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The list of things that robot vacuum cleaners can do now continues to grow. They can make an accurate map of your home so you don’t bump into things. They can be emptied and recharged. They can reach under your couch to clean up crud. Many have dual functions of mopping-vacuum to dry your dog’s muddy footprints.
One thing most robot vacuum cleaners can’t do it currently is picking things from your plan. Running a robot vacuum can save a lot of time and energy, but it often requires spending 10 to 20 minutes frantically running around trying to disable robovac traps that move or grab cables, shoelaces, and hair ties.
This year, Roborock won the race to launch a commercial robot vacuum 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 gripper arm that the company calls Omnigrip. I screamed when I saw it.
Courtesy of Roborock
Spin Me Right Round
In my test, a robotic vacuum cleaner is only as useful as its navigation system is accurate; all the vacuuming power in the world won’t help if it can’t find its way from under your bed. I’ve found Roborock’s navigation systems to be consistently pretty accurate. The Saros Z70 uses a combination 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 decide when to deploy Omnigrip. (The arm stays folded and stowed in a small bay above the vacuum when not in use.)
Omnigrip has five separate axes, so it can twist and turn both horizontally and vertically to gently grip items in its tiny tweezers. Now, you can take anything that is under 300 grams, or a little less than a pound, so, articles like fabrics, socks, or even a sandal.
To use Omnigrip, Roborock customers activate it through the app. As the Saros Z70 moves around your home, it identifies potential objects it can pick up while cleaning, and then turns back to pick them up and put them away when it’s done. In the app, you can choose the area in your home where Omnigrip operates, how it should behave, and where it should put the things it picks up.
