Synopses & Reviews
The jetsons would be proudA gizmo as cool as Roomba just begs to be hacked. Now, with this book and the official ROI specification furnished by iRobot®, you can become the robotic engineer you dreamed of being when you were 10. Build a Bluetooth interface for your Roomba. Turn it into an artist. Install Linux on it and give it a new brain. Some hacks are functional, others are purely fun. All of them let you play with robotics, and not one will void your warranty. You could say it's a clean sweep.
Fun ways to work the Roomba
All this — and it will still clean your floor!
- Build a serial interface tether
- Set up a Bluetooth® interface
- Drive Roomba
- Play with sensors
- Make it sing
- Create a Roomba artist
- Use your Roomba as a mouse
- Connect Roomba to the Net
- Wi-Fi your Roomba
- Replace Roomba's brain
- Install Roomba-cam
- Put Linux® on Roomba
Companion Web site
Get the official iRobot Roomba Open Interface (ROI) specification and all code presented in the book in ready-to-run form at www.wiley.com/go/extremetech
Synopsis
ExtremeTech’ s Hacking Roomba teaches readers to make the Roomba more than just a cute vacuum cleaner. With this book, the reader can give the Roomba new and more complex behaviors, connect it to the Internet, control it from a computer, and literally make it dance and sing.
Hacking Roomba is a great way to learn the basics of robotics and have fun programming a robot without needing to build one from scratch – the hard and expensive way. All the projects in Hacking Roomba can be done without breaking your Roomba, and without breaking the bank. And, of course, like all good hacking books, it shows how to install Linux on this great robotics platform.
Topics covered include: Interfacing Roomba with the SCI and RoombaComm API Building a Roomba serial interface tether Building a Roomba Bluetooth interface Driving the Roomba Reading all the Roomba’ s sensors Making Roomba sing and dance Turning your Roomba into a Spirograph Connecting Roomba to the Internet Adding Wi-Fi to Roomba Adding a camera to Roomba
and more.
Synopsis
Make room for Roomba this robotic vacuum cleaner, made and sold by iRobot, is the first example of a useful household robot, with more than 1.5 million sold since their debut in 2002 Get ready to rumba with Roomba! Readers learn to give Roombas new and more complex behaviors, connect them to the Internet, control them from a computer, and literally make them dance and sing First things first: author Tod Kurt begins by showing readers how to install Linux on this great robotics platform Hacks include how to build a Roomba serial interface tether, interfacing Roomba with the SCI and RoombaComm API, reading all the Roomba s sensors, turning a Roomba into a Spirograph, and adding a camera to RoombaSynopsis
Get the official iRobot Roomba Open Interface (ROI) specification and all code presented in the book in ready-to-run form at wiley.com/go/extremetech.
Synopsis
The Jetsons would be proud!
A gizmo as cool as Roomba just begs to be hacked. Now, with this book and the official ROI specification furnished by iRobot?, you can become the robotic engineer you've always dreamed of being. Build a Bluetooth interface for your Roomba. Turn it into an artist. Install Linux on it and give it a new brain. Some hacks are functional, others are purely fun. All of them let you play with robotics, and not one will void your warranty.
- Build a serial interface tether.
- Set up a Bluetooth? interface.
- Drive Roomba.
- Play with sensors.
- Make it sing.
- Create a Roomba artist.
- Use your Roomba as a mouse.
- Connect Roomba to the Net.
- Wi-Fi your Roomba.
- Replace Roomba's brain.
- Install Roomba-cam.
- Put Linux? on Roomba.
- Features a companion Web site.
All this ? and it will still clean your floor!
Get the official iRobot Roomba Open Interface (ROI) specification and all code presented in the book in ready-to-run form at wiley.com/go/extremetech.
About the Author
Tod E. Kurt has engineered hardware and software for robotic camera systems that went to Mars. Although he has degrees in electrical engineering and physics, Tod's career as a robotics hacker really began when he took apart his BigTrak, radio-controlled car, and chemistry set box to build an upright programmable robot when he was 12.
Table of Contents
Acknowledgments.
Introduction.
Part I: Interfacing.
Chapter 1: Getting Started with Roomba.3
Chapter 2: Interfacing Basics.
Chapter 3: Building a Roomba Serial Interface Tether.
Chapter 4: Building a Roomba Bluetooth Interface.
Chapter 5: Driving Roomba.
Chapter 6: Reading the Roomba Sensors.
Part II: Fun Things to Do.
Chapter 7: Making RoombaView.
Chapter 8: Making Roomba Sing.
Chapter 9: Creating Art with Roomba.
Chapter 10: Using Roomba as an Input Device.
Part III: More Complex Interfacing.
Chapter 11: Connecting Roomba to the Internet.
Chapter 12: Going Wireless with Wi-Fi.
Chapter 13: Giving Roomba a New Brain and Senses.
Chapter 14: Putting Linux on Roomba.
Chapter 15: RoombaCam: Adding Eyes to Roomba.
Chapter 16: Other Projects.
Appendix A: Soldering and Safety Basics.
Appendix B: Electrical Diagram Schematics.
Appendix C: iRobot Roomba Open Interface (ROI) Specification.
Index.