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June 28, 2013

Data-Gathering Roombas to Roam

Alex Woodie

The Silicon Valley startup Knightscope this week unveiled new devices that will collect data from sensors as they propel themselves across the earth. A beta test for first of the Autonomous Data Machines is expected to start later this year.

As analysts get better at synthesizing large amounts of data, it’s only natural to crank up the volume to improve the result. The Western world is already pretty well wired, but it’s possible that the amount of data gathered now from cameras, microphones, and sundry other sensors is paltry compared to what will be recorded and consumed in the future.

Knightscope hopes to be one of the companies enabling massive collection and dissemination of real-world sensor data. The company has developed the first of two machines, dubbed the K5, that will serve as a platform for 360-degree high-definition cameras, microphones, optical character recognition, thermal imagers, air quality sensors, ultrasonic sensors and lasers (for measuring speed and distance of objects), and infrared sensors.

The K5 is about 5-feet tall and 300 lbs, and features an operating system that allows it to operate autonomously, in semi-autonomous mode, or to be controlled remotely. Its maker envisions various uses for the device, including license plate recognition, 3D environmental mapping, behavioral analysis, heat mapping, and detection of airborne agents.

The company is also working on the K10, which is about the same size as an ultra-compact car, and will be suitable for use in wide areas (such as construction sites or military installations) and on private roads. Currently, driverless cars are only permitted to operate in Nevada and Florida.

Knightscope, which unveiled its devices at the nestCON 1.2 Internet of Things conference earlier this week, says the benefits of its devices to intelligence analysis is potentially huge.

“A large-scale deployment of autonomous technology, sensors and robotics will digitally connect vast portions of the offline world to the online world, enhancing the true potential of big data and business intelligence,” the company states in a press release. “Billions are spent by organizations for the best intelligence each year, but only data that has actually been collected can be analyzed.”

In addition to construction and the military, the company envisions its machines being used to analyze traffic for real estate purposes; to improve maps; to improve neighborhood watches; to provide physical inventory controls in factories; to provide monitoring on farms and ranches; and to facilitate inspections in power plats.

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