ABB Robots and Robotic Wind Turbine Blade Repair

From rope access teams to 30 Aerones repair robots going into service: how ABB paint robots and solar-line automation point to robot-built wind power.

INDUSTRIAL ROBOTICS

Chat With Robot

9/23/20261 min read

The first big wind turbines of the 1980s were experiments, like Germany's single-bladed Monopteros. When a blade wore out, a technician climbed up with hand tools. Blades kept getting longer, and by the 2000s repair meant rope access: people hanging from ropes a hundred metres up, sanding and filling the eroded front edge by hand.

Large grey and yellow single-blade wind turbine nacelle displayed on the ground
Large grey and yellow single-blade wind turbine nacelle displayed on the ground

An MBB Monopteros single-blade turbine from the 1980s, preserved in Wilhelmshaven. Photo: Paul Gipe / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0)

Rain and sand chip away at that leading edge, and a rough edge costs power. The EU's factsheet for the RoboticRepair project counts about 3,800 blade failures a year and names blade damage as one of the top three causes of turbine breakdowns. Rope teams need calm weather, so a damaged turbine can sit idle for days.

Several tall wind turbines beside a road under a cloudy sky
Several tall wind turbines beside a road under a cloudy sky

Wind turbines beside a busy road. Photo: Bärbel Miemietz / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0)

The factsheet, updated on September 9, says the Latvian company Aerones will put 30 robots into service from September 30, 2026, with a €4.4 million EU grant. Its robots are hoisted up the tower and repair the leading edge up to 67% faster than rope access technicians, with the same or better quality.

Two long white wind turbine blades standing in a V shape on grass
Two long white wind turbine blades standing in a V shape on grass

Retired turbine blades displayed in Mechelen-aan-de-Maas, Belgium. Photo: Trougnouf (Benoit Brummer) / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY 4.0)

Blade repair is surface work on a long curved edge, which is familiar ground for ABB. ABB's IRB 5500 paint robots already coat car bodies evenly on curved surfaces, and the same path planning in RobotStudio could be applied to blades in a factory or repair shop.

White ABB paint robot arm with a grey applicator head
White ABB paint robot arm with a grey applicator head

An ABB IRB 5500 paint robot, built to coat curved surfaces evenly. Photo: ABB

ABB robots also build other renewable hardware. On Absolicon's line in Sweden an ABB robot helps assemble solar collectors, and at dhp technology in Switzerland an IRB 6700 lifts solar modules for folding roofs. Wind blades are bigger, but the approach is similar: let the robot do the heavy, repetitive handling and keep people on inspection and setup.

White ABB robot arm above a blue solar collector frame in a factory
White ABB robot arm above a blue solar collector frame in a factory

An ABB robot on Absolicon's solar collector line in Sweden. Photo: ABB

I expect repair robots to become a normal sight on wind farms within a few years. Households won't see them, but turbines that stand still less produce more power, and some of that should show up in cheaper electricity at home.

Large ABB robot lifting a flat solar module in a workshop
Large ABB robot lifting a flat solar module in a workshop

An ABB IRB 6700 lifts a solar module for a folding roof at dhp technology. Photo: ABB

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