1 Hour, 53 Seconds of Continuous Drone Cleaning
Sherpa Drone just completed 1 hour and 53 seconds of continuous exterior cleaning using Lucid Bots’ new power tether—unlocking effectively unlimited flight time.
Lucid Bots builds U.S-made robots for dirty, dangerous cleaning work.
On a recent exterior cleaning job, Sherpa Drone stayed in the air for 1 hour and 53 seconds of continuous cleaning at 3,500 PSI and 8 GPM.
No battery swaps.
No landing every few passes.
Just steady exterior cleaning at height while the crew stayed on the ground.
Our CEO, Andrew Ashur, put it simply: this was the longest commercial drone cleaning flight we’ve ever seen – and a big step toward making drones a true all-day tool on real jobsites.
Why this flight matters
Until now, drone cleaning has been limited by batteries.
A typical day with Sherpa Drone looks like:
- Clean for 10–20 minutes
- Land
- Swap batteries
- Take off, line up again
- Repeat
It works, but you lose time and rhythm on every swap. Jobs get planned around chargers and packs instead of just buildings, water, and crew.
With our new power tether, that equation changes.
By feeding power from the ground, it gives Sherpa Drone effectively unlimited flight time: the practical limit on a job is no longer at the fault of the drone batteries. Limitations become things like crew endurance, site scheduling, generator fuel, etc. rather than remaining battery capacity. We’re not removing constraints entirely, but we are moving them off the drone’s batteries.
On this record flight, the drone didn’t come down because the battery was dead. It came down because the section of work was done.
That’s the shift we care about.
What actually happened on the job
This wasn’t a lab test or a parking-lot demo. It was a live exterior cleaning job with all the usual constraints.
On this flight:
- Mode: High-pressure exterior cleaning at height
- Runtime: 1 hour, 53 seconds of effectively continuous work
- Pressure / flow: 3,500 PSI, 8 GPM
- Crew: Operators stayed safely on the ground
Sherpa Drone handled every pass on the wall. The crew focused on:
- Managing hoses and water supply
- Watching for quality of clean
- Keeping eyes on the site, not on battery timers
Under the hood, we paired the power tether with updated onboard power electronics designed for long flights. From the operator’s point of view, though, it felt simple:
“It just stayed up and kept cleaning.”
That’s the experience we’re building toward.
What this unlocks for operators
For contractors, facility managers, and building service companies, this milestone shows up in a few concrete ways.
1. More work per crew per day
With no battery swaps, more of the day is actual cleaning. Sherpa Drone becomes an all-day workhorse for glass, facades, and other exterior surfaces at height.
2. Less time in lifts
Sherpa Drone does the work at height so crews can stay safely on the ground. That means:
- Fewer lifts to rent, move, and maintain
- Fewer people working on edges, roofs, or swing stages
3. Simpler planning
Instead of planning around chargers and packs, you plan around:
- Water
- Generator fuel
- Crew schedules
In other words, the things you already think about on a pressure washing job.
What’s next
This was Lucid’s first and longest exterior cleaning jobsite flight with the power tether. It’s a milestone, not the finish line.
From here, our team is focused on:
- Repeating long-duration flights on more buildings and surfaces
- Gathering real-world feedback from operators
- Making the power tether available to more Sherpa Drone customers
We automate the ordinary, so humans can do the extraordinary.
If you want fewer people in lifts and more work done from the ground, talk with our team about using Sherpa Drone with the power tether on your next job.
CLINTON COLLEGE CASE STUDY
Learn how Lucid Drone Technologies deployed its C1 Cleaning drone to rapidly and effectively clean 11 buildings on campus safely!
Clinton College is a HBCU located in Rock Hill, SC with over 125 years of educational excellence.
Summary
The Director of Maintenance at Clinton College was searching for a solution to get all the buildings on campus cleaned and ready to welcome back students. He had explored other options but quickly realized that several obstacles were impeding progress. He needed help to get it cleaned safely, efficiently, and within his budget constraints.
Challenges
Limestone columns had years of buildup and extended over the building. The college wanted a solution that would clean multiple buildings/surfaces.
Large lift equipment was not an option with the terrain around some buildings.
Solution
Lucid Bots deployed its cleaning drone to rapidly and effectively clean all 11 buildings on campus safely.
Lucid's cleaning drones leveraged a soft wash cleaning process to effectively remove all organic stains at the roots ensuring a longer duration between cleanings.
Results
- Completed the job in a third of the time with less man power than other companies proposed which lead to no disruption for the college.
- Saved the college 30% while being more profitable than the competition due to limited labor costs and rental fees.
- The drone was setup and packed up within 5 minutes of start and stop times leading to less disturbance and cleanup.
- No landscaping or roofing materials were damaged and no one was put in an unsafe situation.
{{cta('20c092c1-42dc-482a-943c-bc3d892a4dcc')}}
BVLOS ARC Recommends New Part 107 Certificates
Latest report recommends that all new Part 107 certificates include provisions for beyond visual line of sight (BVLOS) operation.
Do you have your Part 107 certificate? If you're a drone pilot, the answer had better be yes. But what if you're not a drone pilot? Well, the BVLOS ARC has something to say about that. Their latest report recommends that all new Part 107 certificates include provisions for beyond visual line of sight (BVLOS) operation. If you want to get your Part 107, you need to be prepared to fly your drone beyond your line of sight. Here's what you need to know.
The BVLOS ARC is a committee of aviation experts formed in 2016 to study the usefulness of drone operations beyond visual line of sight. Their latest report recommends that the FAA include BVLOS provisions in all new Part 107 certificates. This would require all current and future drone pilots to be trained and certified to fly their drones beyond their line of sight.
The BVLOS ARC is recommending this change because they believe it will make drone operations safer and more efficient. Currently, drone pilots are only allowed to fly their drones within their line of sight. Meaning that you need to keep your drone in view at all times, which can be difficult, especially if the drone is flying at a distance.
If pilots were able to fly their drones beyond their line of sight, they would be able to use visual aids, such as First Person View (FPV) goggles, to keep track of the drone. This would make it much easier for pilots to see and avoid obstacles, and it would also allow them to fly the drone for longer periods of time.
The BVLOS ARC's recommendation is just that, a recommendation. It's up to the FAA to decide whether or not to include BVLOS provisions in the Part 107 certificate.
So what would this mean if the FAA made these recommended changes?
This new level of Part 107 certification would require pilots looking to fly beyond line of sight operations to attend online training and then take an online exam to earn a new certificate. This certificate would be an advanced form of Part 107 operations. With this new certificate, the need to have a CFI (Certified Flight Instructor) for beyond line of sight operations would disappear. Which is good news because it's not economically viable to obtain a manned certificate, let alone a CFI certificate.
It's important to remember that these are recommendations and are currently not being enforced by the FAA. If you have any questions about getting your Part 107 or if you would like more information on what a Part 107 license is, you can click here for more info or call and speak to a Lucid Bots rep today.
Sunbelt Teams With Lucid Bots
Sunbelt Rentals has entered into a strategic partnership with Lucid Bots
Sunbelt Rentals has entered into a strategic partnership with Lucid Bots.
The agreement calls for Sunbelt to make Lucid Bots cleaning drones available to the company’s rental customers nationwide. The two organizations will collaborate on an approved solution program for their clients, and the drones will be backed by Sunbelt’s support and service to maintain the equipment for optimal use.
“Partnerships like the one with Lucid Bots are what has enabled us to bring innovative solutions to our customers,” said Adam Camhi, Sunbelt vice president of flooring solutions. “With the Lucid Bots cleaning drone, our customers will have safer operations, reduce their environmental impact, and increase overall operator efficiency, while still completing tough exterior cleaning jobs.”
About Sunbelt
Fort Mill, South Carolina-based Sunbelt Rentals supplies a wide variety of rentals for the facility services market. For more information, visit www.sunbeltrentals.com.
FAQ: Is It Easy To Fly?
Learn how easy it is to fly the Lucid Bots Cleaning Drone with no prior experience required. Discover the features and training provided for success.
Is the Lucid Bots cleaning drone easy to fly? The short answer is yes!
In fact, no prior drone experience is needed. Many of our customers had no prior drone flying experience and they are now flying successfully to complete larger jobs!
If you know how to use a video game controller, then you should be able to fly a Lucid Bots Cleaning Drone successfully. The RC controller has knobs that control flight directions such as forward and backward motion, side to side motion (left or right), height (up or down), rotation (to make the drone turn a different direction), and throttle (speed).
The drone is also equipped with avoid distance quick-select switch, which allows you to choose between multiple distance options while keeping the drone a safe distance from the building, and urban flight capabilities, which allow you to fly safely in urban environments. The drone also has a forward facing radar which can detect objects in front of it and reduce the risk of crashing, as well as fail-safe battery systems. If your battery dies mid-flight, it will automatically land in a safe location!
Sounds easy enough, right? With proper training, you should be able to fly a drone in no time. Lucid Bots partnered with DroneU to provide an easy-to-use, ongoing training through an online training portal. This online training educates you on how to operate the soft washing drone and window washing drone competently and confidently, such as:
- Battery charging
- Flight skills
- Transportation guidelines
- Safety protocols
- And more
Additionally, the ability to receive your Part 107 License is included in our training!
We also offer in-person flight demos at our Charlotte, NC facility where you can see first hand just how easy it can be. Contact us today to schedule yours!
Lucid Bots Podcast
How Ryan Godwin is Transforming Exterior Cleaning with the Sherpa Drone
Dive into the future of exterior cleaning with Ryan Godwin, the visionary behind Lucid Bots. Discover how Ryan is leveraging cutting-edge robotics to revolutionize cleaning for buildings and outdoor surfaces—boosting efficiency, safety, and sustainability.
.png)
.svg)
.avif)
.avif)
