Dateline: 09/06/00
I know, describing yet another home robot just two weeks after the previous article doesn't seem like a good editorial decision. I must admit that I already had another article ready for upload, but one message that suddenly dropped into my mailbox changed this week's schedule upside down. The long awaited iRobot-LE from iRobot Corporation (aka IS Robotics - iRobot is the name under which IS Robotics does business in consumer robots, while industrial products and services are still available, with recently acquired Real World Interface producing all kinds of all-terrain and indoor robots) is now available for pre-order. So, if you are willing to invest $4,995, the next big thing in consumer robotics could be yours during the first quarter of 2001. Casual reader, tired from various AIBO clones and robotic vacuum cleaners, could think that I'm blowing this thing way out of proportion. What is the difference between iRobot and the rest of the crowd?
To get things straight right from the beginning, there are some really tough competitors waiting out there - more details can be found in the previous article mentioned above.
However, when authorities such as MIT's Rodney Brooks, Collin Angle and Helen Greiner speak, the rest of the robotics world listens. They earned this reputation during the late 1980's, when the coolest robots in the world were being developed at the MIT Artificial
Intelligence Lab based on the subsumption architecture pioneered by Brooks.
This time, after numerous successful (and expensive) real-world devices, they brought us the first multi-purpose home robot controllable from a Web browser. To put it more simply, it is a powerful personal computer on wheels, with sensors that allow it to understand the world around it. The robot's "brain" is built around standard AMD K6-2 450 MHz processor using ordinary peripherals like sound card, speakers, microphone, etc., running Linux 2.2 operating system and Apache Web server. It has connections available for a monitor, keyboard, mouse, and joystick. Note that your home PC does not need a Linux operating system. While the iRobot-LE runs under Linux, it can be controlled using Windows 95, 98, and NT 4.0. Forget proprietary operating systems and development tools, or restrictions placed by the older microcontrollers - gigabytes of AI software available for these platforms are just waiting to be used.
Besides the robot and onboard computer, the basic package includes fast-charging JuiceBar charging station (it will fully recharge the battery in approx. 8 hours), standard lead acid battery (run time approx. 1 hour), digital video camera with independently controllable pan/tilt axes and adjustable height, onboard wireless link (2.4 GHz, frequency-hopping spread-spectrum, data rate 700Kbps, range approx. 150 ft indoors) and handheld infrared remote control. An ingenious front flipper mechanism (part of the Surefoot™ Stairclimbing Technology) allows the iRobot to climb steps and standard staircases. It is also used in combination with powered neck mechanism to gain extra height, so that iRobot-LE can look over the most tabletops. Even if we put everything else aside, this is the coolest looking home robot that I've ever seen.
There are basically two ways to control the iRobot-LE. If you're in the same room as the robot, you drive it by using a handheld remote control. However, when you're not in the same location as your robot, you have to log in to the secure Web page that streams the video of what the robot sees and audio of what it hears. "Webdriving" is a simple, point-and-click process: use your mouse to point where you want the robot to go and it goes there. However, be aware that this option requires a full-time Internet connection providing 300 Kbps of outgoing bandwidth or more - DSL (Digital Subscriber Line) or Cable Modem access will suffice in most of the cases. This speed will deliver high quality, real-time video from your robot to your browser window. It can be used on slower connections, but with degraded image quality and frame rate. Regardless of the scenario, robot operates semi-autonomously, avoiding obstacles on its path and building a floor plan guided by the biologically inspired behavioral control system. Hardware setup through the Symphony-HRF Cordless USB Adapter is relatively straightforward, depending on the type of existing network configuration.
iRobot Corporation officials says that this "physical Web avatar" is "an example of technology used responsibly to simplify our lives, not make them more stressful". It can perform a variety of security- or entertainment-related tasks, which will be more than enough for robotics enthusiasts. Others will maybe want more for their money - maybe robots helping them with their domestic chores. But I agree with Helen Greiner, President of iRobot Corporation, when she says that "the virtual teleportation (being able to project yourself into a physical avatar and do the types of things you would do if you were there) is the first killer app for home robots. This first application cannot be what people can already do - like vacuuming and lawnmowing. It has to be a new capability - like spreadsheets were for the PC." We'll have to wait and see how expandable and open iRobot's software/hardware architecture really is - SDK (Software Development Kit) will be available in the second quarter of 2001. Anyhow, it is a pleasure to see the progress in the field of consumer robotics. iRobot is giving the Internet "eyes, ears, and wheels" it needs to become even more interactive and powerful medium.
Images reprinted with the permission of iRobot Corporation.