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Robot Features, Uncategorized

iRobot Roomba 530 Features

iRobot Roomba 530 vacuum cleanerThe 500 Series Roombas feature technologies that aren’t available in the 400 series. They run longer on a battery charge, and are compatible with some of the more advanced accessories. The counter-rotating brushes, which pick up larger debris, run faster and have an improved design. The robot comes with better filters that stop more dust and allergens. iRobot made improvements to the spinning side brush so that it gets into corners better. The larger dust bin allows for more use between emptying. Technology for keeping the Roomba from getting tangles on cables, carpet fringe, and rug tassels as been improved upon. The iRobot Roomba 530 comes with a self-charging base and two virtual walls. The difference between the 530 and the 532 Pet Series is the 530 doesn’t come with: Extra High Capacity Sweeper Bin, Extra Brushes and Filters, and Extra Cleaning Tool.

What comes in the box:

  • The Roomba 530
  • 2 Compact Virtual Walls
  • Home Base for Self-Charging
  • Extra Filter
  • Rechargeable Battery
  • Three Hour Charging Power Supply
  • 1 Year Warranty

As with all Roomba robot vacuum cleaners, the 530 will sense cliffs and drop-offs so that it won’t fall down steps. This robot can detect areas with more dirt and will circle over them to clean the area more thoroughly. You can also use the “spot clean” feature, where you tell the robot to clean up a small area quickly. This is great for spills or spots that need more frequent cleaning. The Roomba robots use filters to capture dust, pollen, and other allergens in your home, and vacuum each floor completely, going under furniture where it can. The dust bin is bagless. Roombas use a multi-stage cleaning technology to vacuum floors. First, a spinning brush grabs debris and pulls it toward the vacuum intake. Counter-rotating bristle brushes “beat” the floor and grab larger particles of dirt. Next, a powerful vacuum sucks up finer particles. On carpet, the brushes will work deep into the fibers to get at pet hair and dirt under the surface.

  • Customer Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • Warranty: 1 year
  • Charging Time: 3 Hours
  • Detects Dirt: Yes
  • Spot Mode: Yes
  • Max Mode: No
  • Self-Charging Home Base Compatible: Yes
  • On-Board Scheduling: No
  • Light-Touch Bumpers: Yes
  • Advanced Anti-Tangle Technology: Yes
  • Improved Edge and Corner Cleaning: Yes
  • Room-to-Room Navigation: No
  • High Capacity Bin: Optional
  • Wireless Control: No
  • Lighthouse Technology: No
  • Virtual Walls Included: 2
  • Lighthouses Included: 0
  • Wireless Command Center Included: No
  • Extra Brushes: No
  • Carrying Case: No
  • Extra Filters Included: 1
  • Bonus Accessory Kit: No
News

iRobot Announces 5 Million Unit Milestone

In a press release today, iRobot Corporation (listed on the NASDAQ as IRBT) announced that they had passed the sales milestone of five million home robots. Five million! That’s a lot of robot vacuums. iRobot has been selling Roombas since 2002.

“This achievement represents a huge milestone for iRobot and for the robotics industry as a whole,” said Colin Angle, chairman and chief executive officer of iRobot. “We set out to create practical robots that help people accomplish tasks they don’t like to do, and in many cases, don’t have time to do. With over five million home robots sold, we have seen a widespread acceptance of this technology. This further fuels our drive to innovate and provide solutions that make a difference in people’s lives.”

The press release goes on to detail the achievements of the company and features of the robots which have propelled the popularity of its robot vacuum cleaners. Some of the features they talk about in the press release include:

  • The behavioral algorithms which make the robots clean floors more effectively.
  • Technology for detecting obstacles before the Roomba runs into them.
  • The low profile of the Roomba, which makes it ideal for vacuuming under furniture.
  • Dirt Detect: The robots sense dirt and change their behavior to spend more time in dirty areas.
  • Anti-tangle technology, which keeps the robot vacuums from getting caught on cables and fringes on rugs.
  • The spinning side brush.
  • Scheduling: So that you can have the robot clean your house when you’re not home.
  • Cliff detection to keep the vacuum cleaners from falling down stairs.
  • Automatic surface adjustment so that the robots can transition between different floor surfaces.
  • Round shape: Here’s one I haven’t thought about. iRobot says that the round shape of the Roombas helps keep them from getting stuck.
  • Home base with charger.

The press release goes on to detail the price range of Roombas, emphasizing that the entry-level robot is around US $129, and also mentions some of iRobot’s other robots for cleaning around the house. So the Scooba, Dirt Dog, Looj, and Verro. Here’s a link to the official press release on iRobot’s site.

Robot Features

10 Reasons to Buy an iRobot Roomba

iRobot Roomba 400Having an iRobot Roomba to vacuum your floors is a real luxury. I especially appreciate mine because we have hardwood floors and pets and with hardwood floors there always seem to be little gritty pieces of dirt that get stuck to your feet. That should be reason number one why a Roomba is the best way to get your floor clean. Here are some more reasons.

1) Roombas are short – When you’re a robot vacuum cleaner, being short is a great advantage. They can vacuum under your furniture. Think about the last time you tried to vacuum under your bed. At one point in my life, I owned a vacuum cleaner that could adjust to be flat on the floor but it still didn’t fit under my bed all the way and was a pain to use in that position. The rest of the time, a person has to get down on their hands and knees with a duster or a broom and crawl around with the dust bunnies. This is one problem that a robot vacuum will solve for you.

2) Schedule your cleaning – With a little ingenuity, you can have your Roomba vacuum your house on a schedule. We have a small enough house that the robot can vacuum it in one go and then find its way back to the automatic self-charger. It took a little adjustment on our part. In any house there are places where a Roomba will get stuck, like if you have a real mess of cords or sometimes if there is a transition between rooms that has a high bump. Once you make adjustments, though, a robot vacuum cleaner can do its job with a minimum of intervention on your part. Mostly you just have to empty the thing and clean the brushes.

3) Vacuum Every Day! – Nobody wants to pull out their vacuum or broom every day and give their house a going-over. With a Roomba, this suddenly becomes a real possibility. You can say goodbye to clumps of pet hair and little pieces of grass and leaves that get tracked into the house. It seems to me that this would be a great thing for allergy sufferers and also people with kids or pets.

4) Work is Fascinating – As the saying goes, “Work is fascinating. I could watch it all day.” Especially when you’re watching a robot vacuum going about its business. You can watch it work its way around the house, bump into furniture, move from room to room, detect stairways, and make your pets nervous. A normal arrangement of dining room chairs is transformed into a virtual miniature golf course. OK OK compared to watching Alias, it’s kind of a dud, but I find it fascinating.

5) iRobot Roomba Remote – This option isn’t exactly the most useful thing in the world. I mean, on its own, your robot vaccum will manage to every square inch of your floor. The thing was designed to work without human intervention! And yet, if you get a model with a remote control, you can make the Roomba zip around the room. Before you think it’s all fun and games, though, there is a practical purpose. If there is a particular area or spot on your floor that needs attention, you can use the remote to direct the vacuum to hit that area. It’s fun!

6) Own a Robot! This is the 21st Century, and we were all supposed to be living like George Jetson. Instead, we have no jet packs. I don’t drive to work in a flying machine. BUT I do have my very own robot maid. Maybe it’s not rotund and charming, but it’s still very cool.

7) Cat Owners – They say that people who are allergic to cats aren’t bothered by the hair. It’s the dander. I’m telling you, though, the hair bothers me! It gets around the house. On hardwood floor you end up with clumps that wander around your house and end up under the coffee table. This goes for dog hair too. iRobot has engineered robots specifically to clean up after pets. They designate these models as “Pet Series”.

8) Hardware Hacking – iRobot has released what they call the iRobot Create. This is a Roomba designed to be educational. What you get is a mobile platform that has been designed by the industry leader, and information on how to experiment with it. Now, most people aren’t going to take advantage of this, but you’ve got to admit, it’s pretty cool.

9) Put your rabbit on it and drive it around – See this. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2YyDWViV7-Y

10) Roombas Detect Dirt – The Roomba is designed with a special feature to detect areas of the floor that are especially dirty and spend more time on them. A blue light will come on and the robot will run in circles on the area until it decides the area is properly clean.