Capsela is a

construction toy A construction set is a standardized piece assortment allowing for the construction of various different models. Construction sets are most often marketed as toys. Popular construction toy brands include Lincoln Logs and ''LEGO''. Toys ...

brand consisting primarily of gears and motors in

spherical A sphere (from Ancient Greek, Greek , ) is a surface (mathematics), surface analogous to the circle, a curve. In solid geometry, a sphere is the Locus (mathematics), set of points that are all at the same distance from a given point in three ...

plastic Plastics are a wide range of synthetic polymers, synthetic or Semisynthesis, semisynthetic materials composed primarily of Polymer, polymers. Their defining characteristic, Plasticity (physics), plasticity, allows them to be Injection moulding ...

capsules that can be connected to form various static or dynamic toys suitable for land or water. The capsules typically have six hollow octagonal connectors protruding, where an octagonal sleeve piece bridges between two capsules. The hollow connection pegs on a capsule can have electrical or rotary adapters inside, reaching into the next capsule. There are

electric motor An electric motor is a machine that converts electrical energy into mechanical energy. Most electric motors operate through the interaction between the motor's magnetic field and electric current in a electromagnetic coil, wire winding to gene ...

capsules,

gear A gear or gearwheel is a rotating machine part typically used to transmit rotational motion and/or torque by means of a series of teeth that engage with compatible teeth of another gear or other part. The teeth can be integral saliences or ...

capsules,

switch In electrical engineering, a switch is an electrical component that can disconnect or connect the conducting path in an electrical circuit, interrupting the electric current or diverting it from one conductor to another. The most common type o ...

capsules, pontoon capsules, and others; there are also battery holders, wheels,

propeller A propeller (often called a screw if on a ship or an airscrew if on an aircraft) is a device with a rotating hub and radiating blades that are set at a pitch to form a helical spiral which, when rotated, exerts linear thrust upon a working flu ...

impeller An impeller, or impellor, is a driven rotor used to increase the pressure and flow of a fluid. It is the opposite of a turbine, which extracts energy from, and reduces the pressure of, a flowing fluid. Strictly speaking, propellers are a sub-clas ...

s, lights, wires, and miscellaneous supporting pieces. Capsela products were originally manufactured by the Mitsubishi Pencil Company. The series was then licensed out to Play Jour and has since been produced by VTech, Kidology, and other subsidiaries. The range was re-released in Japan by

Bandai is a Japanese multinational corporation, multinational toy manufacturer and distributor headquartered in Taitō, Taitō, Tokyo. Its international branches, Bandai Namco Toys & Collectables America and Bandai UK, are respectively headquartered ...

, adding new colors to the basic range of transparent spheres. In the U.S., the Capsela line was purchased by Educational Insights, a manufacturer of learning toys and educational materials for school classroom, which has discontinued the line.

Product line

Capsela products were originally sold in at least four ranges: * A series of increasingly complex generic construction sets, similar in style to

Meccano Meccano is a brand of construction set created in 1898 by Frank Hornby in Liverpool, England. The system consists of reusable metal strips, plates, angle girders, wheels, axles and gears, and plastic parts that are connected using nuts and ...

Lego Technic Lego Technic (stylized as ''LEGO Technic'') is a line of Lego interconnecting plastic rods and parts. The purpose of this series is to create advanced models of working vehicles and machines, compared to the simpler brick-building properties of ...

. (Sets 135, 150, 200, 250, 400, 450, 500, 700 and 1000, ranging from 30 to 108 parts.) * Capsela Computer, the flagship range, based around a multi-function computer capsule capable of controlling motors and lights. Sets CRC2000 and ICR5000, the latter featuring an infrared remote control. * Capsela Voice Command systems (3000 and 6000) have a small computer capable of responding to a number of voice commands. The 6000 system has a rudimentary wireless infrared remote control. * A sister product branded as SpaceLink, has no motorized parts (with the exception of spring powered wheel units) and instead focuses on science fiction-themed accessories (cockpits, small action figures, rockets, etc.). This range appears to have been designed to be more appealing to children than the more educational original products. This includes sets 330, 345, 360, 610, 650, 670, 690, 805, 820, 835, 850, 860 and 895, ranging from 8 to 53 parts. * Capsela Powertram, a series designed to bridge Capsela and Spacelink, containing motor-driven construction components and Spacelink accessories. The Powertram unit is a motor-driven platform which houses its own batteries and allows land vehicles to be constructed without the need for a separate switch box, battery compartments, wires and motors. This includes sets 275 and 375, with 26 and 42 parts, respectively. * Robot (set 204) – this set comes with a

worm gear A worm drive is a gear train, gear arrangement in which a worm (which is a gear in the form of a Screw thread, screw) meshes with a worm wheel (which is similar in appearance to a spur gear). Its main purpose is to translate the motion of two p ...

capsule with a larger gear ratio.

Robotic Workshop

In January 1987,

Access Software Access Software, Inc. was an American video game developer based in Salt Lake City, Utah. Founded in November 1982 by Bruce Carver and Chris Jones (Access Software), Chris Jones, the company created the ''Beach Head (video game), Beach Head'', ...

announced The Robotic Workshop, a kit designed for home computers that used a range of Capsela parts. The kit includes more than 50 Capsela parts, including two motors, gears, wheels, and sensors. The kit also includes an electronic control unit that plugs into the user port of a

Commodore 64 The Commodore 64, also known as the C64, is an 8-bit computing, 8-bit home computer introduced in January 1982 by Commodore International (first shown at the Consumer Electronics Show, January 7–10, 1982, in Las Vegas). It has been listed in ...

, an instruction manual with 50 tutorial projects, and special programming software on a floppy disk. It was later released for

Apple An apple is a round, edible fruit produced by an apple tree (''Malus'' spp.). Fruit trees of the orchard or domestic apple (''Malus domestica''), the most widely grown in the genus, are agriculture, cultivated worldwide. The tree originated ...

Atari Atari () is a brand name that has been owned by several entities since its inception in 1972. It is currently owned by French holding company Atari SA (formerly Infogrames) and its focus is on "video games, consumer hardware, licensing and bl ...

, and

IBM International Business Machines Corporation (using the trademark IBM), nicknamed Big Blue, is an American Multinational corporation, multinational technology company headquartered in Armonk, New York, and present in over 175 countries. It is ...

computers.

Use in schools

Capsela has been used in school science technology classes, and to promote technical careers in engineering, robotics, and

mechatronics Mechatronics engineering, also called mechatronics, is the synergistic integration of mechanical, electrical, and computer systems employing mechanical engineering, electrical engineering, electronic engineering and computer engineering, and also ...

to younger high school students, sometimes specifically targeting girls.

Reception

Games A game is a Structure, structured type of play (activity), play usually undertaken for entertainment or fun, and sometimes used as an Educational game, educational tool. Many games are also considered to be Work (human activity), work (such as p ...

'' magazine included ''Capsela'' 700 Series in their top 100 games two years in a row. For their "Top 100 Games of 1980", one of their editors described it as "just the best construction set he's ever played with." In the "Top 100 Games of 1981", they praised it as a "construction set that is more than child's play" and noting that "The transparent parts make it easy to learn about motors, gear ratios, and transmission of energy."

References

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External links

Reddit - Capsela and IQ Key archived manuals

IQ Key (similar to but not compatible with Capsela)
1980s toys Construction toys Educational toys Electronic toys