We launched Viam because we believe in the massive potential for robotics to solve problems big and small, and we wanted to provide a platform that makes it easier to turn robotics ideas into successful robotics businesses.
Viam seriously reduces the time it takes to get a robotics project up and running, but we still wanted a way for people to TRY Viam without having to set up anything to get a feel for the platform. I’m talking about getting started in a matter of seconds…that’d be cool.
So today we’re kicking off Try Viam to let anyone take over a real Viam Rover in our robotics lab for 15-minute sessions, from wherever they are.
Here’s how Try Viam works:
1 — Click on ‘TRY’ in Viam.
Log into Viam and go to the TRY tab. If you don’t have an account, it only takes a minute to sign up.
2 — Reserve your slot.
If there is no queue, you’ll take over the rover immediately. Otherwise, you’ll see an estimated time for the next slot, and we’ll send you an email when it’s your turn.
3 — Play around with the rover!
Try Viam using a Viam Rover in our robotics lab for 15 minutes. We share some ideas below for things you can do with the rover.
Ideas for trying Viam with our in-office rover:
The platform supports full remote control from anywhere, so at this point, you’re in charge. You could try out some things like:
- Write some code to make the rover go in a square, or a triangle, or a circle
- Use higher-level services like our Computer Vision color detection to find a red wall in the rover rink
- See how fast you can drive the rover from side to side
- Whatever you want!
Questions? Check out our tutorial and FAQ
Watch the tutorial video below for a quick walkthrough of Try Viam, including how to reserve a Viam Rover, navigate the Viam platform, and teleoperate the rover. You can also check out other resources like our documentation and FAQ. And as always, you can reach out to us on our Discord server if you have any other questions.
Let us know how you’ve tried Viam!
We’d love to hear some ways you’re playing with the Viam Rover—share with us and other users in the Viam Discord Community.
And if you like the Viam Rover, we’ve got a couple of ways you can get one yourself. We put in a lot of research this summer to design a cost-effective rover with solid functionality for a wide range of cool projects. We’re selling Viam Rovers ($99) while supplies last and will also be announcing some fun contests in the near future where anyone can participate to win one for free. If you are interested, we’re taking preorders now.
Every technology platform I’ve launched has always been about letting creators and engineers turn their ideas into reality. A robotics platform that takes you from paper to prototype to production to scale has the most potential of any. So Try Viam: who knows what it could lead to?
