This Robot Will Rake Your Leaves, Cut The Grass & Shovel Snow
This Robot Will Rake Your Leaves, Cut The Grass &
Shovel Snow
October 13, 2016 10:33 AM
By Matt McFarland
NEW YORK (CNN) — For anyone who hates doing yard work,
your new best friend may have arrived.
A New York startup unveiled Kobi on Thursday, a robot it
says can autonomously shovel snow, collect leaves and cut grass.
“We’re on a mission to help people not spend time on yard
work,” said Steven Waelbers, cofounder of The Kobi Company. “We want people to
enjoy their free time with their family.”
Owners will need to reconfigure the robot’s attachment —
similar to how many vacuums work — depending on the task it’s carrying out.
Before the robot operates independently, an owner must manually
wheel it around the yard — taking it around any obstacles like trees, bushes or
mailboxes. By doing this, the robot is taught the perimeter of the lawn, and
won’t accidentally destroy someone’s prized rose bush or start roaming the
neighborhood.
Once this setup is complete, and the $3,999 robot has
been trained on where to cut grass, rake leaves and shovel snow, it operates
without any supervision.
The electric robot navigates with the help of two beacons
that must be placed in the yard. Kobi includes a camera and ultrasound sensor
that Waelbers said would detect pets and people, and trigger the robot to stop
before a collision occurred.
As the field of robotics blossoms, safety is a concern
anytime a machine is going to be operating without human supervision. Robots
are now fulfilling a range of roles, from working as security guards to
delivering mail or room service and driving cars. But they aren’t perfect.
Earlier this year a security robot ran over a 16-month-old’s foot at a
California mall.
The robot — which tops out at 2 mph — cuts grass a
fraction of an inch at a time. The clippings are left on the yard to serve as a
natural fertilizer. Snow shoveling is done incrementally as well. When the
robot collects leaves, it shepherds them into piles.
Kobi is designed to handle hills with up to a 40%
incline. But it may get stuck in deep holes. The robot rests in a charging
station in your yard or driveway and needs to have access to an electric outlet
for power.
Waelbers sees potential health and environmental gains
from people adopting the Kobi. Each year, 17 million gallons of fuel are
spilled while refueling lawn equipment, according to the EPA. Shoveling snow
increases the risk of heart attacks because the combination of an arduous task
and cold weather is dangerous for those with heart problems or high blood
pressure.
Waelbers has always loved to build robots and play with
electronics. He started work on Kobi after his father asked him to make a robot
that would shovel snow for him. Waelbers plans to start sales in early 2017.
The-CNN-Wire ™ & © 2016 Cable News Network, Inc., a
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