Surveyor Corporation - Technologies for Visual Connectivity
Surveyor SRV–1 Mobile Robot
Wireless mobile robot Designed for research, education, and exploration, Surveyor's SRV-1 internet-controlled robot employs the SRV-1 Blackfin Camera Board with 1000MIPS 500MHz Analog Devices Blackfin BF537 processor, a digital video camera with resolution from 160x128 to 1280x1024 pixels, laser pointer or optional ultrasonic ranging, and WLAN 802.11b/g networking on a quad-motor tracked mobile robotic base.
Operating as a remotely-controlled webcam or a self-navigating autonomous robot, the SRV-1 can run onboard interpreted C programs or user-modified firmware, or be remotely managed from a Windows, Mac OS/X or Linux base station with Python or Java-based console software.
Product Code: SRV-1
Surveyor Mobile Robot
More Information & Downloads
The Java-based console software includes a built-in web server to monitor and control the SRV-1 via a web browser from anywhere in the world, as well as archive video feeds on demand or on a scheduled basis.
Features
Open Source design with full access to source code (GPL) and schematics
Robot is fully programmable for autonomous operation
Extensive software support through 3rd party applications
Teleoperate mode to drive robot around via console software or remotely via web browser
Host software has built-in web server and video archiving
Robot can run programs written in interpreted C and stored in onboard Flash
Wireless remote control or viewing up to 100m indoors and 1000m outdoors (line of sight)
Robot can be controlled from a terminal/console for easy testing
Linux 2.6 support as well as "bare metal" programming with GNU bfin-elf-gcc
Robot Firmware: easily updated, written in C language under GPL Open Source, compiled with GNU bfin-elf-gcc and bfin-uclinux-gcc toolchains
Onboard User Programming: interpreter for "small C" language with special robot-specific commands are provided for running user programs from onboard Flash memory
Console Software: Java based application, runs on Windows, MAC, Linux. WebcamSat web server module built into console software, allows multiple simultaneous remote viewers via Internet
Myro - is a new framework for programming robots.Myro is written in the language Python and designed for use in Introductory Computing courses, and has been developed by the Institute for Personal Robots in Education.The goal of the project is to provide a programming environment for easily exploring advanced topics in artificial intelligence and robotics without having to worry about the low-level details of the underlying hardware.
Webots provides a rapid prototyping environment for modelling, programming and simulating mobile robots under Windows, Mac OS/X and Linux.
The 3D modeling and physics are outstanding.
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - RoboRealm -
The SRV-1 can now be directly controlled from RoboRealm,a very popular Windows-based machine vision software package for robots.
The RoboRealm extensions for SRV-1 allow creation of scripts that combine image processing on live video feeds from the robot, e.g. color filtering, blob detection/tracking, edge detection/outlining and feature extraction, with decision processing and robot motion control, making it easy to create behaviors such as object location and tracking, obstacle avoidance, motion detection, notification, etc, with a web interface, and control can be scripted from C/C++, Python, Java, C#, Lisp, Visual Basic, WScript and COM through the RoboRealm API.
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Microsoft Robotics Studio - Drivers for the SRV-1 in Microsoft Robotics Studio are now available. MSRS is a Windows-based environment for academic, hobbyist and commercial developers to create robotics applications across a wide variety of hardware. Key features and benefits include: end-to-end robotics development platform, lightweight services-oriented runtime, and a scalable / extensible platform.
The clip below is of 4 SRV-1's operating in close proximity in "wander mode". The robots are controlled by a single base station on a common radio channel using new "swarm mode" commands defined in the SRV-1 communication protocol.
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This is a clip of the SRV-1 in action, climbing a 40-degree slope with approximately 50% motor power.
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Here's a 3d rendering of the original SRV-1. This is a SolidWorks model of the robot which can be viewed with the free eDrawings Viewer
