Patent-pending machine-learning panel cleaning

Keep it clean+Keep it cool=increased profitability

Integrated Solar Systems is building patent-pending, condition-based cleaning for utility-scale solar farms. Our machine-learning approach is designed to decide what to clean, when to clean it, and how, recovering yield that fixed schedules leave on the panel.

Patent Pending in the United States/Condition-Based, Not Calendar-Based/Multi-Fluid, Multi-Pressure/Verification Built Into Every Cycle/Patent Pending in the United States/Condition-Based, Not Calendar-Based/Multi-Fluid, Multi-Pressure/Verification Built Into Every Cycle/
Principle 01

Patent Pending in the United States.

A pending U.S. patent covers our machine-learning control of nozzle output and boom carriage movement. We believe this is the only such filing in condition-based panel cleaning.

Principle 02

Condition-based, not calendar-based.

The technology is designed to decide per zone, per panel, per fluid, per pass, the boom acting only where the data says it should. Uniform cleaning gives way to intentional cleaning.

Principle 03

Verification by design.

Onboard cameras are built to re-scan each pass and confirm the clean before moving on, so every decision can be logged, every outcome audited, every cycle recorded.

The operating thesis

It all reduces to one equation.

Term 01Keep it cleanCondition-based passes recover the soiling losses that fixed schedules leave on the glass.
Term 02Keep it coolPulsed cooling holds cells in their efficient temperature band through peak sun.
ResultIncreased profitabilityEvery recovered watt-hour is yield you can sell. The model is designed to quantify the delta in $/MW.

How It Works

Simplicity by Design

No need for a robot on every row.

One boom replaces robots on every row.

  1. Survey
  2. Set the track
  3. Mount the boom
  4. Connect the fluid
  5. System runs

One boom, two jobs, every panel.

These are renders of the patent-pending mechanism itself: the traveling gantry, the dual water lines, the spray nozzles, and the decision loop that tells them when to run. Every animation below plays on its own and opens full-screen.

A closer look at the cleaning head: spray nozzles reaching the full depth of the glass, fed by two separate lines: plain water for the cleaning wash, ionized water for the final rinse, shown cleaning two rows at once.

Linear system for traditional row-based solar farms · Concept render based on the patent drawings, not a built system.

Two-row gantry detail · separate wash + ionized-rinse lines

Open full-screen ↗

A render of the radial center-pivot configuration described in the patent: a wheeled gantry sweeping the field on a fixed track, spraying as it travels. Switch it into cooling mode to see the same hardware protect panels on a hot afternoon.

Pivot-style system for circular solar installations · Concept render based on the patent drawings, not a built system.

Radial center-pivot embodiment · continuous loop, clean / cool modes

Open full-screen ↗

The third patent-pending configuration, from Figs. 4 and 4a: an overhead rack on posts carries parallel gantry rails, and the spray boom travels along them on wheeled carriages, washing and rinsing every row in one pass while a flexible supply hose follows it. Panels are drawn flat, as in the filing's layout view.

Overhead gantry system for large-scale array coverage · Concept render based on the patent drawings, not a built system.

Overhead-rail embodiment per Figs. 4 + 4a · rail-riding boom, flex hose

Open full-screen ↗

A software concept beyond the patent filing: the boom already carries a camera over every row to judge soiling. Pointed outward, the same network runs site security: it detects a person at the fence line, checks the authorized-crew list, warns on the spot with strobe and siren, activates lights over the area, and sends the clip with GPS to whoever should see it.

Concept illustration of a software feature beyond the patent filing, not a built system.

Security concept · detect, identify, warn, alert · no new hardware

Open full-screen ↗
In the field

Designed for high-soiling environments.

The system is built for the climates that lose operators the most yield: dust-laden air, infrequent rain, hard water, long daylight cycles. Every input the patent describes is designed to be sampled in those conditions.

What the system is built to do

One controller, three regimes.

From the patent application: the model is designed to select between cooling water spray, light spray density, and heavy spray density, per zone, per panel, per cycle, using machine-learned activations of nozzle output and boom carriage movement.

  • CoolingPulsed spray when panel temperature crosses a predetermined threshold.
  • LightLow-density spray for routine condition-based passes.
  • HeavyHigh-density spray for accumulated, high-loss soiling.

Technology and Licensing

Intelligent solar panel
cleaning technology.

Patent-Pending Automated Cleaning System for Utility-Scale Solar Farms

Mobile cleaning infrastructure, intelligent sensing, and machine-learning optimization, available for licensing, joint development, acquisition, or investment.

Development status: patent-pending intellectual property and design concepts only. No physical prototype has been constructed, tested, or deployed. Read the full disclosure

The transition to renewable energy has created a growing need for efficient maintenance of large-scale solar installations. Dirt, dust, sand, bird droppings, leaves, snow, and other environmental contaminants can significantly reduce solar panel efficiency and power output. Existing cleaning approaches often require substantial labor, water usage, equipment, and operational downtime.

This patent-pending technology addresses that challenge through an automated solar panel cleaning system designed for utility-scale solar farms and large commercial solar installations. The invention combines mobile cleaning infrastructure, intelligent sensing, and machine-learning-based optimization to provide a potentially more efficient and cost-effective approach to solar panel maintenance.

The patent-pending concept centers on a movable cleaning boom that travels over solar panel arrays while dispensing cleaning fluids through strategically positioned spray nozzles. The system may be configured in multiple deployment formats:

Concept render of the pivot-style system: a boom anchored at a central pivot station sweeps over a circular solar array
Configuration  ·  Radial

Pivot-style systems

A boom anchored at a central pivot station sweeps circular solar installations, covering the whole field from a single supply point.

Concept render of the linear system: a wheeled boom with wash and rinse nozzle lines travels along rows of solar panels
Configuration  ·  Linear

Linear systems

A wheeled boom travels along traditional row-based solar farms, washing and rinsing each row in a single pass.

Concept render of the overhead gantry system: a boom rides overhead rails above the solar arrays
Configuration  ·  Gantry

Overhead gantry systems

A rail-mounted boom rides an overhead rack above the arrays for large-scale coverage, with nothing rolling between the rows.

The technology integrates multiple data sources including cameras, weather sensors, temperature sensors, GPS positioning, power output monitoring, and forecasting services. These inputs enable the system to determine when cleaning is actually needed rather than relying solely on fixed maintenance schedules.

Representative system architecture is illustrated in the patent drawings: the application describes both radial and linear cleaning configurations. See all three configurations in motion.

Patent drawing Fig. 1: a cleaning boom on wheeled towers extends from a central pivot and supply station across curved rows of solar panels
Patent application drawing, Fig. 1: radial (center-pivot) configuration
Patent drawing Fig. 3: a cleaning boom on wheeled towers travels along straight rows of solar panels, fed by a hose from a supply station
Patent application drawing, Fig. 3: linear configuration
Patent-pending technology

The innovation behind every cycle.

Our cleaning system is covered by a pending U.S. patent for the use of machine learning to control nozzle output and boom carriage movement in solar-panel cleaning. To our knowledge, it is the only such filing in the field of condition-based cleaning.

A machine-learning method for solar-panel cleaning.

Our patent-pending method is designed to control the cleaning system, panel by panel, using a predictive model rather than a fixed schedule.

  1. 01

    Inputs the field actually gives you.

    GPS, weather, image analysis, panel power output, cleaning regime, timers, manual input, and historical data.

  2. 02

    A model that forecasts soiling losses.

    The system predicts which zones lose the most yield next, and how much fluid and pressure will recover it.

  3. 03

    Machine-learned activation of nozzles and boom.

    Outputs are computed per zone, per pass: which nozzle fires, at what pressure, while the boom carriage moves at the chosen speed based on the system input and modeling.

A notable aspect of the invention is its use of machine learning to continuously improve cleaning effectiveness and resource utilization. The system is designed to analyze historical cleaning events, environmental conditions, camera imagery, and solar power output to optimize future cleaning operations. Potential benefits include:

  • Reduced water consumption
  • Lower operating costs
  • Improved energy production
  • Adaptive cleaning schedules
  • Automated performance monitoring
  • Predictive maintenance capabilities

The patent envisions a system that learns over time, helping operators determine the most effective cleaning strategies for specific climates, soil conditions, and installation types.

Trust comes from being specific. Below are the patent claims that underpin our system: what we filed, when, and what each one covers.

Docket 20859/160410-US

Method to control a solar power cleaning system

Inputting GPS, weather, image analysis, panel power output, cleaning regime, timer, manual input, historical data, and predictive model value; activating scans and cleaning cycles; outputting machine-learned activations of nozzle output and boom carriage wheel movement.

Method claim  ·  Cooling

Cooling cycle on temperature threshold

Determining whether the solar panels have reached a temperature above a predetermined threshold; activating a cooling water spray pulse in response to the affirmative determination.

System claim  ·  ML Loop

Predictive model from collected field data

Entering variable data to a machine-learning database; collecting and storing field data for each system input; defining data set characteristics; creating a predictive model based on datasets for selected desired outputs.

Potential markets include:

  • Utility-scale solar farms
  • Commercial rooftop solar installations
  • Industrial renewable energy facilities
  • Solar developers and EPC contractors
  • Independent power producers
  • Solar asset management companies

As global solar capacity continues to expand, automated maintenance technologies may play an increasingly important role in maximizing energy production and reducing operating expenses.

The technology seeks to combine three increasingly important trends in renewable energy operations:

  1. 01

    Automation of labor-intensive maintenance activities

    Designed to replace manual washing crews, water trucks, and scheduled downtime with automated cleaning infrastructure.

  2. 02

    Data-driven operational decision making

    Designed so that cameras, weather sensors, GPS, and power output monitoring decide when cleaning is actually needed, not the calendar.

  3. 03

    Artificial intelligence optimization of asset performance

    Machine-learning models are designed to tune each cleaning cycle to the site's climate, soil conditions, and production data.

By integrating cleaning hardware with sensor-driven analytics and machine-learning models, the invention aims to create a smarter approach to maintaining solar energy production across large installations.

Important disclosure

This technology currently exists as patent-pending intellectual property and design concepts described in the patent application. No physical prototype has been constructed, tested, or commercially deployed to date. Performance expectations and commercial benefits are based on the concepts and embodiments disclosed in the patent application and have not yet been validated through field trials.

The owner of this intellectual property is actively exploring strategic opportunities with solar industry participants, equipment manufacturers, automation companies, renewable energy investors, and strategic acquirers.

Who we want to talk to
  • Solar industry participants
  • Equipment manufacturers
  • Automation companies
  • Renewable energy investors
  • Strategic acquirers
Structures the owner would consider
  • Exclusive or non-exclusive licenses
  • Joint development arrangements
  • Strategic partnerships
  • Asset acquisition transactions
  • Outright purchase of the patent portfolio

Organizations interested in evaluating the technology, discussing commercialization pathways, or negotiating licensing or acquisition opportunities are invited to make inquiry.

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