Irobot Corporation

Unruly Studios, Inc.

Daniel N Ozick

David A Cohen

Joseph Lee Jones

Gregg W Landry

Jeffrey W Mammen

Tony L Campbell

Clara Vu

Paul Eric Sandin

Christopher M Casey

Michael J Halloran

James P Lynch

Philip R Mass

Chikyung Won

Zivthan A Dubrovsky

John Bergman

Joshua B Preneta

David M Lewis, Jr

Mark Joseph Chiappetta

Duane Leigh Gilbert, Jr

Matthew Cross

Jason S Walker

John N Billington, Jr

Mark Steven Schnittman

Christopher John Morse

Selma Svendsen

Deepak Ramesh Kapoor

Scott Thomas Burnett

Andrea M Okerholm

Duane Gilbert

Rogelio Manfred Neumann

Robert Paul Roy

Patrick Alan Hussey

Bryanne Leeming

David Kunitz

Amon Millner

John Billington

Duane L Gilbert

Jeffry W Mammen

David M Lewis Jr

One or more programmable electronic interfaces made up of a tile, a sensor, or multiple tiles and/or sensors in a network communicate with a computational device to allow users to build programs to be played interactively on the interfaces. The interfaces can react to a user applying pressure to, contacting with the interface or otherwise triggering a sensor (such as motion, thermal, touch, pressure, or other detected interactions). The computational device provides a macro-scale interface of different types. The system communicates (either wirelessly or via a wired connection) with the computing device in order to send and receive information. The electronic interfaces can be tiles with interactive lights and/or sensors that can be programmed into games, designs, animations, light shows, musical instruments, dance routine steps, etc.

System of distributed interactive objects

An autonomous coverage robot includes a chassis, a drive system configured to maneuver the robot, and a cleaning assembly. The cleaning assembly includes a cleaning assembly housing and at least one driven sweeper brush. The robot includes a controller and a removable sweeper bin configured to receive debris agitated by the driven sweeper brush. The sweeper bin includes an emitter disposed on an interior surface of the bin and a receiver disposed remotely from the emitter on the interior surface of the bin and configured to receive an emitter signal. The emitter and the receiver are disposed such that a threshold level of accumulation of debris in the sweeper bin blocks the receiver from receiving emitter emissions. The robot includes a bin controller disposed in the sweeper bin and monitoring a detector signal and initiating a bin full routine upon determining a bin debris accumulation level requiring service.

Coverage robots and associated cleaning bins

A robot lawnmower includes a body and a drive system carried by the body and configured to maneuver the robot across a lawn. The robot also includes a grass cutter and a swath edge detector, both carried by the body. The swath edge detector is configured to detect a swath edge between cut and uncut grass while the drive system maneuvers the robot across the lawn while following a detected swath edge. The swath edge detector includes a calibrator that monitors uncut grass for calibration of the swath edge detector. In some examples, the calibrator comprises a second swath edge detector.

Lawn care robot

A robot obstacle detection system including a robot housing which navigates with respect to a surface and a sensor subsystem aimed at the surface for detecting the surface. The sensor subsystem includes an emitter which emits a signal having a field of emission and a photon detector having a field of view which intersects the field of emission at a region. The subsystem detects the presence of an object proximate the mobile robot and determines a value of a signal corresponding to the object. It compares the value to a predetermined value, moves the mobile robot in response to the comparison, and updates the predetermined value upon the occurrence of an event.

Obstacle following sensor scheme for a mobile robot

An autonomous cleaning apparatus includes a chassis, a drive system disposed on the chassis and operable to enable movement of the cleaning apparatus, and a controller in communication with the drive system. The controller includes a processor operable to control the drive system to steer movement of the cleaning apparatus. The autonomous cleaning apparatus includes a cleaning head system disposed on the chassis and a sensor system in communication with the controller. The sensor system includes a debris sensor for generating a debris signal, a bump sensor for generating a bump signal, and an obstacle following sensor disposed on a side of the autonomous cleaning apparatus for generating an obstacle signal. The processor executes a prioritized arbitration scheme to identify and implement one or more dominant behavioral modes based upon at least one signal received from the sensor system.

Navigational control system for a robotic device

A method for energy management robotic device includes providing a base station for mating with the robotic device, determining a quantity of energy stored in an energy storage unit of the robotic device, and performing a predetermined task based at least in part on the quantity of energy stored. Also disclosed are systems for emitting avoidance signals to prevent inadvertent contact between the robot and the base station, and systems for emitting homing signals to allow the robotic device to accurately dock with the base station.

Autonomous robot auto-docking and energy management systems and methods

A piezoelectric debris sensor and associated signal processor responsive to debris strikes enable an autonomous or non-autonomous cleaning device to detect the presence of debris and in response, to select a behavioral mode, operational condition or pattern of movement, such as spot coverage or the like. Multiple sensor channels (e.g., left and right) can be used to enable the detection or generation of differential left/right debris signals and thereby enable an autonomous device to steer in the direction of debris.

Debris sensor for cleaning apparatus

A power-saving robot system includes at least one peripheral device and a mobile robot. The peripheral device includes a controller having an active mode and a hibernation mode, and a wireless communication component capable of activation in the hibernation mode. A controller of the robot has an activating routine that communicates with and temporarily activates the peripheral device, via wireless communication, from the hibernation mode. In another aspect a robot system includes a network data bridge and a mobile robot. The network data bridge includes a broadband network interface, a wireless command interface, and a data bridge component. The data bridge component extracts serial commands received via the broadband network interface from an internet protocol, applies a command protocol thereto, and broadcasts the serial commands via the wireless interface. The mobile robot includes a wireless command communication component that receives the serial commands transmitted from the network data bridge.

Robot system

A method for energy management in a robotic device includes providing a base station for mating with the robotic device, determining a quantity of energy stored in an energy storage unit of the robotic device, and performing a predetermined task based at least in part on the quantity of energy stored. Also disclosed are systems for emitting avoidance signals to prevent inadvertent contact between the robot and the base station, and systems for emitting homing signals to allow the robotic device to accurately dock with the base station.

Growing community of inventors

Newton, MA, United States of America

Daniel N Ozick