Wiki / Protocols
How the links work
Nine ways to reach a LEGO brick, on one page. Read the top table and stop there unless you are writing code — the blocks below hold the byte-level detail.
A brick hears exactly one of these. Point the wrong emitter at it and nothing happens: a 38 kHz remote cannot reach a light sensor, and a lamp cannot reach a Power Functions receiver.
| Link | Carrier | Direction | Who hears it | Flash Force |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| VLL | none, plain on and off | one way | Micro Scout · Code Pilot · Scout | bridge, phone torch, hub LED |
| Barcodes | none, bars on paper | one way | Code Pilot | not needed — the same codes go by light |
| RCX infrared | 38 kHz, 2400 baud serial | both ways | RCX | bridge sends; hearing needs the S3 board |
| Power Functions | 38 kHz | one way | Power Functions (IR) | bridge |
| 76 kHz family | 76 kHz | one way | Spybotics · Bionicle Manas · early RC Train (IR) | not reachable — 76 kHz is a hardware ceiling |
| Spybotics | 76 kHz | both ways between bots | Spybotics | no |
| Powered Up (LWP) | Bluetooth radio | both ways | every Powered Up hub | direct from the page |
| Third-party hubs | Bluetooth radio | both ways | BuWizz · SBrick · Circuit Cubes · Mould King | direct from the page |
The blocks
One note per link, each with its own frames, timings and codes.
- VLL — Visible Light Link — the frame, the bit rates and the checksum, and its codes in VLL opcode table
- Barcodes (Code Pilot) — the same pulses printed on paper
- RCX IR protocol — the two-way serial link, and its codes in RCX opcode table
- Power Functions RC (IR) — the 38 kHz remote
- 76 kHz IR family — the carrier five bricks share
- Spybotics IR protocol — bot to bot
- LWP (Powered Up BLE) — Bluetooth, both ways
- Third-party hubs over Bluetooth — BuWizz, SBrick, Circuit Cubes and the clones
See also
Every brick that hears one of these: Sets & bricks index. What to shine at a light sensor and what actually worked: VLL emitters — options & status. Wavelengths and carriers in one table: Frequencies & wavelengths.