Pipe inspection robot using a wireless communication system

Wu, Dongmei; Ogai, Harutoshi; Yeh, Yun-Chi; Hirai, Katsumi; Abe, Takahiko; Sato, Gunkichi

doi:10.1007/s10015-009-0644-7

Cited by 11 publications

(5 citation statements)

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“…Some robot platforms developed for this specific application include a municipal drainage dredging robot [ 13 ], a drainage pipelines dredging robot [ 14 ], drain pipe inspection robots [ 15 ], and under water robots [ 16 ]. Drains exist in different designs as shown in Figure 1 .…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Collision Avoidance and Stability Study of a Self-Reconfigurable Drainage Robot

Parween

Muthugala

Heredia

et al. 2021

Sensors

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The inspection and maintenance of drains with varying heights necessitates a drain mapping robot with trained labour to maintain community hygiene and prevent the spread of diseases. For adapting to level changes and navigating in the narrow confined environments of drains, we developed a self-configurable hybrid robot, named Tarantula-II. The platform is a quadruped robot with hybrid locomotion and the ability to reconfigure to achieve variable height and width. It has four legs, and each leg is made of linear actuators and modular rolling wheel mechanisms with bi-directional movement. The platform has a fuzzy logic system for collision avoidance of the side wall in the drain environment. During level shifting, the platform achieves stability by using the pitch angle as the feedback from the inertial measuring unit (IMU) mounted on the platform. This feedback helps to adjust the accurate height of the platform. In this paper, we describe the detailed mechanical design and system architecture, kinematic models, control architecture, and stability of the platform. We deployed the platform both in a lab setting and in a real-time drain environment to demonstrate the wall collision avoidance, stability, and level shifting capabilities of the platform.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Collision Avoidance and Stability Study of a Self-Reconfigurable Drainage Robot

Parween

Muthugala

Heredia

et al. 2021

Sensors

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“…Pipe inspection robots are divided into two types. One type is an inner-pipe inspection robot which moves inside pipe [1][2][3][4]. Another type is outer-pipe inspection robot which moves outside pipe.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Development and Evaluation of Compact Robot Imitating a Hermit Crab for Inspecting the Outer Surface of Pipes

Imajo

Takada

Kashinoki

2015

Journal of Robotics

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Terrestrial hermit crabs which are a type of hermit crabs live on land, whereas typical hermit crabs inhabit the sea. They have an ability of climbing a tree vertically. Their claws allow them to hang on the tree. In this study, an outer-pipe inspection robot was developed. Its locomotion mechanism was developed in imitation of the terrestrial hermit crab’s claws. It is equipped with two rimless wheels. Each of the spokes is tipped with a neodymium magnet, which allows the robot to remain attached to even a vertical steel pipe. Moreover, the robot has a mechanism for adjusting the camber angle of the right and left wheels, allowing it to tightly grip pipes with different diameters. Experiments were conducted to check the performance of the robot using steel pipes with different diameters, placed horizontally, vertically, or obliquely. The robot attempted to move a certain distance along a pipe, and its success rate was measured. It was found that the robot could successfully travel along pipes with vertical orientations, although it sometimes fell from oblique or horizontal pipes. The most likely reason for this is identified and discussed. Certain results were obtained in laboratory. Further experiments in actual environment are required.

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“…Some examples include wireless propagation in tunnels and underground mines [4][5][6], heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) ducts and lift shafts [7][8], pipeinspecting robots wirelessly communicating through gas, drain, and other pipes [9][10][11][12], radio frequency identification (RFID) systems operating inside marine containers [13], drill pipes [14,15], and ducts [16], RF communication systems inside aircraft fuselage [17][18], etc. In such cases, it is often useful to know the number of modes in order to understand the best way to model the channel using analytical methods, ray tracing, or electromagnetic simulation.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%