How Dyson developed and tested the new machines presented at IFA

September 10th, 2013

Appliance News Vacuums & Floor Care

Dyson has worked long and hard to become an innovator among appliance manufacturers, always looking for new ways to push the envelope and solve more household cleaning problems with its vacuum cleaners, fans and other household appliances.

The latest innovative products to emerge from the Dyson laboratories include the new Dyson Cinetic DC52 (seen above), which is not only bagless but doesn’t need a filter, and the Dyson Digital Slim DC62, which is a handheld stick vacuum cleaner with all the power you’d expect from a full-sized Dyson.

Both of these new vacuum cleaners were recently presented at the IFA appliance showcase in Berlin (aka Internationale Funkausstellung Berlin), having undergone intense periods of testing to ensure their effectiveness and durability before hitting the world stage.  Appliances Online‘s own team has been on the ground at IFA, and can confirm that these vacuums are super-impressive to say the least.

But what kind of effort goes into developing these vacuum cleaners?  Do their designs spring from pure inpiration?  Perspiration?  A bit of both?  A LOT of both?

The Dyson development process

Here are a few stats about Dyson’s general process for developing and improving on new innovations and technologies:

• Dyson’s pipeline of technology stretches out over twenty-five years, with 1536 engineers and scientists working to transform these ideas into reality.  For example, the Dyson Cinetic DC52 was in development for six years – no rushing a product out overnight here!
• Dyson invests £1.5 million a week on research and development and has doubled the number of engineers employed at its UK research and development laboratories in the past two years.
• Dyson employs experts in fluid, mechanical, robotic, electrical, thermal, chemical, acoustic, motor, thermo dynamics, testing and software engineering, and is understood to be the only vacuum cleaner manufacturer with an in-house microbiology team (so you can be confident in the hygiene of their machines!).

Dyson Cinetic DC52: filter-free cleaning for loss-free suction

While bagless vacuum cleaners don’t lose suction due to overfilled bags, their filters can still become clogged with dust, reducing their overall performance in a similar manner.

That’s why the Dyson team developed the Dyson Cinetic DC52, which uses smaller, more powerful cyclones for suction so as to generate higher centrifugal forces that more effectively capture smaller dust particles, doing away with the need for filters altogether.

“Getting rid of bags solved the frustration of my vacuum losing suction. But washing filters – or worse – buying them, is still a nuisance. Dyson Cinetic cyclones are so efficient at separating microscopic particles that everything gets thrust into the bin, and you can forget about fussy filters.” – Sir James Dyson

How did Dyson develop it?

• Dyson’s engineers went through more than 50 iterations of this vacuum cleaner’s particular variation of the Dyson cyclone technology, testing different materials to provide optimal airflow.
• To test the vacuum’s performance over time, the Dyson team calculated the amount of dust that would need to be vacuumed in an average home over the course of ten years, and ran this volume of dust through the prototypes. £136,000 was spent on aggressive test dust and Dyson’s test engineers ran the dust stocks of their suppliers dry.  When the Cinetic powered its way through this test dust with no loss of suction and no filter maintenance, they knew they were onto a winner.
• To test the Cinetic’s durability and reliability, Dyson slammed the vacuum sideways into steel blocks 200 times in side impact testing.
• In total, Dyson spent 9000 hours testing Dyson Cinetic DC52 vacuum; the equivalent of 500 years of vacuuming at home.

Dyson Digital Slim DC62 – a stick vac with the power of a full-size cleaner

The latest generation of cordless vacuum from Dyson, this machine has been made to deliver the same kind of performance as a full-size vacuum, with all the manoeuvrability of a cordless handheld.

This vacuum cleaner’s suction is provided by 15 Dyson cyclones working in tandem, resulting in approximately 1.5 times the power of previous Dyson stick vacuums, all while remaining light, versatile and easy to store.  On a full charge from the handy wall-mounted charging station, this machine will run for 20 minutes normally; 17 minutes with the motorised tool; and for 6 minutes on boost mode.

“Our digital motors create new technological possibilities. The V6 motor is faster and stronger than its predecessor with a higher power density; giving DC62 the performance of a mains powered machine – without being tethered to the wall.” – Sir James Dyson

How did Dyson develop it?

As the latest iteration in a long line of handheld vacuum cleaners from Dyson, the DC62 went through the same development and rigorous testing process as other members of the Dyson family:

• Dyson prototypes are subjected to 636 different validation tests.
• On/off buttons are punched 20,000 times.
• Prototypes are drop tested 10,000 times.
• Cleaner heads are slammed into iron table legs.

When will you get to try one out?

We understand that Dyson plans to release the Cinetic and the Digital Slim in October 2013.  Until then, you can check out the complete Dyson range of vacuum cleaners, fans and more at Appliances Online.

You can also you can check out some footage of the Dyson DC 62 in action thanks to Kevin and Mike, our roving reporters on the ground at IFA 2013: