Floating "Robot" Automatically Removes Weeds From Lakes

Floating "Robot" Automatically Removes Weeds From Lakes CROPS Weed Control 32-3-44 Garl McHenry of New Carlisle, Ohio, needed a way to remove floating weeds from a channel in front of his home. So he built a remote-controlled, electric-operated Styrofoam pontoon that's equipped with a 2 1/2-ft. wide aluminum "robot" rake. The floating automatic rake measures only about 18 in. wide by 4 ft. long and is covered by fiberglass. The entire unit weighs 35 to 40 lbs. It moves about 10 ft. every 30 seconds. While sitting in a lawn chair, McHenry moves the pontoon back and forth to collect weeds. Once the rake is full of weeds, he brings the unit into shore to dispose of them. "As far as I know there's nothing like it on the market," says McHenry. "Whenever I get it out on the channel it usually doesn't take long before there's a crowd standing around watching it run. Some of my neighbors on the channel even come out with their rakes and ask me to push the weeds in front of their homes." The device doesn't cut off weeds. Instead, it gathers up weeds that are cut off the bottom of the lake by boat propellers and then float to the top. "These floating weeds can plug up boat propellers as well as motor cooling systems. There are often large patches of weeds, up to 40 ft. wide by 500 ft. long, that can't be reached from shore," says McHenry. The pontoon is propelled by an aluminum paddle wheel on each side. The wheels are controlled individually by small electric motor gearboxes powered by a 12-volt DC battery. The rake on front of the pontoon is made from aluminum tubing and has tines that are 9 in. long and spaced 4 in. apart. A spring-loaded cable is used to lift the rake out of the water when positioning the pontoon for another sweep. A metal counterbalance makes it easier to raise and lower the rake. The entire unit is controlled by a 4-channel, ground frequency radio control system purchased at a hobby store. "Four servo motors were purchased for the system and are used to operate eight microswitches. The microswitches are used to go forward, reverse, right turn, left turn, rotate left, rotate right, raise rake, or lower rake," says McHenry. "I can turn sharp by rotating one wheel forward and the other one backward." To operate the unit, he makes a path every 3 to 4 ft. "I usually retrieve weeds up to 150 ft. away, and never more than about 400 ft. Beyond that it's hard to see the weed patches laying on the water," says McHenry. Once the pontoon reaches shore, he unloads the weeds by raising the rake and then backing away. To make the pontoon, McHenry bought a 4 by 8-ft. sheet of Styrofoam and cut it in four pieces, then used "liquid nails" to glue it together. Then he covered the Styrofoam with fiberglass. He says he spent only about $500 on materials. "I'm 83 years old so I'm not going to manufacture this unit. However, anyone is welcome to contact me," says McHenry. Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Garl McHenry, 8250 E. New Carlisle Rd., New Carlisle, Ohio 45344 (ph 937 845-0001; garld1945@aol.com).

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