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The simulator uses a description of the physical environment that the
simulated robot operates in. This description is easily modifiable
(without reprogramming). It includes the physical characteristics of the
mobile robot and the space in which it moves. A 2D bird's eye view of a
typical room setup with a robot inside is show in figure .
The room the robot moves is has a polygonal floor plan and vertical walls, and contains a number of solid objects with convex polygonal bases and vertical faces, each with an associated user-defined spectral power distribution (SPD).
Any number of robots may inhabit the room. They have two independently driven wheels on either side, and two small support wheels underneath in the front and the back. Furthermore a bumper bar front and back, with contact and force sensors built in, and a color camera on top, parallel to the direction of the driven wheels. The camera is fixed and mounted horizontally. The robot also has a non-directional light with a user-defined SPD on top, which it can switch on and off or flash.