Open-source robotics

Orb swarm is an example of an open source robot

An open-source robot is a robot whose blueprints, schematics or source code are released under an open-source model.

Current projects

Full robot projects

• LH001, Open Hardware Medical-Research liquid handling robot
• Sparky Jr., Mobile Telepresence Research Project, Est. 1994
• Open Automaton Project (oap.sourceforge.net)
• Leaf Project (www.leafproject.org/)
• RobotCub, including iCub
• DARwIn-OP
• OpenRAVE ^[1]
• e-puck mobile robot, an open-hardware, education oriented, mobile robot.
• Open-source Micro-robotic Project, an open-source space swarm robot project
• Qwerkbot^[2], simple open source robot from Carnegie Mellon University
• Orb swarm^[3]

Open-source software

• NXJ An open source Java programming environment for the Lego NXT robot kit (http://lejos.sourceforge.net/)
• CLARAty Robotics software developed by JPL as part of the Mars program.
• ROS (Robot Operating System) (open-source software running on the Willow Garage robot)
• URBI^[4] (C++ distributed/embedded components framework + parallel/event-driven orchestration script language)
• Player (robot framework)
• Orocos, C++ framework for component-based robot control software
• Orca (robot framework)
• MOOS (robot framework)
• RoboComp (robot framework)
• RUBICS
• CARMEN (robot simulator)
• TeamBots (robot simulator)
• Open Dynamics Engine (physics engine for modelling articulated rigid-body dynamics)
• Simbad robot simulator (robot simulator)
• Gazebo (multi-robot simulator)
• Dave's Robotic Operating System
• Sparky Telepresence Controller
• Home brew robot software running on the consumer robotic platform Spykee
• OpenJAUS (robot / unmanned systems framework)
• RI-JAUS SDK A cross-platform, GPL-licensed C++ SDK implementing the JAUS protocol for robot control.
• OpenRTM-aist (robotics technology middleware)
• Open Platform for Robotic Services (OPRoS) Component based framework, GUI editors in Eclipse and a Simulator, OPRoS Components

Open-source hardware

Further information: Open-source hardware

• Make Controller Kit
• motherboards with CPU; e.g. Arduino
• The Rossum project open-sources certain robotic modules and tools (mappers, robot simulators, encoder designers, ...)

Advantages

• Lower-cost. Costs of a robot can be decreased dramatically with prominent examples being the robots being built by Hanson ($300) and project aiko ($25000)
• Interchangeable software and/or hardware

Popularity

A first sign of the increasing popularity of building robots yourself can be found with the DIY community. What began with small competitions for remote operated vehicles (e.g. RobotWars), soon developed to the building of autonomous telepresence robots as Sparky and then true robots (being able to take decisions themselves) as the Open Automaton Project and Leaf Project. Certain commercial companies now also produce kits for making simple robots. One example being DeAgostini.

Uses

At present, open-source robots are not yet sophisticated enough to perform much of the tasks a person can do, nor perform difficult or complicated tasks that only robots may—one day—provide; this being:

• metalworks (precise metal sheets and pipe-bending, sheet/pipe cutting; e.g. via Multimachine and/or other embedded tools as cramps, pliers, ...)
• translator for many languages (including the main languages as Mandarin, English, Spanish, Bengali, Hindi, etc.)
• calorie-counter for the robot-owner; counting the calories of food items the owner eats and preventing him from eating more that day when he reaches 2000 kcal
• building electronic circuitry (PCB-boards)
• transportation; this e.g. by riding on the back, similar as on a horse (the latter allowing the robot to return to the appearance of a normal person after disembarking)
• personal protection (robots, being made of metal, are able to withstand quite some beating and may be learned to incapacitate attackers by punching or Less-lethal weapons ^[5])
• bomb disposal and/or the making of explosive compounds for bomb disposal (e.g. on the owner's farming fields e.g. in developing countries as Cambodia, countries south and north of the sahara as Angola, Western Sahara, Libia, ..) or destruction of obstacles or to prepare building sites
• providing communication through a small computer (e.g. Linutop, EeeBox, gPC, and integrated satellite Internet uplink or long-range Wi-Fi or WiMAX-antenna). The type of communication may include: active searching on webpages (browsing), e-mail, text and or audio based communication with others (e.g. VoIP calls; both to distant users via Internet as local VoIP-communication to team members in close proximity), ...

Despite this however, some DIY builders are already looking to helpful activities that can be performed today as vacuum cleaning, floor washing and automated mowing.^[6][7]

See also

Robotics portal

• Scott Hassan (founder of Willow Garage and senior Google board member)
• STAIRS
• Softbot
• Khepera III
• Robotics suite

References

1. ^ http://www.openrave.org
2. ^ [1]
3. ^ http://wiki.orbswarm.com/
4. ^ Gostai Urbi goes open source
5. ^ Tmsuk security robots
6. ^ DIY commercial vacuum robot
7. ^ DIY Roomba preposition on Arduino motherboard

External links

• Open-Source Robot toolkit
• DIY Linux robots
• Carnegie Mellon DIY Robots
• DIY Mobile Telepresence