BALANCING ACT
Hardware makes the robot work, and high-performance, low-power processors and systems allow these complex frameworks to run on these mobile marvels. Compact COTS motherboards and standard adapters make quick work of system design. Digital signal controllers are simplifying motor control, and cell-phone cameras are driving down the size and price of digital camera chips. Trying to get a pair of cameras for binocular vision used to be expensive. Now, ringing a robot with sensors is practical.
CTG's Odyssey shows off another robotic attribute that's appearing in more systems: balance (Fig. 6). What's making this possible are low-cost gyroscopes and accelerometers. This technology is also finding its way into nonrobotic products, such as Segway's Human Transporter. It's not surprising that Segway has a robot platform that runs on two wheels.
Robots like the Odyssey are actually more mobile and flexible than their multiwheel counterparts. A two-wheel robot can spin on its axis and navigate over rougher terrain because the robot maintains a sense of balance even when going uphill. Of course, all of this is harder than it looks. But low-cost, high-performance digital signal controllers let the motors do their magic.
Going the four-wheel route, Whitebox Robotics' 9 series robot has a modular design that makes it easier for developers to come up with new systems. A VIA Technologies Mini-ITX motherboard drives its software. Also, designers can pop more than storage devices into the 5.25-in. drive bays on the front and back. For instance, they can start with one camera and add more if needed. That's the great thing about the 9 series. It's inexpensive and expandable.
The Windows-based 9-series robot includes a GUI robot control center. Its camera support can handle object and facial recognition along with visual navigation. Microphones and speakers provide speech-recognition interfaces, and the software handles the recognition chores. It's the building-block approach—with some rather sophisticated blocks.
Improvements on existing robot technology continue to reduce costs and enhance performance. The popular iRobot Roomba now has a floor-washing cousin called the Scooba. The Scooba handles floors with smooth surfaces and incorporates its own washing fluid dispenser. The Roomba vacuum cleaners come in more colors than you can count, and the feature list keeps going up—not bad for a robot that started with an 8-bit microcontroller.
Likewise, robot animals, toys, and even alarm clocks are popping up on shelves around the country. This is possible because the software platforms make the job of creating a new robot significantly easier, even if they are designed to entertain instead of search and destroy.
Specialization remains the watchword for today's robots. While many can perform a range of duties, they are nowhere near as flexible as C-3PO or R2-D2—at least for now. But that's the bottom line when it comes to today's robots. Today's blocks are more standard, more sophisticated, and much less expensive than ever before.
Robots aren't just here to stay. They're getting smarter and faster, and they feature dramatically improved interaction among their peers and people. They can be used for practical applications now, and they will land in even more interesting applications in the future. Now where is that robot vacuum cleaner? My floor is dirty.