Super Roomba

Small and simple, the iCOP eBox is a fanless x86 computer with solid state storage. I began my second SPARK project with plans to control my iRobot Create with an iCOP computer and Windows Embedded CE 6.0R2. There were many project design lessons reinforced by my first SPARK project, and I applied those to lessons my second SPARK project. Even though I was working with powerful tools, Windows Embedded CE and the SPARK kits are complex systems. It is important to start with very

Providence, Rhode Island is home to many larger than life characters. One that has special meaning for me, and is arguably one of the most iconic characters, is New England Pest Control's giant blue mascot, Nibbles Woodaway. I've always found programming fun and interesting, but the true challenge for me is trying to figure out why a program doesn't work the way I want, and then figuring out how to fix it. I often find myself thinking about the exterminators at New England Pest Control cel

In a previous post, I covered several of the available SPARK computing systems, so I won't revisit SPARK hardware too extensively in this series. I will share any interesting discoveries I make working with the Create, iRobot's very simple yet comprehensive robot base. In addition, I'll try to include useful technical details. Of course, as much as the mechanical engineer in me loves to spend time designing and building robot parts, the Create is a nicely developed and well documented plat

In my last post, I presented the beginnings of a plan to connect an iRobot Create to an iCop SPARK computer running Windows Embedded CE R2.0. Now it's time to dive in and get some code loaded onto the iCop machine, then see if I can talk to the Create using the commands listed in the Create Open Interface. Before I get started with Windows Embedded, I want to verify that I can talk to the Create using a known-good source, my desktop computer. I think this is an important debug step. Eve

My second SPARK project is going to be slightly different than my first. I’ve learned a lot about Windows Embedded CE 6.0R2, and have a better idea of it’s strengths and weaknesses. It is a sophisticated tool with a lot of capabilities. I continue to explore those capabilities, but from a much simpler starting point. I’ve also been working closely with Bill Mar of Special Computing to help navigate the tools and training, and hopefully create a clean roadmap for others to exp