The mower does not need the internet. Here is what does.
An autonomous mower doesn't need internet connectivity to mow. RTK positioning runs off a local base station. Signal is for alerts and remote support only.
Does an autonomous mower need internet connectivity to mow?
No, navigation and mowing run off RTK corrections from a base station on your site, sent over local radio, so it holds the same lines with five bars or none. What needs a connection is the knowing, alerts and remote support, not the cutting.
A fair question from anyone running a remote site: what happens to an autonomous mower when the signal drops?
The honest answer needs a distinction most sales pitches skip. Navigation and mowing do not use the internet at all. The machine positions itself off RTK corrections from a base station on your site, sent over local radio. Accuracy is about two centimetres, and it holds the same lines cycle after cycle whether the site has five bars or none.
Two limits worth knowing. Metal panel rows soak up radio, so effective base range on a solar site is around a kilometre, which means big sites run several base stations and machines move between zones. And if the machine loses its RTK fix, it rides through short dropouts of a few minutes, then stops rather than guessing. A mower that keeps cutting blind is not a feature.
What does need connectivity is the knowing. Remote monitoring, live status, alerts. Without signal the machine still mows, you just cannot watch it from your desk.
Which leads to the insight that shapes how we run sites: connectivity solves knowing, not fixing. A bogged machine with perfect 4G is still bogged. The win from monitoring is catching things early and dispatching the right fix once, not pretending a dashboard is a field crew.
So when you assess any autonomous system, split the question in two. How does it navigate when the signal is gone, and what do you stop knowing. Suppliers who cannot answer those separately have not run one remotely.
Common questions
What happens to an RTK mower when the internet drops out?
Nothing, to the mowing. Positioning comes from the on-site base station over local radio, not the internet. What you lose is alerts and remote support until the signal comes back.
What happens if the mower loses its RTK fix?
It rides through short dropouts of a few minutes, then stops rather than guessing. A mower that keeps cutting blind is not a feature.
How far does an RTK base station reach on a solar site?
Around a kilometre, because metal panel rows soak up radio. Bigger sites run several base stations and the machine moves between zones.
Can I watch the mower live from my desk?
Not this year. With a connection you get alerts and remote support, not a live dashboard. And a dashboard is not a field crew anyway; a bogged machine with perfect 4G is still bogged.
How accurate is RTK positioning on a robot mower?
About two centimetres. It holds the same lines cycle after cycle.
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AutoAcre is an autonomous mowing operator based in the Northern Rivers, NSW, focused on solar-farm and commercial vegetation management. ben@autoacre.com.au