27.10.2008

New Skybot robotic window washing system

Israeli company Skybot has invented a robotic window washing system that safely cleans high-rise windows cleaned faster and cheaper than human teams. It is thought that on average, about 70 window washers die each year in the US, while another 130 are injured.
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The new Skybot robotic system

There are a number of methods used to clean building exteriors, depending on whether they are made of steel, stone, or other materials, ranging from pressure hosing using cleaning chemicals to old-fashioned soap and water using big brushes. Almost all methods, however, require trained service personnel to scale the heights of buildings, usually using suspended scaffolds or access platforms. And to be done in as safe a manner as possible, cleaning must take place during daylight hours, preferably in fair or good weather.

Skybot's system, "combines the most advanced artificial intelligence technology and plain low-tech common sense," said Skybot CEO Yoram Barmohay. "The robots allow a fully automatic and consistent cleaning process, much more efficiently and better than any human team can accomplish."

The Skybot system consists of a computer which controls the Building Maintenance Unit (BMU), the hanging scaffolds used by workers, to position the robot in the right place to carry out its assignment.

Once the robot is positioned, the computer controls the robot's operations, analysing the results through a variety of sensors. Using mostly distilled water and environmentally friendly detergents, the system applies a mechanized pad to the window and cleans, using innovative adhesion technology developed by Skybot to ensure maximum surface contact. After that, the robot wipes away the excess.

The robot, made of light, anodized aluminum, is connected to the BMU, solidly rooted to the ground, roof, or side of the building.

As the system cleans an area of the building, it can also dry a previously treated area - making Skybot quicker than human alternatives. "Our system can clean a surface of 500 sq meters in an hour, compared to 250 sq meters a human team can cover on a workday," says Barmohay.

"Our system can operate in any weather, in winds up to 45 miles per hour, day or night. And the system works just as well in hot or cold weather," Barmohay says, adding that Skybot can clean in a week what it takes a human team a month to cover.

The Rishon LeZion, Isreli-based company was founded in 2000, and the first robot was installed in a Tel Aviv building in early 2002. The technology has been tested in Israel during hot August weather, as well as in several European locations, in the middle of winter. Currently, the system is deployed in the Netherlands, among other places, he says.

"With the major construction of skyscrapers over the past 40 years, builders and managers have been searching for a safe, efficient cleaning system, and although some progress has been made, there has never been a system like Skybot's," says Barmohay.

"We've had thousands of hours of experience cleaning windows, and at this point, we can clean a small building in perhaps an hour - instead of the day it usually takes."