To give Pi Robot a break, I turned to the WowWee Rovio surveillance
robot for awhile. In this video, Rovio's goal is to navigate out of
the confined area by finding a gap to freedom. This is accomplished
using the RoboRealm vision processing package and a filter that
highlights the part of the image that looks like the floor just in
front of Rovio. There is only one gap big enough among the scattered
objects to allow Rovio to escape. Can he find it before the music
runs out?
Rovio doesn't have an onboard computer--instead my control program
runs on my PC and sends control signals to Rovio over a wireless
link. One very cool feature of Rovio is its three omnidirectional
wheels. This enables the robot move directly sideways or on a
diagonal while facing the same direction--much like a crab.