Reality Me » Robotics

Like the dolphins…only different.

Doug McCaughan — Wed, 11 Jun 2008 01:55:46 +0000

Some people say there is a giant, mechanical spider in this video. All I saw was a topless red head.

For those that are wondering about the dolphins, read this.

I like robots

Doug McCaughan — Fri, 21 Mar 2008 15:16:14 +0000

What was your first robot experience?

Doug McCaughan — Mon, 31 Dec 2007 16:22:31 +0000

I tinkered with many gadgets as a child but it was in high school when I was allowed to skip out of my English class (1985-86) to sneak off to the advanced shop class that I was really bowled over. See, the shop class had a Hero. I had the privilege of participating in its construction and it left a lasting impression on me. Although I have never pursued robotics, the desire to get into robotics has remained in the back of my mind.

For 2008, Healthkit is reintroducing the Hero robot as HE-RObot! Our household so needs one of these! Noah has expressed interest in robotics and I think this is a golden opportunity to get him focused on a subject that could have him involved with the community (we have a club in town that competes at Lego Mindstorm designs), draw his attention in high school, focus him in college, and even possibly set him on a career path (provided he stays away from the iPix founders).

I also think this household needs a Lego Mindstorm and an iRobot Create. Yes, we have a hackable Roomba but the iRobot Create is intended for experimentation while our Roomba is intended for cleaning. We also need an iRobot ConnectIR (although I have a hard time looking at it and not thinking "the ultimate upskirt machine!" Who puts a camera on wheels at floor level?!)

The only problem with my desire to make 2008 the year of the robot for our house is that Evan is scared silly of anything electronic that moves on its own. He doesn’t like his own remote control car nor does he like the boys remote control cars. They elicit squeals. He is fascinated with the Roomba but the minute it turns on he can break into tears. This boy is going to have to adapt! Challenge one: Make robotics fun for the two year old…

Thanks to Tom Maszerowski for posting about the HE-RObot.

I want to work for iRobot!

Doug McCaughan — Fri, 28 Sep 2007 12:02:53 +0000

Since a child, I’ve had a fascination with lasers and robots. My path steered away from those. iRobot rocks! iRobot will bring us closer to the Jetsons much sooner than I could have hoped. They have now introduced the Looj gutter-cleaning robot! What a great reason to put guttering on the house!

Makezine explains that iRobot is also accepting applications to beta test their next robot which will have a web camera built into it allowing people on the Internet to control your robot and speak to you. It’s iRobot meets Nabaztag meets Childrenview meets Camstreams.

Because you should have to chase your music

Doug McCaughan — Sat, 01 Sep 2007 15:47:46 +0000

I guess this will be on someone’s Christmas list. via Engadget

And we thought Segway was cool…

Doug McCaughan — Thu, 07 Jun 2007 19:58:41 +0000

I am thinking we just got a little closer to real-life mech warrior! This should make for some interesting parade floats, and Disney animatronics. See also and also.

Droids!

Doug McCaughan — Tue, 10 Apr 2007 16:22:57 +0000

I want to work for iRobot. I’ve had a fascination with lasers and robots since I was a child (thank you hands-on museums) but never pursued these interests beyond getting to play with a Hero I in high school. I used to be allowed to skip out of English class to hang in the advanced electronics class (ergo the fantastic grammar you read here).

The iRobot Verro 300 is designed for use on gunite or concrete and features a powerful hydro-jet system that power washes the pool, deep cleaning pores, cracks and seams. The iRobot Verro 600 is ideal for vinyl, tile and fiberglass pool surfaces and features sturdy PVA brushes that scrub and clean the pool, while the powerful vacuum and self-contained filtration system picks up and traps debris and microscopic bacteria. [Source]

I foresee underwater/webcam hacks a plenty!

Hacking the Roomba

Doug McCaughan — Wed, 17 May 2006 18:49:23 +0000

The Roomba has made playing with robotics at home easier than The Hero ever did! Roombas are fun to watch and websites abound about Hacking the Roomba. There is even a streaming vaccuum cam sitting on a Roomba to let you watch the world from a Roomba’s point of view.

Next Darpa Challenge Announced

Doug McCaughan — Tue, 02 May 2006 13:40:47 +0000

I swore I was going to participate in the next Darpa Challenge. I actually had discussions with some people when the first one came out. I think we could have done well.

Teams will compete to build an autonomous vehicle able to complete a 60-mile urban course safely in less than 6 hours.

Not sure I can move fast enough. Need funding!

Urban Challenge Participants Conference will be held on Saturday, May 20, 2006
Track A proposals are due June 23, 2006.
Track B applications are due October 5, 2006.

Self-replicating robots

Doug McCaughan — Wed, 05 Apr 2006 02:26:17 +0000

I love robots. Always have. These are strange. I can’t take my eyes off them!

More info on the self-repairing machines. This is a project of Cornell University in the proof of concept stage.