Editor’s note: Saad Khan is a seeker of bad-assness. He found it at Evolution Robotics (not to mention Blekko, Zaarly, Jobvite, Luminate, and LendingClub). He’s a Partner at CMEA Capital. And he’s doing the robot today. Follow him on Twitter and at SaadWired.com.
Last week, iRobot bought Evolution Robotics, maker of the Mint floor cleaner. The implications of the hot-off-the-presses… → Read More
Home (and military) robot maker iRobot has just acquired Evolution Robotics, the makers of the Mint floor-cleaning robot with an R&D shop focused on navigational tools. The Mint cleaner will join iRobot’s Roomba line.
In a press release that touts the move as an expansion of iRobot’s “position as global robotic floor care market-leader,” the company announced that it paid cash for Evolution… → Read More
After 22 years of existence, iRobot has come a long way and is still releasing new models of its home cleaning robots. The Looj 330 has been completely redesigned to improve your gutter cleaning experience.
In the vacuuming robot line, the Roomba 600 series has been updated as well with redesigned brushes and a better air system. → Read More
The Roomba 790 is iRobot’s smartest vacuuming robot yet. Complete with a redesigned look, the 790 features a host of swanky new features including a wireless command center that allows owners to steer their little cleaning robotic slave around the house.
Never owning a Roomba I often imagine their haphazard work methodology to be akin to that of 4-year-old’s with an amazing ability to stay on… → Read More
iRobot recently introduced the 110 FirstLook robot designed for spying, scouting, and surveillance. FirstLook has four cameras, one on each side, giving the operator a 360-degree view around the robot (night vision mode included). The best part is that it’s super rugged and can survive 15 foot drops onto concrete. → Read More
The march towards robot domance keeps rolling with iRobot’s latest releases that squeezes even more sucking and scrubbing power out of every round inch of the little devices. Just in time for CES 2011, iRobot has taken the virtual sheet off the vacuuming Roomba 700 series and the tiny floor-washing Scooba 230 series. → Read More
Let it be said that I do not like heights. I also do not like cleaning out gutters. Add those two “dislikes” together and you get the iRobot Looj. The Looj, unlike iRobot’s Roomba, is slightly less intelligent than a broom on the end of a large stick, but it serves a very important purpose: to reduce the amount of time you spend on a ladder when cleaning gutters. The Looj is… → Read More
iRobot, perhaps best known for having created the Roomba, turns 20 today. Let’s give them a virtual high five for helping so much in bringing roboticism into the home. Sure, in the end, it might be the death of us all, but in the mean time, it’s nice not having to vacuum so much, am I right? → Read More
We all knew this day would come and we all knew this would happen first in Japan. And local department store chain operator Sogo & Seibu is ready to make it possible: You can soon buy robots who look exactly like you. Right, life-size humanoids.
The company isn’t that sure about its idea though as it plans to offer just two robots for the time being. Sogo & Seibu says they’ll start… → Read More
Industrial robots are nothing new, but they are getting more and more sophisticated. Watch the video above of the swarming robot warehouse pickers made by Kiva Systems. They are like orange industrial Roombas that go out and find inventory in a warehouse and bring it back to human workers to pack for shipping. Don’t fear them. Really, they are just here to help.
Zappos and Staples use the… → Read More
This excellent little critterbot is far smaller than the other robots in use by the military, and is being considered as a way to scout possibly-hostile buildings and areas. I was skeptical of its usability until I saw its little flippers come out and get it up that curb. It looks simple but it was probably very difficult to get the weight and center of gravity right on this little thing. It… → Read More
This is very interesting as well as being just a cool picture. By working out how long it took for a Roomba to go through a room, turning the lights out and figuring out the exposure settings, this photographer managed to catch the path of the sucker throughout the whole process. → Read More
Doug Aamoth here in Boston at the 2009 RoboBusiness Expo with some fodder for the “Robots Will Eventually Rise Up and Kill Us All” debate. No matter which side of the argument you support, if you’re someday killed by an autonomous robot it won’t have been made by iRobot. → Read More
This crazy looking thing could be hunting/killing you this year if iRobot has their say. It’s essentially a periscope attached to an iRobot Packbot that, as you can plainly see, can push a camera eight feet into the air. Called the Zipper Mast or the Situational Awareness Mast, it’s a pretty freaky looking device. → Read More
What is it about today? First hunter-killers, then Terminator spare parts, and now the machines are infiltrating our armed forces. Actually, it’s not such a big deal; the United States Army is simply continuing to take advantage of its contract with iRobot, which provides the Army with hundreds of Packbots, small robots suited for dirty or dangerous jobs. They’re pumping out about 100… → Read More
iRobot‘s Roombas have been enjoying brisk sales in Japan for a few years now. To further boost brand awareness, their sales agent in this country collaborated with Sanrio, the company behind Hello Kitty and other extra-cute comic characters, to produce a Hello Kitty-Roomba. The Nippon-only device is based on the Roomba 530 model, with the only difference being the cute design. Available from… → Read More
Sorta like this, but not really because iRobot still doesn’t have the proper photos up yet IRobot has a couple of new Roombas for you pet owners. Two, to be exact. There’s the Pet Series Vacuum Cleaning Robot and the Professional Series Vacuum Cleaning Robot, both of which sound like a real hoot. The Pet Series has a few things that make cleaning up after your pets a little easier… → Read More
Robot Stock News has discovered a patent by iRobot for a “Lawn Care Robot” similar to the company’s line of robotic vacuum cleaners. While robotic lawnmowers aren’t new, they’ve had a hell of a time replacing conventional lawnmowers. You know, the kind that actually cut your entire yard in a reasonable amount of time even though you have to do all that inconvenient “walking” we’ve… → Read More
Who stole the sole? Noah “Red Hot” Shachtman wrote a great piece on an iRobot insider who stole the plans for the company’s military Packbot robot and recreated the robot himself, becoming a direct competitor to iRobot. The thief, Jameel Ahed, was frustrated because he wasn’t given full control over the project. He quit the company and, after reworking the design, was able… → Read More
Early in Colin Angle’s blogger round-table today, he recounted the story of Packbot, their first military robot. iRobot sent a team to Afghanistan in 2002 where they showed soldiers how to use and manage the new Packbot robot, a self-righting, remote controlled surveillance bot designed to enter a room or cave so soldiers don’t have to. → Read More
Titanic Bad Karma: Watches Made from Famous Shipwreck Lego’s Solar-Powered Helicopter Teaches Kids About Energy Conservation iRobot Plunges Into the Depths (of Your Backyard Pool) Lacoste Gets Jiggy With The Second Life Crowd History of Spy-Cam Watches → Read More
Donkey Kong – Post-It Note Edition iRobot Plunges Into the Depths (of Your Backyard Pool) History of Spy-Cam Watches DiscEraser: One Swipe For Total CD/DVD Data Destruction Patent Monkey: Olympus Wearable Displays for Real Life Gaming → Read More
iRobot, makers of all things Roomba, has pulled the curtain back on its newest house-cleaning tool: the iWoman Depending on which model you get, the iWoman ranges in size from about 4’11″ to 5’11″, and cleans all messes around the house. The best part: You don’t need to plug it in, meaning you save on your electric bill. Instead, it runs on food, water, and oxygen. → Read More
dirty places, like its workshop namesake, the Dirt Dog has a 40% larger bin than the standard Roomba. The Dirt Dog has two bristle brushes that spin at 1,000 rotations a minute to pick up heavier debris, like nails and woodchips, things that you wouldn’t normally find in your living room. The Dirt Dog is the same size as the standard Roomba, but probably shouldn’t be used in your… → Read More
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