Roomba Control

Command your iRobot Roomba from the terminal.

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Table of Contents

• Requirements
• Configuration
• Core Commands
• Cleaning Jobs
• Scheduling
• Consumable Tracking
• Cleaning History & Maps
• Multi-Robot Support
• Scripting & Automation

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Requirements

• An iRobot Roomba with Wi-Fi connectivity (600/700/800/900/i/j/s series)
• iRobot account credentials
• Python 3.6+
• Network access to iRobot cloud services

Configuration

export IROBOT_EMAIL="you@example.com"
export IROBOT_PASSWORD="your-password"

First-time setup discovers your robots:

$ bash scripts/roomba-ctl.sh setup

Discovering robots on your account...
Found 2 robots:
  [1] Rosie       — Roomba j7+    (Online, Docked)
  [2] Dusty       — Roomba i3     (Online, Docked)

Configuration saved to ~/.roomba-control/config.json
Default robot set to: Rosie

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Core Commands

# Robot status
bash scripts/roomba-ctl.sh status
# Output: Rosie (j7+) | Docked | Battery: 94% | Last clean: 2h ago | Bin: OK

# Detailed info
bash scripts/roomba-ctl.sh info

# Network/connectivity check
bash scripts/roomba-ctl.sh ping

# Identify robot (plays a sound)
bash scripts/roomba-ctl.sh find

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Cleaning Jobs

Start & Stop

# Start cleaning (full house)
bash scripts/roomba-ctl.sh clean

# Clean specific rooms (requires room-mapping capable models)
bash scripts/roomba-ctl.sh clean --rooms "Kitchen,Living Room"

# Pause current job
bash scripts/roomba-ctl.sh pause

# Resume paused job
bash scripts/roomba-ctl.sh resume

# Send back to dock
bash scripts/roomba-ctl.sh dock

# Emergency stop
bash scripts/roomba-ctl.sh stop

Job Monitoring

# Current job progress
bash scripts/roomba-ctl.sh progress
# Output: Cleaning... 65% complete | 23 min elapsed | Kitchen ✓ | Living Room (in progress)

# Follow job in real-time (updates every 30s)
bash scripts/roomba-ctl.sh progress --follow

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Scheduling

# View current schedule
bash scripts/roomba-ctl.sh schedule

# Set daily schedule
bash scripts/roomba-ctl.sh schedule set --daily 09:00

# Set weekday-only schedule
bash scripts/roomba-ctl.sh schedule set --weekdays 10:00

# Custom schedule
bash scripts/roomba-ctl.sh schedule set --days mon,wed,fri --time 14:00

# Specific rooms on schedule
bash scripts/roomba-ctl.sh schedule set --daily 09:00 --rooms "Kitchen,Hallway"

# Disable schedule
bash scripts/roomba-ctl.sh schedule off

# Enable schedule
bash scripts/roomba-ctl.sh schedule on

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Consumable Tracking

Keep tabs on parts that need replacement.

$ bash scripts/roomba-ctl.sh consumables

Consumable Status — Rosie (j7+)
────────────────────────────────────
Main Brush:     ████████░░ 78%   (~44 hours remaining)
Side Brush:     █████░░░░░ 52%   (~26 hours remaining)
Filter:         ███░░░░░░░ 31%   (~15 hours remaining)  ⚠️ Replace soon
Bin:            Full — Empty before next clean
Dust Bag:       ███████░░░ 68%   (auto-empty base)

Estimated based on 6.2 hrs/week average usage.

# Alert if any consumable below threshold
bash scripts/roomba-ctl.sh consumables --alert 20
# Exit code 1 if any below 20%

# Reset consumable counter after replacement
bash scripts/roomba-ctl.sh consumables reset filter
bash scripts/roomba-ctl.sh consumables reset main_brush

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Cleaning History & Maps

# Recent cleaning sessions
bash scripts/roomba-ctl.sh history
bash scripts/roomba-ctl.sh history --limit 20

# Detailed session report
bash scripts/roomba-ctl.sh history <session_id>

# Cleaning statistics
bash scripts/roomba-ctl.sh stats
# Output: This week: 4 cleans, 3.2 hrs, 1,240 sq ft avg
#         This month: 14 cleans, 11.8 hrs, 1,180 sq ft avg
#         Lifetime: 342 cleans, 298.5 hrs

# Export history as CSV
bash scripts/roomba-ctl.sh history export cleaning_log.csv --days 90

# Coverage map (ASCII visualization)
bash scripts/roomba-ctl.sh map

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Multi-Robot Support

# List all robots
bash scripts/roomba-ctl.sh robots

# Switch default robot
bash scripts/roomba-ctl.sh use "Dusty"

# Command a specific robot
bash scripts/roomba-ctl.sh --robot "Dusty" clean

# Start all robots
bash scripts/roomba-ctl.sh clean --all

# Status of all robots
bash scripts/roomba-ctl.sh status --all

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Scripting & Automation

Clean before guests arrive (cron):

# Friday at 4 PM — clean living areas
0 16 * * 5 bash /path/to/roomba-ctl.sh clean --rooms "Living Room,Dining Room,Kitchen"

Post-clean notification:

bash scripts/roomba-ctl.sh clean
while bash scripts/roomba-ctl.sh status --raw | grep -q "running"; do sleep 60; done
echo "Cleaning complete!" | mail -s "Roomba Done" you@email.com

Consumable shopping reminder:

LOW=$(bash scripts/roomba-ctl.sh consumables --alert 25 --names)
if [ -n "$LOW" ]; then
  echo "Time to order: $LOW" | mail -s "Roomba Parts Needed" you@email.com
fi

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Troubleshooting

Issue	Solution
"Robot offline"	Check Wi-Fi. Reboot robot (hold CLEAN 10s). Verify iRobot app works.
"Authentication failed"	Re-run setup. Check credentials. Verify 2FA if enabled.
"Room not found"	Room names must match exactly. Use bash scripts/roomba-ctl.sh rooms to list.
"Cannot clean — bin full"	Empty the dustbin or dust bag, then retry.
Slow response	iRobot cloud can be slow. Script retries 3x with backoff.