Systems and methods for navigating an autonomous vacuum are disclosed. According to one method, the autonomous vacuum traverses a cleaning environment having a plurality of surfaces. As the autonomous vacuum is traversing the cleaning environment, sensors on the autonomous vacuum capture sensor data describing a first section of a surface on which the autonomous vacuum is currently traversing. Based on the received sensor data, the autonomous vacuum can determine that the first section is of a first surface type of a plurality of surface types. The autonomous vacuum can generate a user interface with a background displaying the determined first surface type to notify the user of where the autonomous vacuum is cleaning.

A method for autonomously servicing a first cleaning component of a battery-operated mobile device, including: inferring, with a processor of the mobile device, a value of at least one environmental characteristic based on sensor data captured by a sensor disposed on the mobile device; actuating, with a controller of the mobile device, a first actuator interacting with the first cleaning component to at least one of: turn on, turn off, reverse direction, and increase or decrease in speed such that the first cleaning component engages or disengages based on the value of at least one environmental characteristic or at least one user input received by an application of a smartphone paired with the mobile device; and dispensing, by a maintenance station, water from a clean water container of the maintenance station for washing the first cleaning component when the mobile device is docked at the maintenance station.

Systems and methods for navigating an autonomous vacuum are disclosed. According to one method, the autonomous vacuum traverses a cleaning environment having a plurality of surfaces. As the autonomous vacuum is traversing the cleaning environment, sensors on the autonomous vacuum capture sensor data describing a first section of a surface on which the autonomous vacuum is currently traversing. Based on the received sensor data, the autonomous vacuum can determine that the first section is of a first surface type of a plurality of surface types. The autonomous vacuum can generate a user interface with a background displaying the determined first surface type to notify the user of where the autonomous vacuum is cleaning.

A cleaning robot for sensing and cleaning a floor is provided. The cleaning robot includes a floor sensing sensor positioned in front of the cleaning robot in a driving direction of the cleaning robot, and configured to sense whether a surface to be cleaned is a carpet or a hard floor, a wet cleaning module positioned behind the floor sensing sensor in the driving direction, and configured to lower a pad for cleaning the hard floor, and at least one processor configured to control the wet cleaning module to lift the pad while the cleaning robot is driving on the carpet, control the wet cleaning module to lower the pad based on a reference distance moved in the driving direction after sensing the hard floor through the floor sensing sensor when the cleaning robot moves from the carpet to the hard floor along a driving path.