Samsung vacuum cleaner to take up extra role of pet care and home security

Yoo Mi-young. [Photo by Samsung Electronics Co.]

Robotic cleaner will not just lessen household chores, but also watch over security as well as elderly and pet in the house, according to Samsung Electronics software head responsible for AI strategy for home appliances.

Samsung’s ‘Bespoke Jetbot AI’ premiered in April autonomously moves around the house, creates a map for vacuuming, and classifies furniture, objects, and even dog breeds based on deep learning, Yoo Mi-young, head of the software development group in the household appliances at Samsung Electronics, told Maeil Business Newspaper during a recent interview.

“This will soon become a key home appliance for smart home services with an ability to even recognize human conditions and support senior care and home security,” she explained.

Yoo drew the spotlight to become the first woman promoted to VP in the software part of the company last year.

The latest vacuum cleaner is equipped with an AI neural network processing unit (NPU) and a LiDAR that recognizes objects and converts them into digital information. It can move by itself, calculate the home floor size and locate obstacles, and check a pet dog’s health conditions based on its barking sound. It can also identify whether the obstacle is a solid flowerpot or a fragile glass, Yoo said.

It took more than three years to develop this smart vacuum cleaner. The Jetbot AI has learned data based on 1 million photos and now knows the appearance and characteristics of six popular pet dogs in Korea.

This AI appliance continues to learn and evolves. Consumers who have already purchased the product can use the improved AI function through software updates. The vacuum cleaner’s ultimate goal is to provide more advanced services such as senior care by recognizing human voices and behaviors, Yoo said.

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