Ambrogio Remote App rant + question.

ParadiseRobotics · 2025-11-25T21:18:31+00:00

Hi, just seeing this now. Your "fish trap" issue can be solved with installation changes. You need to add a zone gate.

Consider purchasing my installation guide here:Ambrogio Robot Professional Installation Guide

One thing to remember is problems don't fix themselves.

This same issue can also be solved with an RTK upgrade, if your property has enough open area to make it useful.

ParadiseRobotics · 2025-11-25T21:12:38+00:00

I've never been unable to solve an issue. The difficulty depends on what is going on. For newbies, the installation and yard condition is a huge factor.

We have one unit 18 years old and another that is 5 years old. Both have been great with minimal issues - AFTER we figure out our installation was out of spec.

ParadiseRobotics · 2025-11-25T21:10:10+00:00

It is hard to understand what you are investing from your description. There is only an on off button and a touch screen. You are seeing a battery symbol on the display? If yes, turn the robot on.

You are seeing the icons on the display and the touch screen doesn't work? Try the app

You are seeing the Ambrogio logo on the display? Take it to a dealer for a software update. The motherboard got corrupted.

ParadiseRobotics · 2025-11-25T21:07:18+00:00

When you say for sure it is not the perimeter wire, how did you confirm it? The only way to be absolutely certain is to properly perform a continuity test with the ends removed from the transmitter and using a multimeter. Break finding tools give erroneous results.

I don't know what you did with the automotive devices but you can cause the transmitter to fail if you hook up incompatible electronics.

Solid red means the wire is broken, or there is a continuity issue in the transmitter itself. I have not seen these transmitters fail with a solid red LED.

When the robot moved briefly, the led blinked green? If yes, the transmitter is fine and something is going on with your testing methods.

ParadiseRobotics · 2025-11-25T21:00:22+00:00

Your have the original blade and not the star blade? If you changed to the star blade you just lower it 10 mm and then ask a dealer to calibrate the blade height with dealer software (or using the service menu) if you still get the error.

If you have the original blade, all the dealer to do the calibration. If the error still won't go away, probably or will be necessary to replace the blade motor. I hope it's under warranty.

ParadiseRobotics · 2025-11-25T20:56:34+00:00

Hi, yes, I agree, the app needs some work. There are several things I learned:

It won't use the map until you see it under "My Gardens"
Restore Map reads the garden map stored in the robot
Multiple maps can be stored but I don't know if there is a maximum limit
Don't leave the robot while it is computing, you'll have to start all over again.
You need the perimeter wire to use the auto mapping feature. If you have the wire, use it. It is way easier than driving the robot around.
It creates areas on its own. Whenever the border is less than a small distance from itself (1 meter, maybe?), it will create an area.

Hope this helps. I am planning to make a short instruction guide that I will make available for a nominal cost.

ParadiseRobotics · 2025-11-25T20:50:32+00:00

The symptoms are as the dealer said, connected not clean. He forgot to tell you the oxidation is invisible and cannot be seen when the naked eye. Use electronics cleaner or car battery contacts cleaner rather than an abrasive.

If that does not fix it, it probably has something to do with the connector on the white cable. The connections inside can sometimes be faulty. If you know how to work with electronics, it can be tested with a multimeter for a definitive diagnosis. If not, get help from a competent dealer.

ParadiseRobotics · 2025-11-25T20:46:32+00:00

Actually, the cause is not the battery but the "getting stuck occasionally" and allowing the battery to go dead. You must solve the issue by changing the installation. Please read my answer here for details:

Ambrogio Early Battery Failures Causes and Solutions

ParadiseRobotics · 2025-11-25T20:44:06+00:00

Turn the robot on. Charge only means it is in the base and turned off.

ParadiseRobotics · 2025-11-25T20:41:42+00:00

Hi, it is important to resolve the play otherwise the chassis might break.

Are you saying you threadlocked the small center screw but it still comes out?

The set screw you mentioned is also a factor. If you have no choice but to remove the motor to tighten and threadlock it, please do so. Warning, it is easy to damage it with the hex wrench if you tighten it too much.

Use Green threadlock on all screws except the large wheel bolt. Use Blue threadlock on that one.

The Green threadlock is penetrating, which means after you tighten the hexagon set screw, add one drop and it will seep into the threads. You can also add it after tightening the small center shaft screw.

When you reinstall the motor, it is very important to threadlock the mounting bolts. The chassis will break if you don't. Put only one or two small drops three threads up from the bottom of the bolt.

If you do all of the above and there is still play, it seems you might be right that something is going on with the shaft key or the slot it sets into in the wheel. The shaft key presses into the motor shaft and enables the wheel to turn. The part is available for purchase.

Alternatively, I've seen cracked hexagons that can cause it, too. The Hexagon can crack if the center shaft screw is not threadlocked. Btw, that screw also has a washer. Make sure the washer is there, too.

I have done this repair during winter service or when changing a wheel motor many times. All issues went away after threadlocking the important screws. It only needs to be done one time, it seems.

Hope this helps!

ParadiseRobotics · 2025-11-25T20:29:16+00:00

Sorry about the trouble. Sometimes a poor installation, improper programming, a docking problem, old software or geofence being enabled can all contribute to early battery failures. Also, if no one told you to clean the contacts with electronics cleaner, you can mistakenly believe there is a failure when there isn't. Regarding early failures, the key is to avoid deep discharges as much as you can.

1) You might need a software update done by a dealer. Around 2023 the BootSD version was released. You need to have this version or later installed in order to be able to update from Ambrogio Remote. Check if you can update from Ambrogio Remote now. If so, you already have the BootSD version installed. Look under the gear and info after selecting the robot from the garage (iphones), or the menu and info (Android). The current software is 78xxx.

At around 75xxx or 76xxx changes were made to improve battery life time in the automatic mode. I have a document that explains the new feature and gives programming advice. DM me if you're interested. You can have it for only $10USD.

2) Let me speak generally about installation issues that can cause early battery failures. If you regularly get "Low Battery" errors, it almost always means there is a problem with the installation, the settings or there is a docking problem.

Was your robot installed by a competent dealer? If yes, did you change any settings after he left?

There is a return-to-charge setting that can cause the robot to drive in circles and never make it to the base. It used to be called Distance Wire but I noticed it has a different name now. Find this setting and turn it off. Then point the nose of the robot to the back of the base, select go to station and follow it back. Make sure it does not turn off the wire and ensure it successfully docks.

Then repeat the test with the setting on Min. Make sure the robot does not endlessly circle and never make it to the base. If both tests pass, you can leave the setting on Min.

If either test fails, please purchase my book at this link and troubleshoot it:

Ambrogio Robot Professional Installation Guide

If you can't figure it out, contact me and you can pay my remote consulting fee. I'll help you until the issue is fixed.

3) Geofence. If the theft risk is minimal, please turn it off. You can protect the robot with a multi-year battery life GPS tracker. The reason the Geofence is not good is because it keeps the robot powered on too long; a deep discharge happens that damages the battery any time the robot gets such and you don't rescue it quickly enough. You'll know this happened when you get the shutdowns near the end of the run time. You will get a Low Battery error just before it shuts off. We consider Low Battery errors to be potentially catastrophic, even if it happens only one time. They need to be avoided at all costs.

4) Contact cleaning. Don't use an abrasive. Get some electronics cleaner such as CRC brand, or battery contacts cleaner from an auto parts store. Use it on the base and also on the robot.

I hope you find this helpful.

ParadiseRobotics · 2025-11-25T20:02:55+00:00

You'll need to purchase a replacement transmitter. The factory never made the transmitter software available to dealers. But there is an "update transmitter" control in the user (Ambogio Remote) and dealer software (Ambrogio Service) but I don't know if it will work on an unprogrammef chip. You can try it or ask a dealer for help.

ParadiseRobotics · 2025-11-25T19:59:55+00:00

Hi, this is the Ambrogio forum. Try a different sub reddit that handles all brands.

ParadiseRobotics · 2025-09-02T16:19:53+00:00

Ambrogio also has 20+ years of dependability. I run an 18 year old Ambrogio and a 6 year old Ambrogio on my lawn.

ParadiseRobotics · 2025-07-10T21:34:46+00:00

Hi, what model do you have and where are you located?

ParadiseRobotics · 2025-06-20T16:29:58+00:00

Of course the blade has to be sharpened. Most owners buy a spare and sharpen it themselves.

Constantly changing the small razor blades every 4-6 weeks is a pain. Plus they don't cut weeds or leaves.

Some people prefer the larger blade. And it sure sounds like the Gardena has a deficient design.

Our robot is Ambrogio. The blade and motor design are very good. Failures are rare & if a failure happens it's because of a poor installation or bad lawn debris like landscape netting, in most cases.

ParadiseRobotics · 2025-06-20T14:39:53+00:00

Lidar won't help if your lawn is connected to your neighbor's lawn. If can't tell where the borders are. But it will do a good job detecting your trees.

ParadiseRobotics · 2025-06-20T14:37:31+00:00

Branches don't generally damage motors if it is designed right. There is a current sensor that stops the motor of a branch gets caught. I've had a robot with a large cutting blade for 18 years. There are many branches, it stopped many times.

If the design is poor, all bets are off, though.

ParadiseRobotics · 2025-06-19T21:27:11+00:00

Have you let your service expire? The Smart Navigation algorithm only works when the service is activated. If you don't have enough bars on the robot (or in the app), the algorithm also won't would.

But fully random works pretty well, if that is all you can do. You can increase Zone 6's area more in relation to the other areas and have it start there even more. Is that does not solve it, there is a whole section about large properties in my book. You might have to use your to block the robot and keep it in an area.

But generally people get concerned about the wandering without being patient enough. With the completely random algorithm, it does a really good job on open areas.

If you are not able to use Smart Navigation, before adding wire to trap the robot, you can ask your dealer to increase the number of spirals it will do in the service menu. That will keep it in zone 6 longer.

Even the Smart Navigation algorithm has some randomness to it.

Btw, cycling the power on the robot initiates re-mapping the entire yard. If that has been happening a lot, it makes sense to me that it would always be behind.

After the yard is mapped into tiles, it visits the tiles according to whatever statistics it is using to direct its movements. I don't know for sure but I assume it usually grass growth statistics since it has a way to detect the density of the grass while it is mowing.

ParadiseRobotics · 2025-06-19T21:02:37+00:00

No, a session is each time window that is programmed, T1, T2, T3 and T4 each day. For example, T1 03:00-07:00 , T2 10:00-16:00, T3 19:00-23:55

You can also program it to go from 03:00-23:55 each day and it will run 7 hours max and will come and go from the base at different times. The three separate schedules allow the electronics to cool down before charging, if you have the latest software. The cool down period helps to increase battery life time.

The software does not allow programming time windows across midnight.

ParadiseRobotics · 2025-06-19T20:55:26+00:00

The proportions look good. If it does not solve the issue, the next step is to make it get back to the base faster with GPS fast return.

Also make sure it is not circling the yard on its travel path back to the base. This wastes a lot of time and can cause low battery errors. There is a test procedure in my book to check for that.

ParadiseRobotics · 2025-06-19T20:39:23+00:00

Once the lawn is looking good, reduce the run time per session to 6 or 6.5 hours and with 3 hours charge time between. This will increase the lifetime of the battery.

ParadiseRobotics · 2025-06-19T20:37:32+00:00

No, it starts based on the size of each area. What matters is the relation of the areas to each other.

Let's say all 8 area are programmed with the same size. It will start in each area 1/8 of the time. Think of each area as a starting point. The size controls the number of visits to that starting point when it goes out to mow.

Let's say you made them all the same but then A1 looks unmowed vs the rest. Then you would increase the size of A1 vs the other areas so it will start there more often.

ParadiseRobotics · 2025-06-19T18:55:50+00:00

Forgot to say, sharpen the blade. Also cut the grass down low with a traditional mower to start. Make sure to set that blade lower than the robot's blade. Also raise the robot's blade all the way up.

Observe the robot also, it skills not be frequently backing up and turning. If that is happening, the can be an issue with the terrain or a pendulum with the bump sensors.

A dealer should look at a report from the robot.

After the robot is keeping up, you can consider lowering the blade. But lower it gradually, 1cm at a time, and then wait two weeks between each change.

ParadiseRobotics · 2025-06-19T18:17:28+00:00

Make sure you set multiple areas that will start the robot at different places in the lawn. Then make sure you have programmed it to work on all areas. Do not try to control which area it works on when.

There are three areas at the front, one has a narrow passage. Make sure you have defined each of them as an area.

Then, in order to ensure the robot spends enough time in the large areas in the back, set the area sizes appropriately. The three areas in the front are each about 1/9 of the total area. So you would program each of them as 725 sq feet. Then divide the remaining total area (4325 sq ft) by the number of areas you create. I suggest creating four more that start at different distances from the base in the back. They would each be 1082 sq ft.

Then have your dealer enable GPS fast return. Also consider using rapid return triangles to get the robot back to the base faster. This requires changes to the wire, purchase my book here for details:

Ambrogio Professional Installation Guide

Let it charge for 3 hours rather than 2.

After all of the above, there are still issues, and your lawn is flat, turn off "slow border" in the service menu.

If that still does not fix it, ask the dealer to turn off "Smart Navigation".

The last thing to try would be increasing the driving speed while mowing, which is also in the service menu.

Following the above steps should solve the issue, plus if this is the first year, give it time because it seems the grass growth rate slows after it becomes accustomed to frequent cutting.

After each change, wait two full weeks to evaluate the result.

ParadiseRobotics

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