An autonomous building facade-cleaning flight mode for the Sherpa industrial drone. Built using Auterion SDK (C++), VertiClean replaces fully manual piloting — operators trigger a complete facade-cleaning cycle with a single button press, with configurable parameters for building size and geometry.
// VertiClean running in SIH (Software-in-the-Hardware) simulation on Skynode
// overview
The Sherpa drone is an industrial platform used for high-rise building facade cleaning — a task that traditionally requires constant manual piloting. VertiClean automates this entirely: the operator arms the drone, positions it at the starting corner of a facade, and triggers the cleaning cycle. The drone handles the rest.
The flight mode executes a structured vertical sweep pattern — moving upward along the facade, shifting laterally, then descending — repeating until the full facade is covered. Parameters like altitude range, lateral step size, and descent speed are all configurable via AMC (Auterion Mission Control) on-site, without a software update.
VertiClean was validated in SITL and SIH simulation before any real-world flights, allowing safe iteration on the flight pattern logic. Field testing was then coordinated directly with operations teams, with real-time debugging via ULog flight data analysis.
// how it works
// technical details