Folks have been hacking the Roomba for the last few years, but we’ve seen very few attempts at people building their own robotic vacuum cleaners, until now. Dave Astolfo of PlastiBots built his own vacuuming bot, not just out of any set of spare parts but out of LEGO Mindstorms.
Called Pulito (Italian for “clean”), this little robot uses a Swiffer cloth and LEGO sensors to navigate and clean your hardwood floors. While its navigational systems could use a bit of refinement, Pulito does a good job avoiding hazards and zeros in on its home base via an infrared beacon when it’s time to recharge. Pulito even uses a multiplexing system to get more sensors onto the LEGO NXT without adding more ports, an admirable hack even on its own.
For more photos, construction details, and videos check out Pulito on PlastiBots.
[PlastiBots via Hack A Day]
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