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Remotely Controlled Lawn Tractor

offthegrid.dev

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Re: Remotely Controlled Lawn Tractor

#71

Post by HeyLaughingBoy »

matt_attack wrote: post #53
akovaski wrote: post #45

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Following one of the dealer links, looks like it is about $60,000 for a new one. https://www.bobcatofyork.com/default.asp?page=xInventoryDeta...

The cost varies by cut width (44" is quite a bit cheaper) but yeah, it's very commercial oriented. It's intended for people who need to mow difficult slopes day in and day out. I'm not aware of really anything capable intended for homeowners besides a good ol' push mower.

There are homeowner-class track mowers that are designed for steep slopes. Our property is pretty hilly so I keep telling myself that when my Husqvarna riding mower finally dies (it's only 16 years old) I'll buy an electric one. Unfortunately that Kawasaki motor just keeps on going and I keep repairing everything else.

Re: Remotely Controlled Lawn Tractor

#72

Post by sgt »

Just remember to run it only during the day, so you protect hedgehogs etc. I have seen some pretty nasty damage on hedgehogs based on lawnmowers automatically mowing at night.

Re: Remotely Controlled Lawn Tractor

#73

Post by pmontra »

caradine wrote: post #43

No mention of how it handles obstacles; sticks, rocks, holes, small animals, etc. I mowed lawns for several years as a teenager using riding mowers similar to this. I can't count the number of times I had to stop, get off, move a stick so it doesn't jam the blades, move a rock so it doesn't get flung into a nearby window...or even just slow down because the grass was too thick for the mower to handle. It strikes me a…

I had my share of pain with those obstacles. That was my first thought when I saw this project.

The workaround, which I didn't implement yet, is to build a smooth and clean garden. Of course branches fall, ants build, all sort of animals dig, bushes grow id you give them a couple of weeks at the wrong time of the year, etc.

That lawnmower is also much bigger than mine.

Re: Remotely Controlled Lawn Tractor

#75

Post by yjftsjthsd-h »

stinos wrote: post #65
throwaway0a5e wrote: post #57

Earlier quoted context omitted.

>but why mow it all in the first place? Because providing convenient habitat for grass dwelling rodents adjacent to your home will result in some fraction of them trying to move in.

Depending on where you live those rodents won't do any harm though. Or simply leave again because the cannot find food, which is like the #1 thing to deal with in case of rodents. Moreover you'd need a serious amount of 'deadzone' around your house before rodents won't cross it, no? It's not like they only can cover distances of few metres. All in all, this type of claim should be backed by research :) Curious if the…

> Depending on where you live those rodents won't do any harm though. Or simply leave again because the cannot find food, which is like the #1 thing to deal with in case of rodents.

> All in all, this type of claim should be backed by research :) Curious if there is any.

Yes, any evidence for your claims would be appreciated. Are there places where mice/rats aren't considered a disease vector?

Re: Remotely Controlled Lawn Tractor

#76

Post by rascul »

throwaway0a5e wrote: post #47
WaitWaitWha wrote: post #42

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Yes; any system that can kill you should be using dead-man's switch, requiring no positive input to halt, but positive input to continue.

I'll be sure to keep your wisdom in mind next time I have to reset the way too conservatively sized circuit breaker integral to the contractor that runs in my fume extractors. Damn near anything can kill you. Context matters. In most cases a consumer lawnmower should probably have a deadman switch. Plenty of people have been hurt or killed over the years by poorly thought out fail "safes". It's easy to make low effor…

> In most cases a consumer lawnmower should probably have a deadman switch.

It's under the seat. With nobody in the seat, that had to be modified for this mower.

Re: Remotely Controlled Lawn Tractor

#77

Post by swayvil »

rascul wrote: post #76
throwaway0a5e wrote: post #47

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'll be sure to keep your wisdom in mind next time I have to reset the way too conservatively sized circuit breaker integral to the contractor that runs in my fume extractors. Damn near anything can kill you. Context matters. In most cases a consumer lawnmower should probably have a deadman switch. Plenty of people have been hurt or killed over the years by poorly thought out fail "safes". It's easy to make low effor…

> In most cases a consumer lawnmower should probably have a deadman switch. It's under the seat. With nobody in the seat, that had to be modified for this mower.

They've got them on push mowers too. You gotta keep a handle gripped for the mower to run. Let go and it stops

Re: Remotely Controlled Lawn Tractor

#78

Post by mlsu »

I understand that this is a hack project (so doing for the sake of doing).

But if I were going to create an autonomous/RC anything, I would start with Ardupilot [0], which has off-the-shelf support for a lot of what's implemented here, like mapping, waypoint management, and even state estimation/control. You can buy a computer that can do all of this for pretty cheap.

[0] https://ardupilot.org/rover/

Re: Remotely Controlled Lawn Tractor

#79

Post by ericd »

stevehawk wrote: post #35
Nextgrid wrote: post #33

Earlier quoted context omitted.

A solution could be to just secure the area well enough to guarantee that 1) an uncontrolled machine can't escape and 2) people don't enter the area. Then you don't particularly care if the machine is "unsafe" if there's no way it can harm anyone. That's the approach most industrial robots take - instead of trying to deal with humans and not hurt them, just make sure there are no humans within reach of the robots.

> 2) people don't enter the area That's harder than it should be. No amount of asking my neighbors has kept their kids out of my fenced lawn to retrieve their soccer balls. Which is actually an issue because one of my dogs is not particularly friendly. I'd gladly kick the ball back over if they just knocked on the door. We're not a neighbor-hate-neighbor situation, we actually get along quite well, but kids will be k…

An 8 foot mesh deer fence should do the trick ;-) it’ll also rebound lots of those balls that would otherwise head into your yard.

Re: Remotely Controlled Lawn Tractor

#80

Post by lettergram »

HeyLaughingBoy wrote: post #70
lettergram wrote: post #62

Earlier quoted context omitted.

my actual thought was if I could get it to work - big if - I could then move it to literally any tractor. Effectively, I’d have a massive market.

I think the biggest problem you'd run into is that people are cheaper than your automation. A 16 year old will run your tractor all day for minimum wage.

Yeah and be able to attach items, no doubt. But I kind of just want it for the fun nature of it.
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