Borenstein never intended to reinvent the Seeing Eye dog, but that is exactly where the logic of the problem led him. And his machine doesn't need to be fed or relieve itself. But of course, GuideCane gives no companionship. And it would be better, sometimes, not to avoid an obstacle, such as a wall that happens to have a door. Jr. For the past several years, people strolling around the Carnegie Mellon campus have delighted in watching a hubcap-size wheel skip across the quad.
Nothing seems to stop it.
Downhill or up, the little wheel keeps going. Then it tilts, turns, and scoots away. This frisky wheel is, of course, a radio-controlled robot. A four-pound gyroscope concealed inside spins at 12,000 rpm and holds the wheel upright, whether it's rolling or not. Two internal motors drive it uphill and tilt the gyro to make the wheel turn, or even right itself after falling.