An obstacle-sensing system for carriers, particularly autonomous carriers such as robot vacuum cleaners, enables the carriers to disengage themselves from any obstacle or obstruction with which they come into physical contact and proceed past the obstacle or obstruction. The obstacle-sensing system is established by constructing a carrier to have front and rear sections which, normally, are in a neutral relationship with respect to one another but which move relative to one another when the front section physically engages an obstacle or obstruction. The relative movement activates a guidance and control system that maneuvers the carrier around the obstacle or obstruction.