JP2011001800A - Automatic cleaning apparatus for photovoltaic power generation panel - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To overcome problems: a photovoltaic power generation panel becomes stained with time, causing deterioration in generation efficiency; repairing or replacement of the panel is difficult; a cleaning apparatus is liable to be significantly deteriorated with time, degrading the appearance when left on roof; a conventional cleaning apparatus is liable to produce uneven cleaning; and to maintain at least 95% or more of the generation efficiency of the panel attained in new arrangement for the life period of at least 10 years.SOLUTION: A rail is laid on the roof at a predetermined position, a cleaning device is set so as to automatically travel on the rail while being controlled vertically and horizontally with a guide mechanism. Thereby, the photovoltaic power generation panel is allowed to be periodically and automatically cleaned with a rotary brush or the like while being supplied with water or a cleaning agent when required. When the cleaning apparatus is not used, a means is employed for storing the cleaning device in a shade of a less conspicuous place under the eaves of the roof, avoiding the sun light or rain water or the like.

Description

  The present invention relates to an automatic cleaning device for a photovoltaic power generation panel installed in any building such as a home, office or factory.

  In recent years, the transition to a low-carbon society to prevent global warming as defined by the Kyoto Protocol has become a global trend, and research and development efforts have been made energetically in various fields. Although this trend is becoming more prevalent, solar power generation is the main technological field, but the current situation is cost performance due to expensive equipment and lack of power generation efficiency. There is a big problem, and the current situation is that it is gradually being used in ordinary households with subsidies from the government or local government.

In the near future, it will be greatly improved by mass production and technological development, and it will be adopted in an extremely large amount. However, in that case, the roof of a general household using several photovoltaic panels is currently being used. For example, the entire roof as shown in Patent Document 1 is a photovoltaic power generation panel, and is used as a roofing material instead of tiles, and has a form that significantly improves aesthetics, durability, etc. It is thought to go.

  At that time, it is inevitable that the solar power generation panel on the roof will become dirty over time with volcanic ash, sea salt, smoke, etc. depending on dust, rainwater, garbage, moss, and location, and if it is left as it is, the dirt will stick. There is a big problem that it becomes difficult to take easily, and there is a phenomenon that the transmittance of sunlight decreases and the power generation efficiency decreases significantly as the usage period becomes longer, but people regularly go up to the roof and wash it It is impossible to do this because of slipping or insufficient strength of the panel, and if a panel near the center of the roof breaks down, a professional contractor will ask a specialist to repair or replace only that panel. There was a problem that it took a lot of time and labor, such as having to reach the panel while removing the panel.

  As these countermeasures, Patent Document 2 proposes an automatic cleaning device for a solar cell panel, but is a self-propelled water cleaning device, which has an effect of being compact, simple and inexpensive, and having an inclined surface. When cleaning large roofs, there is a risk of the cleaning machine falling and it cannot be used depending on the roof, cleaning unevenness is likely to occur, and if the cleaning machine body is left on the roof, it may be affected by ultraviolet rays or rainwater over time. There are problems such as remarkably easy deterioration and loss of aesthetics, and there is a problem that it is almost impossible to take in and store underneath because the washing machine body is heavy.

JP 2004-332200 A JP 2002-273351 A

In the present invention, it is an object to solve the problem that the photovoltaic power generation panel is soiled with time and the power generation efficiency is remarkably reduced and the panel is difficult to repair or replace. If it cannot be used, cleaning unevenness is likely to occur, or if the washer is left on the roof, plastic parts, rubber belts, and metal parts used in ultraviolet rays and rainwater are likely to deteriorate over time. The challenge is to solve problems such as the loss of aesthetics and maintain at least 95% of the power generation efficiency over the lifetime of more than 10 years.

In order to solve the above-mentioned problem, a rail such as a rack rail is installed at a predetermined position on the roof, and a photovoltaic power generation panel is laid and fixed in the middle, and then a wheel such as a gear wheel corresponding to the rail is rotated. The main body of the long and thin cleaning device laid with brushes is installed on the rail so that it can automatically run with the guide mechanism set up and down, left and right, and water and a small amount if necessary from the water supply pipe installed at the top of the roof etc. It can be automatically cleaned regularly with a rotating brush while supplying other detergents, etc. When not cleaning, the main body of the cleaning device is stored under the roof eaves so as not to stand out in the shade by avoiding sunlight and rainwater When repairing a broken panel, the operator can get on the main body of the cleaning device and manually move it so that only the desired panel can be accommodated. It adopted the means that can be inspected or repaired.

By adopting the above-mentioned means, it is possible to solve the problem that the photovoltaic power generation panel becomes dirty over time and the power generation efficiency is lowered, and the remarkably difficult problem of repair and replacement of the panel is solved. Problems such as inapplicability, easy cleaning unevenness, and the possibility of deterioration due to ultraviolet rays, rainwater, etc. and loss of aesthetics can be solved if the cleaning machine is left on the roof. By cleaning the power generation efficiency, it is possible to easily maintain at least 95% of the power generation efficiency at the time of new installation over a lifetime of 10 years or more.

It is a perspective view which shows the schematic installation form of the solar power generation panel automatic cleaning apparatus of one Example which concerns on this invention. It is an enlarged side view which shows the structure of the outline at the time of the automatic washing | cleaning of the washing | cleaning apparatus main body of one Example which concerns on this invention. It is an enlarged front view of the vicinity of the gear wheel when the cleaning device is moving on the rack rail of one embodiment according to the present invention.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a schematic installation form of an automatic photovoltaic power generation panel cleaning apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention, but on the south side of a home such as a general household where a photovoltaic power generation panel 1 is laid. The width dimension of the photovoltaic panel 1 on the roof in which a plurality of rails 2 such as rack rails are laid in parallel at a predetermined position of the roof portion 3 in a direction directly below the slope of the roof and are movable in the vertical direction on the rail. The main body drive motor 5 and the brush drive motor 6 are attached to the main body drive motor 5 and the rails at both ends. The brush 7 can be rotated at a high speed and the cleaning device body 4 can be moved by a method such as acquiring AC or DC electricity while sliding from a power source provided in the power source 2, and the lower end portions of the plurality of rails 2 remain as they are. 1 About 80 degrees is bent into a curved surface with an appropriate radius, and the cleaning device body 4 can be stored upside down in the main body storage 8 under the eaves when the cleaning device is not operating normally. Yes. In addition, although the structure which accommodates and stores the washing | cleaning apparatus main body 8 under the eaves of the south side was described above, it is not limited to this, For example, the structure accommodated under the eaves of the north side may be sufficient.

Then, rainwater is stored in the tank 9, and when periodically washed, the pump 10 is operated and ejected while supplying rainwater and a small amount of detergent as needed from the pores of the water supply pipe 11 installed near the top of the roof. At the same time, it is a mechanism that rotates at high speed while moving the brush and performs automatic cleaning. In addition, the position for supplying water is not limited to the vicinity of the top of the roof as described above. For example, a method of directly attaching and supplying water to the cleaning apparatus main body may be adopted, and the water used may be tap water. However, because normal tap water contains salts such as calcium carbonate, there is a problem that substances commonly called scales adhere firmly to the surface of the panel, so a small amount of scale removal agent is added. It is necessary to take measures.

  More specifically, FIG. 2 is a side view showing a schematic configuration at the time of automatic cleaning of the cleaning apparatus main body 4, but the lower end portion of the structural substrate 13 provided with the main body driving motor 5 and the brush driving motor 6 on the upper side. An axle support bar 15 is suspended at two nearby locations, and an axle 16 is provided at a position about the middle of the axle support bar 15 via a bearing or the like. The axle 16 has a gear shape of the rail 2 with a rack. A wheel 12 such as a combined gear wheel is fixed and laid so as to be movable up and down without falling on the slope of the roof. A brush bar 18 is suspended at a middle position below the structural substrate 13 to provide a brush. The brush shaft 17 is provided through a bearing at a position suitable for cleaning from the outer diameter size of the roller 7, and the rotational force of the brush drive motor 6 is transmitted by the gear belt 14 to rotate the brush 7 at a high speed. Further, a guide groove 19 is provided on both sides of the side surface of the rack rail 2 and is guided by a guide mechanism such as a fitting and sliding with a protrusion provided near the lower end of the axle support bar 15. The gear wheel 12 prevents the wheel from being removed, and can be stored upside down under the eaves of the roof without falling even if it is turned upside down. As for the cleaning material of the cleaning machine, as described above when a brush is used, the present invention is not limited to this. For example, a material obtained by cutting a soft material such as urethane foam or nonwoven fabric into a strip shape. Any method of contacting and cleaning with a physical method such as a method of contacting while rotating or a method of scraping with a soft material squeegee such as rubber similar to a car wiper can be adopted, and a gear wheel is attached to the wheel. Although the example adopted is not limited to this, for example, it is possible to move up and down without falling by hanging with a wire winding device installed near the roof top using a normal wheel and suspended by a wire However, this method can be simpler and less expensive.

  More specifically, FIG. 3 is an enlarged front view of the vicinity of the gear wheel of FIG. 2 when the cleaning device is moving on the rack-like rail 2. The two protrusions hang down so as to slide against each other, and the protrusion 20 provided at a predetermined position below can be slid between the guide groove 19 provided at the intermediate position of the rail with good dimensional accuracy. In addition, the brush 7 is freely moved up and down on the roof while rotating at high speed, and is automatically cleaned together with water and a small amount of a detergent such as a detergent.

  In addition, when a failure occurs in a part of the photovoltaic power generation panel 1 and it is necessary to repair or replace it, a dedicated auxiliary device provided with a fence for preventing fall on the cleaning device body 4 is provided. Only the target panel can be repaired very easily by mounting the device and manually moving the operator on it.

In the present invention, it is desirable that the power generation efficiency is always measured to grasp the deterioration, and automatically managed by computer control, such as operating the cleaning device when it falls below the reference level, or operating at regular intervals.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Photovoltaic power generation panel 2 Rail 3 Roof part 4 Cleaning apparatus main body 5 Main body drive motor 6 Brush drive motor 7 Brush 8 Main body storage 9 Tank 10 Pumping pump
11 water supply pipe 12 wheels
13 Structure board 14 Gear belt
15 axle support bar 16 axle
17 Brush shaft 18 Brush bar
19 Guide groove 20 Protrusion

Claims (6)

A plurality of parallel rails 2 depending on the slope on the roof are installed, and the cleaning device body 4 is mounted on the rails 2 with wheels 12 attached to the lower part of the elongated cleaning device body 4 provided with a brush or the like below. The vertical and horizontal travel directions are determined by a guide mechanism and installed so that it can run automatically, and it can be cleaned by bringing cleaning materials such as brushes into contact with the photovoltaic panel 1 while supplying water and a small amount of detergent as needed. An automatic cleaning device for photovoltaic power generation panels, characterized in that   The automatic cleaning device for a photovoltaic power generation panel according to claim 1, wherein the cleaning device main body (4) can be stored under the eaves of the roof when not cleaning. In repairing a broken panel, the operator installed an auxiliary device on the cleaning device main body 4 and was able to get on it manually and move it manually so that only the desired panel was repaired. An automatic cleaning device for a photovoltaic power generation panel according to claim 1 or 2.   The automatic cleaning device for a photovoltaic power generation panel according to claim 1 or 2, wherein water in the tank 9 in which rain water is stored is used for cleaning.   2. The operation of the cleaning device main body 4 employs a gear wheel for the wheel 12, a rack rail corresponding to the gear wheel for the rail 2, and the gear wheel is driven by a motor to move. 2. The automatic cleaning device for photovoltaic power generation panels according to 2.   The automatic cleaning device for a photovoltaic power generation panel according to claim 1, wherein a method of suspending with a wire is adopted for the movement of the cleaning device body (4).