Tag Archives: Features

Other Robots

Dreambots WheeMe – OK it’s Not a Vacuum

It’s a robot masseuse (or masseur, depending). It’s not a vacuum, but it is a consumer-level autonomous robot that does a job (massage), so I decided to include it here.

Dreambots WheeMe massage robot

This is an interesting idea. Some engineers have put together a small, autonomous, wheeled robot. It’s designed to roll around on a person and give them a massage. The robot has tilt sensors built in so that it knows when its about to roll off your back, and also apparently “grips” while giving the massage. The wheels have fingers to massage your back (or whatever it happens to be rolling on).

Here are specifications:

  • Colors available: White/blue, White/Green, White/Red, Silver/Pink, Silver/Purple, Silver/Metallic Red, Silver/Metallic Blue, Silver/Metallic Green, Metallic Black
  • Size: 5″ x 3.8″ x 3.1″ (128mm x 96mm x 80mm)
  • Weight: 0.73 pound (330gram)
  • Speed: 1.6″/sec (4cm/sec)
  • Fingerettes: Nylon
  • Warranty: one year

The WheeMe uses three AA batteries. I’m hoping that it will come with a charger, but right now it looks like that’s not the case (?). It does not come with a remote control, which is fine with me. I mean, I could see it being fun – for 5 minutes. On the plus side, the robot’s gears were specially designed to be silent, so you’re not going to have something whining around on your back.

The WheeMe is available for pre-order from Dreambots website. The price is currently listed at $69 and the first robots are expected to ship in Spring of 2011. Check out the video to see the WheeMe in action, proving massages.

Cleaner Robots

iRobot Announces the Roomba 700 Series

After a large amount of time without any updates to its product lines, iRobot has announced new models in both the Roomba line, the 700 Series. Members of this series are the Roomba 760, Roomba 770 and Roomba 780.

iRobot Roomba 780

Specifically, iRobot has made improvements to the cleaning head, which can now pick up fine particles 20% better. iRobot has also introduced a new bin technology they call AeroVac Series 2. This technology makes for better suction, to pull more dirt and hair out of carpeting. The 700 Series comes with HEPA air filters to keep from throwing fine dust particles around when it vacuums, trapping them instead. The Roomba 770 and 780 will also come with a new iteration of Dirt Detect. This uses an acoustic sensor to find areas of your floor that may be more dirty than others, and take special actions to get these areas especially clean. Fear not, the Roomba 760 will come with the old Dirt Detect technology (now dubbed Sirt Detect Series 1).

Other additions include a “Persistent Pass Cleaning Pattern” where the Roomba will use a back and forth motion to help clean dirty areas. Also the new Roombas should get a 50% battery life boost, thanks to new power management software.

The Roomba 770 and 780 will also have an indicator light for when the bin is full. Finally, the Roomba 780 will come with a touchpad interface. That sounds cool. I can’t wait to see these new Roombas.

News

iRobot Announces 5 Million Unit Milestone

In a press release today, iRobot Corporation (listed on the NASDAQ as IRBT) announced that they had passed the sales milestone of five million home robots. Five million! That’s a lot of robot vacuums. iRobot has been selling Roombas since 2002.

“This achievement represents a huge milestone for iRobot and for the robotics industry as a whole,” said Colin Angle, chairman and chief executive officer of iRobot. “We set out to create practical robots that help people accomplish tasks they don’t like to do, and in many cases, don’t have time to do. With over five million home robots sold, we have seen a widespread acceptance of this technology. This further fuels our drive to innovate and provide solutions that make a difference in people’s lives.”

The press release goes on to detail the achievements of the company and features of the robots which have propelled the popularity of its robot vacuum cleaners. Some of the features they talk about in the press release include:

  • The behavioral algorithms which make the robots clean floors more effectively.
  • Technology for detecting obstacles before the Roomba runs into them.
  • The low profile of the Roomba, which makes it ideal for vacuuming under furniture.
  • Dirt Detect: The robots sense dirt and change their behavior to spend more time in dirty areas.
  • Anti-tangle technology, which keeps the robot vacuums from getting caught on cables and fringes on rugs.
  • The spinning side brush.
  • Scheduling: So that you can have the robot clean your house when you’re not home.
  • Cliff detection to keep the vacuum cleaners from falling down stairs.
  • Automatic surface adjustment so that the robots can transition between different floor surfaces.
  • Round shape: Here’s one I haven’t thought about. iRobot says that the round shape of the Roombas helps keep them from getting stuck.
  • Home base with charger.

The press release goes on to detail the price range of Roombas, emphasizing that the entry-level robot is around US $129, and also mentions some of iRobot’s other robots for cleaning around the house. So the Scooba, Dirt Dog, Looj, and Verro. Here’s a link to the official press release on iRobot’s site.