JP2015013281A - Solar panel cleaning device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To let a main body traveling autonomously on a light receiving surface of a solar panel travel without deviating from a specified cleaning line.SOLUTION: In a solar panel cleaning device, a cleaning line is set as the direction in parallel with a straight line observed at a light receiving surface, and provided are a camera 7 which photographs the light receiving surface in front of a main body 1 traveling autonomously, an image processing device 8 which extracts a straight line as an extraction line from a photographed image photographed by the camera 7 and detects the inclination of the extraction line and steering means which steers the traveling direction of the main body 1 by a right and left pair of crawlers 2. Control is implemented to impart speed difference to the right and left pair of crawlers 2 as steering means so that the main body 1 is returned to the cleaning line on the basis of the change of the inclination of the extraction line detected by the image processing device 8, and thereby the main body 1 traveling autonomously is made capable of traveling without deviating from a specified cleaning line.

Description

  The present invention relates to a solar panel cleaning device for cleaning a light receiving surface of a solar panel.

  In recent years, as one of power generation systems that use renewable energy, solar systems that use solar energy have become popular. The solar system is installed outdoors with the light receiving surface of the solar panel facing the sun, and has the advantage that the solar panel can be installed by effectively utilizing the roof and rooftop of factories, buildings, general houses and the like. Solar panels are often installed with the light-receiving surface tilted in the direction in which the sun shines (southern in Japan).

  A solar panel is an assembly of multiple cells that incorporate solar cells that instantly convert sunlight into electric power through the photovoltaic effect. In a typical solar system, multiple panel units are arranged vertically and horizontally. Used as a connected array. In some large-scale mega solar systems, the total length of the array to which the panel units are connected reaches several hundred meters. Usually, the light receiving surface of the solar panel has a blue-black color, and the cell boundaries and the lead wires connecting the cells are seen as vertical and horizontal grids with silver white lines. In addition, on the light-receiving surface of the entire solar panel in which the panel units are arranged, the frame on the outer periphery of each panel unit can be seen in the vertical and horizontal directions with silver white lines. Some solar panels do not show cell boundaries or lead wires.

  Since these solar panels are installed outdoors, foreign matter such as dust contained in the atmosphere and rainwater, bird droppings, and dead leaves adhere to the light receiving surface. For this reason, it is a big problem of a solar system that sunlight is interrupted | blocked by the dust and foreign material adhering to these light-receiving surfaces, and electric power generation efficiency falls. To prevent this decrease in power generation efficiency, the light receiving surface of the solar panel should be cleaned as appropriate to remove the adhering dust and foreign matter, but the solar panel should be installed at a high place such as on the roof or rooftop. Therefore, manual cleaning is difficult in terms of safety. Further, in a mega solar system having a vast light receiving surface, manual cleaning requires a great deal of labor.

  For such a problem of cleaning the solar panel, a main body equipped with a cleaning means such as a brush is disposed on the light receiving surface of the solar panel, and the main body is moved along a predetermined cleaning line on the light receiving surface. A solar panel cleaning device that cleans the light receiving surface with a cleaning means is proposed (for example, see Patent Documents 1 and 2).

  In the solar panel cleaning apparatus described in Patent Document 1, the upper and lower ends of a solar panel whose light receiving surface is inclined extend in the horizontal direction in the horizontal direction, and the vertical direction in which the light receiving surface is inclined in the vertical axis direction. A moving rail is provided, and the main body on which the cleaning means is mounted is cleaned while moving along the cleaning line in the inclined direction with the rail for moving up and down, and the next cleaning line is perpendicular to the inclined direction with the mounting rails at the upper and lower ends. It is moved to the position of, and the entire light receiving surface of the solar panel is cleaned.

  In the solar panel cleaning device described in Patent Document 2, a main body on which a cleaning means is mounted, a self-propelled means that autonomously travels on the light-receiving surface of the solar panel, a recognition means that recognizes the size and shape of the solar panel, A power supply device for driving the running means and the like is provided, and the main body is controlled to sequentially move the light receiving surface along a predetermined cleaning line based on the output of the recognition means. An ultrasonic sensor is used as the recognition means.

  In those described in Patent Documents 1 and 2, the cleaning line for cleaning while the main body moves or autonomously travels is set in the inclination direction of the light receiving surface, and the main body is moved laterally in the direction orthogonal to the inclination direction to be parallel. To the next cleaning line.

JP 2002-273351 A JP 2010-186819 A

  Since the solar panel cleaning apparatus described in Patent Document 1 guides the main body with the mounting rail and the vertical movement rail, the main body can be moved along a predetermined cleaning line and cleaned without leaving the entire light receiving surface. However, there are problems that the installation cost becomes expensive because the mounting rails and the vertical movement rails are laid, and that the roof and the like are more than necessary.

  On the other hand, the solar panel cleaning device described in Patent Document 2 does not need to install a guide rail because the main body travels autonomously. However, the traveling direction of the main body may deviate from a predetermined cleaning line, and is not cleaned. There is a problem that the area of is likely to remain. In particular, when the cleaning line is set in a direction orthogonal to the inclination direction of the light receiving surface, the traveling direction of the main body is likely to shift from the cleaning line to the lower side in the inclination direction due to gravitational acceleration.

  Then, the subject of this invention is making it drive | work so that the main body which autonomously travels the light-receiving surface of a solar panel may not slip | deviate from a predetermined cleaning line.

  In order to solve the above problems, the present invention provides a main body disposed on a light receiving surface of a solar panel where a straight line extending in at least one direction is observed, and a self-propelled means for autonomously running the main body on the light receiving surface. A solar panel cleaning device mounted on the main body and cleaning the light receiving surface, and moving the main body along a predetermined cleaning line; and a straight line observed on the light receiving surface. The straight line is extracted as an extraction line from the photographing means for photographing the light receiving surface in front of the traveling main body and set in a parallel direction or a perpendicular direction, and the inclination of the extraction line is extracted from the photographed image photographed by the photographing means. An image processing means for detecting and a steering means for steering the traveling direction of the main body by the self-propelled means are provided, and based on a change in the inclination of the extraction line detected by the image processing means Adopting a configuration for controlling the steering means to return the body to the cleaning line.

  That is, the cleaning line is set in a direction parallel to or perpendicular to the straight line observed on the light receiving surface, the photographing means for photographing the light receiving surface in front of the traveling body, and the straight line as an extraction line from the photographed image photographed by the photographing means. An image processing means for extracting and detecting the inclination of the extraction line and a steering means for steering the traveling direction of the main body by the self-propelling means are provided, and based on the change in the inclination of the extraction line detected by the image processing means, By controlling the steering means so as to return the main body to the cleaning line, the main body that autonomously travels on the light receiving surface travels so as not to deviate from the predetermined cleaning line using the straight line observed on the light receiving surface of the solar panel. I was able to do that.

  When the cleaning line is set in a direction parallel to the straight line observed on the light receiving surface, the extraction line is extracted so as to extend linearly in the vertical direction of the captured image, as will be described later. When the main body travels on the observed straight line and the photographing means is located on this straight line, the extraction line extends vertically at the left and right center of the photographed image. Further, when the photographing means is located on the right side of the straight line, the extraction line extends so as to incline to the right on the left side of the photographed image, and when the photographing means is located on the left side of the straight line, the extraction line is centered on the right side of the photographed image. It extends to tilt to the left. When the traveling direction of the main body is shifted to the left and right, the inclination of these extraction lines changes. Therefore, a change in the inclination of these extraction lines extracted according to the position in the width direction of the photographing means is detected, and the steering means is controlled so that the inclination of the extraction lines returns to the original position, whereby the main body is cleaned. The vehicle can be run so as not to deviate from the line.

  When the cleaning line is set in a direction perpendicular to the straight line observed on the light receiving surface, the extraction line is curved and extends in the left-right direction of the photographed image regardless of the position in the width direction of the photographing means of the main body, as will be described later. Extracted as follows. When the running direction is shifted left and right, the extraction line that curves and extends in the left and right direction is inclined right and left so that the height position is different at the left and right ends of the captured image. Therefore, by detecting the left / right inclination of the extraction line and controlling the steering means so that the left / right inclination approaches zero, the main body can be run without deviating from a predetermined cleaning line.

  As the steering means, for example, when the self-propelled means is a crawler traveling, a method of giving a speed difference to the left and right crawlers can be adopted, and when the self-propelled means is a tire traveling A method of changing the direction of the tire can be employed.

  The straight line observed on the light receiving surface may be at least one of a cell boundary of the solar panel, a lead wire connecting the cells, and an outer periphery of the panel unit.

  Direction changing means for changing the moving direction of the autonomously traveling main body is provided, and the image processing means extracts a boundary with the outside of the light receiving surface from the photographed image and detects the position thereof. Based on the position, the moving direction of the main body is changed to a right angle at the boundary of the light receiving surface by controlling the direction changing means so as to change the moving direction of the main body from the direction facing the boundary. Can be moved to the next cleaning line, and can be directed to the self-running direction of the next cleaning line. Further, it is possible to prevent the main body from falling from the boundary of the light receiving surface.

  As the direction changing means, a steering means is used as it is, a means for changing the direction of the main body itself, or a lateral movement means different from the steering means is provided, and the main body is moved laterally in the right-angle direction by this lateral movement means. Means can be employed. When the direction of the main body itself is changed by the steering means, for example, in crawler running, there is a method of changing the direction of the main body by driving the left and right crawlers in reverse or one side. Further, as the separate lateral movement means, for example, there is a method in which a separate tire or crawler directed in a direction perpendicular to the traveling direction is grounded and driven when the direction is changed. In the case of adopting the lateral movement means, it is necessary to allow the main body to travel rearward and to provide photographing means on the rear side.

  The image processing means extracts local dirt on the light-receiving surface from the photographed image, detects the position thereof, and operates the cleaning means at the detected dirt position, whereby energy consumption for the cleaning means is obtained. Can be saved, and the replacement frequency of the cleaning means due to wear of the brush or the like can be reduced.

  When the light receiving surface is inclined in one direction, energy consumption for running the main body can be reduced by setting the cleaning line in a direction orthogonal to the inclination direction of the light receiving surface.

  When the cleaning line is set in the inclination direction of the light receiving surface, a load increases when the main body rises in the inclination direction, and a brake load is required when the main body falls in the inclination direction, so that energy consumption for running the main body increases. On the other hand, if the cleaning line is set in a direction orthogonal to the inclination direction of the light receiving surface, the cleaning line becomes substantially horizontal, and the energy consumption for running the main body can be greatly reduced.

  The solar panel cleaning apparatus according to the present invention sets the cleaning line in a direction parallel to or perpendicular to the straight line observed on the light receiving surface, and is photographed by the photographing means for photographing the light receiving surface in front of the traveling body and the photographing means. An image processing means for extracting the straight line from the photographed image as an extraction line and detecting the inclination of the extraction line and a steering means for steering the traveling direction of the main body by the self-propelled means are provided and detected by the image processing means. Since the steering means is controlled so as to return the main body to the cleaning line based on the change in the inclination of the line, the main body that autonomously travels on the light receiving surface can be run without deviating from the predetermined cleaning line.

(A) is an external appearance perspective view which shows the main body of the solar panel cleaning apparatus which concerns on this invention, (b) is a side view of (a). Plan view illustrating an example of the light receiving surface of a solar panel (A)-(d) is an example of the picked-up image image | photographed with the camera of the main body of FIG. 1 which each drive | works the light-receiving surface of FIG. (A)-(c) is explanatory drawing explaining the method to detect the inclination of the extraction line of a parallel direction with a cleaning line from the picked-up image of Fig.3 (a). (A)-(c) is explanatory drawing explaining the method to detect the inclination of the extraction line of a parallel direction with a cleaning line from the picked-up image of FIG.3 (b). Explanatory drawing explaining the method to detect the inclination of the extraction line of the orthogonal | vertical direction with a cleaning line from the picked-up image of Fig.3 (a), (b). The flowchart which shows the control method when cleaning the cleaning line of FIG. The flowchart which shows the control method when cleaning a local dirt in the cleaning line of FIG.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. Fig.1 (a), (b) shows the main body 1 of the solar panel cleaning apparatus which concerns on this invention. The main body 1 includes a pair of left and right crawlers 2 as self-propelled means that autonomously travels on a light receiving surface 21 of a solar panel, which will be described later, and a cleaning liquid nozzle 3b that injects the cleaning liquid in the cleaning liquid tank 3a onto the light receiving surface 21 as a cleaning means. A rotating brush 4 for brushing the light-receiving surface 21 on which the ink is jetted, and a wiper 5 for wiping the brushed light-receiving surface 21 are mounted, and a battery 6 for driving these self-running means and cleaning means is mounted.

  At the center of the front side of the main body 1, a camera 7 as a photographing means for photographing the front light receiving surface 21 is attached, for example, obliquely downward, and an image processing device 8 that performs image processing on a photographed image 31 of the camera 7, and an image Based on the detection result of the processing device 8, a controller 9 for controlling the operation of the self-running means and the cleaning means is incorporated as will be described later.

  FIG. 2 shows an example of the light receiving surface 21 of the solar panel. The light receiving surface 21 is of a mega solar system in which a large number of panel units 22 are arranged in rows and columns, and is inclined in one direction. The total length of the panel in the direction perpendicular to the inclined direction of the light receiving surface 21 reaches several hundreds of meters. On the light-receiving surface 21 having a blue-black color, the outer periphery 22a of the panel unit 22 and the cell boundary 22b of each panel unit 22 are observed as silver white lines extending in the vertical and horizontal directions. Although illustration is omitted, the leads connecting the cells are also observed as straight lines.

  The start point of the main body 1 on the light receiving surface 21 is the left end on the upper end side of the tilt, and a plurality of cleaning lines 10 that are cleaned while the main body 1 travels are set in a direction orthogonal to the tilt direction of the light receiving surface 21. In this figure, each cleaning line 10 is set on the cell boundary 22b, but the cleaning line 10 may be set in the middle of the outer periphery 22a of the panel unit 22 or the cell boundary 22b. The main body 1 travels to the right from the start point on the first cleaning line 10 and then turns rightward in the direction of descending the inclination direction immediately before the right boundary 21a of the light receiving surface 21, so that the next cleaning line on the lower side It moves to the position of 10, and further turns to the left at a right angle, and travels to the next cleaning line 10 to the left. When the direction of the main body 1 is changed, the left and right crawlers 2 are reversely driven or driven on one side to change the direction of the main body 1. Such a direction change is performed at the left and right boundaries 21a of the light receiving surface 21 and sequentially travels along the lower cleaning line 10 to clean the entire area of the light receiving surface 21.

  FIGS. 3A to 3D show examples of captured images 31 captured by the camera 7 of the main body 1 that travels. These captured images 31 are binarized by the image processing device 8 and noise due to sunlight reflection is removed in order to make straight lines 32, curves 33, boundaries 34, and island-like patterns 35 described later easier to understand. Later.

  The photographed image 31 in FIG. 3A is photographed when the main body 1 runs on the outer periphery 22a of the panel unit 22 or the cell boundary 22b extending in the direction parallel to the cleaning line 10, and the camera 7 is on this line. The outer periphery 22a or boundary 22b appears in the center as a vertical vertical straight line 32, and the outer periphery 22a or boundary 22b parallel to the cleaning line 10 on both sides thereof is expressed as a straight line 32 inclined inward. It has been broken. Moreover, the outer periphery 22a or the boundary line 22b in the direction perpendicular to the cleaning line 10 is represented as a lateral curve 33 that is concavely curved upward.

  The photographed image 31 in FIG. 3B was photographed when the main body 1 traveled between two outer peripheries 22a or borders 22b extending in a direction parallel to the cleaning line 10 and the camera 7 was between these straight lines. These two outer peripheries 22a or borders 22b appear as vertical straight lines 32 inclined inward, and the outer peripheries 22a or borders 22b perpendicular to the cleaning line 10 are concavely curved upward. It is represented as a horizontal curve 33. The straight line 32 and the curved line 33 appear as white lines in the black photographed image 31.

  The captured image 31 of FIG. 3C was captured when the traveling main body 1 approached the boundary 21a of the light receiving surface 21, and the black and white lying so that the front boundary 21a is curved upwardly concavely. Appears as boundary 34. A photographed image 31 in FIG. 3D was taken when there was dirt of bird droppings in front of the main body 1, and this dirt appears as an off-white island pattern 35. In these captured images 31, the above-described white straight line 32 and curve 33 are also shown.

  The traveling direction of the main body 1 traveling on the cleaning line 10 of the light receiving surface 21 described above may deviate from the predetermined cleaning line 10 due to gravity acceleration caused by the inclination of the light receiving surface 21. Hereinafter, a method for detecting the shift in the traveling direction by the image processing apparatus 8 will be described.

4 and 5 show a method of detecting a shift in the running direction by extracting a straight line parallel to the cleaning line 10. FIG. 4 shows a method of detecting a deviation in the traveling direction when the main body 1 travels on a straight line in the parallel direction so that the captured image 31 in FIG. First, as illustrated in FIG. 4A, the image processing apparatus 8 extracts a vertical straight line 32 on the central travel line as an extraction line L from the captured image 31 illustrated in FIG. 4 (b) as shown in, when the running direction of main body 1 is shifted to the right, the extraction line L is inclined from the initial extraction line L ₀ shown by the one-dot chain line in FIG. To the left, FIG. 4 ( As shown in c), when the traveling direction is shifted to the left, the extraction line L is inclined to the right.

FIG. 5 shows a method of detecting a deviation in the traveling direction when the main body 1 travels between parallel straight lines so that the captured image 31 of FIG. 3B is captured. First, as shown in FIG. 5A, the image processing apparatus 8 extracts one of two inwardly inclined vertical lines 32 as an extraction line L from the captured image 31 of FIG. To do. As shown in FIG. 5 (b), when the running direction of the body 1 is shifted to the right, the extraction line L is inclined from the initial extraction line L ₀ shown by the one-dot chain line in FIG. To the left, FIG. 5 ( As shown in c), when the traveling direction is shifted to the left, the extraction line L is inclined to the right. The change Δθ in the inclination angle of the extraction line L detected in FIG. 4 or FIG. 5 increases as the shift in the traveling direction increases. Therefore, the direction and magnitude of the deviation of the traveling direction of the main body 1 can be detected by the change Δθ in the inclination angle of these extraction lines L detected by the image processing device 8.

FIG. 6 shows a method of detecting a shift in the running direction by extracting a straight line perpendicular to the cleaning line 10. In this case, regardless of the position in the width direction of the main body 1 that travels, the image processing apparatus 8 is configured to receive a single laterally-curved upwardly curved image from the captured image 31 in FIG. 3A or 3B. The curve 33 is extracted as the extraction line L. In the figure, the initial extraction line L ₀ with no shift in the traveling direction is indicated by a one-dot chain line. However, when the traveling direction is shifted to the right, the extraction line L is higher at the left end by Δh than the right end. Tilt to the left and right. Although illustration is omitted, when the traveling direction is shifted to the left, the extraction line L is inclined so that the right end is higher than the left end. The difference Δh between the height positions increases as the shift in the traveling direction increases. Therefore, the direction and magnitude of the deviation of the travel direction of the main body 1 can be detected by the difference Δh in the height position of the left and right ends of the extraction line L detected by the image processing device 8, that is, the change in the left and right inclinations. it can.

  FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing a control method by the controller 9 when cleaning each cleaning line 10 of FIG. In this flowchart, a straight line in a direction parallel to the cleaning line 10 described above is extracted to detect a shift in the traveling direction. First, the main body 1 is set in the direction along the cleaning line 10 at the cleaning start position of each cleaning line 10. In this state, an extraction line L extending forward is detected by the image processing apparatus 8 from the photographed image 31 as shown in FIG. 4A or 5A, and the inclination of the extraction line L is determined for each cleaning line 10. This is stored as the initial value at.

  Thereafter, the self-running means and the cleaning means are operated to start cleaning along the cleaning line 10. When the main body 1 starts to travel along the cleaning line 10, the image processing apparatus 8 detects a change Δθ in inclination angle from the initial value of the extraction line L from the captured image 31 every moment, and the traveling direction of the main body 1 shifts to change the inclination angle. When the change Δθ is detected, the controller 9 repeats control for giving a speed difference to the left and right crawlers 2 as steering means so as to return the main body 1 to the cleaning line 10 based on the change Δθ in inclination angle. If the change Δθ in inclination angle is not detected, the vehicle continues running.

  When the main body 1 traveling on the cleaning line 10 approaches the boundary 21a of the light receiving surface 21, and the black and white boundary 34 as shown in FIG. 3C is detected in the photographed image 31, the controller 9 detects the boundary 21a. Immediately before, the operation of the self-running means and the cleaning means is stopped, and the cleaning of one cleaning line 10 is completed.

  When the cleaning of one cleaning line 10 is completed in this way, as shown in FIG. 2, the left and right crawlers 2 are driven reversely or unilaterally using the crawler traveling steering means, and the orientation of the main body 1 is changed. After the direction of the light receiving surface 21 is changed to a direction perpendicular to the downward direction, the light receiving surface 21 is moved to the position of the next cleaning line 10 on the lower side, further changed to a right angle, and set to the cleaning start position of the next cleaning line 10. To do.

Although description is omitted, when a straight line in the direction perpendicular to the cleaning line 10 described above is extracted to detect a shift in the traveling direction, the initial extraction line L ₀ of the straight line in the perpendicular direction is detected as shown in FIG. Since there is no left / right inclination, there is no need to store the initial value, and the left / right height difference Δh of the extraction line L is detected, and the height position difference Δh is made close to zero. A speed difference may be given to the crawler 2.

  FIG. 8 is a flowchart showing a control method for cleaning local dirt in the cleaning line 10. In this flowchart, the control for returning the shift in the traveling direction of the main body 1 is the same as that shown in FIG. 6, and the island pattern 35 such as the photographed image 31 in FIG. However, the only difference is that the cleaning means is operated at the detection position only when it is detected as local dirt. Therefore, energy consumption for the cleaning means can be saved and the frequency of replacement of the cleaning means due to wear of the rotating brush 4 or the like can be reduced. The local contamination can also be detected by an optical sensor or a thermographic camera directed to the light receiving surface 21 different from the camera 7.

  In the above-described embodiment, the light receiving surface of the solar panel is inclined in one direction, and the cleaning line is set in a direction orthogonal to the inclination direction of the light receiving surface. Lines can also be set in any direction.

  In the above-described embodiment, the cell boundary or the outer periphery of the panel unit is extracted as an extraction line. However, a lead wire that connects cells to each other can also be used as the extraction line. In addition, the solar panel may not be able to see cell boundaries or lead wires connecting cells, and in this case, only the outer periphery of the panel unit may be used as an extraction line.

  In the embodiment described above, the self-running means of the main body is a crawler running, and using the steering means, the left and right crawlers are reversely driven or one-side driven at the boundary of the light receiving surface to change the direction of the main body, Although it moved to the next cleaning line, a self-propelled means is not limited to the thing of a crawler running, It can also be things, such as tire running and robot walking. Further, the direction change at the boundary of the light receiving surface may be performed by providing a separate lateral movement means. In this case, it is necessary to allow the main body to travel rearward and to provide photographing means on the rear side.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Main body 2 Crawler 3a Cleaning liquid tank 3b Cleaning liquid nozzle 4 Rotating brush 5 Wiper 6 Battery 7 Camera 8 Image processing device 9 Controller 10 Cleaning line 21 Light-receiving surface 21a Boundary 22 Panel unit 22a Outer periphery 22b Cell boundary 31 Photographed image 32 Straight line 33 Curve 34 Boundary 35 island pattern

Claims (5)

A main body arranged on the light receiving surface of the solar panel where a straight line extending in at least one direction is observed;
Self-running means for autonomously running the main body on the light-receiving surface;
A cleaning means mounted on the main body and cleaning the light receiving surface;
In the solar panel cleaning device that runs the main body along a predetermined cleaning line,
The cleaning line is set in a direction parallel to or perpendicular to a straight line observed on the light receiving surface,
Photographing means for photographing the light receiving surface in front of the traveling main body;
Image processing means for extracting one of the straight lines as an extraction line from a photographed image photographed by the photographing means, and detecting the inclination of the extraction line;
Steering means for steering the traveling direction of the main body by the self-propelled means;
The solar panel cleaning apparatus, wherein the steering means is controlled to return the main body to the cleaning line based on a change in the inclination of the extraction line detected by the image processing means.   The solar panel cleaning apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the straight line observed on the light receiving surface is at least one of a boundary between cells of the solar panel, a lead wire connecting the cells, and an outer periphery of the panel unit. Providing a direction changing means for changing a moving direction of the main body that autonomously travels;
The image processing means extracts a boundary with the outside of the light receiving surface from the photographed image and detects the position thereof, and based on the detected boundary position, the moving direction of the main body is changed from the direction toward the boundary. The solar panel cleaning apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the direction changing means is controlled to change.   4. The method according to claim 1, wherein the image processing means extracts local dirt on the light receiving surface from the photographed image, detects the position thereof, and operates the cleaning means at the detected dirt position. The solar panel cleaning apparatus in any one. The light receiving surface is inclined in one direction;
The solar panel cleaning apparatus in any one of Claims 1 thru | or 4 which set the said cleaning line in the orthogonal direction with the inclination direction of the said light-receiving surface.

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