Robotics Trends

iRobot Delivers 3,000th PackBot Massachusetts producer of COTS based, modular tactical mobile robot systems delivers its 3,000th unit since 2002 and vows it will continue to enhance capabilities. iRobot Corp. (NASDAQ: IRBT) announced that it has delivered its 3,000th PackBot tactical mobile robot. First introduced in 2002, the iRobot PackBot allows warfighters and public safety professionals to investigate suspicious objects and other dangerous scenarios from a safe standoff distance. “While this is an important milestone for iRobot, it also speaks volumes about the growing need for this technology on today’s battlefield,” said Joe Dyer, president of iRobot Government and Industrial Robots. “The investigation and disposal of improvised explosive devices (IEDs), route clearance and reconnaissance all pose significant risks to our troops. These are, in fact, great jobs for a robot.”… View this post
Filed in: Security & Defense Robotics • Opinion
Tagged: Irobot, Packbot, Joe dyer

iRobot Launches New Initiative to ‘SPARK’ STEM Education in the Classroom iRobot’s new education initiative – the Starter Programs for the Advancement of Robotics Knowledge (SPARK) – centers on a comprehensive library of robotics educational resources designed to increase interest in the subjects of science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) in K-12 students. Live demos are also included in the program. iRobot Corp. (NASDAQ: IRBT) announced that it has launched a new education initiative called SPARK (Starter Programs for the Advancement of Robotics Knowledge). At http://spark.irobot.com, educators, parents and students can find robot-related resources to help build STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) curricula and use the wonder and genius of robots to inspire in students K-12 a curiosity and interest in these subjects. “iRobot is committed to supporting STEM education in schools to revitalize the foundation… View this post
Filed in: Academics and Research • Latest News
Tagged: Irobot, Robot, Robotics, Starter programs for the advancement of robotics knowledge, Aware, Spark

Novint Awarded Military R&D Subcontract to Give Robots the Sense of Touch Developer of gaming consoles receives a subcontract from iRobot for “Remote Touch Kit” for PackBot unmanned ground vehicles that will allow soldiers to feel the actions of unmanned ground robots. Novint Technologies, Inc. (OTCBB: NVNT) today announced it has been awarded a subcontract with iRobot Corp. (NASDAQ: IRBT) for a military robotics project funded by the Secretary of Defense Joint Ground Robotics Enterprise through the Robotics Technology Consortium (RTC). Under this subcontract, Novint will co-develop a Remote Touch Kit (RTK) for one of iRobot’s military-grade unmanned ground vehicles, called the PackBot. With the RTK soldiers will, for the first time, experience force and tactile sensing when operating the PackBot from a distance. The RTK will allow soldiers to feel how hard the PackBot’s “gripper” squeezes an… View this post
Filed in: Security & Defense Robotics • Latest News
Tagged: Irobot, Joint ground robotics enterprise, Packbot, Novint technologies, Rtc, Robotics technology consortium

Military Will Make Robotics Industry a Giant, if Robot Makers Can Keep Up The U.S. military has been one of the most enthusiastic and lucrative supporters of the robotics industry for decades and will continue to be so, according to Joseph Dyer, a retired U.S. Navy vice admiral and current president of iRobot Corp.’s government and industrial robots division. But if the robotics industry is going to keep up with the military’s demands, it has to mature a little—improving its designs to reduce overall cost, beefing up its lifecycle support, and expanding both manufacturing and maintenance networks. Speaking at the RoboBusiness Expo 2009 conference in Boston, today, Dyer said the robotics industry is tremendously successful with companies that are willing to experiment on new forms of automation and new—sometimes unsuccessful—ways of doing things in an effort to find an… View this post
Filed in: Security & Defense Robotics • Industry Headlines • Robotics Features
Tagged: Irobot, Robotics industry, Security & defense, Military, Market growth, Robobusiness expo, New markets

WPI To Launch Graduate Robotics Engineering Program Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI) has announced it will launch a master’s degree program in Robotics Engineering this fall. The new program will be taught primarily by teachers in other departments, at WPI, which established the country’s first bachelor’s degree in robotics engineering in 2006 As many as 30 faculty and staff will contribute time to administer and teach classes in the new program; they will come primarily the Computer Science, Electrical and Computer Engineering, and Mechanical Engineering departments. The program, which requires 36 credit hours of class time plus a thesis or capstone engineering project at completion, was developed with the help of WPI’s Robotics Engineering Advisory Board. Local or near-local companies that assisted include iRobot Corp., Bluefin Robotics, General Dynamics Robotics Systems and DEKA Research… View this post
Filed in: Academics and Research • Industry Headlines
Tagged: Irobot, Wpi

iRobot Open For Business at Burlington Mall Company’s first retail kiosk to run over the holiday season providing prospective customers with demonstrations and answers to questions. iRobot Corp.  (Nasdaq: IRBT) announced it has opened the company’s first retail kiosk at Burlington Mall in Burlington, Mass.  The new retail location will offer direct and online sales of the company’s award-winning home robot products including the iRobot Roomba® Vacuum Cleaning Robot, iRobot Scooba® Floor Washing Robot, iRobot® Looj™ Gutter Cleaning Robot, iRobot Dirt Dog® Shop Sweeping Robot and iRobot® Verro™ Pool Cleaning Robot.  Visitors to the iRobot retail kiosk can watch live demos of home robot products and experience first-hand how having a home robot helper around the house makes chores faster and easier.  iRobot representatives at the kiosk are also available to assist customers… View this post
Filed in: Personal Robotics • Latest News
Tagged: Irobot

iRobot Delivers 2,000th PackBot Robot PackBot Continues to Keep Warfighters and Public Safety Professionals out of Harm’s Way iRobot Corp. (Nasdaq: IRBT) today it has delivered 2,000 PackBot robots to the U.S. military, public safety organizations and a variety of international customers. Born out of an initial research initiative with the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) in 1998, the original PackBot has evolved with next-generation technology that puts combat-proven robots in the hands of soldiers today. The first PackBot created a new standard in unmanned reconnaissance and tactical robots and offered unprecedented mobility and durability. “The delivery of our 2,000th PackBot further validates the continued demand for our PackBot line of robots and the immediate need for unmanned ground vehicles to assist our troops in theater,” said Joe Dyer, president… View this post
Filed in: Service Robotics • Latest News
Tagged: Irobot

WarBots:  Latest in Military Strategy By Jody Ray Bennett for ISN Security Watch Imagine a scenario in which one of the world’s largest oil pipelines could be guarded from attack without deploying any sort of large military force or private security personnel. Imagine if hundreds of makeshift explosives could be detected, extracted or even diffused before endangering the lives of a surrounding civilian presence. Imagine if a government could launch a full-scale military attack with only a handful of mechanical engineers and a fleet of 30,000 robots equipped with automatic firing and rocket launching abilities for land, air and sea. It might have a bit of a science fiction ring to it, but the reality is that robotic technologies are now being used more than ever in military and security operations… View this post
Filed in: Robotics Trends Feature • Robotics Features
Tagged: Irobot, Army

Helen Greiner Resigns as Chairman of the Board of iRobot iRobot Corp.  (Nasdaq: IRBT) announced that Helen Greiner has resigned as chairman of the board of iRobot, effective October 24, 2008.  The board of directors has elected Colin Angle to serve as chairman of the board in addition to his current role as chief executive officer of iRobot.  Helen will continue to serve on iRobot’s board of directors as a non-employee director while pursuing other interests and opportunities within the robot industry.  “Since co-founding iRobot in 1990, Helen has been an integral part of the company and played a large role in our success,” said Angle.  “We are fortunate that she will maintain a position on our board of directors as she continues to drive the robot industry forward.” “I will remain close to the company… View this post
Filed in: Robotics Trends Feature • Industry Headlines
Tagged: Irobot

iRobot to Acquire Nekton Research, LLC As a follow-up to its earlier announcement of a agreement with University of Washington to commercialize the Autonomous Underwater Vehicle (AUV) Seaglider technology, iRobot has agreed to acquire Nekton Research a developer of unmanned underwater vehicles. With the second announcement, iRobot makes clear its strategic push into maritime systems. iRobot Corp. (Nasdaq: IRBT) announced it has signed a definitive agreement to acquire Nekton Research, LLC, an unmanned underwater robot and technology company based in Raleigh-Durham, North Carolina. The transaction is expected to close by September 12, 2008. Nekton has been instrumental in shaping the underwater marketplace during the past 6 years by supporting customers such as the Office of Naval Research (ONR), Naval Undersea Warfare Command (NUWC), the Naval Air Systems Command (NAVAIR) and the U.S.… View this post
Filed in: Service Robotics • Feature • Latest News
Tagged: Irobot