Consumer Robotic Vacuum Unveiled

SOMERVILLE, MA – SEPTEMBER 25: iRobot’s Roomba (TM) Intelligent FloorVac – billed as the first automatic floor cleaner in the U.S., is demonstrated at the company headquarters September 25, 2002 in Somerville, Massachusets. Roomba’s unique advanced navigation technology allows it to clean all hosehold floor serfaces, including carpet, tile, wood and linoleum. The Roomba Inteligent FloorVac is available for $199, at Brookstone, The Sharper Image and Hammacher Schlemmer. iRobot has been building and developing advanced robotic systems for the U.S. Department of Defense, the military, law enforcement, energy, cleaning and toy industries for the past 12 years. (Photo by Douglas McFadd/Getty Images)