Robert did not begin as a finished plan.

How it started

Robert began with a simple observation.

While working on small LEGO® Technic motorcycles created in support of Bikers Against Child Abuse (BACA), I used flexible axle connectors as part of the suspension system.

Those motorcycles had their own story. I originally tried to offer the designs directly to LEGO with the idea that they could support BACA through a small share of the profit. It was meant to be a quiet gesture, but I was advised that the only path forward was to submit them through LEGO Ideas. I followed that route with the intention of donating any potential reward, although the project never gained traction there.

Even though that path did not lead where I expected, it led to something else entirely.

I started wondering whether the same flexible axle connectors could be used as joints for fingers. After experimenting with a single finger, it became clear that the idea could be taken much further.

What began as a small mechanical concept quickly became too interesting to ignore. Even though I was already working on another large project, I kept following the idea step by step.

In that sense, Robert was not planned in the usual way - he was discovered.

The idea behind the journey

Robert is not an isolated invention. He is part of a longer process of exploring how simple ideas can grow into more complex and functional systems through patience, iteration, and design.

That process is visible in the posts below. They show the project evolving from an early tendon-driven concept into something that did not fit into any existing category.

But just as importantly, they reflect something else: this was never only about making something impressive. It was about making something understandable, meaningful, and eventually shareable.