Mint robot puts shine on hardwood and tile floors

Evolution Robotics is betting that people with hardwood or tile floors are craving mechanical maids to keep them beautiful.

The firm used the Consumer Electronics Show that ended on Sunday in Las Vegas to show off a Mint Cleaner that automatically dusts or wet mops hard-surface floors using cleaning cloths such as Swiffer.

"We are using a lot of technology to very meticulously clean an area," Teresa Bridwell of Evolution said, while a small, square Mint robot quietly tended to a spill on a mock floor set up at a demonstration booth.

"It's not random. It can sense everything in the room. If the furniture moves or there are kids or pets there, no problem."

The robots are designed to get into room corners and under furniture or baseboards. An advanced navigation system uses light sensor feedback to let Mint clean around obstacles and avoid missing spots.

"To do the job well, Evolution had to rewrite the book on how floor cleaning is done," said the California firm's Chief Executive Officer Paolo Pirjanian. "Mint packs aerospace-grade technologies that were specifically tailored to deliver consumers with an appliance that cleans like they do, while still providing a hassle-free experience."

Mint robots can operate for three to four hours, cleaning about 93 square metres, before needing to be recharged. The devices will be priced less than $250 (Dh918) each when they hit the market in the second half of this year.

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