Sunday, December 11, 2011

Robot mower roundup

I am not the only person on YouTube with a remote controlled lawn mower. It seems like more and more show up every day, so I decided to document a few of my favorites.


Lawnbot 400

This is the project that inspired me to create my own remote controlled mower. His website is here. What I liked about this mower is that it appears to have adjustable cutting deck height, and the dirt carrier on top.

One thing that I don't like about this design is how bulky the frame is compared to the size of the cutting deck. I took this design into consideration when building my mower, and it still comes to mind when I'm thinking about how to solve my rigid cutting height problems. The fit and finish on this project is top notch, and that is probably why it is listed in Make Magazine. Good work, Sir.



Lawnrover m3736

Right away I saw "Can I get this in Blue?" from the YouTube comments. This tells me that someone out there wouldn't change a thing and would enjoy this mower as is.

Based on the number of features on this mower, I suspect that this is not the first revision of this project. I'm just guessing here but the balance looks to be as such that if you sat on it, you might be able to pull wheelies! Imagine! I like the toolbox on this one as it is a great way to keep electronics safe from grass and dust and it is easy to open and get at the components if you need to.



thekruck2009 radio control lawn mower

This one deserves a name. I really like the compact size of everything on here. The little caster wheels might prove problematic when transitioning between different surfaces, but they look to be working just fine here.

There are not a lot of details posted about this project, and the viewer comments on YouTube appear to go unanswered.

I posted a question about the electrical system, but I may not get an answer. I was interested in whether the system is 12 or 24 volts. It seems like it must be a single battery at 12 volts, as I'm not sure where you would fit another battery on there. It also appears to be in the same situation as my project regarding height adjustability. I have to say it again, though, I just love how compact this one is.



DIY Robot Lawn Mower

This one is 100% custom and it represents an entire genre of custom mowers that are otherwise missing from this post. The guy combined a barbie jeep, razor blades, batteries, and an electric dog fence to create a completely autonomous mowing platform.

This device is not remote controlled, it works entirely on its own by bumping into things and turning itself a little bit each time. I think it would take ages to mow the yard based on how it moves and the fact that it is going to mow over the same tracks multiple times. I think this is a great device, though, as it is so totally different from the other projects in this category. I can really appreciate the effort that was put forth to make this, especially the custom logic board parts. Good work, Sir.





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