Robotic cleaning system for glass facade of high‐rise airport control tower

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to describe the development of a robotic cleaning system for applying on the glass facade of the control tower at the Guangzhou Airport, in Guangzhou, China. Design/methodology/approach – Four similar robotic cleaning systems are designed for a reversed cone‐shape glass facade at the top of the control tower. One system is composed of a robot moving along and cleaning the facade, and an automatic conveyer positioning, securing, supplying energy and water to, and recycling the dirty water from the robot. An on‐board controller enables the system to work in a remote control mode or a fully automated mode under the supervision of an operator. Findings – This paper presents how to integrate the attaching, moving, cleaning and securing functions into one robotic system for the high rise glass facade, and focuses on the kinematics, the control and sensor system and the cleaning navigation. In particular, the real time control method of the vacuum in the cup is discussed to ensure high cleaning quality and security. Research limitations/implications – Since the cleaning system proposed in this paper is a custom‐built one, the generalization of its design idea should be tested in other applications. Practical implications – The paper includes the implications for the development of automatic cleaning system for the high‐rise buildings with reversed inclining glass façade. Originality/value – The robotic cleaning system described in this paper is the first fully automated cleaning machine for the reversed inclining glass facade in China. It works effectively and reliably on the control tower of the Guangzhou airport.