A Low Cost Automated Cleaning System for Photovoltaic Panels

Abstract

Accumulation of dust on the surface of solar panels distract the light from reaching solar cells. This leads to significant degradation in the performance of solar panels in terms of output power. In this paper, we present a simple and low cost cleaning system to mitigate the effect of dust on the performance of solar panels. The mechanical as well as the electrical subsystems are described, an algorithm for controlling the cleaning mechanism is proposed. Results show that the cleaning system allows the solar panel to provide regular power output.