Robotic vacuum cleaners are now the little servants of your dreams

existing Things that Robot vacuums It can be done now and continues to grow. They can accurately map your home so they don’t bump into things. They can discharge themselves and recharge themselves. They can reach under your sofa to clean the dirt. Many have dual mopping and sweeping functions to clear your dog’s muddy paw prints.

One thing most robot vacuums have I can’t do it now It is picking things up from your floor. Operating a robot vacuum can save you a lot of time and energy, but it often requires spending 10 to 20 minutes frantically running around trying to defuse robovac booby traps or picking up stray cables, shoelaces, and hair ties.

This year, Roborock won the race to launch a commercial robot vacuum cleaner that has an extendable arm that can pick up small pieces of clutter in its path, thus becoming the robot butler of your dreams. The Roborock Saros Z70 has this extendable arm with gripping pliers that the company calls Omnigrip. I screamed when I saw that.

Courtesy of Roborock

Spin me right round

In my testing, a robot vacuum is only as useful as its navigation system; All the suction power in the world won’t help you if it can’t find its way out from under your sofa. I’ve found the Roborock’s navigation systems to always be very accurate. The Saros Z70 uses an array of sensors for navigation. There’s an array of 3D time-of-flight sensors to measure distances between objects, and AI-powered RGB cameras to identify obstacles and determine when to deploy the Omnigrip. (The arm remains folded and stored in a small compartment on top of the vacuum when not in use.)

The Omnigrip has five separate axes, so it can twist and turn itself horizontally and vertically to precisely grip objects in its tiny grip. Right now, it can pick up anything weighing under 300 grams, or just under a pound, like tissues, socks, or even sandals.

To use the Omnigrip, Roborock customers activate it through the app. As the Saros Z70 moves through your home, it identifies potential items it can lift while cleaning, then spins back to pick them up and put them away when you’re done. In the app, you can choose which areas of your home the Omnigrip works in, how it should act, and where you should place the items it picks up.