Comments on: Roomba Bluetooth Interface

By: todbot

todbot — Thu, 25 Jan 2007 21:11:56 +0000

Yup, you got it.
Or more exactly, the command line argument is given to the Java class you’re executing.
If you’re running ‘roombacomm.SimpleTest’ with something like:
% runit.sh roombacomm.SimpleTest
SimpleTest will tell you all the command line arguments it accepts, one of them being ‘-hwhandshake’, so then you could do:
% runit.sh roombacomm.SimpleTest /dev/tty.usbserial -hwhandshake
Note the above are for unix-like systems, I don’t play with Windows too much, but you should be able to create a RUNIT.BAT file that works similarly to runit.sh.

By: Paul

Paul — Thu, 25 Jan 2007 20:43:10 +0000

Do you use the -hwhandshake flag with the java.exe command line command?

By: todbot

todbot — Thu, 25 Jan 2007 18:13:38 +0000

The hwhandshake flag is a command line argument.

By: Paul

Paul — Thu, 25 Jan 2007 18:10:41 +0000

Tod,
In the “Readme-0.95″ it says for using Bluetooth in Windows:
“The serial port implementation is a little different (at least to RXTX)
so use the ‘-hwhandshake’ flag with the programs, if using Bluetooth on
Windows. See, ‘RoomabCommSerial.waitForDSR’ for details.”.

Where do you add the “-hwhandshake” into the code and where do you find the “RoomabCommSerial.waitForDSR” for more details?

By: todbot

todbot — Sat, 01 Jul 2006 04:36:39 +0000

wassigan, I don't sell them, but my good friends at RoombaDevTools.com has made a functionally identical device called the RooTooth. You can also buy a RooTooth from great hacker suppliers SparkFun. I have a RooTooth and it works great.

By: wassigan

wassigan — Sat, 01 Jul 2006 02:19:59 +0000

Any chance you’d be willing to sell one of these for us time-challeneged folks who still like to play?

By: todbot

todbot — Thu, 16 Feb 2006 23:56:59 +0000

The BlueSMiRF uses a BlueRadios Class 1 module. The Class 1 power rating means it transmits up to 100mW and thus is good up to around 100m (300ft). The SparkFun guys have verified this for their modules. Most Bluetooth devices are Class 2 (10mW, thus ~10m). A few are Class 3 (1 mW, ~1m). I've not tested it extensively, but I've managed at least 50ft out of it.

By: Mike

Mike — Thu, 16 Feb 2006 22:45:39 +0000

I’m curious, what kind of range are you getting with the blueSmirf? I’m seriously considering building one, but I’d really like “whole-house” connectivity, and as I recall Bluetooth isn’t really designed for more that 10-30ft range.

By: Lukas Frey's Weblog

Lukas Frey's Weblog — Wed, 08 Feb 2006 07:59:12 +0000

Roomba-Erweiterungen

Nachdem die Spezifikationen der seriellen Schnittstelle offengelegt wurden (siehe hier), sind schon diverse Projekte im Netz dokumentiert:

Serielles Kabel fÃ¼r Roomba
Roomba mit Bluetooth