The Future Is Here
We may earn a commission from links on this page

Video: Hacked Roombas Used to Play Pac-Man, Finally!

We may earn a commission from links on this page.

It was only a matter of time, right? Check out this setup where a laptop player controls "Pac-Man" while being chased by robo-vacuum ghosts. And get this: it's actually a demo of their unmanned aerial software that guides airborne vehicles.

That's why the red tape marking the maze is really only there for the video. The player sees a virtual representation on screen, and the ghost roombas use internal odometry with a positioning system to find their way around, and avoid each other.

Advertisement

Now they just need those LED-lights that make Pac-Man chomp in the dark. [Roomba Pac-Man via Engadget]

Built using our spare time, Roomba Pac-Man is designed to showcase the extensive Unmanned Aerial System software suite that we have developed to support our personal research. It was also a great opportunity to use some of our skills for our own entertainment. As a disclaimer, our research center, RECUV, is not affiliated with the project, and the work done here, while utilizing some software we were paid to develop at CU, is the sole creation of those listed at the bottom of the page.

Advertisement
Advertisement