Production losses caused by pollution on solar panels will be eliminated with a cleaning robot.

Academics from Karabük University have produced a cleaning robot using local resources to prevent production losses caused by pollution on the solar panels on campus.
Karabük University has added a new academic study in the field of “Clean, Accessible, and Safe Energy” after being chosen as a “specialized university” in this field by the Council of Higher Education (YÖK). The cleaning robot for the solar panels of the rooftop solar power plant located on the university campus was completely produced using local resources by the university’s academics. The solar panel cleaning robot, designed, programmed, and manufactured by Karabük University faculty members Prof. Dr. Selim Öncü, Assoc. Prof. Dr. Mustafa Karagöz, and Assist. Prof. Burak Çiftçi, has a cleaning capacity of approximately 170 kWp per hour and can be used with single or double brush options.
Assoc. Prof. Dr. Mustafa Karagöz, one of the project leaders, stated, “The electronic circuit and mechanical design, control software, and manufacturing of the robot are entirely our team’s work. The cleaning robot we designed and produced has been used professionally in cleaning the PV panels located on the roofs of our university.”
Karagöz also provided information about the robot’s performance and the tests conducted:
“Our robot, which has a cleaning capacity of approximately 170 kWp per hour, can be used with single or double brush cleaning options. During the cleaning operations conducted on different types of panels, we observed that the robot was able to clean on wet surfaces and glass surfaces without slipping up to 15 degrees. In our tests, the cleaning of dirty panels located on the roof of our Engineering Faculty has increased production performance.”