A pipeline inspection robot with a linkage type mechanical clutch

Kinematic Analysis of a Wheeled-Leg Small Pipeline Robot Turning in Curved Pipes

“…This is shown in Figure 12, where each of the six colors corresponds to one of the six key points. It can be observed that none of the errors exceed 2.5 × 10 −5 mm, indicating that the obtained kinematic inverse solution satisfies the constraints (8). Similarly, all six key points' coordinates are plotted in a three-dimensional coordinate system, where the rolling angle θ of the robot ranges from 0° to 115°, as shown in Figure 11.…”

“…External inspection robots need to be capable of grasping and climbing along the pipeline [2,3]. Whereas internal pipeline robots can be mainly categorized into the following types: PIGs (pipeline inspection gauges) [4], wheeled-type pipeline robots [5][6][7][8][9][10][11][12], tracked-type pipeline robots, helical-type pipeline robots [13,14], snake-like type robots [15][16][17], inchworm-like pipeline robots [18][19][20]. In summary, except for PIGs, which rely on fluid flow for propulsion, all other types of internal pipeline inspection robots are equipped with motors or air pumps as their own power sources.…”

“…This differential mechanism automatically allocates driving force for each set of wheels, making it highly efficient for traveling in straight and curved pipelines. Kwon from Hanyang University in South Korea proposed pipeline robots with double-row wheels [7] and triple-row wheels [8], respectively. The supporting mechanism (also known as the wall-press mechanism) used in these robots has a wide range of variations and is suitable for pipelines with a diameter of 100 mm.…”

“…However, the limited number of motors used for traction resulted in a limited traction force. Subsequently, Kwon adopted a framework similar to [8] and replaced the wheeled mobile mechanism with tracks to construct a triple-row tracked pipeline robot [9]. Likewise, Zheng from Beijing Institute of Technology in China referenced a similar double-row structure as in [7] and developed a pipeline robot using a tracked mobile mechanism [10], enhancing its obstacle-surmounting capability to some extent.…”

Research Status and Technical Difficulties of Pipeline Robot

“…As shown in Figure 4, it is a pipeline detection robot with a linkage mechanical clutch developed by Young-Sik Kwon and Byung-Ju Yi of Hanyang University in South Korea [9]. The total length of the body is 122 mm, the minimum external diameter is 90 mm, and the maximum extension is 110 mm.…”