iRobot Lawn Mower Given FCC Approval In US

There's been rumors for years that iRobot has been working on adapting the technology behind the popular Roomba vacuum cleaner to create a robotic lawn mower. It turns out that the company has just been granted permission from the FCC to do just that, so now we know the plans are real. The approval revealed a few details about how the mower will work, but it seems we're still years away from having a flat, round robot take care of our lawn.

According to Reuters, iRobot's design for an automated lawn mower differs from those that require underground fences, instead relying on stakes in the ground that act as beacons. These stakes would wirelessly connect with the robot mower, directing where it needs to go.

The submission to the FCC (Federal Communications Commission) was needed in order to ensure the wireless transmissions between from the beacons don't interfere with other devices on the same frequencies. iRobot received objections from the National Radio Astronomy Observatory, as the organization argued that signals to the mower would interfere with their telescopes.

The US regulators eventually sided with iRobot, saying that the limitations of beacon height and signal strength should prevent problems with telescopes, not to mention that the mowers will be used in residential areas.

Just don't expect a robot mower to hitting the shelves anytime soon, as iRobot has stated that the FCC's permission will allow them to continue "exploring" the possibility of a product in the lawn mowing category.

SOURCE Reuters