Brush Width
The width of the band a cleaning robot sweeps in a single pass, which directly determines the number of passes needed to clean an array. On the AXI ROBEG ELS-03 solar panel cleaning robot the industrial brush width is 800 mm.
The area cleaned is the brush width multiplied by the travel distance. A wide brush therefore means more panel surface in the same time. The number of passes needed to cover a panel row is found by dividing the row width by the brush width, leaving some overlap margin between passes.
Increasing the width has a cost as well. As the brush gets longer the friction torque grows, and the torque and energy consumption of the drive motor rise; it also becomes mechanically harder for the brush to sit on the surface with even pressure. The width is therefore designed together with the drive power and the surface contact.
On the ROBEG ELS-03 this balance is struck by using an 800 mm industrial brush together with twin high-torque DC drive motors; an optimised climbing algorithm and non-slip wheel construction are provided for steady progress on tilted panel arrays. A wide band is the main parameter that shortens the total cleaning time at large rooftop and ground-mounted plants.
Context in which this term is used: Solar plant panel soiling and robotic cleaning