Amphibious solar panel cleaning robot

Abstract

The utility model discloses an amphibious solar cell panel cleaning robot, including robot main part, robot main part sets up caterpillar type chassis, is provided with flight module on robot main part, and the front part of robot main part is provided with cleaning device main part, and the cleaning device main part is composed of rolling cleaning brush, cleaning brush frame, high pressure gas cylinder, gas duct and wheel hub motor, and rolling cleaning brush is rotatably connected on cleaning brush frame, and is driven by wheel hub motor, and the inside of rolling cleaning brush is hollow and is communicated high pressure gas cylinder through gas duct, and is arranged with air injection hole on rolling cleaning brush. The caterpillar type chassis can realize all -directional movement, and the steering in situ guarantees the precision and the stability in the operation process, and the high pressure gas cylinder is combined with rolling cleaning brush cleaning, and effectively improves the cleaning effect and the cleaning efficiency, and further reduces the overall quality, and optimizes the endurance performance, and the flight module makes the cleaning robot have the ability of moving in the air in small range, and is convenient for shifting position between each solar cell group.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This utility model relates to the field of solar panel cleaning technology, and in particular to an amphibious solar panel cleaning robot. Background Technology

[0002] The advantages of solar energy are: ① its longevity, being inexhaustible; ② its ubiquity, being readily available everywhere without the need for exploration or transportation; ③ its pollution-free nature, as the use of solar energy does not emit pollutants, produces no noise, or pollute the environment; and ④ its vast reserves, with the total energy radiated by the sun in a year far exceeding the total energy consumed on Earth. As a clean and pollution-free renewable energy source, the development and utilization of solar energy is of great significance to ensuring sustainable economic development. With the continuous development of current technology, the photovoltaic industry has expanded to a considerable scale and has become a key investment area in the clean energy sector. This industry mainly uses photothermal-electric conversion technology, that is, using crystalline silicon materials to absorb and convert sunlight. In the utilization of solar energy, photoelectric conversion efficiency is a key indicator for measuring its effectiveness. However, the accumulation of dust on the surface of solar panels reduces their ability to absorb sunlight, thus affecting photoelectric conversion efficiency. Given that solar power plants are mostly located in remote, sparsely populated areas, and even in harsh desert environments, the cleaning and maintenance of solar panels has become an urgent research problem to be solved. Currently, the industry has a significant demand for automatic solar panel cleaning systems that reduce human intervention and are easy to install and maintain. Therefore, there is a need to develop an automated solar panel cleaning robot that can operate independently and is easy to use and maintain.

[0003] The existing automatic solar panel cleaning robots have the following problems:

[0004] 1. Currently, solar panel cleaning robots have several problems when moving, such as the solar panels being prone to falling off due to tilting or slope, the robot tires potentially damaging the surface of the solar panels, and the solar panels often having a small area, which requires a high turning radius.

[0005] 2. Currently, the mainstream method for cleaning solar panel surfaces is to rinse and wipe them with a water gun. However, this method has many limitations in my country's solar power plants, which are mostly built in remote western regions. The scarcity of water resources and the difficulty in allocating manpower significantly increase the cost of manual washing, and the extremely tall solar towers also greatly increase the difficulty of washing. Using vehicle-mounted cleaning machines can easily scratch and damage the surface of the solar panels, and requires the assistance of specialized vehicles, which presents obstacles in areas with densely packed solar panel arrays.

[0006] 3. Currently, solar panel cleaning robots have a significant drawback: they can only clean one solar panel at a time, and after cleaning, they cannot actively move to other uncleaned solar panels or storage areas. The execution of cleaning tasks is highly dependent on human staff, making it difficult for them to independently and efficiently clean large-scale solar panel arrays. Utility Model Content

[0007] To solve the above-mentioned technical problems, this utility model designs an amphibious solar panel cleaning robot.

[0008] The present invention adopts the following technical solution:

[0009] An amphibious solar panel cleaning robot includes a robot body with a tracked chassis and a flight module. A cleaning device body is located at the front of the robot body. The cleaning device body consists of a rolling cleaning brush, a cleaning brush holder, a high-pressure gas cylinder, an air duct, and a hub motor. The rolling cleaning brush is rotatably connected to the cleaning brush holder and driven by the hub motor. The interior of the rolling cleaning brush is hollow and connected to the high-pressure gas cylinder through the air duct. Air jet holes are arranged on the rolling cleaning brush.

[0010] Preferably, the rolling cleaning brush includes a roller with nylon bristles and air jets evenly distributed on it. The pure nylon bristles are flexible, resilient, wear-resistant, and will not scratch expensive photovoltaic panel equipment, effectively extending the lifespan of a single rolling cleaning brush. Simultaneously, they become charged during rotational friction, attracting small particulate dirt, making dust cleaning of the photovoltaic panel surface highly efficient and maintaining the power generation efficiency of the photovoltaic panel throughout its normal service life.

[0011] Preferably, an electrically controlled valve is installed on the air duct.

[0012] Preferably, the flight module includes four propeller mounts, propeller motors, and propellers. The propeller motors are fixedly mounted on the propeller mounts, and the output ends of the propeller motors are fixedly connected to the propellers. The propeller mounts are fixedly mounted on the robot body.

[0013] Preferably, the tracked chassis includes a chassis frame, drive motors, drive wheels, and tracks. Drive motors are fixedly mounted on the front and rear sides of the bottom of the chassis frame, respectively. Drive wheels are fixedly mounted on the output ends of the drive motors, and tracks are connected to the front and rear drive wheels. The drive wheels of the tracked chassis engage with the tracks, indirectly moving the chassis by rotating the tracks. The tracks, rather than the drive wheels, are in direct contact with the ground, significantly increasing the contact area compared to wheeled chassis. This effectively reduces pressure and prevents scratching the photovoltaic panel surface while enhancing adhesion, making it more suitable for solar panels on slopes compared to wheeled chassis. Simultaneously, the tracks on both sides of the tracked chassis rotate in different directions. During turning, two independent drive sources transmit power to the two tracks respectively. One track can rotate forward while the other rotates backward, achieving free turning on the ground, i.e., center turning, significantly reducing the turning radius and better meeting the needs of solar panels for flexible turning and U-turns.

[0014] Preferably, a support wheel is installed between the front and rear drive wheels inside the track.

[0015] Preferably, a high-pressure gas cylinder and a cover plate are mounted on the chassis frame, and the flight module is mounted on the cover plate.

[0016] Preferably, a monitoring probe is installed at the bottom of the chassis frame. This allows for the collection of surface defects on the cleaned solar panels, providing a basis for subsequent offline defect detection and classification.

[0017] The beneficial effects of this utility model are: (1) This utility model adopts a tracked chassis, which can achieve omnidirectional movement and turning on the spot. The tracked chassis is driven by a motor, usually a DC motor with good speed regulation performance, to ensure accuracy and stability during operation; (2) This utility model uses a high-pressure gas cylinder combined with a rolling cleaning brush for cleaning, and combines the jet cleaning method with the mechanical cleaning method to effectively improve the cleaning effect and cleaning efficiency. At the same time, the weight of the high-pressure gas cylinder is significantly lower than that of the water tank, and compared with the traditional design, the water flow pressurization device is eliminated, further reducing the overall weight and optimizing the endurance performance of the cleaning robot; (3) This utility model adds a flight module, which enables the cleaning robot to move in the air within a small range on its own, making it easy to move between various solar cell arrays. Attached Figure Description

[0018] Figure 1 This is a perspective view of the present invention;

[0019] Figure 2 This is a front view of the present invention;

[0020] Figure 3 This is a perspective view of the present invention with the cover plate and flight module removed;

[0021] Figure 4 yes Figure 3 A type of front view;

[0022] Figure 5 yes Figure 4 A bottom view;

[0023] In the diagram: 1. Robot body, 2. Flight module, 3. Cleaning brush holder, 4. Rolling cleaning brush, 5. Tracked chassis, 6. Propeller frame, 7. Propeller motor, 8. Propeller, 9. Chassis frame, 10. Drive wheel, 11. Track, 12. Support wheel, 13. High-pressure gas cylinder, 14. Air duct, 15. Drive motor, 16. Monitoring probe. Detailed Implementation

[0024] The technical solution of this utility model will be further described in detail below through specific embodiments and with reference to the accompanying drawings:

[0025] Example: Figures 1-5 As shown, an amphibious solar panel cleaning robot includes a robot body 1, a tracked chassis 5, a flight module 2, and a cleaning device body at the front of the robot body. The cleaning device body consists of a rolling cleaning brush 4, a cleaning brush holder 3, a high-pressure gas cylinder 13, an air duct 14, and a hub motor. The rolling cleaning brush is rotatably connected to the cleaning brush holder and driven by the hub motor. The interior of the rolling cleaning brush is hollow and connected to the high-pressure gas cylinder through the air duct. Air jet holes are arranged on the rolling cleaning brush.

[0026] The rolling cleaning brush consists of a roller with nylon bristles and air jets evenly distributed on it.

[0027] An electrically controlled valve is installed on the air duct. The flight module includes four propeller mounts 6, propeller motors 7, and propellers 8. The propeller motors are fixedly mounted on the propeller mounts, and the output ends of the propeller motors are fixedly connected to the propellers. The propeller mounts are fixedly mounted on the robot body.

[0028] The tracked chassis includes a chassis frame 9, a drive motor, drive wheels 10, and tracks 11. Drive motors 15 are fixedly installed on the front and rear sides of the bottom of the chassis frame, respectively. Drive wheels are fixedly installed on the output ends of the drive motors, and tracks are connected to the front and rear drive wheels.

[0029] A support wheel 12 is installed between the front and rear drive wheels inside the tracks. A high-pressure gas cylinder and a cover plate are mounted on the chassis frame, and the flight module is mounted on the cover plate. A monitoring probe 16 is installed at the bottom of the chassis frame.

[0030] This utility model discloses a solar panel cleaning robot that completes its work by rotating a cleaning brush and using high-pressure gas injection. The cleaning brush moves across the surface of the solar panel under the drive of a tracked chassis. The robot's movement path is controlled by an adjustable tracked chassis, facilitating adjustments to the cleaning area. The advantage of using a tracked chassis is that it can achieve omnidirectional movement and turning on the spot, which meets the design requirements for a small turning radius. The tracked chassis is driven by a motor, typically a DC motor with good speed regulation performance, ensuring accuracy and stability during operation.

[0031] When not in use, the cleaning robot can be parked in the warehouse for maintenance and charging, extending its service life.

[0032] When cleaning of solar panels is required, the flight modules mounted on both sides of the cleaning robot activate, generating lift through propeller rotation, allowing the robot to actively move to the surface of the solar panels that need cleaning. Driven by hub motors, the robot's rotating brushes keep close to the solar panel surface, thoroughly cleaning dust and debris. The brushes are designed to be relatively short to ensure even contact with the cleaning surface during cleaning, avoiding uneven force caused by excessively long bristles. Longer bristles make it more difficult to guarantee consistent cleaning results; the moderate bristle length in this design effectively avoids this problem.

[0033] Once the cleaning task of the current solar panel is completed, the propellers can be activated again to move to the next solar panel to be cleaned, following a pre-set route. During this process, due to the short flight distance and time, the power demand is not significant, avoiding excessive impact on the cleaning robot's endurance. Furthermore, because the solar panels require an open environment and sunlight for power generation, there are almost no obstacles during the flight transfer, ensuring the stability and safety of the transfer process.

[0034] After completing its cleaning task, the robot can be driven back to the warehouse for maintenance and charging by its flight module. The entire operation requires no human intervention. The special design incorporating the flight module makes this new type of cleaning robot more suitable for the daily maintenance of unmanned or minimally staffed solar power plants compared to traditional cleaning devices. It has a wide range of applications, reduces daily maintenance labor costs, and aligns with the future development trend of solar panel cleaning robots.

[0035] The embodiments described above are merely preferred solutions of this utility model and are not intended to limit this utility model in any way. Other variations and modifications are possible without departing from the technical solutions described in the claims.

Claims

1. An amphibious solar panel cleaning robot comprising a robot body, characterized by, The robot body is provided with a crawler chassis, and the robot body is provided with a flight module.

2. The amphibious solar panel cleaning robot of claim 1, wherein, The rolling cleaning brush comprises a roller, nylon filaments and air injection holes uniformly distributed on the roller.

3. The amphibious solar panel cleaning robot of claim 1, wherein, An electric control valve is installed on the air guide pipe.

4. The amphibious solar panel cleaning robot of claim 1, wherein, The flight module comprises four groups of propeller frames, propeller motors and propellers.

5. The amphibious solar panel cleaning robot of claim 1, wherein, The crawler chassis comprises a chassis frame, drive motors, drive wheels and a crawler belt.

6. The amphibious solar panel cleaning robot of claim 5, wherein, Support wheels are installed between the front and rear drive wheels in the crawler belt.

7. The amphibious solar panel cleaning robot of claim 5, wherein, The chassis frame is provided with a high-pressure gas cylinder and a cover plate, and the flight module is installed on the cover plate.

8. The amphibious solar panel cleaning robot of claim 5, wherein, The chassis frame is provided with a monitoring probe.

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