Shark's latest robot vacuum hunts stains with UV light

"Combined with an RGB camera to detect visible messes and obstacles, the UV light lets the vacuum spot stains that aren't visible under normal lighting, such as pet urine. When it encounters dirt, visible or not, the robot uses onboard AI to identify and decide how to clean it."

"Rather than just cleaning your floors as most robot vacs already do, the Reveal actively targets messes by adapting its route and methods to clean them. While many high-end robots can detect dirty areas and repeatedly clean them, the Reveal's approach is more targeted."

"When the robot gets to a mess - be it Cheerios, ketchup, strawberry jam, or invisible 'pet urine' (I went with lemonade) - it stops, examines it, and then methodically cleans it. It's been successful with everything I've thrown at it so far."

The Shark PowerDetect UV Reveal is a $1,299.99 flagship robot vacuum and mop featuring a multifunctional dock that empties the dustbin and washes the mop. Its signature feature is a UV light combined with an RGB camera that detects both visible messes and invisible stains such as pet urine. When encountering dirt, the robot uses onboard AI to identify and determine the appropriate cleaning method. The vacuum includes a single roller brush and vibrating mop pad. Testing shows the robot successfully stops at messes, examines them, and methodically cleans them. While the UV light is primarily useful for invisible stains, the robot's targeted approach to adapting its route and cleaning methods based on detected messes distinguishes it from standard robot vacuums.

Read at The Verge