From pv magazine India
Indian startup Solavio has developed a budget-friendly, portable robotic cleaning solution for rooftop PV arrays and ground-mounted solar installations. Its Eco Bot solution uses a tubular dry-cleaning method to clean panels via airflow and friction from an anti-static microfiber cloth.
“The speed of the robot and the cleaning unit can be modified based on the amount and type of dust,” Suraj Mohan, the co-founder of Solavio told pv magazine.
The bot, which features an onboard lithium battery, can be manually shifted to serve other rows of panels. The antistatic microfiber cloth does not physically damage the panels.
“We have even used certified global third-party agencies to test and certify the bot over an accelerated period (10,000 cycles) covering the life of the plant,” said Mohan. “There are no limitations on continuous use, thanks to our onboard electronics cooling chamber.”
The battery uses Japanese cell technology and can be charged with a normal AC charger, an AC fast charger, an onboard PV panel, or a dedicated docking station in the field.
The Eco Bot is cloud-based, enabling remote monitoring, control, and spare parts management. The bots can be controlled via onboard buttons, a remote fob, or an Internet of Things (IoT) dashboard.
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Good stuff! I would rather have heard plans for staying the course on floating or over-canal PV than that it can be manipulated, but maybe that’s in the works too.