Docking the Electrolux Trilobite: does yours dock reliably?

News and information about the Electrolux Pure i9 and the Electrolux Trilobite series Robotic Vacuums. All discussion and troubleshooting questions go here.
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Parker
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Joined: November 29th, 2010, 1:08 pm
Location: UK and Europe

Docking the Electrolux Trilobite: does yours dock reliably?

Post by Parker »

I love my Trilobite, it's solid, low-maintenance, and cleans well. However, I find it doesn't dock very well. How are others finding the docking?

Mine averages about 2 or 3 successful docks out of 10 attempts. Even though it finds the base, it just messes about with it. In the end, I reluctantly give it a helping hand. The base is on a flat surface against a wall. I have cleaned the oxide off the contacts on the base. Any suggestions would be very welcome.

Cheers,
Parker
szymonrules
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Joined: March 11th, 2011, 8:22 pm

Re: Docking the Electrolux Trilobite: does yours dock reliab

Post by szymonrules »

Try moving it away from any electronics and IR emmiting things, and let it have a little room to dock.
Parker
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Joined: November 29th, 2010, 1:08 pm
Location: UK and Europe

Re: Docking the Electrolux Trilobite: does yours dock reliab

Post by Parker »

Thanks for the suggestions Szymonrules.

Docking seems pretty reliable now that I have moved the base.

There was a fridge freezer nearby probably emitting some EM radiation, but that wasn't the culprit. I found several contributory factors: I wasn't giving the trilobite enough space to do the docking dance, and when I checked with a spirit level, the surface wasn't as flat as I thought. I hope that helps anyone else with docking problems.

Cheers,
Parker
szymonrules
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Re: Docking the Electrolux Trilobite: does yours dock reliab

Post by szymonrules »

Great! and also, for anyone else reading this with the same problem, also keep the Docking Station away from magnets. (Like speaker systems)
Parker
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Posts: 58
Joined: November 29th, 2010, 1:08 pm
Location: UK and Europe

Re: Docking the Electrolux Trilobite: does yours dock reliab

Post by Parker »

The docking dance problem only went away temporarily. I finally got fed up and investigated the docking station.

The two contacts visible on the outside are connected to two spring-loaded arms that make contact with the power source. I noticed that when pressing the external contacts, one required considerably more pressure than the other.
P1010755.resized.JPG
Interestingly, there is an elastic band that is wrapped all around the contact arm mechanism. Anyway, in my case the elastic band was broken and needs replacement. When I pull the ends of the elastic band together the contacts require less pressure, so this might indeed be the cause of the problem.

Now I need to find a replacement elastic band. It's 0.5 cm wide, 1mm thick and 24.5 cm long (broken and laid out).

Does anyone have any ideas where to buy elastic bands of this specification or how to make a DIY alternative?
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