Ozmo robot cleans windows on New York skyscrapers
Robots can also clean the windows of high-rise buildings. This already works semi-autonomously.
The Ozmo robot system swings its cleaning brushes at lofty heights on a New York skyscraper.
(Image: The Durst Organization (Screenshot))
The Ozmo window cleaning robot from Skyline Robotics was used commercially for the first time to clean windows semi-automatically on a 45-storey office tower in New York City. The long-term plan is for the robot to clean windows autonomously, thereby addressing the shortage of skilled workers in the industry.
Cleaning windows on office towers is not only physically strenuous, but also a mental challenge. Working at lofty heights in a gondola that is lowered from the outer façade is dangerous anyway. According to statistics from Zippia, many people no longer want to do this job. Around 75 percent of window cleaners in the USA are over 40 years old. There is a lack of young talent, as only 9 percent of all US window cleaners are between 20 and 30 years old.
The robotics company Skyline Robotics has tackled the problem and wants to get ahead of the skills shortage with its robot Ozmo before it affects the market. This is because more and larger buildings are being built in New York City whose window facades need to be cleaned. This includes the 45-storey office building at 1133 Avenue of the Americas, which belongs to the Durst Organization. The Ozmo robot was first used commercially on this building in the USA together with window cleaning experts from Palladium Window Solutions, who specialize in cleaning the windows of tall office buildings.
With robot technology from Germany
The Ozmo window cleaning robot was used. The system essentially consists of two robot arms from the German industrial robot manufacturer Kuka from Augsburg. They swing cleaning brushes and window squeegees over the windows. Lidar and force sensors are used to achieve this. The robot uses lidar to localize the windows and can also determine the window size before cleaning. The force sensors control the correct contact pressure of the brush and squeegee. To ensure that the cleaning result is always the same, the system uses artificial intelligence (AI) to control the robot arms so that no areas are missed, even in gusty conditions.
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Ozmo is currently still operated by an operator. So humans are not yet completely superfluous. In the future, however, the human factor should disappear completely. The robot system should then be able to clean the windows of a skyscraper completely autonomously and also control the gondola independently.
Skyline Robotics has already been testing the Ozmo system for several years. However, it was first used commercially in New York City and thus introduced to the market. There are plans to use it in Europe in the future, more specifically in London. To this end, Skyline Robotics has entered into a partnership with the cleaning company Principle Cleaning Services, which will use the robot there. However, Skyline Robotics' aim is to gradually introduce Ozmo worldwide. The company has already registered corresponding patents in countries with a particularly high number of skyscrapers, including Japan and Singapore.
(olb)