Newsgroups: comp.robotics
Path: brunix!news.Brown.EDU!agate!howland.reston.ans.net!torn!news.ccs.queensu.ca!qucis.queensu.ca!layes
From: layes@qucis.queensu.ca (Jonathan Layes)
Subject: Re: dust collecting
Message-ID: <1994Apr14.180346.26729@qucis.queensu.ca>
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Organization: Computing & Information Science, Queen's University at Kingston
References: <8589@eagle.ukc.ac.uk> <SESTRICH.94Apr14115824@dovetail.timeplex.com>
Date: Thu, 14 Apr 1994 18:03:46 GMT
Lines: 36

In article <SESTRICH.94Apr14115824@dovetail.timeplex.com>,
Joe Sestrich <sestrich@dovetail.timeplex.com> wrote:
>In article <8589@eagle.ukc.ac.uk> az@ukc.ac.uk (A.Zivanovic) writes:
>
>>   From: az@ukc.ac.uk (A.Zivanovic)
>>   I've been thinking about implememting a cleaning robot of some
>>   kind.  I'd prefer to keep it as small as possible, so I was
>>   thinking of ways to avoid using a conventional vacuum cleaning
>>   device.
>	This is a great idea; you could program it to run while you're out.
>	Now where is the cat, anyway??
>	How the hell are you going to get it to pick up the kids toys, socks
>	and other debris??
>	The electorstatic pick-up is going to have a hard time with real
>	dirt, like sand particles, some of which are conductive, not to 
>	mention huge in comparison to dust.  It's a novel idea, I've got
>	to admit. I'd love to see a big battery powered unit back itself
>	into an outlet for a recharge, though... ;^)

I'm in the very preliminary stages of building such a robot, and the
easiest hack I came up with was to cannibalize a Dustbuster(tm), the cheap
versions of which are available for around $20.  If I can find the proper
fan blades, I might build a Dustbuster-like device myself, but given
how cheap the Dustbuster is, it probably will not be worth the hassle. 
It would also be pretty easy to put a beater-bar on the front of the bot for
carpets.  

Not very original I'm sure, but it should work.

Jonathan

-- 
Jonathan Layes (layes@qucis.queensu.ca)                 (') (')     
Robotics and Perception Laboratory                 __oOo__( )__oOo__
Computing and Information Science         "Friends Don't Let Friends do DOS"
Queen's University at Kingston         "Linux:  the choice of a GNU generation"
