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Comment by aptwebapps | Hacker News Reader

Another possible angle is integrations, i.e. robot-friendly appliances. Maybe the washing machine has a powered door and an API that the robot (or some other software) uses to control it. No need to push buttons. Obviously, this won't cover all scenarios, but as someone upthread said, to be useful it doesn't have to do everything.

The bigger issue, IMO, is avoiding distasters like Roombas trying to vacuum dog poop.

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> robot-friendly appliances

I agree, although I saw it as implied!

Robots are like AI: once they become widely used, they are no longer called robots. :)

To me, dish washers, mixers, vacuum cleaners are all robots that can be part of the household fleet.

>To me, dish washers, mixers, vacuum cleaners are all robots

Mixers and food processors are robots in French:

https://www.robot-patissier.org/robot-menager-robot-patissie...

https://translate.google.com/#view=home&op=translate&sl=en&t...

If I’ve learned anything in this industry, it’s that integrations cannot make your product viable. They’re nice, but are more often than not hail Mary’s because the actual product isn’t viable.

Yeah, it might be hard to sell a robot that can do a, b, and c as long as you already have set of devices that meet it halfway. OTOH, if it can do a sufficient set of useful things to get some traction, then you might start to see some integrations.

The thing about examples like the washing machine is, I haven't looked but I would be surprised if there isn't already a networked washing machine, less the powered door, that is meant for smart homes.

This sounds like a good idea. As you said it doesn't have to cover all scenarios.

I'm happy with our Roomba. We don't have any dogs but is it really that bad!? :-)

Oh, I don't have either, I was just using that as the canonical example.

Can confirm that Roomba running over dog poop is a bad way to start the day

Consider the Pooptastrophe (also known as the Poopocalypse): https://cheezburger.com/897029/dogs-roomba-please-consider-t...

it's the kind of thing that only has to happen once for you to remember it forever.

Yes it is that bad.

Two months ago, my partner vacuumed up fox poop. No idea why he thought it was a good idea. We realised it wasn't when the soft, sticky debris coated the inside of the vacuum cleaner's flexible hose. :(

The smell only improved after I cleaned every internal crevice. Including submerging the crinkly part of the hose in a half-full bath and pulling through a sponge three or four times.

We still have to put deodorant beads inside the vacuum cleaner bag.

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