Cleaning robot

Technical description – Cleaning robot
The cleaning robot has been developed as an automated system for cleaning surfaces in agricultural and industrial environments. The robot combines a robust mechanical construction with a flexible PLC control. The design focuses on reliability, ease of maintenance and expandability with additional sensors or functions.
The mechanical superstructure is approximately 95% complete. All motors, gearheads, motion axes and sensors have been assembled and tested. This gives the robot a fully functioning mechanical structure.
Software development is at about 15%. The current software allows manual control of almost all motors, with the exception of some drives that are not yet integrated. Furthermore, communication, parameter setting and alarm management are operational. The existing software architecture offers sufficient room for further expansion towards automatic and autonomous functions.
After completing the basic programming phase, it is desirable to implement a wireless remote control. This will simplify operation and calibration and improve operational safety, especially when manually moving or positioning the robot in the working environment.
2. Mechanical configuration
The robot uses multiple 24V DC motors with incremental encoders for position feedback. The drives are controlled via a Wago PLC, which also processes the signals from the sensors.
Main components: · Final drive: 24V DC, 30A ( ̃600W) with integrated brake. Digital control via solid state relays; Position detection with proximity switch and pulse counter.
· Arm movements (up/down, swivel, front/rear): ROK311M motors (24V DC, 3.65A, 0.22 Nm) with encoder feedback, adjustable in speed.
· Cleaning lance (up/down, left/right, turn): ROK311M motors with encoder feedback, controlled via the PLC.
· Reel drive: ROK311M motor with encoder, designed for controlled unwinding and rewinding movement of the water hose.
· Analog measurements: o 2× ultrasonic sensors (0–10V) for position detection in the aisle o 1× battery voltage measurement (0–10V), o 1× position feedback of the linear actuator (0–10V).
Almost all motors can be controlled in manual mode via the software for testing and calibration. The mechanical construction is largely completed and consists of standard components, which simplifies maintenance and further development.
3. Control and software
The control system is built around a Wago PLC in combination with a control terminal. The current software includes modules for: · manual control of almost all drives, · reading and setting parameters, · communication with the terminal, · Basic alarms and status messages. Automatic program cycles and recipe processing have not yet been implemented, but the software structure supports these extensions. The existing code base is modular and offers sufficient space for future development of automatic movements, trajectory repetition and autonomous cleaning programs.
A wireless remote control is a logical next step after the basic programming phase. This allows the operator to safely and efficiently move or position the robot manually without fixed cabling.
4. Current status and development potential
The robot is operational in manual mode, where almost all axes of movement can be controlled via the software. The mechanical parts function as expected, and the initial software provides a stable basis for further automation. The current configuration combines a fully developed mechanical structure with an expandable control, which makes the system suitable for further development towards partially or fully autonomous cleaning.