Product Description

The Trilobite is the world's first automatic vacuum cleaner. It was designed with one goal in mind: to give people time for more important things than vacuuming. But since its launch in Europe last year, it has earned reputation for more than just house cleaning. For starters, its  sleek design makes it interesting and attractive. Its low, round body helps it maneuver in small spaces, and under furniture. It's also industrious. It can clean the whole room, spot-clean or do a quick-clean, right before the guests arrive. And it's sensitive. So much so, that it can vacuum around a glass of water without spilling a drop. Best of all, it is independent and conscientious. All you have to do is hit go, since the Trilobite figures out how to navigate the room, and then cleans it, all by itself. If it gets tired, it returns to the charging baywithout your having to lift a finger. It even turns itself off when it's finished. The Trilobite uses ultrasound to navigate through a room, just like a bat. First the vacuum sends out an ultrasound signal, that reflects off the walls and furniture. Then, eight microphones inside the Trilobite receive and measure the returning signals. This gives the vacuum an accurate picture of the room, enabling it to avoid collisions. The Trilobite calculates the size of a room by following around the walls. It does this for a minimum of 90 seconds and up to 15 minutes. After it is finished mapping the room, it automatically starts cleaning.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #414975 in Kitchen & Housewares
• Brand: Electrolux

Amazon.com Product Description
Imagine pushing a button, walking away, and having clean floors an hour later. That futuristic scenario is now here with the Trilobite, the hands-free, "intelligent" robotic vacuum first introduced in Europe by Electrolux. While it isn't the first robotic home vacuum, the Trilobite is a major leap in home robotic technology--one that is reflected in its price. Where other small, round semi-autonomous vacuums are essentially "dumb" robots that randomly move about a room, the Trilobite uses a type of radar that maps a room and then plots a course based on previous cleaning travels.

Evolution in Revolution

The name comes from the hard-shelled sea creature from the Paleozoic era (betwen 250 to 560 million years ago) that roamed the ocean floor during, feeding on particles and small animals. Sound familiar? Today's Trilobite has been in the works since 1997, when its prototype was introduced on the BBC technology program, Tomorrow's World, and it has been perfected at Electrolux's development facilities in Sweden.

The round, red Trilobite uses ultrasound technology to see obstacles and avoid them. Much like a bat, which emits a high-pitched sound to create a personal sonar reading of its landscape, the Trilobite pings 60,000 Hz ultrasound vibrations at surfaces to create a map of the room and remember it for future assignments. This computer processing power is what raises the Trilobite's profile over the competition, whose vacuuming robots can only react to a situation (such as bumping into something) and cannot store data into memory.

The Trilobite in Action

The Trilobite mapping a new room.

Start the Trilobite by pressing the power button and answering yes to the question, "Start cleaning?" that appears on its LCD screen. The Trilobite then moves to the nearest wall, following along the edges of the room to create an inner picture of the room. This wall phase (the Normal mode of operation) forms the basis for calculation of the time required for cleaning of the open spaces that follows. The sonar detects any obstacles--blocks left on the floor, chair legs, a dog's water bowl--and a new path is quickly calculated. Transition between hard floors and carpet takes place effortlessly.

The Trilobite also offers two other operation modes. The Quick mode, which is good for a small room or last-minute tidying before the in-laws arrive, skips the wall measurement and moves about the room randomly for around 20 minutes. If you've just dumped a bag of flour on the floor or the kids have tracked an inordinate amount of dirt in from the backyard, the Spot mode can concentrate on an area about 3 feet (1 meter) square, covering every part in a maze-like pattern. You can also choose to clean via a timer for up to 60 minutes.

An infrared sensor detects changes in elevation of four inches and greater to help it avoid falling down stairs. It also comes with special magnetic strips that can be placed in doorways, other openings, or elevation changes less than 4 inches to provide boundaries. The Trilobite can analyze and solve problems it encounters. For instance, if the unit vacuums up a sock left on the floor which stalls the brushroll, the unit will stop, reverse its brushroll to expel the obstruction and then continue with its task once the brusroll is once again operating freely.

It carries two environmentally friendly nickel-metal hydride batteries (NiMH) batteries on board, switching to the second as the first runs low on energy. As the second battery's power dips below the 50% point, the unit will cease vacuuming, return to its docking station, charge for about two hours, and return to the point where it ceased vacuuming to complete the task. The recharging dock fits along the base of any wall within 6 feet of a power outlet.

The Limits of Technology
While it is designed to access some tight spots in your home--especially areas that are hard to reach, like under the bed--the Trilobite obviously will not fit into spaces smaller than its diameter. You'll need a DustBuster or the shockingly analog-style broom to clean these spaces as well as corners. Occasionally, the Trilobite will miss a calculation and bump into furniture or an object left in the middle of the floor. But it has a suspension bumper that cushions the impact, and at a maximum speed of 1.3 feet (0.4 meters) per second, any unexpected collision will be light. It's about as loud as a normal vacuum, so it's best used when you're out of the house--just as it's designed to be used. Also note that the Trilobite works with only dry detritus--it's not a wet vac.

Just The Facts
Weighing 11 pounds, the Trilobite measures 13.8 inches in diameter and 5.1 inches in height--enabling to easily maneuver underneath beds and low coffee tables. It can clean bare floors, hardwood floors, carpets, and rugs. It features 4 motors (one for each of 2 driven wheels, the brush roll, and the vacuum suction), micro filters, and a 1.1-quart reusable dust box (no bags required). With regular use, the dust box will be able to handle one day's worth of cleaning. The EL520A model comes in Cayenne Silk. --Agen G.N. Schmitz

What’s In the Box
Trilobite vacuum; battery charger; micro filters; magnetic strips; magnetic strip holder.

Customer Reviews

Would get 5 stars if it were less expensive.
Note: This product is not the first generation product as advertised. The EL520A has many of the features of the 2.0 european version - like the ability to recognize stairs, etc.

I have had this product for almost a year and have used it twice a week to clean. The device cleans with no problems. It seems to pickup everything that it runs across. In a closed room, it works 110% - it will hit every part of the room with no problem. If you have an open floor plan like I do - the device might miss some spots because it does not really know where the room starts and ends - so in this case, it is not perfect.

The unit is kind of heavy which makes me not bring it to other floors in my house. I would love to buy a 2nd unit, but I am and have been waiting for the price to drop.

I have the scooba robot and find that their products are not as well put together or designed as the Electrolux. The difference in price alone should tell that story. The software and sensors on teh Elctrolux are top notch - the unit never hits into anything. The scooba bangs into my furniture and then turns. The EL520A stops about 1/4 inch away - very nice.

The last thing I would like to see is a scheduler as having it start up every morning after I leave and find its way back to the charging station would be a better situation. All in all, interesting product that I think would be even better if it were just a little less expensive.

The robot that doesn't need cleaning itself
I have used Trilobite for a little over six months, which replaced my Roomba Discovery series. In just less than a year of owning the Roomba, it failed on four separate occasions, requiring a complete replacement that takes about a month to process. The time consuming and costly replacement process would soon come to an end, as the warranty ends after a year. I was interested in a vacuum that would be able to hold to its responsibilities, by cleaning my floors more than I would be cleaning the robot itself.

Roomba owners will harken the days of blowing out the bumper with compressed air, or holding the vacuum upside down and hitting the bumper 10-20 times. When only one wheel on the Roomba turns, get a straw and start blowing into the tiny hole in the wheel casing. Also, don't forget the need to clean the massive amounts of dust and dirt that accumulates in the vacuum chute to the dust bin. If Roomba's dust bin is dirty, you can't even wash it out since it contains "electronic components".

Even with the best preventative methods, my Roomba failed repeatedly. Two friends of mine also had their Roombas fail completely, twice, in the last year.

Unlike Roomba, which cleans in a random manner and determines room size by how many 'bumps' it encounters, Trilobite can actually 'see' it surroundings. It travels along the edges of each room to determine the room size. The size is stored in its memory and used to determine where obstacles are in the room.

Once Trilobite knows where the obstacles are, it will speed up in clear areas and slow down until it gets about 1-2 inches away, when it turns and proceeds in another direction. For smaller or especially large rooms, cleaning can be performed more efficiently by engaging the 'Quick' mode, which eschews the room edge detection.

When the Trilobite is vacuuming over cords, fringe, or floor transitions, you can audibly hear the as the vacuum automatically cuts suction for a second or two. This patented method prevents Trilobite from getting stuck in almost all circumstances. My Roomba would grab on to anything on the floor, suck it in and get completely stuck - Trilobite will spit it out and keep on going.

Since Trilobite is slightly taller than Roomba, it never gets stuck while trying to burrow under my chairs and couches. If Trilobite encounters any problems, you don't have to decipher sounds - it spells out the exact problem on the backlit LCD display. This has proven to be extremely helpful. When the dust bin is full, or the battery is low, it shows an obvious icon on the display.

Electrolux support have been extremely polite and prompt to answer any questions that I had. They told me that they cannot remember the last time they had to bring one in for service, but if you ever need to, they overnight you a box free of charge. Your Trilobite is serviced and returned to you, also via overnight, within 7 days. Roomba service takes at least a month and you foot the bill for the return shipping and insurance of the broken vacuum. In the mean time, you'll be dragging out the upright since they can't cross-ship.

I've come to realise what it means for a robotic vacuum to actually be self-cleaning. I've never had to clean my Trilobite, I just empty the dust bin and replacing the allergen filter when it tells me to. If the dust bin gets dirt stuck on the sides, it's simple to rinse or wash it in cold water, unlike Roomba. I have found that the allergen filters can be machine washed on delicate and machine dried without any ill consequences.

For those of you worried about price, there is a certain big-box, warehouse retailer that offers it for much, much lower than MSRP. Remember, shop around for the best deal on any major purchase.

The Rolls Royce of Vacuums
I've used the Roomba which works great. But this one is not just smarter, it is better in a few ways.

1. The Trilobite has a larger bin to collect dust. The Roomba had to be dumped after each cleaning. The Trilobite works for many cleanings before needing to be dumped.

2. The Trilobite is made better. Comparing the two side by side, the Trilobite is heavier, solid and of better construction.

3. The roller on the Trilobite is like a regular vacuum. The Roomba's roller is a brush and it gets clogged quickly if doing a carpet.

4. The suction is far greater with the Trilobite. It does make more noise which is comparable to a regular cannister vacuum but it work much better.

5. I've used Roombas and I am lucky if they last a year. Most of the Roomba warranty's are one year; therefore, I now had a broken Roomba. A few even had a 90 day warranty. Electrolux has a 2 year warranty. Electrolux makes exceptional high end products and wouldn't put a 2 year warranty on the Trilobite if it weren't made well.

I have more. You won't go wrong with a Roomba but if you can get a Trilobite under $750, go for it. You won't be sorry.