A typical modern gasoline-powered mower.

A modified 250cc racing lawnmower

A lawn mower or lawnmower is a machine that has one or more revolving blades to cut a lawn at an even length. Image File history File linksMetadata Size of this preview: 800 × 596 pixelsFull resolution (2576 × 1920 pixel, file size: 1. ... Image File history File linksMetadata Size of this preview: 800 × 596 pixelsFull resolution (2576 × 1920 pixel, file size: 1. ... Lawn mower racing began amongst enthusiasts in the U.S.A. where it has grown to have its own national organization called the U.S. Lawn Mower Racing Association. ...

Lawn mowers employing a blade that rotates about a vertical axis are known as rotary mowers, while those employing a blade assembly that rotates about a horizontal axis are known as cylinder or reel mowers.

Many different designs have been made, each suited to a particular purpose. The smallest types, pushed by a human, are suitable for small residential lawns and gardens, while larger, self-contained, ride-on mowers are suitable for large lawns, and the largest, multi-gang mowers pulled behind a tractor, are designed for large expanses of grass such as golf courses and municipal parks. This article is about modern humans. ... For other uses, see Garden (disambiguation). ... This article is about the sport. ... This article needs additional references or sources to facilitate its verification. ...

History

A late 19th century reel mower.

The first lawn mower was invented by English engineer Edwin Beard Budding in 1827. Budding's mower was designed primarily to cut the lawn on sports grounds and expensive gardens as a superior alternative to the scythe. His patent of 25 October 1830 described "a new combination and application of machinery for the purpose of cropping or shearing the vegetable surfaces of lawns, grass-plats and pleasure grounds." The patent went on to state, "country gentlemen may find in using my machine themselves an amusing, useful and healthy exercise." It took ten more years and further innovations to create a machine that could be worked by donkey or horse power, and sixty years before a steam-powered lawn mower was built. In an agreement between John Ferrabee and Edwin Budding dated May 18, 1830, Ferrabee paid the costs of development, obtained letters of patent and acquired rights to manufacture, sell and license other manufacturers in the production of lawn mowers. (The agreement is housed in the Stroud Museum). One of the first Budding and Ferrabee machines was used in Regent's Park Zoological Gardens in London, in 1831. Image File history File links Download high resolution version (1300x1150, 80 KB) Summary A reel lawn mower, adapted from an illustration used in an advertisement in the Feb. ... Image File history File links Download high resolution version (1300x1150, 80 KB) Summary A reel lawn mower, adapted from an illustration used in an advertisement in the Feb. ... Alternative meaning: Nineteenth Century (periodical) (18th century — 19th century — 20th century — more centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 19th century was that century which lasted from 1801-1900 in the sense of the Gregorian calendar. ... Edwin Beard Budding (1795-1846)an engineer from Stroud, Gloucestershire, England was the English inventor of the lawnmower (1830) and adjustable spanner. ... A lawn is an area of recreational or amenity land planted with grass, and sometimes clover and other plants, which are maintained at a low, even height. ... A traditional wooden scythe A scythe (IPA: , most likely from Old English siðe, sigði) is an agricultural hand tool for mowing and reaping grass or crops. ... is the 298th day of the year (299th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Liberty Leading the People by Eugène Delacroix commemorates the July Revolution 1830 (MDCCCXXX) was a common year starting on Friday (see link for calendar). ... is the 138th day of the year (139th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Liberty Leading the People by Eugène Delacroix commemorates the July Revolution 1830 (MDCCCXXX) was a common year starting on Friday (see link for calendar). ... For other places with the same name, see Stroud (disambiguation). ... The giant ZSL London Zoo aviary ZSL London Zoo is the worlds oldest scientific zoo. ... This article is about the capital of England and the United Kingdom. ...

Manufacture of lawn mowers began in the 1860s. By 1862, Farrabee's company was making eight models in various roller sizes up to 900 mm (36 inches). He manufactured over five thousand machines until production ceased in 1863. Thomas Green produced the first chain driven mower in 1859, named the Silens Messor. In 1870, Elwood McGuire of Richmond, Indiana designed a human-pushed lawn mower, which was very lightweight and a commercial success. On May 9, 1899, an improved cylinder mower was patented in U.S. Patent 624,749 , with the wheel placement altered for better performance. Amariah M. Hills went on to found the Archimedean Lawn Mower Co. in 1871. Around 1900, one of the best known English machines was the Ransomes' Automaton, available in chain- or gear-driven models. JP Engineering of Leicester, founded after World War I, produced a range of very popular chain driven mowers. About this time, an operator could ride behind animals that pulled the large machines. These were the first riding mowers. Richmond (IPA: ) is a city in east central Indiana, which borders Ohio. ... Ransomes, Sims and Jeffries Engineers of Ipswich were a major British agricultural machinery maker. ... “The Great War ” redirects here. ...

The rise in popularity of sports such as lawn tennis, croquet, cricket, football and rugby helped prompt the spread of the invention. Lawn mowers became a more efficient alternative to simply relying on gardeners wielding the scythe (which, when placed in incompetent hands, left unsightly scars on and in the ground) or bare spaces caused by domesticated grazing animals. James Sumner of Lancashire patented the first steam-powered lawn mower in 1893. His machine burned petrol and/or paraffin oil (kerosene) as a fuel. After numerous advances, the machines were sold by the Stott Fertilizer and Insecticide Company of Manchester and later, the Sumner's took over sales. The company they controlled was called the Leyland Steam Motor Company. Numerous manufacturers entered the field with gasoline-driven mowers after the turn of the century. The first grass boxes were flat trays but took their present shape in the 1860s. The roller-drive lawn mower has changed very little since around 1930. Gang mowers, those with multiple sets of blades, were built in the United States in 1919 by a Mister Worthington. His company was taken over by the Jacobsen Corporation but his name is still cast on the frames of their gang units. This article is about the sport, tennis. ... For the Smalltalk based 3D software platform, see Croquet project. ... This article is about the sport. ... Look up Football in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... For other uses, see Rugby (disambiguation). ... A traditional wooden scythe A scythe (IPA: , most likely from Old English siðe, sigði) is an agricultural hand tool for mowing and reaping grass or crops. ... Grazing To feed on growing herbage, attached algae, or phytoplankton. ... Lancashire is a non-metropolitan county of historic origin in the North West of England, bounded to the west by the Irish Sea. ... // The term steam engine may also refer to an entire railroad steam locomotive. ... Kerosene or kerosine, also called paraffin oil or paraffin in British usage (not to be confused with the waxy solid also called paraffin wax or just paraffin) is a flammable hydrocarbon liquid. ... This article is about the City of Manchester in England. ... Leyland flatbed Leyland Motors was a British vehicle manufacturer of lorries and buses. ... Year 1919 (MCMXIX) was a common year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar). ...

An early Victa rotary mower - National Museum

Rotary mowers were not developed until engines were small enough and powerful enough to run the blades at a high speed. In the 1930s, Power Specialties Ltd. introduced a gasoline-powered rotary mower. One company that produced rotary mowers commercially was the Australian Victa company, starting in 1947. Early in the 1930s, experiments in design of rotary mowing equipment were conducted by a farmer in the Midwest region of the United States, by the name of C.C Stacy. His concept was the use of a toothed circular saw blade mounted horizontally on a vertical shaft, which would be suspended at a height of approximately 2" and moved across a lawn to cut grass and other lawn vegetation at a uniform height. The power for his experimental mower was an electric motor. Image File history File links Download high resolution version (1600x1067, 321 KB) Early Victa Mower - National Museum Canberra File links The following pages link to this file: Lawn mower ... Image File history File links Download high resolution version (1600x1067, 321 KB) Early Victa Mower - National Museum Canberra File links The following pages link to this file: Lawn mower ...

The success of Stacy's design was limited by 2 factors: the relatively small diameter of the saw blades he used for his experiments, which were about 8"; and the fact that toothed circular saw blades are not an ideal tool for cutting free-standing grass and other plants. Stacy did not come up with any idea for a cutter similar to modern rotary mower straight blades, and soon dropped his experiments with rotary mowing. He never submitted any of his ideas for patent, although drawings of his ideas still exist and are in the possession of family members. Late in life, Stacy, deceased in 1993, asserted that his ideas for rotary mowing equipment originated with him, and he had never seen or heard of any mowing equipment other than cylinder or reel type mowers prior to formulating his ideas. He lamented jokingly that if he had pursued and patented the concept, his family name might have become as well known as Jacobson, that of a prominent mower manufacturer in the first half of the 20th century.

Criticism and safety problems

The two main issues with the popular gasoline mower are air pollution and safety. Studies have shown that such a mower emits the same amount of pollution (emissions other than carbon dioxide) in one hour as driving a car for 650 miles.^[1] This is largely due to the lack of any emissions equipment on most lawn mowers; cars have had catalytic converters, fuel injection, and other emissions-control devices for decades, while most mowers have little more than a simple muffler and carburetor. Their single-cylinder engines also need to run with a richer fuel-air mixture because of the irregular flow through the carburetor, leading to incomplete combustion. This is true of all small gasoline engines; the United States Environmental Protection Agency reports, for example, that "recreational watercraft can emit as much as 348 cars". ^[2] Carbon dioxide (chemical formula: ) is a chemical compound composed of two oxygen atoms covalently bonded to a single carbon atom. ... In an automobiles exhaust system, a catalytic converter provides an environment for a chemical reaction where unburned hydrocarbons completely combust. ... // Fuel injection is a system of fuel delivery for mixture with air in an internal combustion engine. ... This article is about the engine piece. ... Bendix-Technico (Stromberg) 1-barrel downdraft carburetor model BXUV-3, with nomenclature A carburetor (North American spelling) or carburettor (Commonwealth spelling), is a device that blends air and fuel for an internal combustion engine. ...

In addition, rotary mowers can also throw out debris with tremendous force. In the US, there are over 80,000 people per year who are hospitalized due to mower accidents. ^[3] The vast majority of these injuries could be avoided by wearing footwear while mowing. The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends that children be 12 before they mow. The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) is an organization of pediatricians, physicians trained to deal with the medical care of infants, children, and adolescents. ...

A further problem that people have with petrol powered lawn mowers, especially those with a 'zip' start pulling cord mechanism is that it is often very difficult and cumbersome to start, especially as the mower starts to age. Proper care of the engine can delay this problem.

Another risk of lawn mowing is Pneumonic Tularemia.^[4] Tularemia (also known as rabbit fever) is an infectious disease caused by the bacterium Francisella tularensis. ...

Types of lawn mower

Reel (cylinder) mowers

Rear quarter view of a push mower showing a fixed cutting blade in front of the rear roller and wheel-driven rotary blades

The reel mower was the original form of mechanical mower for lawns, and the mechanism has changed little over the years. A horizontal cutting blade is carried close to the grass, at the desired height of cut. Over this is a fast spinning reel of blades. Each blade in the reel forms a helix around the reel axis, and the set of spinning blades describes a cylinder. The spinning blades force the grass past the cutting bar. Image File history File links Size of this preview: 619 × 600 pixel Image in higher resolution (1000 × 969 pixel, file size: 119 KB, MIME type: image/png) File links The following pages on the English Wikipedia link to this file (pages on other projects are not listed): Lawn mower ... Image File history File links Size of this preview: 619 × 600 pixel Image in higher resolution (1000 × 969 pixel, file size: 119 KB, MIME type: image/png) File links The following pages on the English Wikipedia link to this file (pages on other projects are not listed): Lawn mower ...

Of all the mowers, a properly adjusted reel mower makes the cleanest cut of the grass,^[5] and this allows the grass to heal quicker. The cutting action is often likened to that of scissors; however, it is not necessary for the blades of the spinning reel to contact the horizontal cutting bar.^[6] If the gap between the blades is less than the thickness of the grass, a clean cut can still be made.

There are many variants of the reel mower. Push mowers (illustrated) have no motor and are used on small lawns. As the mower is pushed along, the wheels drive gears which rapidly spin the reel. Typical cutting widths are 12 to 20 inches.

The basic push mower mechanism is also used in gangs towed behind a tractor. The individual mowers are arranged in a vee behind the tractor with each mower's track slightly overlapping that of the mower in front of it. Gang mowers are used over large areas of turf such as sports fields or parks.

An engine can be added to a walk-behind mower to power the reel, the wheels, or both. A typical arrangement for residential lawns has either an electric or an internal combustion engine spinning the reel while the operator pushes the mower along. The electric models can be corded or battery powered. Some variants have only 3 blades in a reel spinning at great speed, and these models can cut grass which has grown too long for ordinary push mowers.^[7] One type of walk-behind is now largely obsolete. These were powered versions of the traditional, side wheel push mower and were used on residential lawns. An internal combustion engine sat atop the reel housing and drove the wheels, usually though a belt. The wheels in turn drove the reel, as in the push mower.

Greens (roller) mowers are used for the precision cutting of golf greens. The reel is followed by a large roller which smooths the freshly cut lawn and minimizes wheel marks. Due to their weight, the engine also propels the mower.^[8] Much smaller and lighter variants of the roller mower are sometimes used for small patches of ornamental lawns around flower beds, and these have no engine.^[9]

Riding reel mowers are also produced. Typically, the cutting reels are ahead of the vehicle's main wheels, so that the grass can be cut before the wheels push the grass over onto the ground. The reels are often hydraulically powered.

Rotary mowers

Electric rotary lawn mower with rear grass catcher.

A mulching blade.

Rotary mowers are often powered by internal combustion engines. Such engines can be either two-stroke or four-stroke cycle engines, running on gasoline or other liquid fuels. Internal combustion engines used with lawn mowers normally have only one cylinder. Power generally ranges from two to seven horsepower (1.5 to 5.25 kW). The engines are usually carbureted and require a manual pull crank to start them, although an electric start is becoming a sales feature in some countries. In the past rotary mowers had a manually controlled throttle to increase or decrease engine speed. Newer models usually have a pre-set throttle speed that prevents over-revving and improves engine life. Photo of electric mower, taken October 2003 by User:Stan Shebs who is clearly wikipediholic, and licensed under GFDL, 250px across File history Legend: (cur) = this is the current file, (del) = delete this old version, (rev) = revert to this old version. ... Photo of electric mower, taken October 2003 by User:Stan Shebs who is clearly wikipediholic, and licensed under GFDL, 250px across File history Legend: (cur) = this is the current file, (del) = delete this old version, (rev) = revert to this old version. ... Image File history File links Photo of underside of electric lawn mover, taken October 2003 by User:Stan Shebs File links The following pages link to this file: Lawn mower User:Stan Shebs/Gallery/Miscellaneous ... Image File history File links Photo of underside of electric lawn mover, taken October 2003 by User:Stan Shebs File links The following pages link to this file: Lawn mower User:Stan Shebs/Gallery/Miscellaneous ... A colorized automobile engine The internal combustion engine is an engine in which the combustion of fuel and an oxidizer (typically air) occurs in a confined space called a combustion chamber. ... The two-stroke cycle of an internal combustion engine differs from the more common four-stroke cycle by completing the same four processes (intake, compression, power, exhaust) in only two strokes of the piston rather than four. ... Today Internal combustion engines in cars, trucks, motorcycles, construction machinery and many others, most commonly use a four-stroke cycle. ... Look up gasoline in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... Liquid fuels are those combustible or energy-generating molecules which can be harnessed to create mechanical energy, which in turn usually produces kinetic energy, and which also must take the shape of their container. ... This article is about a unit of measurement. ... Bendix-Technico (Stromberg) 1-barrel downdraft carburetor model BXUV-3, with nomenclature A carburetor (North American spelling) or carburettor (Commonwealth spelling), is a device that blends air and fuel for an internal combustion engine. ...

Rotary mowers powered by electric motors are increasingly popular. Usually, these mowers are moved by manual motive power— the on-board engine or motor only spins the blades. These have the disadvantage of requiring a trailing power cord that limits its range and so these are only useful for relatively small lawns, close to a power socket. There is the obvious hazard with these machines of mowing over the power cable, which stops the mower and may put users at risk of electrocution. Installing a residual-current device (GFCI) on the outlet can reduce the risk of electrocution. Cordless (battery powered) electric lawn mowers are also available for small lawns. Electric rotary mowers weigh 45-50 pounds. For other kinds of motors, see motor. ... Sign warning of possible electric shock hazard An electric shock can occur upon contact of a humans body with any source of voltage high enough to cause sufficient current flow through the muscles or hair. ... A residual current device (RCD) A residual current device (RCD), or residual current circuit breaker (RCCB), is an electrical wiring device that disconnects a circuit whenever it detects that the flow of current is not balanced between the phase (hot) conductor and the neutral conductor. ...

The deck of a rotary mower is typically made of steel. Lighter steel is used on less expensive models, heavier on more expensive, which lasts longer. Other deck materials include aluminum, which doesn't rust and is a staple of higher priced mowers, and hard composite plastic, which doesn't rust and is lighter and less expensive than aluminum. Electric mowers typically have a plastic deck.

Rotary mowers typically have an opening in the side or rear of the housing where the cut grass is expelled. Some have a grass catcher attachment at the opening to bag the grass clippings. Special mulching blades are available for rotary mowers. The blade is designed to keep the clippings circulating underneath the mower until the clippings are chopped quite small. Other designs have twin blades to mulch the clippings to small pieces. This avoids the need for bagging the clippings or raking the clippings. Not only does this save labor, as no organics are removed from the lawn, less fertilizer is needed. Mower manufacturers market their mowers as side discharge, 2-in-1, meaning bagging and mulching or side discharging and mulching, and 3-in-1, meaning bagging, mulching, and side discharge. Most 2 in 1 bagging and mulching mowers require a separate attachment to discharge grass onto the lawn. Some side discharge mower manufacturers also sell separate "mulching plates" that will cover the opening on the side discharge mower and, in combination with the proper blades, will convert the mower to a mulching mower. These conversions are impractical when compared with 2 or 3-in-1 mowers which can be converted in the field in seconds. There are two types of bagging mowers. A rear bag mower features an opening on the back of the mower through which the grass is expelled into the bag. Hi-vac mowers have a tunnel that extends from the side discharge to the bag. Hi-vac is also the type of grass collection used on riding lawn mowers and lawn tractors and is considered more efficient. Bag mowers are limited to smaller yards unless the operator wants to empty the bag several times during cutting. Mulching and bagging mowers are not well suited to long grass or thick weeds. According to Consumer Reports, despite all of the new grass collecting/mulching technology, most Americans continue to use side-discharge when mowing. In agriculture and gardening, mulch is a protective cover placed over the soil, primarily to modify the effects of the local climate. ... Spreading manure, an organic fertilizer Fertilizers (also spelled fertilisers) are compounds given to plants to promote growth; they are usually applied either via the soil, for uptake by plant roots, or by foliar feeding, for uptake through leaves. ... Consumer Reports is an American magazine published monthly by Consumers Union. ...

A dead man's switch is required in some places so that the operator must hold a switch to keep the engine running. Typically, this is an extra bar that is held against the handle. Should the operator lose control of, or contact with, the lawn mower and release the bar, either the engine is turned off or the blade is disconnected by disengaging a clutch. Most higher priced mowers (and many at lower prices) have a manually activated blade clutch that allows the operator to stop the blade rotating without turning off the motor. A dead mans switch (for other names, see Alternative names), as its name suggests, is a device intended to stop a machine in case the human operator becomes incapacitated, and is a form of fail-safe. ... For other uses, see Clutch (disambiguation). ...

Rotary mowers come in three price ranges. Low priced mowers use older technology, smaller motors, and lighter steel decks. These mowers are targeted at the residential market and typically price is the most important selling point. These mowers are sold through large discount and home improvement stores, range between $100-$400 and have a typical service life of 7-10 years. Higher priced mowers are also primarily targeted at residential customers. These mowers have more features and often have heavier steel, composite plastic or aluminum decks. Most of these mowers are sold through independent dealers who also service the equipment and cost between $400 and $1000. These mowers will last as much as twenty years given regular maintenance. Commercial grade mowers are the most expensive rotary mowers. They are "targeted" at grounds maintenance companies and other professionals, but are commonly sold to home owners as well. These mowers feature the latest technology and include features like disk drive, oil filters, and very heavy steel and, more often, aluminum decks. These mowers are sold through independent dealers who service the product and have a service life far beyond twenty years given regular maintenance. A commercial grade mower typically costs well over $1000. For other uses, see Steel (disambiguation). ... In finance, discounting is the process of finding the current value of an amount of cash at some future date, and along with compounding cash from the basis of time value of money calculations. ... This article is about the television series. ... For other uses, see Plastic (disambiguation). ... Aluminum is a soft and lightweight metal with a dull silvery appearance, due to a thin layer of oxidation that forms quickly when it is exposed to air. ...

Riding (ride-on) mowers

A z-turn mower on the campus of Harvard Business School.

A popular alternative for larger lawns is the riding (or ride-on) mower. The operator is provided with a seat and controls on the mower and literally 'rides' on the machine. Most use the horizontal rotating blade system, though usually with multiple blades. Image File history File linksMetadata Riding-mower-hbs. ... Image File history File linksMetadata Riding-mower-hbs. ... Harvard Business School, officially named the Harvard Business School: George F. Baker Foundation, and also known as HBS, is one of the graduate schools of Harvard University. ...

A common form of ride-on mower is the lawn tractor. These are usually designed to resemble a small agricultural tractor, with the cutting deck mounted amidships between the front and rear axles. For other uses, see Tractor (disambiguation). ...

The drives for these mowers are in several categories. The most common transmission for tractors is a manual transmission. The second most common transmssion type is a form of continuously variable transmission called the hydrostatic transmission. These transmissions take several forms, from pumps driving separate motors, which may incorporate a gear reduction, to fully integrated units containing a pump, motor and gear reduction. Hydrostatic transmissions are more expensive than mechanical transmissions but they are easier to use and can transmit greater torque to the wheels as compared to a typical mechanical transmission. The least common drive type, and the most expensive, is electric. The continuously variable transmission (CVT) is a transmission in which the ratio of the rotational speeds of two shafts, as the input shaft and output shaft of a vehicle or other machine, can be varied continuously within a given range, providing an infinite number of possible ratios. ...

There have been a number of attempts to replace hydrostatic transmissions with a lower cost alternative, but these attempts, which include variable belt types (e.g., MTD's Auto Drive) and toroidal, have various performance or perception problems that has caused their market life to be short or their market penetration to be limited.

Riding lawnmowers can often mount other devices such as rototillers, snowplows, snowblowers, yard vacuums, occassionally even front buckets or fork-lift tines.

Hover mowers

Hover mowers are powered rotary push mowers that use a turbine above the spinning blades to drive air downwards, thereby creating an air cushion that lifts the mower off the ground like a hovercraft. The operator can then easily move the mower as it floats over the grass. Hover mowers are necessarily light in order to achieve the air cushion and typically have plastic bodies with an electric motor, although small petrol-engine versions are also available. A different style of movement is often employed with hover mowers whereby operators swing the mower in an arc around themselves because there are no wheels touching the ground to impede movement in sideways directions. A Siemens steam turbine with the case opened. ... The force lift, or simply lift, is a mechanical force generated by solid objects as they move through a fluid. ... For the band, see Hovercraft (band). ...

Hover mowers can also be applied to very long grass and even light scrub, since their lightness permits most operators to lift the mower up and then let it sink slowly down while the blades progressively chop up the vegetation. The lifting action is made even easier when the mower is swung around with the handle held against the operator's mid-body to provide leverage. Scrubland is plant community characterized by scrub vegetation. ...

Robotic mowers

Husqvarna automower in action.

Robotic lawn mowers represented the second largest category of household autonomous robots used by the end of 2005. A typical robotic lawn mower requires the user to set up a border wire around the lawn that defines the area to be mowed. The robot uses this wire to trim and in some cases to locate a recharging dock. Robotic mowers are capable of maintaining up to 5 acres of grass. Electricity usage varies from about 100 watts (comparable to a light bulb) for 1/2 acre to 500 watts (comparable to a refrigerator) to maintain 5 acres. Image File history File links Size of this preview: 800 × 561 pixelsFull resolution (2220 × 1556 pixel, file size: 584 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) Husquarna automower, taken by me 2007-06-02 I, the creator of this work, hereby release it into the public domain. ... Image File history File links Size of this preview: 800 × 561 pixelsFull resolution (2220 × 1556 pixel, file size: 584 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) Husquarna automower, taken by me 2007-06-02 I, the creator of this work, hereby release it into the public domain. ... Husqvarna AB is a Swedish company that is one of the worlds largest manufactures of chain saws, lawn and garden equipment, and cutting equipment for the stone and construction industries. ... For other uses, see robot (disambiguation). ... Autonomous robots are robots which can perform desired tasks in unstructured environments without continuous human guidance. ...

Robotic lawn mowers are increasingly sophisticated, are self-docking and contain rain sensors nearly eliminating human interaction for mowing grass.

Professional mowers

Professional grass-cutting equipment (used by large establishments such as universities, sports stadiums or local authorities and suchlike) usually take the form of much larger, dedicated, ride-on platforms or attachments that can be mounted on, or behind, a standard tractor unit (a "gang-mower"). Either type may use rotating-blade or cylindrical-blade type cutters, although good-quality mowed surfaces demand the latter. Wide-area mowers (WAMs) are commercial grade mowers which have decks extended to either side, many to 12 feet. These extensions can be lowered for large area mowing or raised to decrease the mower's width and allow for easy transport on city roads or trailers

See also

Wikimedia Commons has media related to:

Lawn mower

• Groundskeeping, groundskeeping equipment
• Robomower
• Gardening
• Lawn mower racing
• Organic lawn management
• String trimmer
• Flymo
• Grasscycling
• Roll over protection structure (for lawn tractors or ride-on mowers)
• RoboticLawnMower

Groundskeeping is the activity of tending an area of land for aesthetic purposes. ... groundskeeping equipment are pieces of equipment used in groundskeeping, including: mowers small tractors string trimmers snow blowers small snow plows rotary brushes ... The Robomow is a robotic mulching lawnmower made by Friendly Robotics. ... A gardener Gardening is the practice of growing flowering plants, vegetables, and fruits. ... Lawn mower racing began amongst enthusiasts in the U.S.A. where it has grown to have its own national organization called the U.S. Lawn Mower Racing Association. ... Organic lawn management is the practice of establishing and caring for a garden lawn without the use of chemical inputs such as pesticides or artificial fertilisers. ... // A string trimmer, also called a line trimmer, edge trimmer, Weedeater (a brandname), Weedwhacker, weedy, whipper snipper, strimmer, garden strimmer, or bush cutter is a powered handheld device that uses a flexible monofilament line instead of a blade for cutting grass and other plants near objects. ... The Flymo hover mower was invented by Karl Dahlmen in 1964 after seeing Sir Christopher Cockerells Hovercraft machine. ... Grasscycling refers to leaving grass clippings on the lawn when mowing. ... Roll Over Protection Structure (ROPS) refers to operator compartment structures, usually on heavy equipment used in construction and agriculture, intended to protect equipment operators from injuries caused by vehicle overturns. ...

Notes and references

• Halford, David G. Old Lawn Mowers - Shire publications LTD. 1999. 

Patents

US patent Lawn mowers

• U.S. Patent 7,117,660 , Filed Apr 12, 2000, Issued Oct 10, 2006. Self-propelled lawn mower [ed., self-propelled lawn mower comprising a microprocessor and at least one cutter]
• U.S. Patent 4,964,265 , Filed Sep 11, 1989, Issued Oct 23, 1990. [ed., remote control lawn mower]
• U.S. Patent 1,050,799 , Filied Mar 28, 1910, Issued Jan 21, 1913 [ed., Stephen Foster Briggs gas engine igniter]
• U.S. Patent 624,749 , Lawn mower. Filed Sep 8, 1898, Issued May 9, 1899.^[1] (ed., John Albert Burr, African-American inventor)
• U.S. Patent 210,654 , Filed Sep 30, 1878, Issued Dec 10, 1878. [ed., leaf catcher]
• U.S. Patent 190,994 , Issued May 22, 1877. [ed., leaf catcher]
• U.S. Patent 158,794 , Filed Nov 28, 1874, Issued Jan 19, 1875.
• U.S. Patent 73,807  [ed., roller mower]
• U.S. Patent 69,409  [ed. Titled "lawn mower".]

US patent Mowing machines

• U.S. Patent 38,381 
• U.S. Patent 33,578 
• U.S. Patent 32,244 
• U.S. Patent 31,668 , Issued Mar 12, 1861.

Designs

• U.S. Patent D346,809 , Filed Apr 24, 1992, Issued May 10, 1994. [ed., remote control lawn mower design]

Reissued US patent

• U.S. Patent RE3,330 , Issued Mar 16, 1869.

Stephen Foster Briggs (1885-1976) was an American engineer, co-founder of the company manufacturing Briggs and Stratton small internal-combustion engines. ...

External links

Historical

• The Old Lawnmower Club – vintage lawn mowers

  their History of Lawnmowers article

• British Lawnmower Museum – index to photographs of vintage British lawn mowers
• http://www.vintagemowers.net/ Vintage Lawnmowers site

Guides

• Lawn Mowers Guide
• Garden Guide UK - Lawnmower Guide
• Lawn Mowers and Garden Tractor Guide
• Mowing Emissions and Clean Air Alternatives
• How Robot lawn mowers work
• Current lawn mowers

Recreational

• The U.S. Lawnmower Racing Association
• the.lawn.mower – lawn mower entertainment and education site
• All-Terrain Lawn Mower Association

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For other uses, see Tool (disambiguation). ... a Cutting Tool, in the context of Metalworking is any tool that is used to remove metal from the workpiece by means of shear deformation. ... Adze The tool known as the adze [pronounced adds] serves for smoothing rough-cut wood in hand woodworking. ... Axe For other uses, see Axe (disambiguation). ... A blade is the flat part of a tool or weapon that normally has a cutting edge and/or pointed end typically made of a metal, most recently, steel intentionally used to cut, stab, slice, throw, thrust, or strike an animate or inainimate object. ... Bolt cutters A bolt cutter is a scissors-like tool used for cutting heavy chains, bolts and wire mesh. ... A push style 5/16 keyway broach A broach is a series of chisel points mounted on one piece of steel. ... Ceramic tile cutters are used to cut tiles to a required size or shape. ... For other uses, see Chainsaw (disambiguation). ... A countersink is a tapered hole drilled with a wide outer portion. ... Several types of endmills An endmill is a type of Milling cutter, a cutting tool used in industrial milling applications. ... A froe is cleaving tool having a heavy blade set at right angles to the handle, used for woodworking. ... This article is about the tool. ... Drill bits are cutting tools used to create cylindrical holes. ... modern factory-made Machete For other uses, see Machete (disambiguation). ... Milling cutters are cutting tools used in milling machines or machining centres. ... Collection of Modern Safety Razors - Gillette Fusion Power, Gillette M3Power, Mach3 Turbo Champion, Schick Quattro Chrome, Schick Quattro Power, Gillette Mach3, Gillette Sensor, Schick Xtreme3, Schick Xtreme SubZero, and Schick Xtreme3 Disposables A razor is an edge tool primarily used in shaving. ... A reamer or ream is a tool for enlarging holes and is used in metalworking. ... Portable saw A saw is a tool for cutting wood or other material, consisting of a serrated blade (a blade with the cutting edge dentated or toothed) and worked either by hand or by steam, water, electric or other power. ... For other uses, see Scalpel (disambiguation). ... For other uses, see Scissors (disambiguation). ... Woodsplitting maul A splitting maul (or mall) is a heavy, long-handled hammer used for splitting a piece of wood along its grain. ... This article is about a type of knife. ... A tool bit generally refers to a plain High Speed Steel (HSS) tool. ... A diagram of a water jet cutter A water jet cutter is a tool capable of slicing into metal or other materials using a jet of water at high velocity and pressure, or a mixture of water and an abrasive substance. ... small spade for clay soil; the other one for sandy soil and loamy soil A garden tool is any one of many tools made for gardens and gardening and overlaps with the range of tools made for agriculture and horticulture. ... Cultivator A cultivator is a farm implement for stirring and pulverizing the soil, either before planting or to remove weeds and to aerate and loosen the soil after the crop has begun to grow. ... A garden fork differs from a pitchfork because it is designed for digging rather than for lifting. ... Garden hedges, which used to be cut with a knife or with pruning shears, can now be cut with a powered hedge trimmer. ... Agricultural square bladed hoe. ... Hori hori is a gardening tool originally from Japan. ... A lawn mower (often spelled as one word—lawnmower) is a machine (electric or mechnical) used to cut grass to an even length. ... A lawn aerator is a garden tool designed to aerate the soil in which lawn grasses grow. ... The leaf blower was invented by Japanese engineers in the early 1970s and introduced to the United States as a lawn and garden maintenance tool. ... A leaf sweeper can be pushed or towed. ... Loppers Loppers are a type of scissors used for pruning twigs and small branches. ... This article or section does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... This combination heavy duty rake and hoe tool is named after Ranter Malcolm McLeod. ... A mini-tractor, also known as a compact tractor, can be used for a variety of purposes in larger gardens: lawn mowing, leaf sweeping, cultivating, removing snow, pulling a cart. ... For other uses, see Pitchfork (disambiguation). ... The traditional way: a German farmer works the land with horses and plough. ... Sheares are doubled-bladed cutting implements with straight blades of between 200mm and 300mm. ... The pulaski is a special hand tool used in wildland firefighting. ... A heavy-duty rake for soil and rocks A light-duty rake for grass and leaves A double-sided rake A Rake better known as Kiran Buckman in various parts of Australia (Old English raca, cognate with Dutch raak, German Rechen, from a root meaning to scrape together, heap up... Secateurs, also called hand pruners, or loppers are a type of long scissors, with which one can prune branches of trees and shrubs. ... For other uses, see Spade (disambiguation). ... An underground sprinkler system about to be installed Irrigation sprinklers are used on farms, golf courses, residential yards, and other places to water crops, lawns, gardens or other plants in the event of drought. ... // A string trimmer, also called a line trimmer, edge trimmer, Weedeater (a brandname), Weedwhacker, weedy, whipper snipper, strimmer, garden strimmer, or bush cutter is a powered handheld device that uses a flexible monofilament line instead of a blade for cutting grass and other plants near objects. ... Please wikify (format) this article or section as suggested in the Guide to layout and the Manual of Style. ... A hand tool is a device for doing a particular job that does not use a motor, but is powered solely by the person using it. ... A Brace or Brace and bit is a hand tool used to drill holes. ... This article is about the tool. ... For other uses, see Clamp. ... Standard hacksaws. ... For other uses, see Hammer (disambiguation). ... A crossut handsaw In woodworking and carpentry, hand saws are used to cut pieces of wood into different shapes. ... A spirit level A spirit level or bubble level is an instrument designed to indicate whether a surface is level or plumb. ... Pickhandle redirects here. ... For the Jamaican singer, see Pliers (singer). ... A variety of punches are used in engineering. ... A basic screwdriver made by Craftsman (slotted tip shown) A rechargeable battery-powered electric screwdriver from Black & Decker The screwdriver is a device specifically designed to insert and tighten, or to loosen and remove, screws. ... For other uses, see Sponge (disambiguation). ... A torque wrench is a tool used to precisely set the force of a fastening such as a nut or bolt. ... A power tool is a tool with a motor. ... A bandsaw in use A bandsaw (often spelled band saw in the US) is a saw that can be used for woodworking, metal working, and a variety of other materials. ... Bosch belt sander Stationary belt sander. ... For other uses, see Chainsaw (disambiguation). ... Invented in England in 1780, the circular saw (also known as the buzz saw in the USA) is a metal disc or blade with saw teeth on the edge as well as the machine that causes the disk to spin. ... A concrete saw being readied for use. ... A crusher is a machine designed to reduce large solid chunks of raw material into smaller chunks. ... A diamond blade is a circular saw blade used for cutting hard or abrasive materials. ... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged into Sander. ... For other uses, see Drill (disambiguation). ... Rotating abrasive wheel on a bench grinder. ... Heat Gun Kit A heat gun is a device used to emit a stream of hot air. ... A 1/2 drive pistol-grip air impact wrench An impact wrench (also knows as an air wrench, air gun, or just gun in some contexts, as well as rattle gun in some countries) is a socket wrench power tool designed to deliver high torque output with minimal exertion by... A Bosch power jigsaw A jigsaw is a type of saw used for cutting arbitrary curves, such as stenciled designs or other custom shapes, into a piece of wood or similar material. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... Conventional metalworking lathe In woodturning, metalworking, metal spinning, and glassworking, a lathe is a machine tool which spins a block of material so that when abrasive, cutting, or deformation tools are applied to the block, it can be shaped to produce an object which has rotational symmetry about an axis... A radial arm saw is a machine intended for cutting materials to length. ... Random orbit sanders are hand-held power sanders where the action is a random orbit. ... A handheld power tool with a variety of rotating accessory bits and attachments that can be used for cutting, carving, sanding, polishing and many other applications. ... A sander is a power tool used to smooth wood and automotive or wood finishes. ... A table saw or sawbench is the most common piece of large woodworking equipment. ... A thicknesser (also known as a thickness planer) is a woodworking machine which is used to create boards that are of an even thickness throughout their length. ... A D-handle fixed-base router A router is a woodworking tool used to rout out (hollow out) an area in the face of a piece of wood. ... An antique tool is generally defined as a tool over 100 years old[], but often this definition is used more loosely to refer to any tool manufactured before World War II. The use of tools is one of the primary means by which humans are distinguished from animals. ... A diamond tool is a cutting tool which contains diamond segments for cutting through a wide variety of materials which other cutting tools cannot. ...

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