iRobot Roomba j7 Spiel on Solving Problems pt. 3

by Rian

The high bar set for Roomba’s software can only be resolved by upgrading its hardware. Features such as “linked clean” would have been entirely unnecessary if iRobot pioneered the combo market and concentrated its efforts only on the combo models. In the previous posts, I have discussed about iRobot’s software solutions in part 1 and hardware-software hybrid solutions in part 2. Now what about the solutions that are exclusively hardware-oriented?

Let us start with the iRobot’s early attempts at combo units: the retractable mop pads. It solved the wetting carpet issue in a way no other robots have been able to, and the solution simply could not fail. The mop pad is literally being stored above the robot while it’s running on carpet. What iRobot failed to do, however, is to enhance its navigation systems and floor material sensors —for the lack of better word—. The entire contraption would have been unnecessary if Roomba had the navigation system to start cleaning from carpet, thus avoiding the catastrophe even if the mop pad touches the carpet.

Because the combo robot was already equipped with a mopping capability, the company focused on adding auto wash feature to the base, instead of gutting the design entirely. As I have said part 2, this is yet another pattern — path dependency. Roomba is designed with dust bins at the back, with the charging contacts underneath the front bumper. Without significant changes to the robot, the only way to add auto emptying feature to the base was run the vacuum line hidden underneath, reaching the back of the robot. Personally, I think it might have been better if iRobot had decided to use “move back and forth” for emptying bins instead. Before auto docking for recharge, do the reverse parking so that the dock can empty the bins, rotate, then dock for actual charging.

Ultimately, it was the combination of all three that dragged iRobot’s feet. If I were to use the language often used in smartphone reviews, iRobot failed to deliver long term software support for older devices, added features without platform to properly take advantage of, and when the competitors were racing to add new features, iRobot was playing the fast follower. It’s easy to imagine what a new robot would look like, because Roomba, so far, has retained the original forms and functions as much it can. And that is the root of all disappointments fans are fearing.