Parallel 2-DoF manipulator for wall-cleaning applications

Abstract

The walls of high-rise buildings are cleaned manually several times per year. The cleaning work is difficult and extremely dangerous for human workers, and there are several ongoing studies to automate this work by robotic solutions. To achieve successful cleaning performance, the cleaning operation must adapt to the environmental conditions. In this study, we design and assemble a manipulator for use in wall-cleaning applications. From the design requirements identified by investigating a high-rise building in Korea, we determine the two important degrees of freedom (DOF) and design a parallel mechanism to achieve motion. With the parallel configuration, the design parameters are optimized based on a dynamic index to achieve high cleaning performance on a scaffold. A prototype is assembled, and the cleaning performance is verified on a test bench. A field test with the developed manipulator will be performed in the near future.