Dyson launches 'smart' robot vacuum cleaner

It navigates using a panoramic camera lens on top of the machine and can be programmed using an iPhone or Android smartphone.

The 360-degree camera allows the vacuum cleaner to map its way around the house by snapping images at 30 frames a second. It then locates the centre of the room and starts cleaning in an outward spiral, meaning it won't vacuum the same area twice and waste battery power.

Its 360-degree vision system also allows it to recognise open doors, so after finishing vacuuming one room it will go through the open door and start cleaning the next one. In-built sensors stop the robot bumping into furniture, and it runs on tank-like tracks, meaning it can navigate steps or bumps. Users will set its cleaning schedule via a smartphone app – allowing them to start a clean even when out of the house.

Dyson is late to market with a robot cleaner – following Miele, Samsung and LG, but the company claims the 360 degree camera – which can see all around the room at once – is unique. The UK firm also says the machine has the most powerful suction of any robot vacuum on the market. The cleaner is powered by a V2 Dyson digital motor and uses the company’s bagless Cyclone technology to separate dust and dirt.

Sir James Dyson said: "Most robotic vacuum cleaners don’t see their environment, have little suction, and don’t clean properly. They are gimmicks. We’ve been developing a unique 360 degree vision system that lets our robot see where it is, where it has been, and where it is yet to clean.

"Vision, combined with our high speed digital motor and cyclone technology, is the key to achieving a high performing robot vacuum – a genuine labour saving device."

Dyson built and demonstrated its first robot vacuum cleaner, known as the DC06, in 2001, but due to its high price and complex design, it was never released as a commercial product. 

The battery in the 360 Eye lasts about 20 minutes on a single charge. However, the robot is able to retain a plan of the room, so when it gets low on battery it will return to its charging station, charge for two hours, and then pick up where it left off. When the 0.4litre dust bin is full a message will be sent to the user’s smartphone.

The cyclone technology captures particles down to 0.5 microns - or 600 times smaller than a standard typed full stop. The brush bar, which extends to full width of the machine, uses patented carbon fibre technology to remove fine dust on hard floors and has stiff nylon bristles to agitate and clean carpets.

The Dyson 360 Eye robot vacuum cleaner will go on sale first in Japan in spring 2015, with the rest of the world to follow later in the year. It is expected to cost around £700 in the UK.