Installing solar panels is hard work, even more so if it has to be done in the desert, with temperatures of 40 or 50 degrees Celsius. The robots with artificial intelligence They already take care of almost everything, as is the case with the Maximo robotwhich installs solar panels twice as fast as a human.
Today it is news because a fleet of Maximo robots has installed 10 MW of solar panels at a solar plant in Bellefield, California (United States).
Powered by Nvidia AI and the Amazon AWS cloudits future prospects go beyond solar installations. They have applications in construction, and even in space missions, to build settlements on the Moon or Mars.
This is how the Maximo robot works
Maximo is a robot developed by Maximo Robotics, which moves with caterpillar-type wheels, like tanks, for maximum grip on sandy or rocky terrain.
An AI controlled by an Nvidia GPU connected to Amazon’s AWS cloud gives it artificial vision to locate the screws of the plates that must be screwed to the metal structure. It also uses it to detect people, and stop work if they get too close.
Maximo transports solar panels and places them in a row, screwing them into placewith enormous precision. It works twice as fast as a human, and can do so at night, or in extreme weather conditions. On average places 24 solar panels per houras you can see this video:
Technically it is an autonomous robot, but needs human supervision and cooperation. The worker must check that the screws are correctly installed, and ensure that the robot is never missing solar panels, since it can only carry a few.
Although there are always misgivings when a robot with AI does the work of humans, in this case we are talking about a task that requires great effort in the sun, so the help of robots seems justified. Especially since they still need human supervision.
With the energy crisis we are experiencing due to the high demand for AI, aggravated by the war in Iran, install solar panels twice as fast, it’s good news.