How does a robotic lawnmower work?
One of the most common questions we get when interacting with a potential customer interested in a robotic lawnmower is "how does a robotic lawnmower work?" It is most easily answered with the answer that a robot mows your lawn within a perimeter marked by a boundary cable with electricity. The robotic lawnmower will mow your lawn until the battery is low and then it follows the boundary cable home to the charging station to recharge the battery. The time and date can be programmed to make the robotic lawnmower fully automatic. This page will discuss and review technical information as well as the importance of choosing the right robotic lawnmower.
Installation of robotic lawnmowers
After an assessment of a garden, a plan is made of how the boundary cable should be laid. Two methods can be used for this.
- The first method is to place the boundary cable on top of the grass and use plastic spikes to attach the cable to the ground. By using plastic spikes, the cable is still slightly exposed but will sink into the ground after a couple of weeks. For gardens that are around 500 square meters or less, this is a good method that is quick to perform. One advantage of the fact that the boundary cable is still partially exposed is that adjustments can be easily made while the robotic lawnmower familiarizes itself with the new installation.
- The second method is to use a cablelayer. A cablelayer is a tool that burys and places the boundary cable a couple of cm below the ground. Cable laying is a service usually offered by an authorized sales representative who specializes in installations of robotic lawnmowers. An installation with a cablelayer saves time as the process of a machine burying the cable and moving forward at the same time offers excellent efficiency. Potential adjustments can be a little more difficult, as the boundary cable must now be re-dug up.
Once the charging station is installed, the boundary cable will create a circuit. Within this circuit, an electric pulse is transmitted that allows the robot to read the boundary cable and know when to stop and turn in a different direction after reaching the boundary cable. This is made possible by the robot having a sensor that reads the pulse in the cable.
Security
Most robot mowers' haircuts are made in random sequences. The mower thus walks around mowing the lawn randomly and only changes direction when it reaches the boundary wire or an obstacle. An obstacle such as a tree can either be left as it is and allow a crash sensor to detect it or be hung with a boundary cable. The robotic lawnmower will either have a mechanical crash sensor where the robot collides with the obstacle to detect it, reverse and then continue in a different direction. Or, as in new versions, mowers have also been equipped with an ultrasonic sensor, which detects objects and before it collides with them and turns in a different direction. The mechanical crash sensor has been proven to be reliable in the sense that it crashes and reverses at every fixed obstacle it encounters. If an obstacle is not firm enough like a flowerbed in which the robot has the strength to run over, the boundary cable must be placed around to protect the area. The ultrasonic sensor, on the other hand, can detect all obstacles regardless of density and can thus make installation easier as smaller obstacles need to be protected by a boundary cable.
The other important sensor that plays a key role from a safety perspective is the lifting sensor. When the robotic lawnmower is lifted from the ground or has somehow hit an obstacle or temporary object like a child's toy, it turns off the mower motor and drive motors. The combination of crash and lifting sensors increases the safety and performance of the product.
Factors to consider before buying a robotic lawnmower
When looking at all the different models, robotic lawnmowers are often categorized by how many square meters a specific model can cut and how steep a slope it can handle. From a customer's perspective, calculating the size of your lawn is a good first step. If there is any slope, you can use your smartphone to measure its angle and then check if the robotic lawnmower you intend to buy can withstand this slope. The composition of the garden can also be important if it has any narrow passages or is divided into several different parts. Some models have features where gardens with several narrow passages can be promoted by so-called "zone mowing" for the robotic lawnmower to find its way to all parts of the lawn. This is something you need if your garden is more advanced.
From our experience, we have noticed that a robot that has simple user settings and a simple display has given the most value to most of our customers. The last factor that plays a vital role is post-purchase support. A service center with support, service, repair shop and a stock of spare parts plays a big role. In this way, the customer can access product information, troubleshooting solutions and access to maintenance service or warranty claims. We believe that the most important thing when choosing robotic lawnmowers is that it has strong mechanical functions and is easy to use, and that there is a working post-service support in case it is needed.