Nilfisk has announced a partnership with Carnegie Robotics, LLC, provider of advanced robotics sensors and software. At ISSA/INTERCLEAN North America, held October 25-28 in Chicago, the two previewed the Advance Liberty A50 Autonomous Scrubber. The machine is specifically designed to leverage today’s most advanced autonomous technologies to make commercial floor care in such settings as retail, hospitality, education, healthcare, and more, more productive, safer and easier than ever.

“Nilfisk has an unprecedented legacy of bringing ingenuity and innovation to market by way of products that improve and advance the industry,” said Jonas Persson, president and CEO of Nilfisk. “The Advance Liberty A50 is our most important product innovation yet, and it will set the standard and lead the way for intelligent equipment going forward in the commercial cleaning industry.”

Expected to be available in 2017, the Advance Liberty A50 will be the cleaning industry’s only stand-on scrubber/dryer that can be operated autonomously or manually, providing cleaning professionals with unprecedented flexibility based on their cleaning needs. With its proprietary sensor suite, software and camera, the scrubber/dryer recognizes unknown obstacles as small as a tennis ball and then automatically maneuvers around them, making the Advance Liberty A50 safe to use in open or congested spaces. And, a proprietary mix of technology, including cameras, sensors and lasers, allow the Advance Liberty A50 to accurately track its cleaning path and clean close to obstacles and walls.

"Carnegie Robotics is excited to partner with Nilfisk to bring the most innovative and advanced scrubber to the commercial cleaning market,” said Steve DiAntonio, CEO of Carnegie Robotics. “We've adapted military and space grade technologies to provide the Advance Liberty A50 scrubber with state-of-the-art perception and intelligent navigation that deliver safe and reliable floor cleaning. At the same time, we’ve engineered a simple to use interface that enables flexible and efficient operation.”

The Advance Liberty A50 will be the first product to launch under Nilfisk’s recently announced Horizon Program, a pioneering global program that will deliver intelligent and technologically advanced cleaning solutions. Working with Carnegie Robotics, Nilfisk’s Horizon Program is a strategic, long-term initiative to launch multiple products that will provide the full spectrum of autonomous capabilities.