Hoverboard Lawn Mower (Hovermower?)

Your kid is bored with his hoverboard...it is good time for a reuse...

Make something useful with an hoverboard, turn it into a silent lawn mower.

Mowing the lawn will never be the same ...

I wanted to share this design with the community...hopefully it will be reused, improved and have a bright future.

The main hoverboard used in this instructable is only slightly modified and can still be used as an hoverboard.

Safety Warning: If you plan on doing such an hoverboard mower, you will have to manipulate carefully batteries, reel blades. Make sure batteries are unplugged when working on the control part, double check polarity of your circuit.

Step 1: The Concept

The hoverboard lawn mower (Hovermower?) is made from a manual reel mower and an hoverboard attached together with a custom made steel frame.
The reel mower is motorized using parts salvaged from a second hoverboard (If you cannot steal one from your kid they are easy to find second hand).

Step 2: Parts and Tools

The parts i used:

• One 10 inches hoverboard
• one 6 inches hoverboard from which I took the battery pack, one motor and the charging plug)
• one 500W BLDC driver (like those on ebay or this one http://www.brushless-dcmotor.com/sale-10157946-12...
• one 20K potentiometer
• one SPDT (3 pins) momentary switch
• a few wires for cabling
• one on/off switch
• rectangle steel tube
• steel angle
• round steel tube
• one belt
• plywood
• screws, bolts and nuts
• one threaded rod (long enough to go through the reel mower)
• aluminium rod (to machine a pulley to drive the reel)
• a pair of swivel plate caster wheels

The tools I used :

• arc welder
• soldering iron
• lathe
• angle grinder
• drill

Step 3: Hoverboard Mod

The mod needed is fairly simple. We just need to drill a hole in both wheels in order to attach the frame and reel mower.
On my hoverboard I had to remove the screws from the inner face of the wheels. This allows to take the wheel (magnet and tire part) apart.

• I drilled a 10 mm hole in the wheel axle.
• I drilled a larger hole the in wheel face (wide enough to allow the face to turn freely when the frame is attached)

The mod is done, the wheels can be reassembled.

Step 4: The Frame

The frame is made of square steel tubes welded together. Size has to be adjusted based on the hoverboard and reel mower.
On the hoverboard side, the attachment is done with two bolts (the nuts are welded inside the tube).

The end side of the bolts are reduced to a 10 mm cylinder (with a file, angle grinder or lathe) which fits the holes drilled on the hoverboard.

The attachment of the reel mower is done with a threaded rod going through the tube that was holding the mower wheels.

Step 5: The Reel Mower

Recent reel mowers are "friction less" mowers. I used one of them as they require less power to drive it.
I used an Einhell GE-HM 38 S. Everything needs to be taken apart, we only keep the reel and the frame holding it.

I added a few elements to this reel mower frame:

• a box to hold the battery pack and the electronics used to drive the motor. The two swivel caster wheels are mounted below this box.
• some support to hold the motor. It is made from welded steel angle. The motor itself is held in place with the support taken from the hoverboard and a second piece machined from a piece of aluminium. Four bolts and nuts tighten them together with the support made from the steel angle.
• a pulley (turned on lathe from a piece of aluminium) is plugged on the reel axle
• some mechanism to have tension on the belt. I used roller skate bearings mounted on a bolt for the contact with the belt
• two legs for height adjustment

The reel mower frame can be easily drilled to attach the box and motor support. Some part have been cut to allow a right position for the motor.

Step 6: Motor Control

It is made from a stock 500W BLDC driver. (can be found on ebay)

I added :

• a heat sink salvaged from older electronic. The BLDC driver card usually comes without. An insulation layer needs to be inserted between the heat sink and the mosfet of the board
• a push button which is used to turn on the motor from the handle bar.
• an on/off switch
• the charging socket (it is a three poles socket but only two are used, make sure you use the right polarity...red cable to +; black cable to - of the driver card.
• the battery pack from the salvaged hoverboard.

a 20K potentiometer is used to adjust the motor speed.

I used an old Ethernet cable to drive the push button up to the handlebar.

Step 7: Handlebar

The handlebar is made from a few pieces of plywood and steel tube and home made wood handles.

It holds the push button to turn on the reel. It is attached by screws to the frame.

Step 8: Assembly

Tighten the two bolts through the frame into the hoverboard.

Attach the handle bar to the frame.

Switch it on...

Enjoy mowing!

Comments

[dollabill2500]

Can you use a thumb throttle instead of a potentiometer? And if so would I have to use a resistor on the signal wire?

[lmu34]

Hi, right, you should be able to use a thumb throttle instead of a potentiometer. No resistor should be needed, the VR input on the contoller card should be able to read directly the signal wire from the throttle.

[Maker Saga]

I wish I would have thought of this! Nice work.

[Tommyw1974]

Awesomeness!

[Mohammade9]

very smart!
design meets curiosity

[mderton]

You sound like a fun neighbor to have.

[justin_the_jack]

How long do the batteries last? How much can you get mown before they die?

[lmu34]

Hi, it is a fairly recent setup and I do not have much experience or data to share yet. The only thing I can tell is that it is enough for my small garden (I have less that 100sqm of lawn). Hoverboards usually have a capacity of 10 to 20km which would be around one hour of usage. I expect it to be little less as garden are not as flat as roads. I expect the reel battery to last longer than the hoverboard battery as it is driving a single motor.

[machman88]

That's a great project! My son's been after me to get him a hoverboard now I have a reason to get one :)

[patpenguin]

OMG What an awesome creation! I am LOL thinking about ME being on that thing. If I were younger (I am 67), I would definitely do this thing!! I hope you hear back from lots of ppl trying this.

[Chateepatee]

Pretty kool- well put together instructions too. Where did you find the reel mower? Around here those run about $120-$150 and up. Would be better if I found one at a yard sale!

[lmu34]

Hi, I bought mine about 70€ some times ago on internet. They are easy to find -at least in Europe. I bought my first reel mower at a yard sale...they are so chip...but for this project I thought it would be nice to use those friction less mowers. The only difference compared to a standard reel mower is that the blade has two adjustment screws to set its position as close as possible to the reel (and with minimum contact). All this to say that there is no magic in the friction less reel mower and if you find a good reel mower at a yard sale it is worth a try for sure!

[TeddansGarage]

I think i know what i want to build this winter and chock the neighbours when spring has come ;).

Great instructions mate, thumbs up!

[arnold.walker.77]

For a second there ,I thought you was talking something that the golf course ground crews used before we had weedeaters. A FlyMow that had no wheels at all..but hovered.We used them around lakes and all kinds of places trimming.You had a 2stroke engine and light mower housing like a Lawnboy.But the center 2/3 of the blade areas was fan disk. It wasn't as pretty a cut as our reel mowers,but alot easier to "mow" and dry the greens,in open areas.Than a weedeater and leafblower.We have since gone to sandbagged helicopters and tractor powered leafblowers for the drying during tournaments.And weedeater were cheaper than the FlyMow.Running something like Shakespeare blades in the rough.

[misterxp]

Wow fantastic! Opens the road to other add on accessories!

[makemyclay]

so cool and very well presented.

[jessyratfink]

I love it! Ridiculous yet practical haha :D

[joe200217]

nice...good idea

[Perfect DIY]

That is so cool! it looks fun to ride

[tercero]

Kind of the electric version of the Wright Stand Up Mower you'd see in commercial applications.
Nice.