A lamp cord was left across the floor, and the robot's brush roll was already wound with hair. The roll caught the cord and wound it in, so it couldn't turn, and the robot gave up in the middle of the room with its dock empty.

1. Cords up off the floor: the makers say to pick up power cords before a run, or the robot can drag them
2. Tassels under the rug: fold the fringe under, or it can wrap round the brush
3. Turn it over and open the brush guard
4. Hair off the brush roll, once a week
5. Clear the end caps: hair collects under them
6. Free the front wheel, every 2 weeks
7. Wipe the cliff sensors with a dry cloth, once a month
8. Empty the bin after every run
9. Dock flat to the wall, 0.5 m clear on each side, its cord tucked back
10. Same room: it runs through the same spot, bumps the sofa's foot and gets home

How often? iRobot's books say clean the brushes once a week (twice with a pet), Roborock's S8 book says every 2 weeks, and Tech Advisor's tester does it about once a month. The film follows once a week. For the bin, iRobot's newer book says as needed and at least weekly; its older one says after each use, which the film follows.

Shown on a generic round robot vacuum and its dock, in the class of an iRobot Roomba or a Roborock S8; the robot is our own drawing.

Which machine should we do next?

Sources: iRobot Roomba Max 705 Owner's Guide (care schedule, dock placement); iRobot Roomba 700 Series Owner's Manual (cords, tassels and wires, the bin, error messages); iRobot support, Roomba 600 series care; Roborock S8 User Manual (cables, dock clearance, main brush); eufy support, carpet edges and tassels; Tom's Guide, why does my robot vacuum keep getting stuck (with iRobot's spokesperson); Tech Advisor, how to clean the brushes on a Roomba.
Sounds: Freesound CC0 (ukeforte, IlseHimschoot, _javier_rodas, LordForklift, slappy13, cupido-1, polyn, ThabzMalik).