Fully autonomous solar panel cleaning robot from Greenleap Robotics

The Lotus A4000 cleaning robot, built with automotive-grade components, is a reliable and hassle-free solution to daily clean and maintain solar plants operating in harsh and arid regions.

November 24, 2022 Uma Gupta

Greenleap Robotics' Lotus A4000 cleaning robot in action

Greenleap Robotics

India’s Greenleap Robotics has developed Lotus A4000 fully autonomous and waterless solar panel cleaning robot that is compatible with both rooftop and ground-mount PV installations. The company claims its robotic solution leads to up to 10% more generation output than biweekly wet cleaning.

The robot uses ultra-soft microfiber cleaning fins that combine airflow and a controlled impact to flick off the dust particles from the panels without any damage to their anti-reflective coating.

Besides cleaning dust and debris, the robot can also clean off bird dropping deposits. The robot can achieve 80-90% reduction in bird dropping deposits in four cleaning cycles, as per the company.

The robot is powered by an on-board lithium battery and can complete a single cleaning cycle of a 1 MWp solar plant under 2.5 hours. The robot battery takes less than two hours to charge fully.

For battery charging, a solar charging-based docking station is provided at the end of the solar row. The docking station houses a self-executing charging connector that automatically latches when the robot arrives after cleaning.

The machine’s dual-drive system with real-time orientation control helps to overcome panel-to-panel irregularities up to 40 mm.

The robots are equipped with automotive-grade components and 4G based communication system. These are centrally managed and controlled via the company’s proprietary web application to ensure peak performance, zero downtime, and predictive maintenance.

The robots come with a standard battery size of 12Ah/25.6V, which supports up to three hours of cleaning time. These are also available with extended battery range of 18 Ah/25.6V, which supports up to 4.5 hours of cleaning time.

The machine has dimensions of 4,500x660x370 mm and weighs 45 kg (for the standard range).

This content is protected by copyright and may not be reused. If you want to cooperate with us and would like to reuse some of our content, please contact: editors@pv-magazine.com.