{
  "patent_number": "US 6883201",
  "country": "US",
  "title": "How the iRobot Roomba Automatically Cleans Floors Without Falling Down Stairs",
  "original_title": "Autonomous floor-cleaning robot",
  "summary": "A 2002 patent describing an autonomous floor-cleaning robot that uses sensors to navigate rooms, avoid cliffs like stairs, and sweep debris into a removable bin.",
  "what_it_does": "This patent describes an autonomous robot that cleans floors by combining a motive system for movement, a vacuum, and a primary brush assembly. It features a side brush that reaches beyond the robot's main body to pull dirt into the cleaning path. The robot uses a sensor system, specifically a cliff detector, to identify stairs or ledges and prevent itself from falling. When a cliff is detected, the control system automatically adjusts the robot's speed and direction to escape the area and resume cleaning.",
  "what_it_does_not_cover": [
    "Does not cover non-robotic manual vacuum cleaners or push-brooms.",
    "Does not cover cleaning systems that rely on external navigation markers or beacons installed in a room.",
    "Does not cover robots that use cameras or visual mapping (SLAM) to navigate, as this patent focuses on tactile and cliff sensors.",
    "Does not cover robots that utilize liquid-based mopping systems as their primary cleaning mechanism."
  ],
  "filed": "2002-12-16",
  "granted": "2005-04-26",
  "expires": "2022-12-16",
  "status": "expired",
  "holder": "iRobot Corp",
  "holder_url": "https://patentbrief.org/company/irobot-corp",
  "inventors": [
    {
      "name": "Paul E. Sandin",
      "url": "https://patentbrief.org/inventor/paul-e-sandin"
    },
    {
      "name": "Newton E. Mack",
      "url": "https://patentbrief.org/inventor/newton-e-mack"
    },
    {
      "name": "David M. Nugent",
      "url": "https://patentbrief.org/inventor/david-m-nugent"
    },
    {
      "name": "Joseph L. Jones",
      "url": "https://patentbrief.org/inventor/joseph-l-jones"
    }
  ],
  "times_cited": 215,
  "tags": [
    "consumer_electronics",
    "mechanical",
    "ai_ml"
  ],
  "abstract": "An autonomous floor-cleaning robot comprises a self-adjusting cleaning head subsystem that includes a dual-stage brush assembly having counter-rotating, asymmetric brushes and an adjacent, but independent, vacuum assembly such that the cleaning capability and efficiency of the self-adjustable cleaning head subsystem is optimized while concomitantly minimizing the power requirements thereof. The autonomous floor-cleaning robot further includes a side brush assembly for directing particulates outside the envelope of the robot into the self-adjusting cleaning head subsystem.",
  "url": "https://patentbrief.org/patent/us/6883201/roomba-autonomous-vacuum",
  "markdown_url": "https://patentbrief.org/patent/us/6883201/roomba-autonomous-vacuum/md",
  "google_patents_url": "https://patents.google.com/patent/US6883201",
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}