Snow Blowers of the Future?

Ever wish you had your own personal snow removal service to take care of slushy cold messes for you? The best part of waking up may be your coffee, but the worst is having to shovel the mountain of snow in your driveway before trekking through the same said frozen crud to get to your favorite place in the world - work.

By the time you make it home, you'll likely have to start all over again. By the time you're finished, you're exhausted and ready for bed. Then, if you're lucky, you wake up the next morning to do it all over again.

It doesn't have to be that way! Snow blowers make clearing your driveway and sidewalks much easier and much faster. They even come with electric start and hand warmers. If you don't want to be snowed on, you can also get an attachable snow cab to protect you from the wind and snow.

The really exciting news is a breakthrough in snow blower technology. Istanbul Technical University mechatronics associate professor, Emin Faruk Kececi invented a remote-operated snow blower robot called the SnowBYTE. It's a small, all-wheel drive, gas/electric snow blower with electric start that you can operate from the warmth of your home. The gas engine powers the snow blowing system (front blades and snow blowing chute), and electricity powers the all-wheel-drive motors that move the SnowBYTE up and down your driveway and walkways.

If you want to sit on your sofa with your feet up, that's fine. The SnowByte features an integrated camera system which provides you a view of what's being cleared away as you go. So even as you're lounging on the couch sipping your hot cappuccino, you can still navigate precisely where you want the machine to go.

The SnowBYTE is still in development mode, and the prototypes have not been perfected yet. The biggest problem is that it's compact and lightweight. Without the size and weight of a full-sized snow blower, it cannot effectively handle deep, heavy snow. 

This may be a fun alternative for lighter snow, but for the real thick stuff you should probably stick with a 2-stage snow blower.