Flying drones in the service of solar panels. How can they contribute to renewable energy?

Drones have proven more than once that they can speed up and facilitate many tedious activities by using their ability to fly. This time, the companies Solar Drone and Airobotics are trying to prove that they can use their possibilities in the service of solar panels.

How can drones contribute to renewable energy?

As you probably know, solar panels constantly accumulate dust, dirt and other debris, which reduces their effectiveness. They are also often located on the tops of tall buildings or in remote places, which complicates the entire cleaning process, so it’s no wonder that Solar Drone, providing services in the sense of maintaining solar farms, has made efforts to improve it.

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This is how a weather-resistant drone was created that takes off from a docking station located near the solar panels. Thanks to LiDAR sensors and optical cameras, the operator will be able to easily control it, i.e. reach the panels, position themselves over them, and then spray them with a special cleaning liquid. For now, it is not known when the system can be put into use, but we have the appropriate visualizations:

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Once the process is complete, the drone will travel back to the docking station and, if necessary, the automated system will replace the battery with a freshly charged one and the cleaning fluid tank with a full one. According to estimates, this system should be 25% cheaper compared to other panel cleaning techniques and will additionally protect them from potential damage.