We currently support Sanbot ELF, QNAP Afobot, iPal, Double 2, InMoov, any ROS2-enabled mobile robot - including cars with Ackermann steering, proven on an AWS DeepRacer - and VIAM robots. Check out our Supported Robots page to see what each robot can do.
Both. A ROS2 robot with a LiDAR can build a SLAM map, then you drop named waypoints and run multi-stop routes - including patrols that loop - with an action at each stop (take a photo, wait, look around, or return to the dock). The driver handles obstacle avoidance (LiDAR and bumper) and auto-docks to charge between runs. Robots without a LiDAR (Sanbot, Afobot, iPal, and similar) are driven manually - and so are cars, which get a steering and speed control rather than a joystick.
Yes. Cars steer their front wheels and can't turn on the spot, so a four-way
joystick is the wrong instrument for them - "left" with no throttle is physically
meaningless. Set drive_type: ackermann in the driver config and the control page
gives you a steering + speed control instead: steering holds where you leave
it, speed springs back to zero, and a gamepad works too (left stick steers, triggers are
throttle and reverse). Autonomous driving is car-aware as well - it never asks for a corner
tighter than the car can make.
Proven on an AWS DeepRacer running ROS 2 Foxy: same driver, same dashboard, same API as every other robot. That car has no wheel encoders and no LiDAR, though, so on it you get manual driving and camera - mapping and waypoints need odometry and a LiDAR. See Supported Robots.
A route is a series of named waypoints the robot drives between on its own. At each stop you pick an action: take a photo, wait for a set time, look around, or return to the dock. Set a route to loop and it becomes a patrol - the robot repeats the circuit, auto-docking to charge between runs and carrying on where it left off. Obstacle avoidance (LiDAR and bumper) runs the whole time.
Yes. From the fleet page you can start a simulated robot — a virtual care-home wing with a LiDAR robot in it — with no hardware at all. It's the real Platform: you drive it, build a live SLAM map, drop named waypoints, run multi-stop routes, and watch it auto-dock to charge. The Getting Started guide shows you how.
Each robot type has its own app or driver that you'll need to install:
bash <(curl -sSL https://platform.burf.co/install/ros2)bash <(curl -sSL https://platform.burf.co/install/viam)Just configure your server URL and robot ID in the app, and you're good to go - the robot will show up in your dashboard. See our Getting Started guide for step-by-step instructions.
We use WebRTC for video streaming, which gives you the lowest possible latency for real-time video. You'll typically see 100-500ms delay depending on your network. A few things that can affect this:
The Lock feature lets you lock the BRemote Android app from the web interface. When locked, the app shows a lock screen instead of the camera preview - but video still streams to the web. This is designed for remote teleop scenarios where you don't want someone at the robot end to exit the app or access the controls.
The lock state persists across app restarts and robot reconnections. When a locked robot boots up, the app automatically starts streaming and shows the lock screen. Toggle it from the lock switch in the header of any robot control page.
If your robot is managed via VIAM, you can connect it with one command:
bash <(curl -sSL https://platform.burf.co/install/viam)
The installer asks for your VIAM robot address and API credentials (from app.viam.com), your VIAM component names (camera, base, movement sensor), and your Platform API key. It can also set up auto-start on boot via systemd.
Absolutely! We have a REST API for custom integrations - perfect if you want to build your own automation or connect robots to other systems. Check out the API Documentation for all the details.
We take security seriously. Here's what we've got in place:
Note: This is a beta release - we'll be adding more security features as we move towards production.
Get in touch with us at burf.co - we'd love to hear from you!
Getting Started | About The Platform | Supported Robots | API Documentation