A few of iRobot’s discontinued robots, together with the Mirra, Looj, Scooba, and Terra. | Supply: iRobot, Wikipedia, and Adobe Inventory
Proper now, iRobot Corp.’s future is unsure. The corporate formally began the Chapter 11 chapter course of earlier this month. It stated it expects the proceedings to be completed by February 2026 and for Roomba robotic vacuums to function usually through the restructuring.
Whereas iRobot is greatest recognized for the Roomba, in its over 35 years of operation up to now, the Bedford, Mass.-based firm has developed a variety of different robots. Let’s look again at a number of the many robots iRobot has developed moreover the Roomba.
iRobot roots had been in area exploration with Genghis
The Genghis robotic used plane servos. | Supply: Smithsonian Air and House Museum
Genghis was initially developed on the MIT lab of Rodney Brooks, considered one of iRobot’s co-founders, round 1991. Brooks designed Genghis for area exploration.
The six-legged, insect-like robotic used airplane servos for its leg motors. Genghis demonstrated how advanced behaviors, resembling crawling, might be achieved utilizing a community of easy, decentralized controllers relatively than a central management system.
As an alternative of getting a central controller, every leg on the robotic had its personal built-in sensors that will sense obstacles in its path. The legs had been programmed with a number of primary behaviors and will individually react to completely different eventualities.
Genghis has been on show on the Nationwide Air and House Museum of the Smithsonian Establishment in Washington, D.C.
Ariel detected and eradicated mines in surf zones
Earlier than promoting its navy robotics unit in 2016, iRobot developed many robots for navy functions. Ariel was one of many earliest. Developed in 1996, this robotic walked sideways, like a crab, underwater to seek for mines on the ocean flooring.
Whereas iRobot took organic inspiration for Ariel’s design, the robotic wasn’t liable to being caught on its again like a crab flipped by the waves or a predator. As an alternative, Ariel might reorient itself and its legs to maintain strolling with its physique the other way up.
Regardless of these benefits, Ariel additionally had its drawbacks. The robotic’s legs had been liable to getting caught in giant rocks.
iRobot’s best-known navy robotic: PackBot
iRobot’s PackBot. | Supply: iRobot
iRobot first began creating PackBot in 1998 after it gained a DARPA contract to construct a tactical cellular robotic. The robotic would ultimately evolve into an entire collection of navy robots designed for situational consciousness, reconnaissance, and explosive ordnance disposal (EOD), amongst different missions.
In 2001, the PackBot helped to go looking the World Commerce Middle after the September 11 terrorist assaults. A yr later, the robotic was deployed with U.S. troops for the primary time.
In 2009, the U.S. navy had greater than 2,000 PackBots on station in Iraq and Afghanistan. A couple of years later, PackBot was used to assemble knowledge on the harmful circumstances on the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear catastrophe web site.
iRobot launched a number of completely different PackBot variants. These included PackBot Scout, the fundamental PackBot configuration; PackBot Explorer, which had a payload that permits it to peek over obstacles; and PackBot EOD, which specialised in EOD.
My Actual Child was first iRobot residence system
It could be shocking to be taught that iRobot’s first robotic for residence use wasn’t the Roomba vacuum cleaner however as an alternative was My Actual Child, a robotic toy. iRobot produced this product in partnership with Hasbro and launched it in 2000.
My Actual Child was meant to seem like an actual human toddler. It featured animatronic facial expressions to be emotionally expressive and responsive.
Put up-Roomba, iRobot explored mopping
In 2005, iRobot launched the Scooba, its floor-washing robotic. The corporate stored the Scooba line alive till 2016, when it acquired Braava from Evolution Robotics.
Early iterations of the Scooba required both a particular non-bleach cleansing answer or white vinegar to clean laborious flooring. Whereas later fashions might scrub flooring with simply plain water.
iRobot discontinued the Braava line in 2025 when it shifted to its Roomba-branded vacuum/mob combos.
Grime Canine tackled industrial flooring
iRobot’s subsequent business robotic was the Grime Canine, launched in 2006. This variant of the Roomba was designed to comb up in workshops. It might choose up small objects like nuts, bolts, filth, and particles from a workshop or comparable flooring.
Grime Canine labored on laborious flooring, store carpets, and different industrial flooring surfaces. iRobot discontinued that robotic in 2010.
iRobot dabbled in pastime robots with Create
In 2007, iRobot launched Create, a programmable cellular pastime robotic. The robotic enabled customers to alter or adapt the robotic’s features by experimentation with the fundamental parts of robotics.
Customers might additionally add sensors, grippers, wi-fi connections, computer systems, or different {hardware}.
Within the years following its preliminary launch, iRobot launched Create 2 and Create 3. Later, in 2019, iRobot acquired Root, an academic coding robotic.
Verro and Mirra took on pool cleansing
Throughout its heyday, iRobot launched two completely different strains of pool-cleaning robots. Its first was Verro, launched in 2007. Verro was initially developed by firms belonging to Aqua Merchandise Group, which had been within the pool-cleaning enterprise for many years. At launch, iRobot stated Verro might clear swimming pools from flooring to waterline in 60 to 90 minutes.
In 2013, iRobot launched Mirra 530, one other pool-cleaning robotic. The robotic might clear a pool’s flooring and partitions of enormous and small particles. Mirra was discontinued in 2014.
Distant-controlled Looj cleaned gutters
2007 was a busy yr for iRobot. Alongside pastime robots and pool-cleaning robots, it additionally launched Looj, a gutter cleansing robotic.
Not like iRobot’s different choices, Looj wasn’t autonomous. As an alternative, it might be remotely managed to maneuver into most gutters and dislodge particles like leaves and pine needles.
The robotic was modeled after a toy tank with lengthy treads that helped it transfer contained in the gutters. iRobot discontinued Looj in 2017.
Seaglider was utilized in educational and navy functions
iRobot developed the Seaglider, a dual-role autonomous underwater robotic, with the College of Washington. Seaglider might function for months over hundreds of kilometers on one battery cost.
That robotic offered scientists and naval intelligence with oceanographic measurements and be utilized in navy functions. In 2010, Seaglider helped to observe the Deepwater Horizon oil spill within the Gulf of Mexico. It detected underwater swimming pools of oil.
iRobot made foray into telepresence robots
In 2012, iRobot introduced the RP-VITA Distant Presence Robotic. This robotic was developed with InTouch Well being to permit distant doctor-to-patient consults. In 2013, it earned 510(okay) clearance by the U.S. Meals and Drug Administration (FDA) to be used in hospitals.
iRobot stated the RP-VITA might be used for lively affected person monitoring in pre-operative, peri-operative, and post-surgical settings. Whereas iRobot helped develop this robotic, it was bought by InTouch Well being.
In 2013, iRobot labored with Cisco to convey the Ava 500 video collaboration robotic to market. The telepresence robotic might allow folks working off-site to take part in conferences and shows the place motion and placement spontaneity are vital. Ava Robotics spun out of iRobot in 2016.
Terra, the mower that by no means left improvement
Whereas Terra was by no means really launched to the general public, it was nonetheless a notable a part of iRobot’s journey. Terra was iRobot’s robotic garden mower.
This product was formally unveiled in 2019 after which delayed in 2020 as a result of COVID-19 pandemic. The corporate by no means returned to Terra after this delay.
