusive tour through their factory, and will also visit their idea house—where apparently every LEGO in history is stored. I will also talk with LEGO designers from the Mindstorm, Creator and Star Wars lines.

Yes, I know, it's an absolute nerdgasm coming up. Hopefully I will recover soon to post videos, photos and impressions right here in Giz. For now, I'm off to LEGOLAND to do exactly that (and buy some sets).

[Classics in Lego Flickr Set]