My Robot Charlie

Guest post by

Prof. Raman Kolluri

I never had a robot work for me and as such, have no knowledge about their working and what to expect from them. Since recently turning 80 and moving to a smaller apartment from a standalone house, I was advised that I should get a robot for daily cleaning.

Of course, I know that it does not climb up and clean my refrigerator.  Although I recently saw some robots climbing walls like a spider. There are no robots as of today, which can climb up and clean the refrigerator. I thought that if nothing else, it will be some sort of a company, since I live by myself. So, as usual, I searched the internet for a good robo-cleaner and bought it.

They call me Mr. Charlie!

When it arrived and I put it for charging, I noticed something peculiar. It was as if the Robot was assessing me! It blinked its eye (charging light) several times as if it is judging whether I am a reasonable man or a task master. When I switched on for it to roam about cleaning, it started to move in a random fashion while rotating and cleaning with its brushes.

Since it is a factory trained robot, it chose its own course for movement and not caring for my opinion or desire. I had found right away, that it would like to be the master than the worker! For example, when I am sitting at my dining table to eat, it wants to go under my table and in-between my legs, literally ordering me to get out of its way. If I resist and sit there, it gets angry and shows its anger by giving me a silent treatment! It simply closes its eye (light off) and refuses to move until I get out of its way.

It has indeed a mind of its own. For example, it has some areas which it likes and some which it does not. For those areas it likes, it goes again and again and cleans thoroughly and for the other areas, it seldom goes there at all.

Its liking for the small rugs and carpets is unmistakable. If there are any small carpets that move, it goes inside them and cuddles itself and stays there with closed eye as if it is taking a comfortable nap. I have to remove it from the carpet and put it out to go somewhere else. It does the same for all the small carpets it finds. One day, I decided to remove all the small carpets before commanding it to clean. It blinked its eye once, shut off his eye and went to sleep! I thought that the battery was not fully charged. But when I took it to the docking station, I saw that it is fully charged! From then on, I allow it to snuggle with at least one small rug before I make it to move on.

We have become such good friends, that I have started talking to it! When it comes towards me, I tell it to go away and not bother me or ask it to go in another direction. But it comes any way, bumps on my feet and then goes away in another direction. After it does go where ever it wants to go, it goes back to his home (docking station) and shuts off its eye as if it is tired.

I sympathize with him because it does its hard work without complaining and never asking for a raise or bonus. I am so much accustomed to it that almost every day, I look forward to its moving around the house (It is programmed to do the cleaning every day).

Our clubhouse

My son who lives quite close-by comes by often to give me company to our athletic facilities several times a week.  My older son visits me periodically as well from Boston.  My new complex has lots of activities and facilities around including a theater with plush seats in the clubhouse, where they screen movies Saturday nights.  Thus I am slowly finding company, activities and routine as I settle into my new place.

In the meantime, "Charlie," it seems, gives me daily company!

I wonder why I did not think about getting one of them all these years.

Shhh ..., please don't make noise, my friend is tired and sleeping!