

iRobot introduces gutter-cleaning robot - axiom
http://www.informationweek.com/news/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=202103841

======
ivankirigin
I happen to know a bit about this bot. Ask any questions you like.

The more exciting new robot is the ConnectR. Wifi streaming of video from a
mobile platform you can control through the internet.

There are many possibilities that opens up. There is simple no other platform
with a history of openness that allows for remote mobile video/2-way-audio at
this price.

That said, an "er"->"R" for the name ConnectR is a tired idea.

~~~
nickb
Hey Ivan!

Quick question about the design process... how the heck did you guys come to
an idea for making a gutter (among all other applications) robot?! Is gutter
cleaning that big of a market?

Also, how long does it take to test this bot? How many real gutters did you
try?

Thanks.

~~~
ivankirigin
Hmm. I don't want to step on any toes, so I'm just going to answer somewhat
generally.

There are many smart people at iRobot, and most of em have many crazy ideas.
Because the Home Robots side doesn't get government funding, iRobot needs to
invest a fair amount into a product before it sees a customer. That means that
the market potential needs to be vetted before proceeding. All of this is
pretty intuitive.

They've turned around this product really fast. That's what iRobot is good at:
making something that actually works, really quickly.

Like many companies, employees are early testers of the products.

One VERY smart guy at the company once quipped: "robotics is the study of the
failure modes of connectors".

It's sad because it's so true.

