Electrical · Renewable energy · Final year project
Fully Automated Solar Grass Cutter
A solar-powered robotic lawn mower. An 8051 microcontroller drives the wheels and the cutter blade from a solar-charged battery, and an ultrasonic sensor makes it turn away from obstacles.
What is the Fully Automated Solar Grass Cutter project?
A solar-powered robotic lawn mower. An 8051 microcontroller drives the wheels and the cutter blade from a solar-charged battery, and an ultrasonic sensor makes it turn away from obstacles.
Key facts
- Branch
- Electrical Engineering (EE / EEE); also suits E&TC / ECE, Mechatronics
- Type
- Final year project · Advanced
- Suitable for
- Diploma capstone and B.E / B.Tech final year
- Build time
- 6 to 8 weeks
- Estimated component cost
- ₹10,000 – ₹14,700
- Guidance from
- ₹9,999 (Hardware / IoT Final Year)
How the Fully Automated Solar Grass Cutter works
- Solar panel and 12 V power adapter / step-down transformer supply the circuit; a regulator gives the controller and sensors a steady 5 V.
- The Push buttons and switches provide manual inputs and the power switch.
- The 8051 microcontroller with board runs the embedded C program that scans inputs and controls the outputs through its four I/O ports.
- The DC geared motor provides the driving motion.
- The Motor driver lets the low-current controller run the motors forward, reverse and at variable speed.
- The LEDs indicate status.
Block diagram
Inputs
Push buttons and switchesController
8051 microcontroller with boardOutputs
DC geared motorMotor driverLEDsComponents list and cost
Typical prices from Indian online stores and electronics markets (Lamington Road, Budhwar Peth, SP Road). Buy from one store where you can to save on shipping.
| Component | Qty | What it does | Approx. cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| 8051 (AT89S52) microcontroller with board | 1 | Runs the embedded C program that scans inputs and controls the outputs through its four I/O ports. | ₹300 |
| Push buttons and switches | 2 | Provide manual inputs and the power switch. | ₹80 |
| DC geared motor | 2 | Provides the driving motion. | ₹500 |
| Motor driver (L298N) | 1 | Lets the low-current controller run the motors forward, reverse and at variable speed. | ₹180 |
| LEDs (assorted) | 1 | Indicate status. | ₹20 |
| Solar panel (10–20 W) | 1 | Converts sunlight into electricity to power or charge the system. | ₹900 |
| 12 V power adapter / step-down transformer | 1 | Supplies stable low-voltage power from the mains. | ₹250 |
| Charge controller module | 1 | Charges the battery safely and stops overcharging. | ₹250 |
| Rechargeable battery (12 V 1.3–7 Ah) | 1 | Stores energy and supplies power when mains is absent. | ₹650 |
| Mild steel frame and fabrication | 1 | Forms the main structure that holds all parts. | ₹2,500 |
| Cutting blade | 1 | Cuts the material. | ₹300 |
| Robot chassis (metal / acrylic) | 1 | Needed for this type of build. | ₹1,100 |
| Wheels / castor wheels | 4 | Allow the machine or vehicle to move. | ₹1,600 |
| Li-ion battery pack (18650 × 3, 11.1 V) with BMS | 1 | Needed for this type of build. | ₹1,400 |
| Passive components, PCB and wiring kit | 1 | Crystal oscillator, resistors (assorted), capacitors (assorted), transistors / MOSFETs, cables, connectors and jumper wires, diodes, PCB / breadboard and ICs and IC sockets. | ₹445 |
| Wiring, PCB, soldering and enclosure | 1 | Project overhead | ₹450 |
| Demo model base / mounting board | 1 | Project overhead | ₹500 |
| Testing spares and replacements | 1 | Project overhead | ₹300 |
| Estimated total | Varies with brand, quality and city | ₹10,000 – ₹14,700 |
Prices are estimates for budgeting. We confirm the bill of materials when your design is frozen, and components are charged at actual cost with bills.
How much does this project cost?
| Option | What you get | Cost |
|---|---|---|
| Components only | You buy the parts and build it yourself | ₹10,000 – ₹14,700 |
| Hardware / IoT Final Year | Working model or guided build, Circuit diagram and bill of materials, Firmware / code with explanation | from ₹9,999 + components |
| Capstone Project (CPE) | Working project or model, Black book in MSBTE format, Step-by-step explanation | ₹9,999 + components |
| Diploma ITR | 100% working source code, Project report PDF, PPT | ₹1,999 + components |
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Download the project brief (PDF)
Summary, working, components and cost and viva questions on one branded PDF to show your guide or team. To get it developed, contact us on WhatsApp.
What you submit with this project
- Working model with circuit diagram and program code
- Project report or black book in your university's chapter order (block diagram, circuit, calculations, results)
- Presentation for the review and final viva
- Synopsis for topic approval, if your college asks for one
Electrical viva questions on this project
What is the aim of the Fully Automated Solar Grass Cutter project?
A solar-powered robotic lawn mower. An 8051 microcontroller drives the wheels and the cutter blade from a solar-charged battery, and an ultrasonic sensor makes it turn away from obstacles.
Explain the working of your project in short.
Solar panel and 12 V power adapter / step-down transformer supply the circuit; a regulator gives the controller and sensors a steady 5 V. The Push buttons and switches provide manual inputs and the power switch. The 8051 microcontroller with board runs the embedded C program that scans inputs and controls the outputs through its four I/O ports. The DC geared motor provides the driving motion.
What is the architecture of the 8051 microcontroller?
The 8051 is an 8-bit Harvard-architecture microcontroller with 4 KB ROM (8 KB in AT89S52), 128 bytes RAM, four 8-bit I/O ports, two 16-bit timers, a UART and five interrupt sources.
Why is a pull-up resistor needed with a push button?
Without it the input pin floats and reads random values. The pull-up keeps it HIGH until the button connects it to ground.
Why is a geared motor used?
The gearbox reduces speed and multiplies torque, so a small DC motor can move a vehicle or mechanism smoothly. Torque increases roughly by the gear ratio.
Why can't the motor be connected directly to the microcontroller?
A motor needs far more current (hundreds of mA to amps) than a controller pin can supply (about 20–40 mA). The H-bridge driver switches the motor current and allows direction control.
Why is a resistor connected in series with an LED?
It limits the current to a safe value (about 10–20 mA). Without it, the LED would draw too much current and burn out. R = (supply voltage − LED voltage) ÷ current.
How did you calculate the power rating of your system?
Using P = V × I for each load, adding a margin of 20 to 25%. The solar panel is sized from the daily energy need divided by about 5 peak sun hours in India. Battery capacity is the energy needed per day divided by the battery voltage and allowable depth of discharge.
What protection have you provided in the circuit?
A fuse against short circuit, relays or optocouplers to isolate the control side from the power side, flyback diodes across inductive loads such as relays and motors, and software limits that cut off on over-current or over-voltage.
What is the efficiency of your system and how did you measure it?
Efficiency = output power ÷ input power × 100. We measured input and output voltage and current with a multimeter at different loads and tabulated the results in the report.
Explain the block diagram of your project.
The input section senses the real-world quantity, the 8051 microcontroller with board processes it according to the program, and the output section displays the result and drives the actuators. The power supply section feeds every block.
Is your system open-loop or closed-loop?
Mainly open-loop: the controller runs the actuators for a set time or number of steps. Adding a sensor for feedback would make it closed-loop and more accurate.
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