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ISSN (Online): 2456-0448

International Journal Of Innovative Research
In Management, Engineering And Technology
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TRAWA- AN AUTOMATED SOLAR GRASS

CUTTER
Hiba Hameed, [2] Krishna Priya Venu, [3] Naina Fathima Sayed, [4] Upasana Unnikrishnan,
[1]
[5]
Ms. Divya James
Department of Information Technology Rajagiri School of Engineering & Technology,A.P.J Abdul Kalam
Technological University Kerala, India.

To access & cite this article ABSTRACT

Website: www.ijirmet.com Grass Cutting machines are a popular technology with
wide usage today. The old models of grass cutters
used IC engines which has a negative impact on the
environment. Also, the IC engine driven cutters are
more costly and difficult to maintain. Other systems for
the same purpose can be seen to be time consuming and
requires a human to control the device throughout its
activity. The paper presented here discusses our project
which aims to construct a grass cutter which operates on
solar energy, to provide an energy efficient solution. The
project is a fully automated grass cutting robotic vehicle
powered by solar energy that also avoids obstacles and
is capable of automated grass cutting without the need
of any human interaction.
KEYWORDS: Arduino, Automation, Grass
Cutter, Obstacle Detection, Power Monitoring, Solar.

162
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International Journal Of Innovative Research In Management, Engineering And Technology Vol. 4, Issue 6, June 2019

I. INTRODUCTION : automated robotic grass cutter based on solar energy.

The grass cutting robotic vehicle powered by solar
The aesthetic value of the environment is an aspect energy also avoids obstacles and is capable of cutting
that the present world gives prime importance to and grass without the need of any human interaction. The
regards it as a measure of the quality of life. Lawn system will store its generated power in a battery.
Mowing contributes to the enhancement of the said The power is generated with the help of solar panel
aesthetic influence. Lawn mowing or grass cutting that will be placed on the top of the robot.
has in a way developed into an art. Advance in
technology brought about changes in grass cutting The prototype will derive its required power
tools and techniques as well. Early systems used from sun, which is captured using top mounted solar
machetes, hoes, and cutlasses etc. The systems panels. It will have a rechargeable battery, different
eventually upgraded to motorized grass cutters. sensors, several dc motors, Arduino as well as an
electrical outlet for emergency requirements only.
The present world witnesses the harsh The robot incorporates the concept of Internet of
consequences of environmental pollution. According Things by communicating with other smart devices
to a recent study that appeared in the European Health via Internet. A user can obtain information and
Journal, it is noted that air pollution kills more people analysis regarding the robot’s power consumption,
than tobacco and the number of deaths associated with device status etc. via a user interface. It also lets user
the fine particulate matter in the atmosphere globally give commands to the robotic vehicle via the user
is around 8.8 million which is twice more than that Interface.
had been estimated previously. Therefore there is
an inevitable need to shift to environment-friendly The removal of constant man power
devices, tools, mechanisms and other technologies requirement in the model, becomes beneficial in
from the earlier fossil fuel and other non-renewable the cases such as mowing large field areas, mowing
energy based and polluting solutions that are still in hot summers etc. Despite not being in direct
in use more as of the current world scenario. For contact with the robotic vehicle, the model gives a
example, the more used Gas Powered Lawn Mowers better connection with the operation of the robot, by
emit exhausts which pollute the atmosphere. enabling ten folds easier handling and controlling of
the robotic vehicle.
They contribute to air and noise pollution.
Hence functioning of such a device is a step towards In effect, as of today, there are a wide variety
damaging the environment. With the immense of grass cutting and lawn mowing technologies with
focus on researches for developing energy-friendly varied functionalities. However, most of the grass
solutions, we know that the sun is an abundant and cutting solutions use Oil based engines for propelling
relatively infinite source of energy. Hence using and cutting purposes. This is resource intensive
Solar Energy is one way and the most brilliant way in terms of its non-renewable energy source and
to go forward in an attempt to achieve the required also most often require heavy maintenance. Other
solutions. Instead of developing gas-powered solutions tend to require a human to control the
mowers, we can shift the mowers to derive its power device throughout its activity. The present era looks
from Solar Energy. at building green energy solutions to problems such
as this which imparts high negative impact on the
Traditional lawn mowers are heavy overall environment and resource scarcity.
machineries that require a lot of manpower
and energy for its basic functioning. The recent
innovations in technologies allow us to automate II. LITERATURE SURVEY :
various processes that might have earlier required
a human for the operation. With the combined aim Vicky Jain et al. [1] proposed a wireless
for building energy efficient and automated solution grass cutter that uses solar panels for extracting
for lawn mowing, our project aims to prototype an photovoltaic energy. Hence batteries don’t have

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 ISSN (Online): 2456-0448
International Journal Of Innovative Research In Management, Engineering And Technology Vol. 4, Issue 6, June 2019

to be externally charged or replaced. The battery is III. PROPOSED WORK :

continuously charged at constant voltage even when
the grass cutter is working. It is a remote-controlled
device. It makes use of two DC motors and hence
both forward and backward motion of grass cutter is
simultaneously possible.

Ashish Kumar et al. [2] discusses an

experimental study of Solar Power Grass Cutter Robot.
In this paper, the author explained how the solar plate
placed above the grass cutter generates solar energy
and uses the obtained energy for the functioning
of the grass cutter. For preventing the battery from
overcharging and over discharging, a voltage regulator The project proposed aims to construct a grass
or a charge controller is placed into the system which cutter which operates on solar energy, to provide an
must be placed in a series. It specifies extensions to energy efficient solution. The robotic machine is
a simple model under the paper’s discussion such as expected to avoid obstacles and work without the
using a driver circuit for controlling the speed of the physical intervention of the human user.
motor as per the requirement. Other extensions can
be the usage of LCD screens for status and energy A solar panel is used to power a battery
generation monitoring purposes, provision of power which can also be powered via an electrical outlet,
banks to charge the machine instantly when there is a just in case of emergencies. Arduino is used for
scarcity of solar energy such as during rainy seasons. computational and logic processing. The grass cutter
and vehicle motors are interfaced to an Arduino
board for conditional operation of all the motors i.e.
Pratik Patel, Ashwini Bhosale et al. [3] in motors for driving the device as well as the motor
their paper outlines non-solar energy based automated for rotating blades. An ultrasonic sensor is used
grass cutter. Automation is achieved through the use for obstacle detection. On detecting an obstacle,
of different sensors. The feature that stands out in the system is supposed to change its path to avoid
their model is the use of an LCD Screen and keypad collision with the obstacle. The height at which the
system to allow users to provide input regarding the grass is to be cut can be adjusted by changing the
area to be cut in terms of X and Y axis. This allows for level of the blade as per the command user gives via a
customizing the cutting patterns, for instance cutting web interface. Power and other information about the
the lawn area in shapes of letters or words. working system can be displayed to the user via the
web interface to give the user a better understanding
of the system and its power usage.
T. Karthick, S et al. [4] in his paper fabricated
grass cutting machine with rotary blades by using The proposed project will have different
solar energy. The photovoltaic energy based system modules for tackling different functional
uses linear or rotary blades that slide linearly to cut requirements. The basic modules are Power
the grass. The level at which the grass must be cut generation, Power monitoring & decision, Obstacle
can be adjusted by considering ground clearance. The detection, Blade control & User Interface modules.
fabricated machine is more oriented towards providing
a low cost and environment-friendly solution that can POWER GENERATION
be used even by unskilled operators. It does not put
forward automation and sets up a manually operated The functional aim of this module is to
system. obtain solar energy and store the obtained energy in
the battery in order to use it as the primary power
source for the functioning of other modules. The

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 ISSN (Online): 2456-0448
International Journal Of Innovative Research In Management, Engineering And Technology Vol. 4, Issue 6, June 2019

major components are Solar panel: which is required robot communicate with all its parts or components
to convert photovoltaic energy to electrical energy, and to make it run. It uses ultrasonic sensors.
Solar charger: for storing the obtained electrical Ultrasonic sensors have a variety of applications
energy into the battery. such as distance measurement, obstacle avoiding and
anti-collision detection, measurement in automotive
parking assistance systems etc. Ultrasonic sensors
are more reliable since it almost always insensitive to
factors such as dust, smoke, mist, vapor, light etc. It
is also a cost-effective solution for distance sensing,
level, and obstacle detection compared to IR sensors
which can be used for the same.

MONITORING

This module is responsible for most monitoring

activities and subsequent decision making. Firstly
it monitors the solar power generated and decides
whether the required amount of energy is available
in the battery. If not, the battery may be charged via
an electrical outlet; however, it encourages waiting MOBILE APPLICATION/ WEB
until the battery is fully charged using solar energy. APPLICATION AS USER INTERFACE
The latter being the better solution even in terms of
cost. This module also sends the monitored power This module provides an Interface between
data to the User Interface. It is also responsible for the robot and the user. For the sake of mobility
controlling blade height based on input from the UI and user friendliness a mobile application can be
module. preferred over web application. Nevertheless, a
Web Application may suffice. The user can give
commands for controlling blade height and speed to
the robot as well as obtain information regarding the
power generated and utilized by the robot.

OBSTACLE DETECTION

This module is used to give obstacle sensing capability

to the robot which when detects the presence of an
object while working, is able to avoid collision with E. Blade Module
that object and change its path automatically. Various
complimenting materials have been used to make the Based on the height decision from the

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International Journal Of Innovative Research In Management, Engineering And Technology Vol. 4, Issue 6, June 2019

much like hovercrafts. They ride on a cushion of air

monitoring module which in turn is received from
created between the mower and lawn. They have
the user interface upon user input, the driver circuit
better maneuvering capabilities since it allows for
controls two different motors: Blade Rotating Motor
side-to-side motion along with the forward and
& Blade level Adjust Motor, required for actuating
backward motion. Hence they can be used at spots
the blade rotation and blade level.
where the other types of mowers cannot usually get
to. Their functioning differs from a rotary blade and
wheel based ones.
IV. COMPARATIVE STUDY :
Robotic Lawn Mowers
TYPES OF LAWN MOWERS
Most robotic lawn mowers require confining
Self Propelled Lawn Mower the lawn area to be mowed within a boundary wire.
These mowers are then programmed to cut the grass
Self-propelling lawn mowers derive the force according to the user’s requirements. It is relatively
required to enable its forward motion from a motor. silent while functioning. But reviews point out that
However, it does not have self-steering capability. many users find the installation and programming of
Therefore, a human user is mandatory for steering robotic lawn mowers challenging. They often have
and guiding the mower as required by the user. They other features that enhance the user experience.
are available as a single speed or variable speed
Lawn Mower Power Types
mowers. They have higher cost and maintenance
requirements when compared to push mowers. Most
Battery Power
of them are Gas Powered.
Compared to gas-powered lawn mowers, the
Push Mower
battery- powered lawn mowers are light in weight
and much quieter. In this model, the battery has to be
Push mowers derive the forward momentum
recharged before each use. The duration of charging,
for its motion when a human user pushes it. Push
battery life etc. depends on the individual models.
mowers do have engines, however, the power
Like all batteries, the battery used in these mowers
generated is used for cutting the grass. Push Mowers
has to be replaced eventually since charge cycles
too mandatorily requires human intervention for
lead to deterioration in their charge capacity. Battery
fulfilling its basic operation. They can have varying
life can be extended by proper maintenance.
engines and weights. Most often the weights lie in
the range of 60-70 pounds.
Electric Power
Reel Mower or Cylindrical Mower
Electric power based mowers can be either
corded or cordless depending on whether or not an
Reel lawn mowers is environment friendly
electric wire is connected to the mower throughout
compared to other mowers since they don’t require
its functioning. If an electric wire connection is
any engines for neither forward push nor cutting
maintained while mowing the lawn, it is corded.
grass. Hence no amount of gas, oil, or electricity
Else, they are cordless and can be pushed around
is used. However, it heavily draws energy from the
freely. They too are quieter, simpler and lighter
user as it needs the user to guide and drive the device
in comparison to gas-powered mowers. Corded
by hand. It is time-consuming. It is quiet while
mowers can prove to be challenging because they
functioning.
limit the area of mowing to the radius of the cord
Hover Mowers length. However, cordless mowers power depletes as
it mows. This may result in breaking off the mowing
A hover mower uses the hovering technique in between to replenish the power. Some electric

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International Journal Of Innovative Research In Management, Engineering And Technology Vol. 4, Issue 6, June 2019

powered mowers may be equipped with a battery. fully automated solar grass cutter is a step towards
the same. By incorporating the newest technologies,
GAS POWERED the solar grass cutter can be resource friendly while
at the same time improving the various aspects of
Gas-powered lawn mowers don’t have to grass cutting. The project brings about an automated
be charged. Also, they are not limited to the range solution, thereby reducing the time required for lawn
that can be covered using a corded electric mower. mowing, and does not waste or require heavy human
Despite its powerful performance, it requires frequentwork.
engine maintenance to keep up their performance
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