B2B or B2C? There is great potential in both markets

Robotic mowers are certainly not a new invention. Companies have been working on continuously improving automated lawn care for over two decades. As with robotic vacuum cleaners, the boundaries between private and commercial customer businesses regarding automatic mowers are becoming blurred. The B2C business is still likely to be slightly ahead, although the B2B sector is also predicted to grow substantially. Market analysis by Grand View Research from 2022 assumes a distribution of 56% in favor of the B2C market. There are still some obstacles to widespread use in professional green maintenance, but these will be overcome bit by bit with the latest generations of hardware.

Challenges that have so far hindered professional use

Private customers are often enthusiastic about new technical gadgets and are prepared to overlook minor product weaknesses. The situation is different in the professional sector. Customers expect perfect cleaning and lawn care results. So, it’s no wonder the B2B sector, with its high-quality standards, is only gradually becoming automated. Obstacles so far are:

Set-Up / Installation
While some scrubbing or vacuum cleaning robots can map their surroundings themselves thanks to the boundaries created by walls, the situation is naturally different with outdoor robotic lawnmowers. Therefore, the set-up also involves more effort. Until a few years ago, laying perimeter wire was the only way to delimit or demarcate work areas. This has changed due to the use of increasingly better GPS or UWB modules. However, combining cameras and AI object recognition is a game changer – apart from possible data protection concerns. So it’s no wonder Worx, for example, advertises its Landroid Vision mower, which is primarily aimed at private customers, as being particularly easy to install. The device’s cameras record its environment, and the artificial intelligence interprets what it sees and prevents flower beds from being mowed, for example. Nevertheless, even this device cannot get past analog barriers, in the case of the Landroid, using a deployable magnetic tape. These tapes prevent the Landroid from passing, for example, when wildflower meadows, etc., are not to be mowed. 

The other top companies in lawnmower robotics have also moved away from the perimeter wire. Mammotion, for example, relies on a mixture of different technologies to determine the exact position of the lawnmower. By combining Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS), RTK technology, and IMU sensors, users can use an app to determine digital boundaries that the robot will not cross.

However, it cannot be denied that the installation of the devices is becoming increasingly simple. This fact harbors a decisive advantage: it increasingly enables fruitful collaborations between man and machine. Lawnmowers can be left out more easily while landscape gardeners care for other parts of the green areas. This setting also ensures that equipment is not left unattended and is therefore protected from simple theft.

Strength and Endurance
Professionally maintained lawns are only sometimes rectangular flat areas. They sometimes span hundreds of square meters and have numerous obstacles, steep slopes, or gradients. The all-wheel-drive robots from Husqvarna and other manufacturers have long climbed slopes of up to 35* meters. In addition to the ability to conquer significant inclines, devices with large battery capacities and powerful electric motors are required. The technology sectors’ constantly growing battery expertise will help robotic lawnmowers here (see Freedonia study).

Quality of Work
The first robotic lawnmowers, which randomly traveled back and forth, had an irregular cutting pattern. Robotic lawnmowers now work systematically. Regular automated grass cutting also results in a denser sward. Automated mowing is now ahead in terms of quality in many environments.

Seasonal tasks
Grass does not grow all year round. However, outdoor areas must be maintained all year round. Whether blowing leaves, clearing snow, or applying fertilizer – outdoor tasks are subject to seasonal requirements. Issues that scrubbing robots, for example, do not have to deal with, or only to a limited extent (e.g., types of soiling). Issues that also have an impact on the economic efficiency of robotic lawnmowers. The first, more holistic lawn robots are, therefore, exciting. They rely on the modularity of hardware, which allows one robot to perform various tasks. Here, we recommend our article on upcoming or already market-ready innovations: What comes after vacuuming, mopping, and mowing? There; You will also find a short section on the Yarbo lawn mower, making this holistic concept a reality.

Status Quo

The simplified installation makes deploying robots on greenfield sites increasingly possible, even for short periods. This development minimizes the possibility of theft and ensures a more collaborative interaction between man and machine. With the departure of the perimeter wire, the biggest hurdle in automated mowing has been overcome. The combination of camera recordings and artificial intelligence in object and environment recognition could be the game changer that helps automated mowing achieve an absolute breakthrough outside private gardens, too. But until then, as is so often the case, we are almost there.

If you are interested in the drivers of robotic mowers, you might like our constantly growing list of manufacturers.