iRobot Looj Inventor Now Focuses on Roomba Add-Ons
When Jim Lynch and Barry Stout lost their jobs during iRobot’s downsizing last year, they saw an opportunity where they could continue doing what they were good at and at the same time be their own bosses.
Jim Lynch is the inventor of the Looj, the first gutter cleaning robot, while Barry Stout once contributed to the development of the Roomba and related sensors. Together, they founded Friday Innovations, a company dedicated to keeping every single day innovation day. Robot Add-Ons is a subsidiary of that company.
Robot Add-Ons’ primary focus as of the moment is to develop products that can enhance iRobot’s Roomba. They currently have five in their product line: the HEPA Type Filter, Hard Floor Cleaning Pads, Ultra Soft Bumper, Keep Out / Keep Off, and their latest, the Bumper Extender.
Both Jim and Barry took part in the development of the Roomba during their iRobot days. Hence, they know what further enhancements the world’s leading vacuum cleaning robot needs. The products they have started off with are not really as technologically sophisticated as the ones they have been used to. Nevertheless, they have succeeded to provide solutions for problems commonly encountered by Roomba owners.
For example, Roombas sometimes get stuck underneath chairs and other furniture. They can also easily drive into a row of shoes, run over small toys, or bump pet bowls, causing either unwanted spills or simply displacing objects. Jim and Barry were able to come up with one solution, known as the Keep Out/Keep Off mat (which also comes in strips), for all those issues.
By tricking Roomba’s “cliff sensor”, i.e., letting it believe it had reached the floor’s edge, the mat is able to sort of mark an off-limits area for the Roomba.
Basically, Jim and Barry, Robot Add-Ons, are out to make existing cleaning robots perform better.
Below is a video showing how gentle the Ultra Soft Bumper really is.
