[karmicthreat]

I worked in this space for a while. It’s a hard problem because none of the mowers take topology into account. Mostly they try to navigate a planned path along a 2d plane and just compensate to stay on their path. So the mower will attack elevation changes wrong.

[voakbasda]

Even if you managed to get it to plan a smarter path, steep terrain usually requires bigger motors, aggressive tires, all-wheel drive, and better suspension. Even my big riding mower becomes useless on a hillsides or small depressions when even the slightest dew or rain slicks up the grass, and I still manage to get it stuck occasionally on the dry days.

[ZeroGravitas]

I've seen workers operate mowers on hillsides via ropes from the top.

The idea of a little robot mower "mountain climbing" by hooking a spike into the ground and using a pulley amuses me.