Laptops converted to beer-fetching robots - Evolution Robotics introduces ER1 kit

Laptops can be turned into robots, capable of bringing the user a beer from the refrigerator, using a kit from Evolution Robotics, according to a report in CNETnews.com

Evolution Robotics has announced that it has begun selling the ER1, a kit that can transform the average laptop into a self-propelled robot, capable of picking up objects and gathering visual information.

The ER1 package consists of wheels and an aluminum frame for mounting a laptop onto a rolling platform, a Web camera for gathering visual information, a control module and software to make the whole thing work.

Accessories will include a "gripper arm" that allows the robot to grasp and carry objects. The company has been demonstrating the unit by sending an ERI to grab a beer from a refrigerator and bring it to the owner.

According to the maker, the major advance of the ERl over previous consumer robot products is that it can do sophisticated analysis of visual information.

"Wave a beer bottle in front of it, and it knows what to look for on its trip to the kitchen," said Jennifer McNally, senior director of marketing for Pasadena, California-based Evolution. "The functionality centres around its ability to see. The difference between a robot and a computer is that the robot has sensors outside the keyboard and mice, and it can take action based on that."

Partly because of the limited battery life of most laptops, however, ERl tasks will mostly be defined by whatever sounds like fun. "It's not a product that solves any burning customer need," McNally said. "It's really a product for fun."

The ER1 is available now from US retailers. It costs $599 for a bare kit or $699 for a pre-assembled version.