From an existing mower to a mapped lawn
OpenMower replaces the mower's control electronics while reusing its chassis and motors. RTK GPS provides precise positioning, and you record the lawn boundaries, fixed obstacles, and routes between areas in the app. The mower then follows planned paths inside that map.
RTK needs satellite reception and correction data from a base station or an NTRIP service. Trees, buildings, and unreliable connectivity can limit operation. Check reception in your garden before committing to a build; mapped obstacles do not mean the mower can detect every new object in its path.
Which mowers can I convert?
The documentation includes YardForce Classic 500(B), SABO MOWit 500F, and John Deere Tango E5 builds. Compatibility depends on the exact model, chassis, and carrier board. Universal-board conversions need additional design and wiring work.
What should I budget?
Budget for the mower, OpenMower electronics, compute module, GPS receiver and antenna, and installation parts. A local RTK base station or a paid correction service can add to the total. Get current prices for your chosen hardware before ordering.
What does the build involve?
You will disassemble the mower, install electronics and antennas, configure the software and GPS corrections, then record and test your mowing areas. Allow time for troubleshooting beyond assembly. You should be comfortable with electronics, Linux commands, and mechanical work.
See the hardware and mowing in action
The project introduction shows the original conversion and GPS-guided mowing. The documentation also includes photos of installed carrier boards and the assembly process, so you can see what the work involves.
OpenMower is a complete custom implementation — software, firmware, and mostly open hardware — that replaces the closed, manufacturer-controlled stack of robotic mowers with a GPL-licensed ROS and RTOS-based platform. No proprietary lock-in. No black boxes.
The result: centimetre-accurate RTK GPS navigation, efficient path planning, and a codebase you actually own. Read it, modify it, ship your own version.
Support Open Mower!Open Mower is a very complicated project, that’s why the development and maintenance takes a lot of time. Please consider supporting the project by joining my Patreon.
Open Mower is a very complicated project, that’s why the development and maintenance takes a lot of time. Please consider supporting the project by joining my Patreon.
Contributions welcome!We do a Pull Request
contributions workflow on GitHub. New users are always welcome!
We do a Pull Request contributions workflow on GitHub. New users are always welcome!
Join the Discord!For announcement of latest features etc. Most communication for this project is done on the Discord server.
For announcement of latest features etc. Most communication for this project is done on the Discord server.