What is a Litter-Robot™?

A Litter-Robot™ is a self-cleaning litter box designed to make disposing of cat waste as easy and convenient as possible. This type of litter box requires a cat to enter an enclosed area in order to use the box. It has an enclosed area that is a globe that rotates to sift the clumps of waste from the clean litter. After the globe has rotated sufficiently, the sifted clumps are deposited into a sealed lower drawer, which is equipped with an ordinary kitchen garbage bag. For self-cleaning to occur efficiently, clumping cat litter needs to be used in the tray.

The Litter-Robot™ operates after a cat has left the enclosure. A weight sensitive sensor detects cats that weigh over five pounds (2.3 kilograms), and it begins a seven-minute countdown once the cat leaves so that clumps can be formed in the litter. Once the countdown is complete, the globe begins to rotate so that the clumps can be separated from the clean litter.

Separation occurs due to a screen that allows the clean litter to fall through it, while keeping the larger clumps separated out. The globe rotates around the screen, which is installed at an angle to guide the clumps to a gap leading to the drawer below. If the sensor detects that a cat is inside the globe, it will stop rotating immediately.

The efficiency of the process is enhanced by the fact that the bottom of the globe is lined with rubber. As the globe rotates, the clumps will stick to the rubber. A heavy weight is found in the middle of the rubber lining causes the rubber lining to sag down so that any clumps will drop through the gap to the drawer enclosure below.

The drawer pan below can be lined with up to 13-gallon (49 liter) kitchen garbage bags. The bags are attached to the sides of the pan using four clips positioned at each of its corners. The drawer is simple to empty as it only needs to be opened so that the bag can be taken out and then replaced with a fresh one.

Owners of skittish cats may not be able to get their cats to use the Litter-Robot™, as their cats may find the noise and motion frightening. To overcome this issue, the makers of the Litter-Robot™ suggest that the device be set up and remain unplugged for a few a days after it is introduced into the home. Only after the cat has used the Litter-Robot™ should the owner then plug in the device and run the rotation sequence. This allows a skittish cat to become familiar with the product, as well as the noise that the Litter-Robot™ makes when it is in operation.