Autonomous Mowing Deck Control for Solar Panel Ground Clearance
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Solution Overview
Problem
Renewable energy farms face challenges in maintaining large areas with substantial ground cover, leading to overgrown vegetation, weed infestations, reduced production, unsafe working conditions, and increased fire risk due to the variable and labor-intensive nature of traditional grounds maintenance methods.
Innovation Solution
An autonomous mobile maintenance robot system equipped with a low-profile mowing deck that can tilt and lift, allowing it to navigate under solar panels and adapt to different ground contours, coupled with a charging station and communication protocol for efficient battery management and navigation.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If traditional industrial mowers are used for grounds maintenance, then large areas can be maintained, but human capital investment and labor costs increase significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The autonomous robot tractor performs grounds maintenance operations independently without human intervention. It navigates autonomously, operates the mowing deck, and returns to charging stations automatically, eliminating the need for human operators while maintaining productivity across large renewable energy farm areas.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces the mechanical system of human-operated industrial mowers with an autonomous robotic system. The robot uses computer vision, GPS navigation, and automated control systems to substitute human labor, reducing human capital investment while maintaining or improving maintenance coverage.
2Object-affected harmful factors
If ground cover is maintained for aesthetic and erosion resistance, then ground protection is improved, but vegetation management becomes more difficult and labor-intensive
Solution Approach 1:
The autonomous robot continuously maintains ground cover vegetation at appropriate heights without human intervention. It automatically navigates across the terrain, adjusting its mowing operations to maintain erosion-resistant ground cover while eliminating the labor-intensive aspect of vegetation management.
Solution Approach 2:
The robot performs continuous mowing operations to maintain ground cover vegetation, preventing overgrowth that would compromise erosion resistance. By operating continuously and autonomously, it ensures consistent vegetation management without the intermittent human labor required by traditional methods.
3Adaptability or versatility
If low-profile mowing deck is used to navigate under solar panels, then accessibility is improved, but device complexity increases due to tilt and lift mechanisms
Solution Approach 1:
The mowing deck is designed with dynamic tilt and lift capabilities that allow it to adapt to different operating conditions. The deck can tilt to navigate under solar panels at various angles and lift to clear obstacles, providing the adaptability needed for renewable energy farm environments while using controlled mechanical mechanisms.
Solution Approach 2:
The mowing deck mechanism serves multiple functions: it cuts vegetation at standard heights, tilts to navigate under solar panels at low clearance, and lifts to clear obstacles. This multi-functionality provides universal adaptability across different terrain and solar panel configurations without requiring multiple separate devices.
4Device complexity
If autonomous navigation system is implemented, then labor costs are reduced, but energy consumption increases due to battery requirements
Solution Approach 1:
The robot operates in periodic cycles, performing mowing operations until battery charge is depleted, then automatically returning to charging stations to recharge. This periodic operation pattern allows the autonomous navigation system to function continuously across the farm while managing energy consumption through regular charging intervals.
Solution Approach 2:
The autonomous navigation system uses feedback from battery charge level sensors to automatically determine when to return to charging stations. The control system monitors energy consumption in real-time and adjusts navigation and mowing operations to optimize battery usage, reducing overall energy waste while maintaining autonomous functionality.
Data Source
AI summary
A grounds maintenance system comprising: a robot tractor comprising; a robot body; a drive system including one or more motorized drive wheels to propel the robot body; a control system coupled to the drive system, the control system configurable to store a mow plan that specifies a set of paths to be traversed for a grounds maintenance operation and control the drive system to autonomously traverse the set of paths to implement the mow plan; a battery system comprising one or more batteries housed in the robot body; and a low-profile mowing deck coupled to the robot body, the mowing deck adapted to tilt and lift relative to the robot body, wherein the control system is configured to control tilting and lifting of the mowing deck and cutting by the mowing deck.