Tip of The Month: Open Roomba Discovery

Almost had this monthly tip pass by without being posted for the month of June! Do you own a Roomba? How about a Discovery series Roomba? Yes, the nice looking robot staring at you right now! This guy has been in millions of homes for some odd years now and you have put it to great floor cleaning use but have you ever looked inside it? There are plenty of reasons to justify "open heart surgery" for your faithful robot assistant besides feeding your nerd-like curiosity. Let me list a few:

• A well earned deep cleaning (after many years of hard work)
• Replacement of faulty speaker (have wondered why it never spoke to you again?)
• Get better access to the drive wheel tachometer assembly (That is why the Roomba does the Mambo!)
• Replacement of the main brush motor (Where did my left red sock go?)
• Hacking fun with your Roomba electronics and sensors (Can your Roomba water your plants?)

There are almost endless reasons to get access to your nice little robot and my good friend Gordon Plews, a very experienced and technical contributor in the Roomba web universe, has a very detailed step-by-step instructions (with pictures for those who like that stuff) at his Roomba technical website:

Gordon's Instructions: Opening A Roomba Discovery (make sure you click at this link)

Don't blame me for the geek fun you will encounter! Enjoy.

Dreamland For Domestic Robot Geeks

An "area 51" (a.k.a. dreamland) for domestic robot geeks exists. This robotics dreamland can be found in Esslingen, Germany in a company called Festo. Talking about Festo as a robot geek "dreamland" is nothing compared to what you can see and experience! This place makes many dreams come true and some just seem like something out of a Science Fiction book or movie! Festo is a leading supplier of pneumatic and electrical automation technologies for more than 50 years. One of the interesting aspects found at Festo is called "Bionic Learning Network", here they design maximum performance systems with minimal energy my observing designs found in nature.

Here you can see the Airic's Arm, designed back in 2007. The arm is composed of 30 "fluidic" (a.k.a. artificial) muscles and very small piezo proportional valves that enable it to move accurately and with rigidity. The Airic's Arm can be introduced into a future humanoid robot in order to assist in dangerous and hazardous situations or to just help around your home.



















Another very interesting robotic project made by Festo is the "Air Penguin". These flying robots were inspired by the aquatic version of the Festo robot and were designed to fly around autonomously in a defined air space. These robotic creatures can freely explore their area and collaborate with other similar robots. These robots are just awe inspiring to see them fly above you as they were organic creatures from another planet!


The "Aqua Jelly" is yet something else to see that will just make your mind go wild with great ideas. The "Aqua Jelly" is an autonomous underwater robot created by Festo back in 2008. This particular and very interesting underwater robot can work in swarms by emulating Jellyfish behaviour. The "Aqua Jelly" consists of a translucent hemisphere and eight tentacles for propulsion. At the center of the "Aqua Jelly" is a watertight laser-sintered body. The body houses a central electric motor, the two lithium-ion polymer batteries, the recharging control unit and the servo motors for the swash plate. Imagine a couple of these guys at your pool or at the beach!

Festo is full of robotic technology "magic" that anyone could easily declare this company as the Dreamland for domestic robot geeks. Festo's "magic" can be found in their will to make their dreams into reality; you have this will within you to make this "magic" as well. Enjoy the video!

The "Re-Birth" of Laptop Based Robot Kits

Last week I posted about the re-birth of Domestic Computer Robots like the 914 PC-Bot which can be considered as a direct evolution of the HERO. So recently I have also found something similar with a great robotics kit from 2002 that used a plain laptop computer for its brain. This laptop based robot from 2002 was created by Evolution Robotics which they named it "EV1"; its life was cut short because back in 2002 laptops were expensive to be used for robot projects. Fast forward 7 years and laptops have greatly reduced their price and size; just take a look at the popular Netbooks created by Asus, Lenovo, Acer and many other manufacturers.




With less than US$350 you can purchase a brand new and very functional Netbook that can be used on the robot kits offered by RoBe:Do Robotics which can be considered as a descendant of the EV1. RoBe:Do Robotics is a real "Mom and Pop" shop based in the state of Colorado, USA. Currently they have the four wheeled robot kits called "Coppa" and "Silvio"; these guys are designed to carry or haul heavier payloads and the three wheeled robot kit called "Three" which is designed for the need for speed! All of these robot kits have flexible USB controllers which with the combination of highly level software libraries make easy mastery of the robot components. These robot kits are easy to add components like controllers, sensors, actuators and other physical extensions. All of RoBe:Do robots can be controlled and programmed by:

* C, C++, C#
* Cocoa
* Delphi
* Flash AS3
* Flex AS3
* Java
* LabView
* Matlab
* Max/MSP
* Microsoft Robotics Studio
* .NET
* Python
* VBScript
* Visual Basic
* Any other tool which can access library files

Get your domestic robot idea out the door if you already have a Windows or Linux based Netbook laying around; pay a visit to RoBe:Do and choose a kit that meets your needs. This is your chance to make a difference.

Pleo - The Comeback Kid Robot

There are a few of us out there that have a special spot in our hearts for Pleo. The Pleo is special, it sparks a sign of an "intelligent" robotic life that we have not been seen since the days of the Sony Aibo. Not too long ago Ugobe (creators of Pleo) failed as a company and the days of this beloved robot was ready to be set on the pages of domestic robot history until just a few months ago (March 2009) a company from China purchased Ugobe's intellectual property. Jetta Company Limited (not the VW automobile) has plans to re-launch Pleo to the world and most likely make it affordable to own one. Jetta is a very well known manufacturer of domestic robots and parts (iRobot Roomba and Pleo) with a 32 year experience in the field. We can all be assured that Pleo will be cared for by the very same "caretakers" that put him together since day one. Be on the lookout for Pleo to come back and most likely other domestic robots from Jetta within a year or so.

The "Re-Birth" of Domestic Computer Robots

Last week I posted about TOPO, the cool "futuristic" robot from 1983. TOPO may seem like an outdated technological idea but the concept of having a "computer on wheels" still lives on today. Computers have advanced many times fold (following Moore's Law) and at the same time shrunk in size; it was just a matter of time to have them integrated into a "robotic" platform like the 914 PC-Bot by White Box Robotics. From what it appears, the 914 PC-Bot may be long lost descendant of the TOPO although the beloved HERO would be a more direct ancestor.



The 914 PC-Bot does not need to be programmed with an external computer but instead this robot IS the computer that can use a wide array of software to run it. This robot has multiple set of sensors that can be used and provide the ability to interconnect with other robots, computers and even the Internet. The possibilities are huge and wide of what can be done with this robot and that is why it has been received with wide open arms by university research labs, domestic robot enthusiasts, artificial intelligence engineers and anyone who just wants their computer on a mobile platform. So for anyone who is like my TOPO loving friend, you are still in luck since the 914 PC-Bot has been on sale since late 2006! Get one and create something new with your robot friend. Enjoy the following videos showing some of the 914 PC Bot coolness.

TOPO: The Future Domestic Robot (Circa 1983)

Back in the day before iPhone, Roomba, Google and Tweeter we had one of the first domestic robots called "TOPO". Believe it or not, this robot was admired and wanted by many! I have a friend who still talks about this robot to this day! You have to remember that this robot came out in 1983 and personal computers were still relatively new so you can imagine how "futuristic" this domestic robot seemed back then. Anyways, TOPO was created by Androbot, Inc. (conceived by Nolan Bushnell) as an "Edutainment" (Entertainment-Educative) domestic robot. TOPO was programmed with BASIC on an Apple II personal computer so it can move around your house on pre-set patterns (nothing like your relatively "intelligent" Roomba). You could have purchased this 36 inch tall "computer" on two wheels to move it around for just US$1,600 (1983)! Later versions had a text to speech processor to amuse your friends and psychiatrist. Anyhow, check out this video showing how back in 1983 many thought that "in just a few years these robots will liberate us from mundane and time consuming household chores"...WOW! Its 2009 and we barely have domestic floor cleaning robots. Enjoy!

iRobot Designs A Roomba With An Outhouse!

Ever since iRobot was successful on creating the very first Roomba, in 2002, it always had a huge flaw; you always had to clean it. What use is it to have a robot clean the floors so at the end you still have to clean the robot. True, the Roomba can clean the floors while you do something else and the time to clean the robot is just a fraction of the total time it may take to clean the floors with a broom but sorry are the people who have allergies. Karcher is one of the most successful on creating a great design with their RC3000 by having it clean itself automatically but the costs (a
prox. US$1400) was a bit too much for many.

iRobot had their minds on creating something similar with their Roomba back in the days of the 4000/"Discovery" series but nothing came out of it until recently these design patents came out from mid 2007. This does not mean that any of these design ideas will come out at all but it surely shows the interest that iRobot has on creating a true semi-autonomous floor cleaning robot. The problem for iRobot is not with the engineering but rather in the costs and market need. If I were iRobot, I would leave this a limited edition add-on option to their current Roomba 500 series and let the market choose. I really hope that the bean counters at iRobot take on this and push it through if they really wish to sell the idea of having a TRUE domestic floor cleaning ROBOT.

Tip of The Month: Un-clogging Your Roomba 500 Series

This month's tip will help out if you are an owner of a Roomba 500 series robot that suffers from a clogged dust intake (as shown in the picture). This phenomena occurs were fine home dust, certain amount of humidity and hard floors or low pile carpet exists. The very narrow and short space between the two dust intake squeegees make it very easy to clog fine dust with just a small amount of it existing on your home floors. This issue also contributes to the "Roombarf" problem that some owners report.

With this problem your Roomba 500 series will be unable to pick up the fine dust left after the main brush and beater bar picks up the larger dirt and dust particles; this is something not appreciated when you suffer from allergies and/or want your floor clean. Something else to consider is that the vac motor will be working harder under these conditions which in turn will heat it up, shorten its life and consume more battery power without giving you the benefit of picking up the fine house dust. I have contacted iRobot about this issue and provided the gathered evidence to just find out that nothing is being done to fix it. In my frustration of working with iRobot I have found a work around; by removing the bottom squeegee from the dirt/dust bin takes care of this problem. Try it out and see the difference; see how much dust is trapped by the air filter and how cleaner your floors get.


STEP 1: Remove dust/dirt bin from your Roomba 500 series robot.



















STEP 2: Open the air filter compartment.



















STEP 3: Turn over the dirt/dust bin and slide out the bottom dust intake squeegee (highlighted in green). Do NOT throw away the bottom dust intake squeegee.



















STEP 4: Close the air filter compartment and re-insert the dirt/dust bin into your Roomba 500 series robot. Run it for a cleaning session and check out the difference.


NOTE: The suction power will be reduced by a fraction but the vac motor is strong enough to pick up the fine dust. The benefits of this mod out weigh the cons if not you can easily slide the bottom dust intake squeegee back into place.

Much Buzz with Samsung Hauzen VC-RE70V

I first talked about the Samsung Hauzen VC-RE70V back in early April 2008. Recently, in the past couple of months, this robotic floor cleaner has been leaked out to the international market after being in Korea for over a year. The VC-RE70V is being sought out by domestic robot enthusiasts in Europe and America at an average premium price of US$500. What makes this robot stand out against rivals like iRobot's Roomba? The ability to map out a room and cleverly clean the floors in a uniformed single pass method. The VC-RE70V does not use the "chaotic"/statistical floor cleaning method that almost all current floor cleaning robots use. This robot is sexy looking like something out of a Sci-Fi film, has nice features that every domestic cleaning robot needs to have like dual side brushes, HEPA filter and VAC auto shut off when seeking a re-charge. Knowing all of the greatness of the VC-RE70V does not mean it is flawless, it does have similar problems like many other domestic floor cleaning robots. Hair accumulates on the sides of the brush and need to be cleaned off regurlarly, the dirt bin has to be emptied out manually, getting stuck in certain areas and other issues that are only found on the VC-RE70V like loosing the room map when the robot is shut off for charging.

Nothing is perfect but we always point towards it. This domestic floor cleaning robot still has charms that makes me interested in getting it for a full in depth review. A newer updated version called VC-RE72V (better room mapping and voice (Korean) prompts) is recently available in Korea. So if you have the extra cash and like to try new robot technology then get this guy! Here are some specs and a video to help you decide:

• Robot Dimensions: 14.2 x 4.1 in.
• Robot Weight: 9.9 Lb.
• Max. Vac Power: 50 W
• Dirt Bin Capacity: 0.5 L
• Robot Noise: 62 dB
• Charger Voltage: 220 V / 60 Hz
• HEPA Filter
• Crash Prevention Sensor
• Obstacle Sensor x 8
• Bumper Sensor x 4
• Cliff Sensor x 3
• Motion Safety Sensor
• "Air Pump" to improve dust/dirt suction
• Double Side Brushes
• Auto Recharging
• Camera based room mapping

HAWK: The Future Domestic Robot Butler

Wow! It has been a while since I last posted here. I have been working on different projects and ideas during this time. I do not want to leave all you domestic robot fans out in the cold! Here is a nice one I found from the geniuses at Dr Robot from Canada. Dr Robot was founded back in 2001 by a group of Scientist and Engineers that previously designed robotic systems for different space agencies. Their goal is to make cost-effective and high performance robots for industrial, commercial and academia use. One such robot that I found interesting is HAWK. HAWK is wireless/networked/autonomous/humanoid/mobile robot. He may look ugly and crude but definitely functional and moving to the correct path of future domestic robots. If you are a robot geek, like I am, you will want to get your hands on this guy! Here is a list of what is available with HAWK:

• Dual arms with 6 joints (DOF) + 2DOF gripper, reaching 60cm (2ft), with max lifting weight of 800g (optional 1kg)
• 6DOF animated head with dual 640x480 color cameras
• 3.5 inch color display on chest, playing video (.wmv), audio and displaying images
• Overall height of 1.4m; Dimension: 43cm(L) x 38cm(W) x 140cm(H)
• Navigation and localization providing collision-free point-to-point autonomous navigation
• Vision-landmark base indoor localization (indoor GPS, position/orientation) sensor and the landmarks together provide precise position and direction information covering every inch of the floor
• Auto-docking and recharging station
• Fully wireless networked 802.11g
• OS independent application development tools
• Navigation sensors including 6 sonar and 10 IR range sensors
• Max speed 0.5m/sec.
• Comprehensive circuit protection
• High resolution pan-tilt-zoom (10X) camera
• Max payload of 10kg (optional 40kg) with body weight of 21kg
• Tele-operation and remote monitoring
• Extended operating time. 2 hour nominal operation time for each recharging
• Upgrade options: Laser Scanner; Power and battery systems for 4, 8 hours operation time are available

If that list of goodies still does not convince you then take a look at some of these videos:





You may ask: "Hey Nikolai, we have seen similar robots like this one (Reem-B, ARMAR, MDS, ASIMO, etc.). What is so special about HAWK?" Come on! You don't see it? All other similar domestic humanoid robots are not reachable to the general public but HAWK is! Don't get me wrong, the other robots are great but our chances to see them in our house this year are slim. HAWK can provide the platform for you to improve on him or have him help you with your robotic projects. HAWK may prove too much for some of us but the nice thing is that Dr Robot has other smaller robotic platforms that may suit your needs and budget. Let me know if any of you get this guy; if so send me a picture! Enjoy.

Tip of The Month: Know Your Roomba's Birth Date

If you are a brand new and proud owner of an iRobot Roomba you may want to know the manufacture date (a.k.a. "Born Date") of your lovely Roomba for the following reasons:

- Warranty Claims
- Firmware Version
- Hardware Version
- Troubleshooting
- Know When To Celebrate Your Robot's B-Day!

On 400 "Discovery" Series Roomba you will find the serial number below your Robot's battery as shown here:













On 500 Series Roomba you will find the serial number above your Robot's dirt bin as shown here:



















and here is how you can tell the date:









This tip will work on iRobot's Scooba and Dirt Dog as well. The nice thing is that you can tell if a Roomba or Scooba includes reported updates and/or new SCI code by reading the date code on the serial number sticker found on the outside of the retail box at your local store. This way you will know that you are buying the latest iRobot Robot that is available and not one that has been sitting in a warehouse for months on end!

Learning is In The Details of Artificial Interlligence

Every day I find something new that just makes me think that we are a couple of steps away from having machines "learn" as we do. Humans learn by acquiring new knowledge, behaviors, skills, values, preferences or understanding, and may involve synthesizing different types of information. Robots are close to doing the same thing! The group at "Laboratoire d'Algorithmes et Systemes d'Apprentissage (LASA)" from Switzerland are running a research project called "Incremental Learning of Gestures By Imitation In A Humanoid Robot" that demonstrates on how a robot can visually and physically learn by gestures (check out the video). This is just one of a mass collection of other artificial intelligence research projects that they are working (Theodore Kaczynski is probably having a very bad nightmare as I type this). Can you see how something like this can be useful in your plain old domestic robot? Provide your typical "roomba-like" robotic floor cleaner with a couple of dry cleaning runs and with time it will know your home without hitting furniture like a blind bat. The Future is Now! Enjoy.

Insect Inspired Robots for Your Home?

Zenta is a robot enthusiast from Norway that is crazy about multi leg robots. He has created various versions of them, some look like spiders but lately he made one called "A-Pod" that caught my attention. A-Pod was inspired by the physiology of Ants but how Zenta interpreted it using robotics is very inspiring. Currently the A-Pod is a manual/remote controlled robot (a DIY 2.4 GHz transmitter), which limits its full potential, but some sort of basic A.I. can be introduced to this robot in a future version.

















This robot is not small (as you can see in the picture with the large can), it has a very large and flexible head with 3DoF (degrees of freedom), a total of 25 servos, large jaws so it can hold and carry a beverage bottle or can (or your naughty cat and dog!), a 'natural' looking thorax to hold the legs plus battery and a 2 DoF abdomen to hold all the electronics.



















Per Zenta, there is still work to do with the leg mechanics for movement but you can enjoy and be inspired by just looking at how his A-Pod is able to move with relative smoothness and grace! I can envision a smaller scale weather proof version of the A-Pod that will have a specific integrated A.I. that will provide perimeter security around or inside your home. My congratulations to Zenta for sharing his A-Pod robot with all of us.

Little Dog is Big Dog's Little Brother

Have you heard about Little Dog? He is a side project from his big brother called "Big Dog" at Boston Dynamics. This "little" guy is a quadruped robot created to learn locomotion from this style of robot on different terrains. The guys/gals at Boston Dynamics learn and/or probe fundamental relationships among motor learning, dynamic control, perception of the environment, and rough terrain locomotion....wow! Is that all? No way Jose! They also learn on how Little Dog's sensors measure joint angles, motor currents, body orientation and foot/ground contact. All of this runs on an integrated PC-Level computer with multiple sensors and motors with power provided by a cool Lithium-Polymer battery that give it a nice 30 minutes of activity. Do you still want to have your pooch watch your house? The future is now! Enjoy the video.

More Human Than Human - 2009

Does the year 2019 sound familiar? How about 2029? or 2009? Well, 2019 is from the fabulous movie "Blade Runner" and 2029 is from another great movie "The Terminator". What do they have in common? Well both have Robots that look like us! OK, but 2009? Is there anything that exists like that? Heck yes!

We are definitely getting very close to it. A couple of weeks ago the National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology (AIST), from Japan, introduced the HRP-4C. This 5 foot 2 inches tall robot is a very convincing humanoid looking robot. It is completely self contained with basic speech synthesis and voice recognition. Why is the HRP-4C unique? We all know Japanese fascination with female looking robots and all of them have been a static animated robot unlike the HRP-4C which is able to move around without tethers. Take a look at the video shot and judge for yourself.






















Now what will make this technology move forward is what artificial intelligence is used to run these robots effectively, without it they just become a show and tell device without any realistic implementation in our day to day lives.