Objectives of the service
Denmark alone has more than 2,5 billion square meters of paved urban land, an area roughly equal to the island of Fyn. Although the market for robotic lawnmowers has grown exponentially, no similar solutions currently exist for the autonomous maintenance of paved areas. O-Robotics aims to fill this gap with its mission to develop a multipurpose Autonomous Mobile Robot (AMR) to sustainably maintain urban paved land, the AMR-Sweeper.
Current weed management methods fall into three main categories: thermal, chemical, and mechanical. Common thermal methods include flame treatment using gas; steam water treatment using fuel oil; and hot water treatment using water boiler. While pesticides are largely prohibited in Denmark for paved areas, globally used chemicals among others include glyphosate, triclopyr, and imazapyr. Mechanical methods, such as brushing, mowing, or manual weed removal, are either labour-intensive or require operating large machines with harsh vibrations. These traditional methods often have significant environmental impacts or involve extensive physical work.
Thus, O-Robotics offers easy and sustainable maintenance solutions for hard surfaces, including weed, algae, and moss removal, as well as trash and debris cleanup. Furthermore, the technology provides efficient leaf removal, plus snow and ice clearance.
Users and their needs
As outlined, typical grounds care needs for urban paved areas spans from dirt and trash removal to weed control, and snow and ice cleanup. This must be done across the entire society and thus this problem adheres to all customer segments. O-Robotics believes that the true value of a technological innovation lies in its ability to address and solve real-word problems effectively.
“Customers don’t buy a robot; they buy a solution to a problem. “
The AMR-Sweeper is designed for use in the professional sector, including professional gardeners, groundskeepers, facility management, and industrial facilities with large outdoor areas. Furthermore, large areas such as hospitals, universities, elder homes, municipalities, open military facilities, and highway rest stops are also within the scope of O-Robotics.
O-Robotics’ multipurpose robot is designed to operate 24 hours a day, providing nighttime service for extended work periods and meeting the needs of facilities that are busy during the daytime. Moreover, AMR-Sweeper ensures year-round maintenance for all outdoor needs.
This project is based in Denmark; hence the initial collaborations will be focused locally. However, there is a strong interest in expanding the service across Europe and potentially to other regions as well.
Service/ system concept
The AMR-Sweeper is a versatile, eco-friendly robot designed for various maintenance and groundskeeping tasks for 365 days of the year.
For weed removal, the AMR-Sweeper uses its sturdy brushes to dislodge weeds from paved surfaces without labor or chemicals, making it ideal for large outdoor areas. During winter, it de-ices and clears snow from pathways using advanced sensors and an attachable salting bin, ensuring pedestrian safety. The robot brushes turn leaves into biodegradable particles to enrich the soil, adapting to different environmental conditions and tight spaces. It collects small trash using a clip-on collector bin all-year-round with its high-speed brushes and advanced navigation to maintain cleanliness in urban areas and large public spaces. For algae and moss, the sweeper ensures a non-slippery, safe environment by regular maintenance, even in wet and cold conditions. As the saying goes "A rolling stone gathers no moss.".
The robot is equipped with a charging station powered externally or by solar energy.
Space Added Value
The core technology of the AMR-Sweeper mimics the most state-of-the-art robot lawnmowers utilizing Satellite Navigation and Machine Vision to remove the need for a boundary wire.
A significant challenge in deploying current robotic technologies in urban environment is the reflected signals and no line of sight for Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS). O-Robotics is exploring emerging GNSS technologies, such as Galileo HAS and multi-constellation receivers, and assessing the potential of combining GNSS with Visual Simultaneous Localization and Mapping through sensor fusion. Edge-computational power has exploded the last few years enabling more Machine Learning directly on robots to aid navigation.
Altogether, satellite navigation is critical in robotics for enabling precise, global positioning, especially in challenging outdoor environments. It ensures that the AMR-Sweeper robots can navigate autonomously, coordinate movements, and maintain accuracy over long periods.
Current Status
At present O-Robotics has developed a few early-stage hardware pretotypes to conceptualize the mechanical implementation of the AMR-Sweeper. Expanding the AMR-Sweeper from a remote-controlled platform to an autonomous mobile robot is the remaining critical challenge to be solved ahead of the possibility to launch the AMR-Sweeper as an MVP to kickstart O-Robotics’ market entry.
The next iteration of the autonomous prototype is currently under development, with pilot tests planned for 2025 in collaboration with potential early customers. Simultaneously, three common satellite navigation setups are being evaluated for optimal performance.
O-Robotics is fully committed to implementing the AMR Sweeper to support sustainable city development in alignment with the UN’s Goal 11: Sustainable Cities and Communities. Additionally, O-Robotics' team is dedicated to assisting customers in achieving the Green Key certification for their facilities, reinforcing the active commitment to sustainability.
Prime Contractor(s)
