The Gerbil [autonomous room mapping robot]

Our project, the Gerbil, is an attempt to design a small robot that will have the ability to navigate around an area, detect any objects it encounters, and maintain a current map of these objects. Among many other things, such a robot will allow areas such as hospitals to be cleaned of biohazards and other wastes which could pose health risks to human counterparts.The Gerbil will navigate using a positioning and object sensory system, whose output signals will be manipulated by a microprocessor. The processor will then be responsible for directing the robot's movements and creating and updating the map of the area as needed.