Robot Vacuums With Lidar Make Cleaning Easier
A robot vacuum will map its environment in order to avoid obstacles and navigate efficiently. This technology is akin to the technology utilized in aerospace and self-driving cars.
Simple robots are equipped with bump sensors to prevent them from scratching your chairs legs or scratching your paint. But more advanced navigation systems, such as Lidar and SLAM, are better in avoiding unexpected events. But this type of technology can increase the cost.
Lidar
The big advancement in robot vacuums for the past decade has been lidar, or light detection and range. Lidar is a sensor that emits laser beams and tracks the time it takes to return them. The information can be used to accurately map. Lidar makes it much easier for robots to navigate and avoid objects, especially in low-light environments.
Even though most modern robotic vacuums come with some kind of obstacle detection however, they are still unable to untangle cords, socks, and other household items that can easily get tangled on the floor. A poor obstacle detection system can affect the cleaning efficiency of the robot vacuum and result in a lot of wasted time. You will have to stop it and manually untangle whatever object is tangled.
The top robot vacuums that make use of lidar have powerful object detection capabilities that will ensure that your floors are kept clean and free of knots and other debris. Also, they are less likely to get stuck on furniture legs and other things that are common obstacles in tight spaces and narrow hallways.
Certain robots equipped with lidar feature digital keep-out zones, which allow you to create an imaginary boundary on the map to stop your robot from cleaning certain areas of your apartment or home. This will stop your vacuum from accidentally vacuuming the cat litter box or an expensive area rug.
A robot with lidar can also recognize stairs. Although getting a robot up stairs is still a difficult task, a lot of models with lidar are able climb them with no difficulty.
Other sensors to be looking for include infrared sensors which detect furniture, walls and other objects to aid the robot navigate; 3D ToF sensors that use reflective infrared to identify and calculate the position of objects and cliff sensors, which alert the vacuum if it gets close to an edge.
Gyroscopes
Unlike lidar, which uses lasers to scan your area and map it out, gyroscopes rely on rotation sensors that keep the robot from crashing into objects. They're more popular on low-cost robots and work as quick-spinning wheels which let the vacuum know how it's positioned in relation to obstacles. Some models use gyroscopes in order to create a home map. This is helpful to clean more thoroughly and ensuring the proper use of the space.
SLAM which is Simultaneous Localization and Mapping, is another well-known navigation technology for robot vacuums and is available across various price points. This method is utilized to create a 3-D image of your space so that the robot can form an accurate map and navigate it in a rational manner. This is a huge improvement over the old bounce-and-bang robots that would simply plow your space, banging on everything they encountered until their job was complete.
In addition to forming maps, the majority of robots who make use of SLAM can display them in an app, so you can know where your cleaner is at any given time. You can also set no-go zones as well as other settings based upon the maps. This is especially helpful for homes that have a lot of furniture, as it can be difficult to know where everything is without a map of your home.
While SLAM is effective in a majority of situations, it's not as effective at detecting smaller obstacles, such as wires and cables that may be sucked into the vacuum's rotating brush. This is a major flaw, since many robots tend to take on these objects and harm them.
Luckily, the majority of robots that include SLAM come with obstacle detection technology, such as drop detectors. These sensors help the vac avoid falling down steps and other major differences in floor levels, which can cause significant damage. Most robots come with cliff sensors as well they are helpful when you have a pet who is trying to jump over it in order to reach its water bowl or food bowl. These sensors are typically located on the vac's bumpers. They emit an alert when the vac is within range of anything that could hurt it.
Wall Sensors
A robot vacuum's ability to navigate around your home is dependent on a combination of sensors. A budget model might make use of bump sensors to detect obstacles and a rotating light to see walls, but higher-end models are far more advanced, and include mapping, self-navigation systems that permit saving maps (with some retaining or transmitting the data to a company) and digital keep-out zones to prevent robots from accidentally pinging cables or knocking down furniture legs.
Certain robots utilize what's known as SLAM which stands for simultaneous localization and mapping. They will map the room before they begin cleaning, and will refer to this map during the entire run. This makes them more efficient as they know exactly where they've been and can avoid repeating the same areas of the room. It is also possible to browse and share these maps in your robot's app, an excellent feature if you prefer to set up no-go zones or to clean by the area.
Another important navigation sensor you'll want to look for is the Gyroscope. Gyroscopes rely on spinning wheels or a swiftly-rotating beam of light to calculate the distance between your robot and any obstacles that may be in your home, using this data to create a virtual map that the bot can reference as it moves around your home. Robots without this technology can become stuck on cords or rug, and wander across the floor instead of following the edges.
The best robots have a variety of different obstacle avoidance technology, which may include 3D structured light, 3D ToF (time of flight) and binocular or monocular vision-based LiDAR. In general, the more advanced technology you have, the more precise your robot can be and the more intuitive its navigation will be. This means that your robot can clean more thoroughly and with less maintenance and you can also set up zones where it's not permitted to go to safeguard electronics and other valuable items. The newest generation of gyroscopes that are more precise and operate well in low light, can even detect a change in the ambient lighting in your home to help the robot be more effective in its vision.
Optic Sensors
A robot vacuum with lidar can create an 3D map of your space to navigate more efficiently and avoid bumping into obstacles. It does this by sending out an laser beam that bounces off surfaces and then returns to the sensor. The sensor then measures the time it takes for the beam to return, which translates into distance measurements and allows the robot to build up an image of your room's layout.
Lidar is quicker and more precise than cameras, which some robots use to map rooms. A robot that has lidar might come with the "no go" zone feature. This allows you to define zones that your robot isn't allowed. In our tests we found that the Neato Botvac D8 or iRobot Braava 450 were the two best models with this technology. They have an application that lets you easily set up "no-go zones".
The iRobot Duo+ is another fantastic option that utilizes LiDAR as well as other sensors to create an precise map of your home, which it will then use for navigation. The app also lets you control the mapping process so you can modify the boundaries of your home when needed.
Other technologies used to improve the navigation of robots include 3D structured lights, which measure distances by detecting objects' reflective properties, and 3D TOF (time-of-flight) which scans an area to measure the speed at which light reflections occur and their direction. Some robots also use binocular and monocular visions to identify objects and avoid them.
All of these sensors work to enable robots to stay clear of obstacles in a variety ways and this is an integral part of the reason why these machines are so useful to have. It is important to think about your needs before purchasing the robot vacuum. Consider how long it will take you to prepare your floors for cleaning and the amount of obstacles that you have in your home and whether you would like your robot to do more. We recommend that you set your budget to include an option with all the features you want.
