If they can make robot vacuum cleaners which are typically a few inches high by 14 or 15 inches in diameter, why do we not have reliable robot lawn mowers? The mower doesn’t have to collect clippings but can just distribute them onto the lawn. If lawyers are worried about it screwing up and running over an errant toddler, I’d be happy to relax on my porch with a cool one and keep an eye on it, kill switch in hand. Compared to a Roomba, seems like a much larger mower has plenty of room for more sophisticated electronics and decision making than a vacuum cleaner.

https://www.husqvarna.com/us/robotic-lawn-mowers/

Yeah, these have been available for a while now. Several different companies out there offer them, not just Husqvarna, including Greenworks, Worx, Stihl, etc.

I don't need an automated robot mower, remote controlled would be fine.

I've been keeping an eye on the technology for a few years.

Way too many mow randomly like a roomba bouncing all over the place. The longer one of these runs the more likely they get hung up and need saving by a human so the random pattern is a big negative. These ones are very pricey (700 to 2500).

Starting to be some newer ones that mow an efficient pattern like a human. These ones are even pricier.

Yeah, I’m hoping I’ll eventually be able to find a mower that runs similar to how my Sharp Matrix vacuum works. Regular vacuuming pattern is similar to how a human would mow, back and forth in rows with detours to handle furniture, obstacles, etc. Matrix mode consists of the same back and forth pattern except it’s repeated twice, 90 degrees apart. The latter does a more thorough job, picking up stuff that’s missed with the single back and forth pattern.

Robot mowers, snowblowers, vacuums, etc. No need for them.
We need a robot wife

quote:

Originally posted by rizzle:
Robot mowers, snowblowers, vacuums, etc. No need for them.
We need a robot wife

It’s like the old joke - how do you turn a dishwasher into a snowblower? Give her a shovel!

All kidding and joking aside I actually hate mowing my lawn, so I wouldn’t mind something like a reasonable cost robotic mower. Much like others though, my lawn would look like crap if a robotic mower mowed like a roomba vacuums.

I think I’ve posted mine before. It’s a mower and a snowplow.

Who bought a house that used to use one.

When meeting our neighbors and telling them where we lived, the answer was almost universally “Oh, the house with the dead robot lawnmower, always in the middle of the yard?”

quote:

Originally posted by Lt CHEG:
All kidding and joking aside I actually hate mowing my lawn, so I wouldn’t mind something like a reasonable cost robotic mower.

Need to look at total ownership cost too: Upfront cost + boundary wire cost [if applicable] + replacement battery cost. A lot have a published 10 year life and need the battery replaced twice in that time period. I don't know anyone who bought a robotic mower that is getting anywhere near 10 years out of it, and most quit using it out of frustration.

Stark contrast to my Toro gas lawnmower that I bought in 2001 and it's still going strong. Most years is just a new air filter, new spark plug, and a 10 or 15 passes on the blade with a flap disc. In all that time, I replaced 1 carb (almost same price as rebuild kit) and 1 magneto.

The other day, I was driving out by Woodstock, IL, a semi-rural town out in McHenry County.

There is a stretch of road on the way into town with a wide grassy median. There was a robot lawn mower working that median with no one else in sight. When I drove back about an hour later, the mower was still working away all by itself.

I thought there must be a maintenance crew somewhere that I overlooked. But, I didn’t see anyone or any vehicles coming or going.

quote:

Originally posted by DoctorSolo:
https://www.scytherobotics.com/

That’s an impressive machine. Wonder how it would do in the section of my yard that doesn’t drain as well as the rest? I’ve gotten stuck more than once on a Toro. I can only imagine what the result of an 1100 lb. machine driving over that section after a rain would be! Probably have half of those 20” tires buried in the mud.

quote:

Originally posted by DoctorSolo:
https://www.scytherobotics.com/

I did a bunch of research on tons of remote and autonomous mowers before I bought mine and most of them that start with a Zero turn and go from there tend to start well over $30,000. I have no idea how much that one is but it wouldn't surprise me if it was even more.

quote:

Originally posted by 1s1k:

quote:

Originally posted by DoctorSolo:
https://www.scytherobotics.com/

I did a bunch of research on tons of remote and autonomous mowers before I bought mine and most of them that start with a Zero turn and go from there tend to start well over $30,000. I have no idea how much that one is but it wouldn't surprise me if it was even more.

Their business model is a rental/commission model. They aren't technically selling them. They are targeting commercial markets and they are swamped with orders.

I have a Luba AWD 1000. This is the lowest model with the others being 3000 and 5000. The number signifies how many square meters it can cut. It is boundary wire free and uses RTK GPS. So it has a GPS sensor in the mower itself, but works with another GPS station to give it centimeter accuracy.

I've been really happy with the mower so far. I've had it for about a month and set it up to cut my back yard. Next season I'll set it up to do my back and front yard. I just have to modify a gate or fence to allow it to pass between.

It does have some problems, at least the 1000 model.

1. The 1000 model only allows you to map 3 zones.

2. Sometimes if it is mowing the yard and needs to charge it will go back to the charger and then kind of forget to mow the rest of the yard. It's not really a bid deal to me. I just went in and had it mow the field first before making the boundary passes. Doesn't happen every time though.

3. There is no anti-theft. I have bought a Galaxy SmartTag I'm going to hide inside the mower. Battery should last the season.

4. They are damn expensive.

If I think of any more I'll add them, but that's all that comes to mind right now.

Just remember that these won't eliminate all your yardwork, but it will turn what would be a 4 hour job into a 20 minute job(detail trimming).

quote:

Sometimes if it is mowing the yard and needs to charge it will go back to the charger and then kind of forget to mow the rest of the yard. It's not really a bid deal to me

^^^^^^^^^^^^
That is a human trait programmed in. Grab a beer and forget to finish the lawn.

Holy smokes, y'all, I saw the coolest remote control mower yesterday! It wasn't really a robot, per se, as there was a fella walking around about 10 yards behind it with a big ol' remote control in his hands.

The device was mowing a slope -- steep enough that I don't think any of us would want to ride a tractor or a zero-turn on it. I saw it a couple of seconds before I saw the (remote) operator.

It looked like this, sort of:


The bulk of it was orange, so I assumed it was a Husqvarna product, but I haven't looked into that yet.

Back in the day, also had a man in Bluff Park, AL who had a large pole in the middle of his yard, attached by a rope to a self-propelled mower. He'd start it up, lock the drive, retire to his porch to drink a beer and watch it wind its way into center. Then stop it, take it loose to cut the corners.

He had determined the diameter of a post to get almost a perfect overlap with his 21" mower with each revolution.

Way ahead of his time!