06.10.00    Added RWP FAQ, and updated the TJP vs RWP comparison,
                  integrated Sony IR remote control to POGO, 10 possible actions in response to
                  "seeing" a human, temperature sensor, fear of the dark, smooth acceleration
                  and deceleration, and panic emotions.

04.08.00    Recharging "Home" for Pogo

02.06.00    Expansion Board added, Pyro Sensor integrated, Pyro test code posted,
                  power code updated
                 Rug Warrior eGroup launched (but don't go there till you finish here!)

04.05.00    New code for battery voltage monitor and display

02.05.00    New code for tracking robot life variables (myio.c changed also)
                  Rumor has it that the US Naval Academy bought six Rug Warriors recently.

13.04.00    Put code up for morse and current pogo state,
                  investigating encoders and track() function

13.04.00    IR Detector cone , integrating lewis and clark with sound cognition,
                  separated behavior layer from sensors layer, added Interactive C info

03.04.00     Rug Warrior Pro "Pogo" is alive and well.
 

Comparing Rug Warrior to Talrik Jr. Pro:
 

	Rug Warrior Pro	Talrik Jr Pro
Manufacturers Site	www.akpeters.com/rug-warrior.html	www.mekatronix.com
Programming Environment	Licensed Interactive C v3.2 with full Windows GUI	Freeware Interactive C 2.8 (old DOS based version)
Bot's Operating System	Interactive C (Multi-process with interrupts)	Interactive C (Multi-process with interrupts)
Host Interface	RS232, Adapter and Cable provided, 9600 bps (less than 20 seconds to completely fill his memory!)	RS232, Custom cable, requires adapter, Standard PC Serial Cable recommended, 115Kbps
Included Sample Programs	FollowMe, Wimp, Hide/Seek light Moth, Bugle, Theremin, YoYo,  Echo, Sonic Commander, Behave, Complete SelfTest, music, and others	WanderAvoidingObstacles (may be more but not mentioned in literature)
Memory	32K Battery Backup	32K Battery Backup
Processor	MC68HC11 - 2Mhz	MC68HC11
Sensor - Shaft/Wheel Encoders	Yes - 32 segments, "16 click driver"	None
Sensor - Visible Light	2 - Fwd L & Fwd R	None
Sensor - Sound Pressure	Microphone - very sensitive, detects pauses in TV news anchor sentences from across the room.	None
Sensor - Bump	Full Body - 2 fwd & 1 rear -8 combinations detected	360°narrow bumper? - 3 fwd & 1 rear individually reporting switches
Sensor - IR Reception	1 front (ISO1U60)- unknown characteristics	2 - Fwd L & Fwd R, (distance reporting)
Output - IR Illumination	2 Modulated - Left fwd & Right Fwd	3 Modulated - Left fwd, Right Fwd, rear (communicate to other TJs)
Output - Sound	Variable pitch & length	None
Output - Text	2 line x 16 char LCD	None
Output - Battery State	Battery Low LED (State not available to CPU)
Drive Motors	2 Long Life Gear Head	2 "Hacked" Ball Bearing RC Servos (~100 hr estimated life)
Wheels	2.5" Dia. Rubber	2.75" Dia. DuBro Rubber, Low Bounce
Size & Shape	Circular Cylinder 7.3" Dia. 4.75" high	Circular Cylinder 7" Dia. 3.75" High
Approximate Number Sold	"Several Thousand" (3/21/00)	Manufacturer did not comment
Cost	US$599 (brains + brawn) ($525 from webbooks.net )	US$289 (kit, body, RS232 adapter)

No comparison?  Are already integrated wheel encoders, microphone, speaker, visible light sensors, 32 char LCD, battery low light, fully detecting body, long life metal motors,  variable speed motor control, and licensed copy of Interactive C v3.2 with a well integrated Windows GUI,  worth the extra $250, slower program download, and no IR distance measuring ability?

I chose the RWP over TJP due to it having all these things already integrated, the availability of the "bible of hobby robotics" - (Mobile Robots: Inspiration to Implementation) covering every aspect of the RWP robot  and an bad impression from reading Mekatronics cat-2 support statement.

I understand Microsoft charging for support, but at this point in time, I believe that a quality robot manufacturer needs to have a strong sales web site, an extensive frequently updated FAQ, a forum for owners to gather, a place for owners to post and download code and have an attitude that new technical questions should be answered within 24-48 hours and put in the FAQ.

 Mekatronix and  MrRobot do have a lot of info on their sales websites (more than AKPeters).  There is a very inadequate FAQ on the Mekatronix site.  MrRobot has a respectable beginning on a FAQ but so many questions that seem unanswered.

There is another comparison at  www.mrrobot.com/rugwarrior.html from the TJP viewpoint.
 

Aug 2000: Not sure, but the Talrik Jr Pro may need an expansion board, not included in the $289, to control the motors with variable speed.  A TJP owner asked the DPRG how to control speed of a TJP.  His question implied that he did not have the expansion board that has the 293 chip he needed.  The MTJPRO11 board claims five servo control outputs, but the matrix says "Optional".
 
 

COMMENTS FROM OWNERS:

Michael Rankin [michael.rankin@ns.sympatico.ca] April 2000:

There are not half as many Rug Warrior pages as there areHandyboard pages. The only problem with my Rug Warrior (not a pro) is that text will never appear on the lcd. Its probably a pcode thing. Everything else is working on it though.
 

Chip Henkel [ chipper@cttel.net] April 2000:

I have built the 'brains' portion of the rug warrior and added the rug-up and rug I/O.
 

Keizo Maeda [keizo@sp.cs.tokyo-ct.ac.jp] March 2000:

We are using hand-made mobile robot for teaching multitask programming, subsumption and embedded system. And RugWarriors are used to introduce robot structure. We are trying to replace sensors of RugWarrior, since RugWarrior's sensors are too poor. (shaft encoder, photo sensor ..)
 

CPWRobotics [charley@cpwrobotics.com] March 2000:

I also think that the Rug Warrior is too pricey. When I first got into robotics, I wanted two of them because I wanted to see how I could get two of them to function together, but the more I got into them, the less and less I liked them. Running them on a carpet didn't work out too well, and the shaft encoders leave a little bit to be desired (not very accurate). The IR sensors simply suck, unless they have improved them, you will only get at best 3 inches of detection from either side.
 
 

Class an obstacle:
 

Plan a path: Straight line , Path around a known object (circular, square)

Movements: Straight, Turn angle, Shoulder touching, Waddle

Sensor event queue: (add, iterate, delete, flush, average, min, max, purge wild values?)

Sound device as an object: input queue, syncronous and async commands, busy()

Sensory Responses:
 

Music recognition: musical beat (2, 3, and 4 count music)

Human interactions:
 

Sound Repetoire:
 

Movable Objects: push out of way, push to a position, hoarde, protect as "mine"

Things to do when alone: wander? (if bot does not learn anything or have any "duties", probably should conserve energy when alone)

Things to learn:
 

Energy Management: watch voltage, find recharger, dock, prevent over charge, sleep when no humans around

Sing chanuka song when detect one then two then three or more candles being lit

 I Sense, Therefore I Feel Moody - Musings on robot feelings
 
 

Is a fax machine a robot?

My wife asked some interesting questions last night. Why does your robot cost more than our fax machine? What makes your bot a robot and the fax machine not a robot? I was unconvincing in my answers. What would you have answered?