Professional grounds maintenance teams can save time, money and resources by using the Intelligent One (I0), the sports turf industries most advanced autonomous line marking robot. Restricted budgets can make it difficult for local authorities, schools and sports teams to mark consistently, but the I0 provides a new way of marking that reduces the cost for the customer and the contractor.
Before looking at the impressive speed and accuracy of the I0, there is one important factor to consider - the price. Manufacturers of the robot, Intelligent Marking, has made this product available on a five-year payment plan, making it an affordable and cost-effective tool. The overall cost of £25,000 can be spread into five annual payments of £5,000 or customers can trial the robot for a year for £5,000 and return with no further obligation.
It isn't just the price that makes the I0 unique. Intelligent Marking is the only company to provide a base station within the package to deliver unrivalled precision and reliable line marking, consistently performing in areas without need for cellular connectivity or coverage.
In addition, the base station is supplied without a costly annual subscription required by alternative line markers.
Using the closed system means the machine can be used anywhere in the world with unprecedented reliability and an accuracy of just +/- 1cm, whilst matching the marking speed of every robotic line marker on the market, with a FIFA regulation football pitch only taking 20-25 minutes to mark from scratch.
The accuracy of markings is millimetric and makes overmarking lines quick and easy with no external signal factors able to impact the performance. The I0 comes with 45 pre-loaded templates including UEFA regulation football pitches, track and field marking, rugby union and league, NFL pitches, lacrosse and customisable grids, shapes, and tracks.
All coordinates are stored within the app so areas can be marked again at the touch of a button.
Contractors and can also request custom templates from Intelligent Marking which can be made within a short timeframe ready for use.
All templates are stored within the
tablet – provided with purchase
– that is used to manage the IO
with a dedicated smart app which
enables users to easily control all
relevant parts of the automatic
line marking process.
It is completely up to the user if
a whole pitch is marked or only
certain areas. This function gives
the user complete control in using
their time to the greatest effect.
Users of the machine will be
able to manage their schedule
in greater detail because the
time it takes to mark the areas
will already be known and
will only require one person
for the task. The robot is stable
on every kind of surface and
can work continuously due to
interchangeable batteries. The
machine can mark out two to
three fields on one drum of paint
depending on the nozzle used
making it very easy to calculate
when new paint is needed.
The guaranteed cost saving the
IO provides makes consistent
contracted line marking an
attractive and cost-effective
prospect to establishments that
may otherwise overlook it and in
turn an affordable investment for
contractors.
Making its mark at Finborough School
The Intelligent One has a lot of
strong product features but one
of its greatest assets is timesaving for those who have a small
number of staff for a large area.
Rory Ferguson, head groundsman
at Finborough School in Suffolk
has one full-size football pitch,
two half size hockey pitches,
five 7-a-side football pitches and
two small sided rugby pitches to
maintain by himself.
Ten of these pitches are in white
and four in blue, with marking out
all of these areas taking over two
days. Before using the Intelligent
One, Rory was sceptical it would
be able to find a signal deep in the
Suffolk countryside. Programming
the robot to mark out his nonregulation size pitches was also
a potential concern, but all of his
worries have been put to one side.
“Before seeing the IM Robot in
action, I was sceptical about how
it would perform because I’ve
had other line markers that used
similar technology struggle in
this setting because of the signal
quality we have here,” he said.
“Having now had the system
explained to me and how it uses
the base station to eliminate any
dead spots I feel very confident in
its capability and this proved the
case as during the demonstration,
there were no issues at all.
“The fact it was possible to
quickly adjust the template at
the side of the pitch to match
our pitch sizes and keep that
format for any further use of the
machine was very impressive.
It produced a straight line every
time and once we programmed it,
we were able to let it get on with
marking with no issues at all.
“The fact it was possible to
quickly adjust the template at
the side of the pitch to match
our pitch sizes and keep that
format for any further use of the
machine was very impressive.
It produced a straight line every
time and once we programmed it,
we were able to let it get on with
marking with no issues at all.
“For a site like this where we
have a lot to mark out, it has to be
a huge advantage. The machine
marked out a full-size pitch in 25
minutes whereas it would take
me at least double that just over
marking an existing pitch. So,
being able to save that time and
go off and get other work done
is a significant benefit. We also
spend about two and a half days
plotting out our running track and
marking it out and this robot can
do it much quicker than that.”
