The MIGO Ascender debacle

The Migos Ascender was eagerly awaited. It promised to finally automate the cleaning of stairs. The first renderings of the robot enchanted tech-savvy people all over the world – and caused alarm among cleaning companies that specialize in cleaning stairwells. A Kickstarter campaign to finance the development and production of the revolutionary device quickly reached its funding target.

But now, in August 2024 at the latest, one month after the expected delivery of the Migos Ascender, everyone involved is likely to have become disillusioned. The Migos Ascender may never reach market maturity.

It shows once again: robots have to struggle with their unnormalized environment. Not all stairs are the same. There are spiral staircases, stairs with particularly high steps, stairs in old buildings with a wide variety of step heights and, finally, stairs with a wide variety of surfaces, some of which even differ on one step.

How far has robotics come?

The debacle surrounding the Migos Ascender is reason enough for FieldBots Radar to ask: How far has robotics come in cleaning stairs?

The answer: There are various signs that things are moving regarding stair cleaning. However, apart from the sTetro Robot, we have no product in sight that is nearly ready for the market. In this respect, we certainly don’t expect a revolution in the next year or two.

Glimmers of hope

1) sTetro Robot

The modular, reconfigurable, and autonomous staircase cleaning robot sTetro, created by the Singapore University of Technology and Design, is a highly exciting project.

After a few technical iterations, the design has now also been revised. The robot already looks like a finished product.

2) Dyson’s Patent

In September 2021, Dyson registered a patent for a stair-walking robot. There is an exciting and comprehensive article about this on tomsguide, which we are happy to recommend. As an innovative company with a flair for solving complicated challenges, Dyson could bring a functional robot to the market for cleaning stairs. However, almost three years later, there are no signs other than the patent that Dyson is actively developing such a solution.

3) Stairrobotics

Prof. Dr. Dieter Haller founded Stairrobotics, a company that develops and patents technology to help robots navigate stairs. Stairrobotics does not produce and sell robots but sees itself as a technology supplier. Currently, they are looking for cooperation partners to bring visions to life.

Link: https://stairrobotics.com/

So what now?

Undoubtedly, there is a significant market for automated stair cleaning. The question is which robots will be the first to provide the right answers to the most common challenges – and at a price that still makes the hardware economical to use.

But please do us a favor. If the technology is not yet ready, don’t try this with your conventional hardware.