sophisticated robot

Good news for vintage robot enthusiasts;
Heathkit and its classic robot HERO, might be headed back from oblivion. This reincarnation is being disguised in the body of the 914 PC-BOT from White Box Robotics. Heathkits Phoenix robot will retain some roots with its pedigree, however. The Heathkit Educational Systems robot will be named
HE-RObot. Built on a Mini-ITX mobo with Intel Core Duo microprocessor and using Windows XP for its operating system (unlike the model 914 PC-BOT which can be outfitted with Ubuntu), HE-RObot is being built and priced towards the educational market. A market that sorely needs a sophisticated robot platform. The hobbyist DIY market, on the other hand, could suffer from sticker shock. The HE-RObots 914 PC-BOT counterpart is priced from $5,000 - $8,000 which could make the HE-RObot a tough sell to even the most rabid roboticist.—Dave Prochnow

(Image: Heathkit Educational Systems)

Why: To patrol your home while you're away, capturing images you can access on any Web-connected device.

The Gear: Tablet PC, webcam, cable, battery pack, strong Velcro

How: Use the onboard PC to send the Roomba instructions to (roughly) follow a predetermined path around your pad. Set the webcam to snap a picture every few minutes and automatically upload it over your Wi-Fi network to a photo-sharing site such as Flickr, which you can log onto from anywhere. Advanced trick: Wire the battery pack to recharge when the Roomba hits the base station so that it can operate indefinitely.