From motorised devices to AI-powered machines, vacuum cleaners have really come a long way  

One facet of human life where technology has been welcomed with open arms is household chores. One of the many innovations that has made chores a lot easier than before is vacuum cleaner. Plug the machine into an electrical outlet, and it will suck up all the dust and dirt, leaving your floors and carpet spotless! Did you know the first attempt to construct a vacuum cleaner was made 100 years ago? Yes, you read that right. Let’s take a look at the journey of this household essential through time.  

The first motorised vacuum cleaner 
John Thurman, a local from St. Louis, Missouri, designed the first motorised vacuum cleaner in 1899. It was quite different from the vacuum cleaners we have now. How? Instead of sucking in the dust, John Thurman’s cleaner blew the air to collect the dust in any nearby container. His gasoline powered invention was called the ‘Pneumatic Carpet Renovator.’ He received a patent in 1899 and soon started a house cleaning service. What service did he offer? He went door to door with this horse-drawn vacuum system and charged $4 per visit! Apparently, his innovation made more mess than it could clean by blowing air and scattering dust everywhere! This led to the subsequent innovations or improved versions. 

Puffing Billy: A horse-drawn machine 
Hubert Cecil Booth, a British engineer, was the next to design a vacuum cleaner in 1901 and patented it in 1903. When he saw Thurman’s design, he realised it was defective. He then set out to create a new machine that worked in an opposite manner. After several failed attempts, Hubert formed the ‘British Vacuum Cleaner Company’ in 1903 and launched his new device, Puffing Billy. The machine was not like the ones you have at home. It was a large, horse-drawn, petrol-powered vehicle that he would have to park outside houses. Then, how was the house cleaning handled? Long hoses (flexible hollow tubes) from the machine were fed through the windows to the clean houses. 

Hoover vacuum cleaner becomes a hit 
The American inventor James Spangler made a breakthrough in a modern vacuum cleaner design. While working as a janitor in an Ohio department store, he had the idea for an electric broomstick. His prototype consisted of an old fan motor attached to a soap box and stapled to a broom with a pillowcase serving as a dust collector. Yes, a household appliance made entirely of household items! He improved the model several times and received a patent in 1908. The same year, Spangler sold his idea to William Hoover, who produced the first commercial, ‘Bag-on-a-stick upright vacuum cleaner’. This model was the first practical domestic vacuum cleaner and got famous as the Hoover vacuum cleaner. The company offered a 10-day free trial period for the Hoover vacuum cleaner to boost its sales, which was a huge hit. By 1919, almost every household had a Hoover vacuum cleaner! 

The world of Dyson cleaners 
Dyson manufactures the market's most well-known vacuum cleaners. But how did it all start? In 1983, James Dyson invented the G-force vacuum cleaner. It was the first dual cyclone machine without a bag. It did not, however, attract any investor. But Dyson did not give up hope and continued to believe in his invention. He soon began marketing his product himself, which later on became a huge success. His product was the best-selling vacuum cleaner in the United Kingdom at that time! 

AI-powered vacuum cleaners  
Moving on to today’s vacuum cleaners, the most popular is the Roomba. The small and compact vacuum cleaners are circular in shape and move around the house on their own! You’ve probably seen Roombas with voice features and in a variety of colours. In 2002, the iRobot company based in Bedford, Massachusetts, released the first Roomba, which shook the vacuum cleaner industry. Its Artificial Intelligence (AI) and sensors allow Roomba to clean the room without any human intervention. What's the latest? Now, Roomba can detect dust and dirt particles on its own and automatically start cleaning! 

The world of vacuum cleaners has surely come a long way, from blowing away dust to using AI!