Your Roomba robotic vacuum cleaner will soon have another job aside from tidying up, with iRobot set to turn the ‘bots into roving WiFi analysts. The company has had connected robot vacuums in its line-up for some years now, but a new software update iRobot plans to trial will allow them to not only connect, but assess wireless signal strength.
A new software update, due to be pushed out mid-January the company confirmed to CNET, will add an extra chore to the Roomba 900 series. While they’re vacuuming as usual, they’ll also be.
It’s part of a closed beta test that will explore using select Roomba models for more than just cleaning the smart home. A new software update, due to be pushed out mid-January the company confirmed to CNET, will add an extra chore to the Roomba 900 series. While they’re vacuuming as usual, they’ll also be sampling WiFi network strength.
The result will be a second map of the home, produced at the end of the cleaning session. Currently, the Roomba 900 series shows a graphic illustrating where it reached during its activity. A second tab in the Roomba app, meanwhile, will show another map on which areas of poor WiFi coverage will be flagged.
From the initial graphics iRobot has shared of the process, it won’t be quite as intensive as having a network engineer bring their equipment out to do a full survey. Instead, iRobot will use simple icons and color-grading to show where patchy coverage could be a problem. It’ll be up to homeowners to then tweak their networking configuration if they want to deal with the issues identified.
iRobot will be pushing the new software out to its Beta program members initially, in small numbers. Indeed, “test groups could be as small as 100 to 200 participants,” a spokesperson from the company confirmed. Assuming all goes to plan, larger trials are likely to follow, with as many as 1-in-5 iRobot users offered the upgraded functionality.
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For them to get it, they’ll need one of iRobot’s 900 series models. That currently consists of two versions, the Roomba 960 and Roomba 980, which are priced at as much as $900 apiece. Previous updates added support for things like Amazon Alexa voice commands.
iRobot has been talking about making better use of its robotic footprint in the home for some time now, though found itself in hot water last year. CEO Colin Angle suggested that there were plenty of new things that could be done in the smart home “once you have a rich map” that was generated by Roomba ‘bots, but prompted privacy concerns by suggesting that data could be valuable to companies like Apple, Alphabet, or Amazon. iRobot later clarified to insist that it would not sell any user data so collected.
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People who hate housework will soon have two more robots to handle the chores.
iRobot this week will unveil the Scooba 230 floor washer and the next-generation Roomba 700 series of vacuums.
iRobot already has a line of Scooba floor washers, but the company is touting the Scooba 230 as a leaner cleaner. At 3.5 inches high and 6.5 inches wide, the 230 is geared to squeeze into tight places, such as underneath furniture and around bathroom fixtures. The 230 holds enough cleaning fluid to take care of 150 square feet of space in one session, iRobot said.
The Scooba will also incorporate iRobot's Virtual Wall technology, which sends out a beam the device won't cross, ensuring that it doesn't stray out of its assigned cleaning area.
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The Roomba 700 series is the sixth generation of the robot cleaner, according to iRobot, and has been designed to vacuum up smaller, finer particles. The Roomba 770 and 780 models use a new acoustic sensor to find small material, such as sand, and an optical sensor to find larger but softer items, such as popcorn. Better air flow also helps pull hair and other debris off the brushes into the bin, the company said.
Both gadgets are set to hit the floor at the Consumer Electronics Show 2011 on Thursday and launch this spring.
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Though iRobot is known for its series of house-cleaning Roombas, the company has also swept its way into other areas. Last spring, its Seaglider unmanned underwater vehicle helped gather information on the Gulf oil spill. iRobot has also been heavily involved in designing robots for military use, selling unmanned robotic devices to the U.S. and allied countries.