Members of the media, industry influencers and a collection of robotic mower dealers were all on site last week as SunSeeker debuted its latest autonomous lawn mower in Charlotte, North Carolina.
The new, wireless Orion X7 is the latest machine from Sunseeker, which was founded in 2009.
“This is truly the iPhone moment in outdoor power equipment,” says Justin Novosel, executive VP / GM of Sunseeker US. “Especially when it comes to robotic lawn mowers. It is a culmination of years of innovation and research.”
Not only does the latest model from Sunseeker have improved obstacle avoidance and customized path planning, but the collection of multiple technologies allows the Orion X7 to perform even better as a boundary-free robotic mower.
The technology includes RTK (real-time kinematics), Wi-Fi and dual AI cameras, something Sunseeker is introducing as AONavi — a proprietary technology.
“This allows us to centimeter of accuracy using a very innovative app,” Novosel says.
Sunseeker says that not depending on just Wi-Fi or solely RTK technology can improve the mower’s reliability.
“The three technologies together blend a complete picture of the yard,” says Matt Moore, director of sales (robotic) of Sunseeker US. “Instead of having a 75% coverage the goal here is to have 99% coverage.
The mower’s AI capabilities also allow for AI-assisted mapping to clearly map lawns and assists with multi-zone management so multiple lawns can be mapped and mowed together.
The Orion X7 is also improved for operating on tough terrains like under trees, narrow passageways corners, etc. where robotic mowers normally see signal loss
“All the systems are working simultaneously so there is no interruptions or drops in service,” Moore adds.
Naviagting tricky terrain is also improved with the design of the mower and its wheels. The all-wheel drive system is slightly different than other models and includes three-wheel turning.
The Orion X7 can climb up 70% incline slopes and the rubber treads on the tires have a safer grip and offer less damage to the grass.
The mower also includes Custom Path Planning with three options — traceless, standard (stripes) or custom.
A rain sensor is also included on the machine, where users can choose to operate in the rain or sensors will recognize the rain and keep the machine from running while it is raining.
Currently, the Orion X7 is a 0.75-acre machine. However, 1.5- and 3-acre models are coming very shortly.
“The Orion is three sizes,” Moore explains. “We have the .75 version, which is out now and we’ll have a 1.5 acre that’ll be out in a couple weeks and then a 3 acre model which will be out in a few months.”
Other packages including anti-theft and Super Wi-Fi are also available. The Super Wi-Fi includes antennas that help expand the mower’s range.
When it comes to the technology behind autonomous mowing, Moore says the Orion X7 is just the beginning.
“The advancement of wireless is just going to continue to grow,” Moore says. “Smarter systems will continue to evolve throughout the industry. We’ll get more fine tuning with RTK and the vision system and AI mapping will start having a lot more thinking process on the machine to make it smarter. If you put cell chips or SIM cards in the machines with 4G eventually you’ll be able to do exact positioning.”
A 4G module is expected to be available on the 1.5 and 3-acre models.
Novosel adds mowers are only the first thing in the industry to go fully autonomous, but he expects more to follow.
“We see this technology evolving into AI zero-turns or snow throwers,” Novosel says.
