Xpanner rolls out X1 Panel Lift for automated solar panel installation

The X1 Panel Lift kit is added to existing equipment for solar panel installation. Source: Xpanner

Xpanner Global yesterday released its X1 Panel Lift system, which is designed to address the skilled labor constraint facing the solar industry. The platform, which was previously deployed for solar pile-driving applications, has now been expanded to automated panel lifting and replacement with excavators.

Utility-scale solar projects depend on large crews to manually carry, position, and place heavy panels across thousands of module locations, said Xpanner. It said X1 Panel Lift can take on this repetitive material handling, freeing installation crews to spend their time on the higher-value work of aligning, fastening, and quality-checking each panel.

“Solar installation has long been held back by its dependence on large skilled crews and complex equipment setups,” stated Henri Lee, co-founder and CEO of Xpanner. “Our solution changes that equation entirely, and now handles not just solar piling, but panel lifting as well. One machine, one button, one workflow, any operator can run it from Day 1.”

Founded in 2020, Xpanner is a ConTech startup developing robotics and physical AI to automate construction . The company said it automates essential jobsite workflows and offers site-wide orchestration.

Xpanner is headquartered in Santa Fe Springs, Calif., and has an office in Seoul, South Korea. It raised $18 million in Series B briddge funding in May, bringing its total funding to $38 million.

X1 Panel Lift uses the proprietary Mango controller for real-time decision making across hydraulic, electric, and mechanical systems. The system fuses data from lidar, vision, and GNSS sensors to build a live 3D model of the jobsite to provide situational awareness needed for consistent output across variable field conditions.

Because the platform’s automation software and sensing stack sit on top of a standard excavator, Xpanner said it plans to extend the same architecture to additional workflows through software updates rather than require new equipment purchases.

Xpanner offers the X1 Panel Lift under a single, all-inclusive subscription that covers hardware, the X1 kit and license, Xpanner Connect dashboard, and on-site field operations support (XFO).

Mango uses sensor fusion for situational awareness in variable conditions. Source: Xpanner

Lee responded to the following questions from The Robot Report :

How many people are required to operate the X1 Panel Lift robot? Is the bolting of panels onto a frame done manually?