Dyson works on secret robot projects to help customers with chores

Sir James Dyson has given a hint at the company’s high-tech home helpers by posting a video and pictures of robotic arms cleaning, rinsing and picking up discarded toys

Billionaire British inventor Sir James Dyson has been secretly working on robots to do everyday household chores, it has been revealed.

The creator of the bagless vacuum and bladeless fan has given a nod to the company’s high-tech home helpers by posting video and images of robotic arms cleaning, dishwashing and picking up discarded toys.

His son Jake, introduced at an international conference on robotics in Philadelphia, gave the world a glimpse of the Mrs Pug of the future.

Footage shows nifty, claw-like arms picking up dishes, setting the table, gently picking up a fallen teddy bear and even cleaning the back of the sofa in case food like chips has fallen off.

Jake, chief engineer at Dyson, said: “It means I’ll never find chips on the back of my sofa ever again.

“The future lies in robotics and in saving people time, doing tasks for people and improving everyday life. I’m a parent, I spend half my life cleaning up after my kids and it’s quite a hassle.”

In the video, shown at this week’s conference, he shared how the company has kept its robotics research under wraps for 20 years.

It has also worked with top minds at London’s Imperial College for the last 10 years to develop robots that can handle everyday household chores.

He said while the project is “top secret”, the innovative company is now looking for 700 engineers over the next five years to work on the “robot brain” and make the sci-fi project a reality by 2032.

The robotics engineers will be part of a technology investment of 2.75 billion and new products.

Jake said: “This is a ‘big bet’ on future robotic technology that will drive research across Dyson in areas such as mechanical engineering, vision systems, machine learning and energy storage.

“Robots are the future of Dyson.”