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<p>There a several examples of autonomous robots and computer-vision assistance:</p>

<ul class="clearfix competitors">
  <li>
    <img src="images/self-driving-car.jpg" class="comp-anal-image" alt="iRobot Roombas" />

    <h3>Cars (<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Automatic_parking" target="_blank">parallel parking</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lane_departure_warning_system" target="_blank">lane departure</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Google_driverless_car" target="_blank">self-driving</a>)</h3>

Cars have begun to adopt various technologies to assist with driving, ranging from lane-departure warnings to autonomous, self-driving cars.  Our robots will obviously not be anywhere near this advanced, but they should be able to detect local danger and be able to prevent themselves from going over cliffs and hitting objects.
  </li>

  <li>
    <img src="images/visp.jpg" class="comp-anal-image" alt="iRobot Roombas" />

    <h3><a href="http://www.irisa.fr/lagadic/visp/visp.html" target="_blank">ViSP</a></h3>

ViSP is software that uses computer vision to control robotic systems.  Likewise, we plan to use images and image processing to plan and control our robots to achieve efficent maximum terrain coverage.
  </li>

  <li>
    <img src="images/compAnalysis1.jpg" class="comp-anal-image" alt="iRobot Roombas" />

    <h3><a href="http://www.irobot.com/For-the-Home/Vacuum-Cleaning/Roomba.aspx" target="_blank">Roombas</a></h3>

The Roomba was the inspiration for the project; it moves about enclosed environments, attempting to cover as much area as possible in the shortest time possible.  Our goal is to have our robots be more efficient in their coverage than the standard Roomba, with better planning and group coordination provided by the central hub.
  </li>

  <li>
    <img src="images/compAnalysis2.png" class="comp-anal-image" alt="CMU Cobots" />

    <h3><a href="http://www.cs.cmu.edu/~coral/projects/cobot/" target="_blank">CMU CoBots</a></h3>

The CMU CoBots are advanced autonomous robots that can move about Gates-Hillman Center, asking students to move out of their way when necessary.  While we aim to achieve the same end product, our robots will come in a much smaller form factor, at the cost of cameras needing to be installed in the ceiling.
  </li>
</ul>