Electric Sheep Robotics Inc. has introduced Verdie, an AI-powered robot designed for large-scale outdoor maintenance. Verdie can autonomously edge and trim lawns and bushes, as well as blow leaves. The robot utilizes Electric Sheep's AI agent, ES1, which enables it to operate in any outdoor environment without manual teaching. Verdie, along with another robot called RAM, leverages generative AI to understand lawns and efficiently care for them. ES1 creates a map for coverage planning and identifies the edges of the workable area. Electric Sheep has eliminated the need for on-site engineers by designing the robots to start working as soon as they are turned on. The company plans to deploy Verdie with customers in the second quarter of 2024. Additionally, Electric Sheep has acquired traditional outdoor service providers to transform operations and gather data for reinforcement learning. The company's business model has resulted in an eight-fold increase in revenue, and it anticipates a ten-fold growth in 2024.
Meanwhile, Waveshare has introduced the UGV Rover, a 6-wheel robot platform based on Raspberry Pi 4 or 5 and ESP32. The rover is designed for remote exploration, object recognition, and autonomous navigation. It features a 2mm thick aluminum body, six 80mm shock-absorbing tires, and a four-wheel drive system controlled by an ESP32 sub-controller. The main controller is a Raspberry Pi 4B or Pi 5, which handles computer vision and machine learning operations. The rover supports high-frequency PID control, closed-loop linear speed control for wheels, pan and tilt servo control, LED light control, IMU data reading, and text-to-speech. It has built-in WiFi, Bluetooth, and optional 4G/5G module. The rover can be controlled through a web application with high-frame-rate video transmission and AI-enhanced computer vision functionalities. Waveshare will provide tutorials for the platform. The UGV Rover PT PI5 AI Kit, including the Pan-Tilt Module, is available on Amazon for $292.99. The robot is compatible with Debian Bookworm and ROS2-HUMBLE-LTS.
Luwu Intelligence Technology has announced the XGO-Rider, a compact wheeled robot powered by a BBC micro:bit or Raspberry Pi Compute Module 4 (CM4). The XGO-Rider is available in two variants: one with the CM4 and artificial intelligence capabilities, including integration with OpenAI's ChatGPT, and another with the micro:bit for more direct control. The CM4 variant includes a five-megapixel camera, a full-color 2" TFT display, a 3W speaker, and dual MEMS microphones. The XGO-Rider is currently funding on Kickstarter, with prices starting at $249 for the micro:bit variant and $299 for the CM4 variant. All hardware is expected to ship in August.
[78ea6782] [52653b6d] [9c00d89a]