In watching the video Bossa Nova has shown, it looks like the team took the Ballbot concept and created a much better solution that comes with its own kickstand (or the “rapid deploy safety mechanism” invented by Project Scientist Ben Brown).
In a true collaborative fashion, they have enabled the mObi to support both Willow Garage ROS and Microsoft’s VPL.
From the site, we see that the mObi is 4.75 feet tall (compared to the over 5 feet of Suitable’s Beam) and the screen is the same as all tablet devices.
From reading their site, the mObi seems to be a proof of concept similar to iRobot’s AVA – allowing for others to leverage the device.
Check out their video below.
If there is a chance to test-drive this Ballbot, please contact us here.