The list of things that a robot vacuum can do today keeps growing. They can create an accurate map of the house to avoid bumping into things. They can empty themselves and recharge. He can reach under the seat to clean the crud. Many have dual suction functions to wipe away your dog’s footprints. Running a robot vacuum can save a lot of time and energy, but it often involves 10 to 20 minutes of running around trying to get rid of robovac booby traps by moving or picking up stray 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 on the street, making it the robot butler of your dreams. The Roborock Saros Z70 has an extendable arm with a grip that the company calls Omnigrip. I screamed when I saw it. Courtesy of RoborockSpin Me Right RoundIn my testing, the robot vacuum is only useful as its navigation system is accurate; all the suction power in the world won’t help if it can’t find its way out from under the seat. I’ve found Roborock’s navigation system to be consistently pretty accurate. The Saros Z70 uses a combination of sensors for navigation. There are multiple 3D Time-of-Flight sensors to measure the distance between objects, and an AI-powered RGB camera to identify obstacles and decide when to deploy the Omnigrip. (The arm remains 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 itself both horizontally and vertically to grip items delicately in its small pincer grip. Now, it can take anything that weighs less than 300 grams, or a little less than a kilogram—so things like tissues, socks, or even slippers. To use Omnigrip, Roborock customers activate it through the app. When the Saros Z70 moves through your home, it identifies potential objects that can be picked up during cleaning, and then circles back to pick them up and put them away when it’s done. In the app, you can choose the area of your home where Omnigrip is operated, how it works, and where it should be done.
