Robot Vacuums With Lidar Make Cleaning Easier

A robot vacuum can track its surroundings in order to avoid obstacles and navigate efficiently. This technology is akin to that used in self-driving and aerospace cars.

Simple robots come with bump sensors to prevent them from scuffing up the paint on your chair or scratching its legs, but more sophisticated navigation systems such as Lidar and SLAM are far more adept at avoiding unexpected. This technology is costly.

Lidar

The most significant advancement in robot vacuums for the past decade has been lidar or light detection and ranging. Lidar is a sensor that emits laser beams and tracks the time it takes for them to return. The data can then be used to map accurately. Lidar makes it much easier for robots to navigate and avoid objects, especially in low-light environments.

Although the majority of modern robot vacuums have some kind of obstacle detection, some are still struggling with charging cords, socks and other household items that easily get tangled up on the floor. The problem is that a bad obstacle detection system can hamper the cleaning efficiency of a robot vac and cause a lot of wasted time where you need to stop the robovac manually and untangle the item it got stuck on.

The top robot vacuums that have lidar feature powerful detection of objects which ensure your floors are kept clean and free of tangles and dirt. You'll also find that these vacuums are less likely to become stuck on furniture legs and other items that are typical obstacles in narrow hallways and spaces that are narrow.

Certain robots equipped with lidar come with digital keep-out zones which allow you to create a virtual boundary on a map to deter your robot from cleaning certain areas of your home or apartment. This will prevent your vacuum from accidentally vacuuming the cat's litter box, or an expensive area rug.

Another benefit of a model equipped with lidar is the capability to recognize stairs. Although climbing steps isn't an easy task, many models equipped with lidar can climb them without any problems.

Other sensors you might want to look out for include infrared sensors which detect furniture, walls, and other objects to aid the robot navigate. 3D ToF sensors that use reflection infrared to determine and calculate the location of objects and cliff sensors, which warn the vacuum whenever it gets close to the edge.

Gyroscopes

Gyroscopes are more prevalent on robots that are budget-friendly and work as quick-spinning wheels that let the robot know the position it's in with regards to obstacles. They are more prevalent in low-cost robots and function as a quick-spinning wheel that lets the vacuum know its position relative to obstacles. Certain models employ gyroscopes in order to create the home map. This is useful to ensure that the space is cleaned thoroughly and keeping track of the area.

SLAM which is Simultaneous Localization and Mapping, is a different popular navigation technique for robot vacuums. It's available in different price points. This technique is used to create a 3D image of your space to allow the robot to form an accurate map and navigate it in a logical way. This is a major advancement over older bounce-and-bang robots that would simply plow through your space, bouncing off anything they encountered until the job was complete.

The majority of robots that utilize SLAM are able to display maps in an application which means you'll be able to be aware of where your cleaners are. You can also create no-go zones based on maps. This is especially helpful for homes with a lot of furniture, as it isn't easy to figure out what's where without a map of your home.

While SLAM is effective in most situations, it's not so good in detecting smaller obstacles, such as wires and cables that might be caught in the vacuum's rotating brush. This is a major flaw, since many robots tend to take on these objects and cause damage to them.

Fortunately, the majority of robots that incorporate SLAM include obstacle detection technology, including drop detectors. These sensors stop the vacuum from falling down stairs, or any other huge differences in flooring levels that could cause severe damage. Many robots also come with cliff sensors, which can be useful if you have an animal that can jump over the robot to reach its food or water dish. These sensors are usually located on the vac's bumpers. They emit a signal when the vac is within range of anything that could hurt it.

Wall Sensors

A robot vacuum's ability to navigate around your home depends on a set of sensors. The cheapest models can use bump sensors and rotating lights to detect obstacles. However, models with higher-end features have self-navigating systems, maps that save maps (some retain or transmit this information to the company) and digital keep-out areas to stop robots from accidentally hitting furniture legs or pinging cables.

Some robots utilize SLAM or simultaneous localization mapping. They will map the room prior to when they begin cleaning and then refer to the map during the entire run. This makes them more efficient, robot vacuums with lidar since they know exactly where they've been and can avoid repeating the same parts of the room. You can also access and share these maps through the robot's app, which is a handy feature if you prefer to set up no-go zones or to clean by area.

You may also want to think about using a gyroscope for an important navigation sensor. The gyroscope utilizes spinning wheels or a rapidly turning beam of light to calculate distances between your robot and the obstacles within your home. This data is then used to create a map that your robot can reference as it moves about your space. Robots that don't have this technology could become stuck on cords or carpets, and may move around the floor instead of following the edges.

The most advanced robots are equipped with a variety of obstacles avoidance technologies, including 3D structured lights, 3D Time of Flight (ToF) bi-cular or monocular vision and LiDAR. In general, the more sophisticated technology you have, the more precise your robot's capabilities will be and the more intuitive its navigation will be. This means that your robot can clean more efficiently and with less effort and you can also set up zones where it isn't allowed to enter to protect electronics and other valuable items. The most recent generation of gyroscopes which are more accurate and work well in dim lighting, can even detect changes in the ambient lighting in your home to allow the robot to perceive more clearly.

Optical Sensors

A robot vacuum with lidar can create an 3D map to help you navigate the space more efficiently and avoid hitting obstacles. This is achieved by releasing an laser beam that bounces off surfaces before returning to the sensor. The sensor monitors the time it takes for the laser beam to return. This is translated into distance measurements, and allows the robot build up a picture about the space.

As opposed to cameras, which are used in certain robots to map rooms, lidar is more efficient and more accurate. Based on the model, a robot equipped with lidar may come with an "no-go" zone feature that lets you create areas that are restricted to your robot. In our tests we found that the Neato Botvac D8 or iRobot Braava 450 were the two top models using this technology. They have an app that allows you to easily create "no-go zones".

The iRobot Duo+ is another great option that uses LiDAR and other sensors to create an accurate map of your home, which it can then use for navigation. The app also lets you control the mapping process so that you can alter the boundaries of your home if necessary.

Other technologies that are used to improve the navigation of robots include 3D structured lights that measure distances by looking for reflective properties of objects and 3D TOF (time-of-flight), which analyzes an area to determine the speed at which light reflections occur and their direction. Some robots also utilize binocular and monocular visions to recognize objects and avoid them.

All of these sensors are used together to assist robots to avoid obstacles in various ways. This is why they are so useful. But, it's crucial to consider your individual needs before buying a robot vacuum lidar. Consider how much time it will take you to clean your floors, the number of obstacles in your home, and whether or not you want your robot to be able to do more. We suggest you establish a budget that includes a model with all the features you want.