Wiimote firefighting robot

Posted Sep 3rd 2007 11:46PM by Will O'Brien
Filed under: wii hacks

Chad brings us yet another use for the Wiimote: firefighting robot. The Wiimote acts as a communications gateway via bluetooth to a host PC. The IR sensor is used to detect the fire, and the commands from the host are passed along via the Wiimote expansion port. The robot is pretty basic, but the use of the Wiimote to relay bluetooth comms via I2C is a fantastic hack.

Reader Comments

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1. now add a flame thrower on it

Posted at 2:04AM on Sep 4th 2007 by Alex McCown

2. I watched the video and this thing is cool.

But the downside I think is that he used it to put out a match... If you are making a fire-fighting robot, shouldn't you be prepared for bigger fires than a lit match? and how is a fan meant to PUT OUT A BIG FIRE??

Excellent hack though :)

Posted at 2:25AM on Sep 4th 2007 by James

3. I think its really more of a proof of concept than a top of the line bot.

Posted at 3:39AM on Sep 4th 2007 by OldVamp

4. Would this work with only a nunchuck or do you need the whole wiimote?

Posted at 8:09AM on Sep 4th 2007 by Ice9

5. @ James.

This seems to just be proof of concept. The power to the motor could be used to control anything. Like a relay that would activate a pump.

Posted at 8:28AM on Sep 4th 2007 by Bruno

6. james- "firefighting robot" is a term of art. it refers to a robot designed to autonomously:
.: navigate a series of rooms/hallways
.: identify the "fire", which is a lit candle
.: stop the "fire"
.: (and maybe then gtfo)
the event itself was started by Trinity College (http://www.trincoll.edu/events/robot/) and has become something of a standard.

Posted at 8:31AM on Sep 4th 2007 by josh

7. This is probably the best hack here for a long time. It is a well implemented proof of concept of such a robot with an extraordinary way of achieving its goal. Of course you cant stop a fire with a fan, you will make it just bigger! but that is not the point.

Posted at 9:41AM on Sep 4th 2007 by nom1

8. as josh said, this is a common goal used for robotics contests. i remember the robotics club in my college building one of these bots over 10 years ago. the contest winner ending up being a guy that worked at a major toy company (mattel i think). he built a wall following robot that moved pretty fast.

Posted at 2:32PM on Sep 4th 2007 by bodiby

9. Very good setup.This is all I needed to control stuff from my Nokia N800. It's already got bluetooth, and works on Linux.Cheers to open source!

Posted at 5:40PM on Sep 4th 2007 by bluehash

10. >

You lack vision !
If it's a larger fire you just add more wiimotes to the bot..d'uh ;-)

Posted at 6:15PM on Sep 4th 2007 by Marco

11. (Alex McCown: now add a flame thrower on it) QFT, That will win our wars.

Posted at 4:12PM on Sep 5th 2007 by Nox13last

12. Wouldn't the fan just 'fan' the fire so to speak? I'd probably add a mini-fire extinguisher.. it would only weigh a few extra ounces.

Posted at 11:04AM on Sep 6th 2007 by Brian

13. Put that entire thing in an oven mitt, ( Except for the wheels and heat sensor)

and then take it outside and light a cracker jack box on fire, and see what it does after you turn it on.

Posted at 5:13PM on Sep 6th 2007 by right side left place

14. yeah, i also find the use of a fan odd. Perhaps the 'grown up' version can use a can of compressed CO2.

Bodiby: it doesn't matter which toy company he worked for, he probably works for mattel now ;)

Posted at 11:44PM on Sep 10th 2007 by guy

15. This would be great if scaled up to say powerwheels Jeep size with a decent pump and water tank attached.

Posted at 1:14PM on Sep 13th 2007 by Hax

16. LOL! Won't the propeller just fan the flames?

Posted at 1:47PM on Sep 26th 2007 by Sorcerer

17. Great Mod. I'll soon writ an article bout it @ http://www.wiidata.net

Posted at 8:53AM on Sep 30th 2007 by WiiData