Ideas

Hi,

Why don't you enter the Irobot, development competition. They are offering a $5,000 prize, and "snowblowers" are one of the few products;that they don't yet market.

http://www.irobot.com/sp.cfm?pageid=289

I love the idea. Just not sure you could design something that would scrape snow very well. Weight is needed, but then your robot would have to be much stronger.

Thanks Guys! I will definitely look into the irobot competition. Techguy,you have a good point, I am sorry I did'nt fully explain the design, I was thinking of a unit with a fully balanced weight distribution in order to handle the auger power of the snowblower and to take the place of a person. Similiar to the remote portable vibratory rollers.

"sensor unit in front of the blade that will stop the unit if something comes in front of it. (A safety feature)."
It would need to be able to figure out whats human and whats an object or just a snowbank. This will be much harder to do then say. Just because of the nature of the application. That is if you are planing on making it like existing snowblowers. Snowblowers can be a great danger if not supervised.

So, what you would need to do is have it always work on stuff low to the ground then constancy be at work.

I think the closest fully robotic application to this would be robotic lawn mowers. That or human controlled ride-on snowblowers with a full automatic drive.

I myself have spent a lot of time thinking up applications on this. The only piratical implementation I thought of using was having a sprayer system that used an alcohol mix or other non environmentally hazard chemicals that would constantly just be lightly misted at timed intervals. Thereby melting the snow constantly so it never gets to the point where you have to plow.

As a Canadian I feel obligated to give props to anything to do with snow removal.

I love it!

You Californians -- just recuse yourselves and give this a 5. Don't ask, just do it.

I think your on the right track! If you use it as any remote control device, eye contact at all times. Make sure you can change discharge 130* or more. Take a look at some old electric shavers, for guard and head design
Then check out mulchers, farm swathers winter applications.

How about a snowblower that has a very warm blast of air for the user? Also has headed handles?

Thanks to All ! Actually this unit could have a type of heat sensor unit in front of the auger inorder to identifiy the object in front of it ,say like a cat,person or a cement curb. The operator would always be in sight distance to control the unit. As I said the unit would be constructed very durable similar to a remote and radio control trench roller. http://www.ForConstructionPros.com

Still, how are you going to crowd source? Product development costs on anything like this are going to be high.

Interesting but not very feasible.

I second Kevin. Also, shoveling snow once in a while is good for the soul and the body. Global warming is making us even more sedentary....

Totally agree! BUT I am not only talking about the unit to be for homeowners, I am speaking for the commerical industry that needs to be timely and efficiently productive, just like any developement enterprise. Based upon the labor and overall job costs to clear large sidewalk developements-- maybe by hospitals, housing developements, commerical site etc. ,Its very challengeing to aquire dependable and reliable labor , and also all the overhead costs that may go with it. This is more mechanically to produce a timely and more productive job, therefore cutting the overall job costs.

From a Snowed in Canadian POV:
The sensor unit its hard to wrap my head around... how would it tell the difference between snow pilled high and a per, car or child? I know when it starts snowing then it starts blowing which makes drifts and that would confuse sensors.

I also remember that those DARPA Grand Challenge (computer controlled cars) had a lot of problems with blowing sand screwing up their obstical sensors, wouldnt snow have the same problems?

What skills do you have to make this project happen?

what do you need from the CH community?

Good idea. By the way, can you keep the snow from melting and send a snow blower to me, so I can shoot out the snow. I haven't seen snow in ten years.

The commercial industry uses rather large plows and snow blowers and giant front loaders with a huge bucket. Which have heated cabs and use hydraulics to operate most of the controls. To maneuver it you will most certainly need someone one inside the cab.

I think that it is possible to build a automatic snow removal robot. But, its going to be hard and extremely expensive.

Here are a few photos of commercial snow plows:
http://www.buhler.co...wer-commercial.shtml
http://www.ganos.com...US:official%26sa%3DN
http://cache.daylife...GY4jp2B858f/610x.jpg
http://cache.daylife...9Waof0u25Cg/610x.jpg
http://www.path.berk..._files/snowplow3.jpg
http://images.google...US:official%26sa%3DG

I also, found that there is one robot that has been made. Its called Yuki-taro and it is an autonomous snowplow. Well, it compacts snow into cubes which you then pick up. Close enough to this idea I guess. Which is expected to be available in a few years for a whopping price tag a little over eight thousand dollars.
http://www.pinktenta...mous-snowplow-robot/

I basically have or used most of the commerical equipment listed above. Although I have not seen anything like the unit I am proposing something much smaller than the Yuki-tar and more practical just for sidewalks and small driveways. I figure the unit should have a price tag of around $3 to 5 thousand dollars. In the long run It would pay for it self quickly.

Why not try something like:
http://www.bercomac....e-20070957112757.jpg
http://img.diytrade....d_UTV_Snowblower.jpg
http://www.ramrodequ...150_Snowblower-1.JPG
http://ppmlandscapes...ial_snow_plowing.JPG
http://farm1.static....2_a8bb07167a.jpg?v=0

"much smaller than the Yuki-tar " Its all ready smaller if not the same size a most average snow blowers. Do you really want something like shovel size?

Hi,

How long do you think it would take you to design and build a working prototype ?

Since all of the technologies necessary for completing this project are already available"off the shelf" together with performance specifications. I feel that you can assemble a working prototype for between $10,000 and $20,000 ?

Well I am not sure how long, I figure about 8 mths. I would like to submit at least a provisional patent first. In order to protect the idea. I have that in the works this month. Any suggestions in regards to expedite the prototype would be helpful. (maybe a source for prototype developement). Kevin, thanks for all the web-sources but basically you still don't get the idea, look at http://www.ForConstructionPros.com ,than search for remote and radio control trench roller, that's about the best look for this product. Not too big and not too small.

From trench digging thats a safety standpoint. Its safer for then to keep the operator out of the trench above ground and they they they don't have to follow stricter guideline's and requirements. Also, the robot can fit in smaller places. Another thing is its not an autonomous robot. The operator is usually close to the machine.

But, how does that apply to this idea? From a safety stand point its more dangerous its above ground, with open sharp moving blades where things can happen and people can get hurt. Plus, with out having the operator close by the machine they will start drifting off. Things could happen when you are not paying close attention. There is no added benefit as far as size if anything it will maker it harder to operate because the operated cant really see exactly whats happening.

Plus, having the operator out side to be sure the machine is safe kind of takes away the whole staying warm factor. If I was a worker I would much rather drive around in a heated cab then have to walk behind a robot, which is pretty much the same thing as just using a regular snowblower. Plus, all of the other alternatives work more effectively and typically cost a lot less in comparison.

It's just so Canadian ;)

I hate snowblowers, realy! (sorry)
Snowblowers are a very big poluter of the audio environment, and when gazoline driven even a totaly useless source of CO2 emitions. So my idea is: lets throw all snowblowers away, destroy them, reuse them.

Take a brush, take the time (very good anti-burn-out practice) and just sweep the sidewalk the oldfashion way. Or even better: let nature do what it does best: take care of itself. Just dont bother about the leaves, let them be!

Maarten

Oh I am terribly sorry.... misread, I thought about leaf-blowers!

Snowblowers is a different thing.... But thinking of CO2 emissions and anti-burn-out therapy I still beleive it is better to do this without machines.

Kevin, the remote trench roller is just the closest look of the unit, not exactly the idea, like the user will be in a warm place (truck or building) overlooking the unit work, so if you feel sick like most people due at 3 am when its snowing, the operator can stay inside! Also the area will be marked with sensor stakes to alert the unit from not going out of the limit area. Just some ideas from experience in the commerical snow removal buisness.!

I have developed an Automatic robotic Snow plow. it does not have dangerous moving parts and safe to run by it self. It's designed to function periodically while the snow fall is going on, so that accumilation is light.

Please check <a href='http://www.i-shovel....shovel.com</a> for details

Sorry the link did not come very well http://www.i-shovel.com