Sphero Rolls Out Raspberry Pi-Compatible RVR Robot | News &

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Educational and toy robot maker Sphero’s newest product is aimed at educators and makers. The Sphero RVR is a treaded, app-controlled robot designed for integration with the Raspberry Pi and other micro-computers.

At its heart, the RVR is a flat robot with two sets of treads that can climb inclines of up to 45 degrees, with a companion app that allows users to drive it around like company’s ball-shaped Sphero, SPRK+, and Bolt robots. Its main feature is a customizable top panel that covers a universal communications port that can connect to the serial interfaces of the Raspberry Pi and other micro-computers like the Arduino and Micro:Bit. This port turns the robot into a moving platform for programming and robotics development.

Sphero’s goal is for the RVR to become a compelling system for classrooms and makers, by providing all the necessary mobility functions of a robot and freeing up students and hobbyists to focus on what other functions they can enable through the micro-computer integration. The RVR is capable of moving around and maintaining orientation with app or programming commands, taking a routine but fairly complex aspect to robotics development and making it a simple set of functions.

Sphero RVR

The RVR also features a suite of internal sensors, including a nine-axis inertial measurement unit (IMU, a module that integrates motion and orientation-sensing functions like accelerometer and gyroscope), light sensor, color sensor, and infrared sensor.

These sensors, and the RVR’s movement functions, can be worked with and programmed for directly without a connected micro-computer, similar to the Sphero Bolt’s coding support. The expansion port for Raspberry Pi and similar devices enables all those functions to then work with any mechanical or electronic expansion a user can develop, which will fit on the flat, chunky robot.

Sphero came by PC Labs last week to show two early versions of the RVR. The cosmetic version, pictured above, was non-functioning but showed a more finished design, closer to what the final version of the robot and its Raspberry Pi cover plate will look like.

The more functional prototype (not shown) looked rougher, but demonstrated how the RVR will eventually act. Without an attached micro-computer, the prototype RVR was fully app-controlled, capable of tracking its orientation and traveling in a straight line regardless of any bumps or disruptions to its treads.

Sphero plans to launch the RVR in the fall for $249. The robot will be available for pre-sale via Kickstarter starting today, at a discounted price of $199. Backers who join in the first week will be eligible to win a trip to Sphero’s headquarters in Boulder, Colorado, to compete in a RVR hacking competition on March 14.