Arty the snowbot (photo courtesy of the City of Grande Prairie)

By Liam Verster

Arty the snowbot's first year of operations

Grande Prairie’s autonomous snowbot operating in CKC area this winter

Jan 6, 2021 | 9:16 AM

The City of Grande Prairie’s autonomous mower/snowbot is officially a year old, and has been moved to the Community Knowledge Campus area this winter, where it can run more efficiently.

The RT-1000 unit, nicknamed ‘Arty’, was purchased in December 2019 from the manufacturer Left Hand Robotics.

It was originally housed at the Ernie Radbourne Pavilion, where it was to be used to clear snow from the Muskoseepi Park Trail and to lay down salt and sand for ice control.

However, Rory Tarant the Senior Executive Advisory for the City, says they found some issues with that location.

“When you have winter operations you have a lot more variables: different types of snow, different depths of snow, you have icy hills, narrow bridges,” says Tarant. “So it took quite a bit of programming, and even at that we weren’t fully able to realize the autonomous nature of it, it still needed human intervention.”

Despite the challenges, Tarant says there were some good learning opportunities from last winter’s operations, and they have now moved the machine.

Arty is now operating in the Community Knowledge Campus area, where it’s clearing snow from sidewalks, parking lots, the artificial turf and the skating oval. It’s had more success in the new location as there are less obstacles and a flatter surface to navigate.

The machine can also be used as a mower, and was very efficient in the summer months as the City used it at the CKC green spaces, on some City boulevards, and a few other sports fields.

Arty automatically mowing a field (photos courtesy of the City of Grande Prairie)

A report of Arty’s first year of operations says there were some mechanical issues that were resolved thanks to the manufacturer providing replacement parts at no cost, and issues with the GPS needing to be reprogrammed after contact was lost under large trees with heavy coverage.

However, Tarant is optimistic of Arty’s operations this year, and adds that, with this new technology, there are increasing opportunities for upgrades and updates to the machine.

“There’s constantly upgrades that are coming out, and one of the exciting things about being in this new field is that they’re just constantly sending us new parts and new things to try out,” says Tarant.

“One of the things were looking at here is they now have a wider mowing deck. We have a 63 inch, they came out with a 72 inch, which could increase the amount [of grass] that could be cut by about 15-20 per cent.”

He adds the City is considering hiring a student with computer and programming knowledge and experience over the summer to help with programming.

“Some of those challenges we identified, they can be overcome, they just need someone who has a little programming knowledge and computer skills to help us navigate those problems.

“It’s interesting because it’s a very different skill set than we would typically hire for in parks. Typically you’re looking for a labourer who can run machinery, and this will be the first time that we are hiring someone to be out in the field that has a computer background.”

Tarant says in the meantime, they will continue testing the operational capabilities of Arty to make sure it is efficiently clearing snow and ice from it’s designated area.