SMARbot: A Miniature Mobile Robot Paradigm for Ubiquitous Computing

In this paper, a SMARbot is designed to be a highly modular, adaptable, inexpensive miniature mobile robot paradigm which can be easily integrated into its ubiquitous computing environment. A generic multi-layer architecture of the SMARbot is proposed, where both hardware and software are reconfigurable, expendable with low-power and low-cost. Some preliminary experimental results are presented, including obstacle avoidance, wireless communication, and vision tracking. Some future hardware improvements are also discussed. This generic mobile robot paradigm can be applied to various ubiquitous environments, such as smart office/home, or surveillance systems.