Better Landroid shortcuts
Off Limits Shortcuts is a nice way to reduce the time needed for your Landroid to return home for charging. Depending on your lawn shape, this feature can drastically reduce perimeter crawling when searching for the base. This means more time spent mowing and less wear around the perimeter wire. Also, if you have large islands, the Landroid will circle these one and a half lap before it understands it’s not on the perimeter wire. Shortcuts can be used to break off island loops early, in a specific direction.
Using magnetic strips
The idea is quite simple; you install the Off Limits accessory and lay down two pieces of magnetic strip over the boundary wire wherever the Landroid should “shortcut” (do a sharp left turn). Unfortunately it is quite hard to get consistent results. The magnetic strip offered by Landroid is pretty weak, meaning you have to place the strips with perfect precision for the magnetic sensor to detect them and activate. Even if you initially get them to work, the strips will move around slightly, or bury deeper in the ground (caused by the robot and nature itself), and eventually the shortcuts will stop working.
Some creative ways to improve the detection has been shared by the Landroid community, like instead of placing down two strips you place three or four to increase the chance of activating the sensor. I tried this and it improved slightly, but after a few weeks the shortcuts where failing once again.
Say hello to the Neodymium magnet
Neodymium magnets, in contrast to the magnetic strips offered by Landroid, have a very powerful magnetic field. They are also quite cheap and widely available at the big online stores and your local hardware store.
Using rod shaped Neodymium magnets and a piece of plastic tubing, you can easilly build your own shortcut sensors for the Landroid with a much more powerful magnetic field.
(Neodymium magnets come in different shapes and sizes, I’m using rod shaped and fairly small ones, but other shapes should work as well.)
Example
I would not recommend putting down magnets directly in the ground. In my case, since the magnets I got were quite short, I put two of them in series and then put them inside a slice of plastic tubing. I plugged the ends with some silicone. I then replaced the two magnetic strips with two of these.
Rod shaped Neodymium magnets
Plastic tubing matching the magnet size
Finished product, magnets inside the plastic tube sealed with silicone
Size comparison of original magnet strip and the DIY magnet tube
Result and conclusion
Even when buried a bit down in the ground, the shortcut feature is now constantly triggering. The custom magnet tube is also much shorter (easier to put down and hide), exact placement is no longer required (since the magnetic field is now much larger and more powerful). It also fits between the Landroid’s wheel base, so even if placed on top of the lawn it won’t get pushed around by the wheels.
I’m really happy with the result, it feels much more reliable than the the original magnet strips so far.