Smart Lawn Mower with Stability Control

using AVR Controller

Gopalakrishnan. A, Thilak. S.M, Tharun Kumar. A
Mentor:Selvalakshmi. S
Department of Electronics and Instrumentation Engineering
R.M.K. Engineering College, Kavaraipettai, Gummidipoondi.

Abstract: The objective of this project is to design and mower robot is still immature and necessitates a lot of
implement all terrain lawn mower robotic vehicle that can investigation for mowing patterns intelligently. Utilizes a reliable
be used to remove grass from lawns and play grounds communication protocol (e.g., RF, Bluetooth) to ensure a stable
intelligently and precisely. The controller uses intelligent and responsive connection between the transmitter and the
approach to work in dynamic, unstructured and unknown mower. Designed for efficient power consumption to prolong
terrain without having any inaccuracy. A set of battery life, ensuring prolonged usage without frequent
concurrently running behaviors are defined to perform recharging.
mowing operation. Various accelerometers are utilized to
obtain the dynamics of the terrain. There will be a master
controller which uses information from the sensors and II. BLOCK DIAGRAM & FLOW CHART DESCRIPTION
modify the mechanics of the mower to cut away the lawn
precisely. The controller will be pretty much user friendly
so that any ordinary human users can control it. Effective
utilization of energy will be a prime concern for design.

Keywords: AVR microcontroller, ADXL 355 accelerometer, AT

mega 328p, Servo Motor, FS-i6 2.4G 6CH PPM RC
Transmitter, FS-iA6B Receiver.

I. INTRODUCTION
Use of robots is increasing nowadays. An application Fig 1: Transmitter Block Diagram
where lot of human effort is required is being replaced by Transmitter section consists of switches to give input
robots. Lawn mowing is such an application where lot of human by human user, which is encoded by means of an encoder and
effort is required. There are some lawn mowers that can be transmitted via radio frequency transmitter. Four switches are
operated by using remote control. But the problem with these used for controlling the movement of the lawn mower vehicle
lawn mowers is that it cuts the grass unevenly. Since the ground that is for forward, backward and sideways motion. A switch is
is having irregular shape, we cannot maintain the blade of lawn used to switch on/off the lawn mower blade. Combinations of
mower always parallel to ground. This will lead to uneven two switches are used for height adjustment purpose of the
cutting of grass. By adjusting the blades, so that it always blade. LEDs are used to indicate the inputted height on the
remains parallel to ground, we can solve this problem. The robot remote. A 9V battery is used to supply the whole transmitter
is controlled by remote control. Height adjustment is done module.
automatically. This robot is more user friendly, so that common
people can easily use this. The system is entirely powered by
batteries. So, we can make this fully solar powered in the future.
This will make the system more economical. Behavior-Based
approach is employed for robot controllers in order to perform
the desired task in outdoor environment, which is normally
dynamic and unstructured. The conventional approach for
mobile robot, i.e. hierarchical approach is reliant on uncertain
symbolic information about the world model. This approach
stipulates that the world should not be dynamic and
unstructured, which is only probable in fixed indoor
environments with static objects. The controller designed using
this approach works in sequential fashion to process the
information acquired from the environment and to decide the
appropriate actions. Behavior based controller overcomes all of
these deficiencies by using sense-act methodology in parallel
fashion. The field of lawn Fig 2: Receiver Block Diagram

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 The transmitted signal is received by means of radio
frequency receiver. The received signal is decoded by means of
a decoder and is given to a master controller. A low rpm motor
is used to adjust the height of the cutting tool. A servo motor is
used to tilt the cutting mechanism with respect to the
accelerometer reading. Driver 2 is for controlling the motion.
The height adjustment is done by the remote input and the input
is fixed for a required height. The height is maintained
throughout, until the next command for height adjustment is
given by user.

Fig 4: Proposed Design

A. HT12E
HT12E is a 2.12 series encoder IC is used for remote
control purposes. This IC is mainly used for radio frequency
applications. By pairing HT12E encoder and HT12D decoder
we can easily transmit and receive 12-bit data. HT12E encoder
converts 12-bit data in to serial output which is easily
transmitted through a RF transmitter. These 12-bit parallel data
are divided in to 8 address bits and 4 data bits. The address pin
provides an 8-bit security code for transmission of data.
Multiple receivers can be addressed using the same transmitter.

Fig 3: Flow Chart B. RF Transmitter-Receiver Module

As the robot is remote controlled, it must be controlled
to a distance visible to the user. So, for medium range
transmission, we use RF module. The corresponding frequency
III. PROPOSED SYSTEM AND METHODOLOGY range is varied between 30 kHz and 300 GHz. This modulation
used in this case is amplitude shift keying (ASK). The
Transmitter section consists of switches to give input transmitter is a handheld device that wirelessly communicates
by human user, which is encoded by means of an encoder and with the lawn mower, allowing the user to control its
transmitted via radio frequency transmitter. Four switches are movements remotely. The receiver is integrated into the lawn
used for controlling the movement of the lawn mower vehicle mower and interfaces with the AVR controller to interpret the
that is for forward, backward and sideways motion. The incoming signals from the transmitter. Processes the received
transmitted signal is received by means of radio frequency signals to extract commands related to the mower's movement,
receiver. The received signal is decoded by means of a decoder speed, and other control parameters. Engineered to be
and is given to a master controller. Various ultrasonic sensors compatible with the chosen communication protocol and the
for height measurement are also connected to this controller. AVR controller's input requirements. Designed to provide a
Two servo motors are used to adjust the blades viaa gyroscope. sufficient operating range and ensure reliable communication
DC motor 3 is used for height adjustment of the blade. Driver 2 even in challenging environmental conditions. the Smart Lawn
is for controlling the motion. The height adjustment is done by Mower, controlled by an AVR microcontroller with integrated
the remote input and the input is fixed for a required height. The stability control, and communication facilitated through serial
height is maintained throughout, until the next command for communication.
height adjustment is given by user.

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 Fig 5: RF Transmitter-Receiver Module

C. 7805 Voltage Regulator

This unit provides a constant 5V power supply to the

microcontroller. The current sensor is also provided with 5V
supply through the voltage regulator.

D. At mega 328p Processing unit

The proposed system uses Atmega328p Arduino as
the processing unit. This unit controls the entire working of the
system through the use of both hardware and software.

E. ADXL 355 Accelerometer

The ADXL335 is a 3-axis accelerometer which gives
conditioned signal voltage outputs. It measures acceleration with
a full-scale range of ±3 g. Static acceleration of gravity is
measured by the product so that it can be used in tilt sensing
applications. Dynamic acceleration also can be measured
resulting from motion, shock, or vibration. Fig 6: ADXL 355 Accelerometer

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 of the lawn mower. Integral to our project, servo motors provide
F. HT12D (2.12) precise control over the mower's movements. These motors,
HT12D is a decoder IC that belongs to 212 line of under the command of the AVR controller, navigate the lawn
decoders. Remote control system applications, like burglar mower through grassy terrains, responding to signals for steering
alarm, car door controller, security system etc. uses this line of and propulsion. They provide precise control over the rotation of
decoders. They can be easily paired with 212 series of encoders the mower's wheels or blades. By receiving signals from the
in order to transmit and receive data wirelessly. The number of AVR controller, servo motors adjust their position or speed,
address and data pin should be same for the chosen pair of allowing the mower to navigate through the grass or change its
encoder and decoder. direction as commanded by the user.

G. HT12D K. Stability Control System

converts the serial input into parallel outputs. It The stability control system enhances the mower's
decodes the serial addresses and data received by RF receiver, balance and stability, crucial for safe and effective operation on
into parallel data and sends them to output data pins. The input uneven terrains. It incorporates sensors, such as accelerometers
data is compared with the local addresses three times and gyroscopes, to detect changes in the mower's orientation.
successively. The input data code is decoded when no error or The AVR controller processes this data and adjusts the servo
unmatched codes are found. motors or other actuators to maintain stability. Enhancing the
mower's stability, the control system incorporates
H. L293D accelerometers and gyroscopes to monitor orientation. The AVR
L293D is a Motor driver which allows DC motor to controller utilizes this data to make real-time adjustments,
drive in both directions. L293D has 16 pins and can control a ensuring the mower's balance on uneven surfaces during lawn
pair of motor in both directions simultaneously. It works on maintenance operations.
the principle of H-bridge. H-bridge is a circuit designed in
order to obtain bi directional flow of voltage to a single DC
motor. In a DC motor as the direction of voltage flow changes,
the direction of the rotation of the motor also changes. Hence,
H-bridge is the most appropriate concept for this project.

I. AVR Microcontroller
In our Smart Lawn Mower project, the AVR
microcontroller serves as the central processing unit, executing Fig 8: Gyroscope Sensor
programmed logic in C or assembly. It interprets signals from
various sensors and the user interface, directing the precise
movements of the servo motors that control the mower's wheels L. Wireless Communication Module:
or blades. The AVR microcontroller serves as the brain of the Facilitating seamless interaction, the wireless
lawn mower, processing input signals from various sensors and communication module establishes a reliable link between the
the user interface to control the mower's movements and handheld transmitter and the mower. Operating on a wireless
operations. It executes the program logic written in C or protocol, it transmits user commands to the receiver on the
assembly, interpreting commands received from the wireless mower, initiating specific actions through the AVR controller.
communication module and coordinating the operation of
motors and stability control based on sensor inputs.

Fig 9: Communication Modules

M. User Interface Switches:

Providing an intuitive means for user interaction,
switches on the handheld transmitter enable users to input
commands. These switches, when activated, send signals to the
AVR controller, allowing users to adjust parameters like
direction, speed, or initiate emergency stops during lawn
maintenance operations.
Fig 7: AVR Microcontroller
N. Relays:
J. Servo Motors Critical for managing high-power components, relays
Servo motors are crucial for controlling the movement act as controlled switches responding to AVR controller
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commands. These relays ensure efficient power distribution to V. CONCLUSION
essential components, such as the mower's motor, contributing
to the overall functionality of the system. An analysis is required for the controller design of the robotic
lawn mower vehicle because any deviation cannot be tolerated.
Development and implementation of a user-friendly controller
interface with an optimized programming scheme for the
convenience of the human user. The main challenge is to
maintain the height of the lawn to be cut precisely. Mechanical
design of the height adjustment system is more complicated.
Same time controller has to act accordingly. A mechanical
design and a controller design has to be interlinked together to
get this condition done. With some enhancements, the
performance of the robot controller can be excelled.

VI. REFERENCES

[1]. Guo-Shing Huang Hsiung-Cheng Lin Keng-Chih Lin,

“Intelligent Auto-Saving Energy Robotic Lawn Mower”, in
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[2]. H. Weiss, K. Schopf, M. Zarkar, “High-Performance Lawn-
Mower Prototype with Re-Used Lithium Iron Phosphate
Fig 10: Relay Battery”, in Actual Problems of Electronics Instrument
Engineering (APEIE), 2023 12th International Conference, on
IV. HARDWARE IMPLEMENTATION October 2023.
[3]. Muhammad Wasif, “Design and Implementation of
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