DESC:FIELD
The present disclosure relates to the field of mechanical engineering. Particularly, the present disclosure relates to the field of solar panels.
BACKGROUND
Solar panels convert light, typically sunlight, into electricity. The solar panels are disposed over a large area that are exposed to light. The solar cells receive light and convert light into electricity. The efficiency of the solar cells depends upon the ratio of the amount of light it receives to the amount of electricity it generates. Hence, if the solar panel is misaligned, the amount of light received by the solar cells is reduced, thereby reducing the efficiency of generation of electricity by the solar panels. Also, the solar cells get covered with dust, dirt, debris, grime, bird droppings, leaves, airborne contaminants and the like. In order to avoid any reduction in the amount of electricity generated, the solar panels need to be cleaned frequently.
A solar farm includes a large quantity of individual solar panels and therefore, the cleaning of each of the solar panels in the solar farm is a cumbersome task and may consume too much time.
Further, due to varying climatic conditions, cleaning of solar panels becomes a challenging task. For example, during dust storms, dry dust or dry debris accumulates on the solar panels and hence the dry dust or debris needs to be cleaned. However, during thunderstorms or rain or dew, dust and debris disposed on the solar panels get moist and become sticky and adhere to the surfaces of the solar panels. Also, marks are formed on the surfaces of the solar panels due to rain droplets that needs to be cleaned. Hence, conventional cleaning devices and methods used for cleaning dust or debris may not be suitable for cleaning dirt formed due to varying climate.
Furthermore, the solar panel cleaning device is placed or rested on the solar panel table and are manually aligned with respect to the surface of the solar panel to be cleaned in order to attain precise cleaning of the solar panels. Sometime, due to lack of availability of the solar panel cleaning device for each of the solar panel table, the solar panel cleaning device is manually moved to different solar panel tables for cleaning purpose. A single solar panel cleaning devices per solar panel table is required, or has to be manually moved to the different solar panel table There is a frequent requirement of human interventions, thereby making the cleaning process more time consuming. Therefore, in order to attain precise cleaning of the surface of the solar panels there is felt a need of a cleaning device that self aligns with the surface of the solar panel to be cleaned.
Hence, there is a need to develop a self-aligning solar panel cleaning device for cleaning solar panels that alleviates the aforementioned problems.
OBJECTS
Some of the objects of the arrangement of the present disclosure are aimed to ameliorate one or more problems of the prior art or to at least provide a useful alternative and are listed herein below.
An object of the present disclosure is to provide a self-aligning solar panel cleaning device for cleaning the surface of the solar panel.
Still another object of the present disclosure is to provide a self-aligning solar panel cleaning device that requires minimum human intervention.
Yet another object of the present disclosure is to provide a self-aligning solar panel cleaning device that requires comparatively less time for cleaning the solar panel.
Other objects and advantages of the present disclosure will be more apparent from the following description when read in conjunction with the accompanying figures, which are not intended to limit the scope of the present disclosure.
SUMMARY
The present disclosure envisages a self-aligning solar panel cleaning device equipped with a cleaning head that is configured to clean a solar panel. The self-aligning solar panel cleaning device includes a plurality of sensors, a processing unit and a drive mechanism. The cleaning head is configured to clean a solar panel. The plurality of sensors is configured to sense the distance between the cleaning head and the solar panel, and generate a sensor signal based on the sensed distance. The processing unit cooperates with the plurality of sensors. The processing unit is further configured to receive the sensed distance signal and process the sensed distance signal to generate control signals. The drive mechanism is configured to receive the generated control signals from the processing unit and is adapted to drive the cleaning head.
The control signals generated by the processing unit provides data required for aligning the cleaning head of the self-aligning solar panel cleaning device with respect to the solar panel.
In an embodiment, the plurality of sensors is distance sensors. In another embodiment, the plurality of sensors is disposed on the cleaning head.
In still another embodiment, the self-aligning solar panel cleaning device further comprises a thermal scanner and an electroluminescent sensor that are placed on the cleaning head and are configured to detect defects on the surface of the solar panel.
The drive mechanism includes a power screw motor controller and a winch motor controller. The power screw motor controller is configured to facilitate height adjustments of the cleaning head with respect to the solar panel. The winch motor controller is configured to facilitate tilting of the cleaning head with respect to the solar panel.
In an embodiment, the cleaning head includes at least one of a wiper, a brush, a spraying mechanism, a pressurized dispensing mechanism, a blowing mechanism, and any combination thereof, for cleaning purposes.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF ACCOMPANYING DRAWINGS
A self-aligning solar panel cleaning device of the present disclosure will now be described with the help of the accompanying drawings, in which:
Figure 1 illustrates a block diagram of a self-aligning solar panel cleaning device, in accordance with one embodiment of the present disclosure.
LIST OF REFERENCE NUMERALS
100 – self-aligning solar panel cleaning device
102 – Cleaning head
104 – Processing unit
106 – a plurality of sensors
108 – Drive mechanism
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
Due to varying climatic conditions, cleaning of solar panels becomes a challenging task. For example, during dust storms, dry dust or dry debris accumulates on the solar panels and hence the dry dust or debris needs to be cleaned. However, during thunderstorms or rain or dew, dust and debris disposed on the solar panels get moist and become sticky and adhere to the surfaces of the solar panels. Also, marks are formed on the surfaces of the solar panels due to rain droplets that needs to be cleaned. Hence, conventional cleaning devices and methods used for cleaning dust or debris may not be suitable for cleaning dirt formed due to varying climate.
Furthermore, the convetional solar panel cleaning devices are required to be manually aligned with respect to the surface of the solar panel to be cleaned in order to attain precise cleaning of the solar panels. There is a frequent requirement of human interventions, thereby making the cleaning process more time consuming. Therefore, in order to attain precise cleaning of the surface of the solar panels there is felt a need of a cleaning device that self aligns with the surface of the solar panel to be cleaned.
The present disclosure envisages a self-aligning solar panel cleaning device that is designed to overcome the drawbacks of the conventional solar panel cleaning devices. A preferred embodiment of the self-aligning solar panel cleaning device, of the present disclosure will now be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawing. The preferred embodiment does not limit the scope and ambit of the disclosure. The description provided is purely by way of example and illustration.
Figure 1 illustrates a block diagram of a self-aligning solar panel cleaning device 100. In accordance with the present disclosure.
The present disclosure envisages a self-aligning solar panel cleaning device 100 equipped with a cleaning head 102 that is configured to clean a solar panel. The solar panel is disposed on a solar panel table (not shown in the figure). In an embodiment, the self-aligning solar panel cleaning device 100 is aligned with the solar panel table. The self-aligning solar panel cleaning device 100 includes a plurality of sensors 106, a processing unit 104 and a drive mechanism 108. The cleaning head 102 is configured to clean the solar panel (not shown in the figure). The plurality of sensors 106 is configured to sense the distance between the cleaning head 102 and the solar panel, and generate a sensor signal based on the sensed distance. The processing unit 104 cooperates with the plurality of sensors 106. The processing unit 104 is configured to receive the sensed distance signal and process the sensed distance signal to generate control signals. The drive mechanism 108 is configured to receive the generated control signals from the processing unit 104 and is adapted to drive the cleaning head 102. In an embodiment, the drive mechanism 108 is a direct drive mechanism. In another embodiment, the plurality of sensors is distance sensors.
The control signals generated by the processing unit 104 provides data required for aligning the cleaning head 102 of the self-aligning solar panel cleaning device 100 with respect to the solar panel. The generated control signal by the processing unit 104 is transmitted to the drive mechanism 108. In an embodiment, the drive mechanism 108 includes a power screw motor controller (not shown in the figure) and a winch motor controller (not shown in the figure). The power screw motor controller is configured to facilitate height adjustments of the cleaning head 102 with respect to the solar panel. The winch motor controller is configured to facilitate tilting of the cleaning head 102 with respect to the solar panel.
In another embodiment, the at least one distance sensor may be used for aligning the cleaning head 102 parallel to the solar panel. In an exemplary embodiment, the cleaning head 102 may include four distance sensors. Two distance sensors are disposed at the edge of the cleaning head 102 and the remaining two distance sensors are placed off-center on the cleaning head 102, i.e. in-between the preceding two distance sensors.
In accordance with another embodiment of the present disclosure, the size of the cleaning head 102 is comparatively larger than the width of the solar panel to be cleaned. Therefore, the two distance sensors disposed at the edge of the cleaning head are placed outside the area of the solar panel to be cleaned.
The two distance sensors disposed at the edge of the cleaning head 102 send sensor signals based on sensed distance to the processing unit 104. The signal indicates whether the cleaning head is aligned with respect to the solar panel, i.e. with the surface of the solar panel to be cleaned. The processing unit 104 generates control signals based on the received sensor signal and transmits instructions, for steering the cleaning device 100 thereby tilting the cleaning head 102 with respect to the surface of the solar panel or the edge of the solar panel table, to the drive mechanism 108 for aligning the cleaning head 102. The correct place of the cleaning head 102 is determined when the cleaning head 102 is parallel to the surface of the solar panel to be cleaned. The cleaning of the surface of the solar panel is initiated when the cleaning head 102 is in the correct place. In an embodiment, the winch motor controller (not shown in the figure) of the drive mechanism 108 is configured to facilitate tilting of the cleaning head 102 with respect to the solar panel.
The remaining two distance sensors sense the distance between the cleaning head 102 and the surface of the solar panel to be cleaned. The distance measured by the two distance sensors is sent to the processing unit 104. The processing unit 104 compares the sensed signal with the predefined default distance and adjusts the distance between the cleaning head and the surface of the solar panel with reference to the defined default distance. The processing unit 104 sends generated control signals to the drive mechanism 108 for adjusting the height of the cleaning head 102 till the defined height is achieved. In an embodiment, the power screw motor controller (not shown in figure) of the drive mechanism 108 is configured to facilitate height adjustments of the cleaning head 102 with respect to the solar panel. The four distance sensors enable the cleaning head to be above the cleaning surface at a defined distance (fixed distance) and parallel to the surface of the solar panel at all time. Although, four distance sensors are used to describe the present disclosure, the present disclosure is not limited to the use of the four distance sensors and any number of distance sensors may be used.
In an embodiment, the cleaning head 102 includes at least one of a wiper (not shown in the figure), a brush (not shown in the figure), a spraying mechanism (not shown in the figure), a pressurized dispensing mechanism (not shown in the figure), a blowing mechanism (not shown in the figure), and any combination thereof, for cleaning purposes.
In an embodiment, the cleaning head 102 comprises non-limiting divisions such as the liquid cleaning unit (not shown in the figure), the air cleaning unit (not shown in the figure), the brush cleaning unit (not shown in the figure) and the wiper cleaning unit (not shown in the figure). The liquid cleaning unit includes at least one liquid supply source (not illustrated in figures) and at least one nozzle (not shown in the figure). The air cleaning unit includes at least one air supply source (not illustrated in Figures) and at least one air nozzle (not illustrated in Figures). Typically, the brush cleaning unit and the wiper cleaning unit has one or plurality of brushes (not illustrated in Figures) or wipers respectively. In an embodiment, the brushes and wipers are rotatable.
The processing unit 104, is the active control and decision making unit. The processing unit 104 receives information from the plurality of sensors 106. At least one of the power screw motor controller, and the winch motor controller of the drive mechanism 108 is actuated based on the information received by the processing unit 104 from the plurality of sensors 106.
In accordance with one embodiment, the self-aligning solar panel cleaning device 100 comprises a thermal scanner (not shown in the figure) and electroluminescent sensor (not shown in the figure) that are disposed on the cleaning head 102 and are configured to scan the surface of the solar panel for any surface defects that occurs due to thermal shocks and other environmental conditions.
The self-aligning solar panel cleaning device 100 performs self-alignment of the cleaning head 102 with respect to the surface of the solar panel. The self-aligning solar panel cleaning device 100 requires minimum human intervention, aligns the solar panel cleaning device with respect to the surface of the solar panel in comparatively less time.
In an embodiment, the cleaning head 102 does not require rails for moving above the surface of the solar panel. Hence, the self-aligning solar panel cleaning device 100 is comparatively less capital intensive. Also, the self-aligning solar panel cleaning device 100 of the present disclosure is actuated by D.C. power supply and does not require internal combustion engines which runs on diesel, petrol, gas, or the like, for actuation as required in the conventional solar panel cleaning device.
In another embodiment, the self-aligning solar panel cleaning device 100 of the present disclosure has a self cleaning device (not shown in the figure) that enables cleaning of the self-aligning solar panel cleaning device 100 after every cleaning operation. Also, elimination of the use of the internal combustion engines comparatively reduces maintenance time and cost.
TECHNICAL ADVANCES AND ECONOMICAL SIGNIFICANCE
The present disclosure described herein above has several technical advantages including, but not limited to, the realization of a self-aligning solar panel cleaning device that:
? requires minimum human intervention;
? can work at night;
? is cost effective;
? smartly plans the cleaning schedule; and
? requires comparatively less time.

The disclosure has been described with reference to the accompanying embodiments which do not limit the scope and ambit of the disclosure. The description provided is purely by way of example and illustration.
The embodiments herein and the various features and advantageous details thereof are explained with reference to the non-limiting embodiments in the following description. Descriptions of well-known components and processing techniques are omitted so as to not unnecessarily obscure the embodiments herein. The examples used herein are intended merely to facilitate an understanding of ways in which the embodiments herein may be practiced and to further enable those of skill in the art to practice the embodiments herein. Accordingly, the examples should not be construed as limiting the scope of the embodiments herein.
The foregoing description of the specific embodiments so fully revealed the general nature of the embodiments herein that others can, by applying current knowledge, readily modify and/or adapt for various applications such specific embodiments without departing from the generic concept, and, therefore, such adaptations and modifications should and are intended to be comprehended within the meaning and range of equivalents of the disclosed embodiments. It is to be understood that the phraseology or terminology employed herein is for the purpose of description and not of limitation. Therefore, while the embodiments herein have been described in terms of preferred embodiments, those skilled in the art will recognize that the embodiments herein can be practiced with modification within the spirit and scope of the embodiments as described herein.
Throughout this specification the word “comprise”, or variations such as “comprises” or “comprising”, will be understood to imply the inclusion of a stated element, integer or step, or group of elements, integers or steps, but not the exclusion of any other element, integer or step, or group of elements, integers or steps.
The use of the expression “at least” or “at least one” suggests the use of one or more elements or ingredients or quantities, as the use may be in the embodiment of the disclosure to achieve one or more of the desired objects or results.
Any discussion of documents, acts, materials, devices, articles or the like that has been included in this specification is solely for the purpose of providing a context for the disclosure. It is not to be taken as an admission that any or all of these matters form a part of the prior art base or were common general knowledge in the field relevant to the disclosure as it existed anywhere before the priority date of this application.
The numerical values mentioned for the various physical parameters, dimensions or quantities are only approximations and it is envisaged that the values higher/lower than the numerical values assigned to the parameters, dimensions or quantities fall within the scope of the disclosure, unless there is a statement in the specification specific to the contrary.
While considerable emphasis has been placed herein on the components and component parts of the preferred embodiments, it will be appreciated that many embodiments can be made and that many changes can be made in the preferred embodiments without departing from the principles of the disclosure. These and other changes in the preferred embodiment as well as other embodiments of the disclosure will be apparent to those skilled in the art from the disclosure herein, whereby it is to be distinctly understood that the foregoing descriptive matter is to be interpreted merely as illustrative of the disclosure and not as a limitation. ,CLAIMS:1. A self-aligning solar panel cleaning device (100) equipped with a cleaning head (102) configured to clean a solar panel, said device (100) comprising:
a. a plurality of sensors (106) configured for sensing distance between said cleaning head (102) and said solar panel, and generate a sensor signal based on said sensed distance;
b. a processing unit (104) cooperating with said plurality of sensors (106), configured to receive said sensed distance signal and process said sensed distance signal to generate control signals; and
c. a drive mechanism (108) configured to receive said generated control signals from said processing unit (104) and adapted to drive said cleaning head (102).
2. The device as claimed in claim 1, wherein said control signals generated by said processing unit (104) provides data required for aligning said cleaning head (102) of said device (100) with respect to said solar panel.
3. The device as claimed in claim 1, wherein said plurality of sensors (106) is distance sensors.
4. The device as claimed in claim 1, wherein said plurality of sensors (106) is disposed on said cleaning head (102).
5. The device as claimed in claim 1, wherein said self-aligning solar panel cleaning device (100) further comprises a thermal scanner and an electroluminescent sensor placed on said cleaning head, configured to detect defects on the surface said solar panel.
6. The device as claimed in claim 1, wherein said drive mechanism (108) includes:
a. a power screw motor controller, configured to facilitate height adjustments of said cleaning head with respect to said solar panel; and
b. a winch motor controller configured to facilitate tilting of said cleaning head (102) with respect to said solar panel.
7. The device as claimed in claim 1, wherein said cleaning head (102) includes at least one of a wiper, a brush, a spraying mechanism, a pressurized dispensing mechanism, a blowing mechanism, and any combination thereof, for cleaning purposes.