Mimicking Swarms in Nature with iRobot Roombas

The goal of this research was to create a swarm of robots that would mimic the behavior of swarms in nature. To replicate these swarms, iRobot Roombas are used along with the Arduino Software IDE for programming. The first step was to communicate with the Roomba using transmitters and receivers, and then building up skills to control the Roomba autonomously. Specifically, motors controlling the wheels on the Roomba, the bump sensors, and various LED lights on the Roomba were controlled. Programs that allowed the Roomba to be controlled from a remote control and autonomous programs were created. A magnetometer was eventually added and programmed to read the current angle of the Roomba. The ability to send out data from Roomba to Roomba, including angle, helped get closer to having a centralized formation of robots. Through this stair-step way of learning, the Roomba was soon able to communicate with the other Roombas; necessary skills for the final project of the swarm behavior. In further research, an algorithm would be developed and incorporated into the Roomba robots to mimic the behavior of swarms in nature