A portable buried pipe and cable routing detection system

Abstract

The present invention discloses a portable buried pipe and cable route detection system, wherein the fish hanger is fixedly installed on the side of the working vessel through a hanger; the transmitting transducer array inside the fish hanger emits a low-frequency sound wave signal under the drive of the sonar electronic box; the receiving transducer array inside the fish hanger receives the echo signal of the buried pipe and cable, and the signal is input into the sonar electronic box; the sonar electronic box completes the emission, reception, processing and transmission of the low-frequency sound signal, and realizes the acoustic image display of the buried pipe and cable image and the pipe and cable position positioning through the low-frequency signal; since the detection system is hung on the side of the ship through the hanger, a large A frame or gantry crane is not required, and it is more portable; since the detection system is directly set on the ship's side, a towing body is not required, so the position positioning is accurate, thereby making the detected cable information more accurate. Since the detection system uses low-frequency signals for detection, the attenuation of the signal in the water is effectively prevented; through continuous large-scale imaging, the detection efficiency is higher.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The invention relates to the field of submarine cable survey, and in particular to a route detection system for submarine buried cable. Background Art

[0002] With the continuous development and utilization of marine oil and gas resources and wind power resources, the number of submarine pipelines and cables laid in the sea area has been increasing, and a large number of new pipes and cables are laid on the seabed every year. In coastal waters, in order to prevent pipes and cables from being damaged by ship anchor chains, pipes and cables are usually laid in a buried manner. Before laying new pipes and cables, it is necessary to investigate the locations and routes of other buried pipes and cables passing through the sea area, so as to reasonably determine the laying location and construction plan of the new pipes and cables.

[0003] Existing sonars are operated by towing a towed body, which is large and heavy. The operation requires high requirements for the operating vessel: the vessel needs to have a large A-frame or gantry crane and a large deck operating space. When used for buried pipe and cable detection, since the towed body is connected to the hull through a tow cable, it is difficult to obtain the precise position of the towed body itself, which directly affects the positioning accuracy of the buried pipe and cable. Summary of the invention

[0004] Therefore, the purpose of the present invention is to provide a portable buried pipe cable detection system to achieve efficient scanning and accurate positioning of buried pipe cables, and can be easily adapted to different vessels.

[0005] In order to achieve the above object, the present invention adopts the following technical solutions:

[0006] A portable buried cable routing detection system, characterized in that it includes a fish hanger, a hanging rod, a sonar electronic box, a display and control unit, and a position and attitude sensor.

[0007] The fish-hanging device is an acoustic-electric conversion device, including a transmitting transducer array and a receiving transducer array;

[0008] The transmitting transducer array converts high-voltage electrical signals into low-frequency sound wave signals, and the high-voltage electrical signals are derived from the sonar electronic box;

[0009] The receiving transducer array receives low-frequency acoustic signal echoes and converts the echoes into analog electrical signals, which are input into the sonar electronics box;

[0010] The hanging rod fixes the hanging fish on the side of the operating vessel;

[0011] The sonar electronic box generates the high-voltage electrical signal, receives the analog electrical signal to acquire channel data and data of the position and attitude sensor, performs fusion processing on the channel data and the sensor data, obtains an underwater buried pipe and cable acoustic image, and outputs the underwater buried pipe and cable acoustic image to the display and control unit;

[0012] The display and control unit completes the control of the system, the acoustic image display and the positioning of the pipe and cable targets;

[0013] The position and attitude sensor completes the position positioning and attitude acquisition of the system, and outputs the position and attitude data of the system.

[0014] Furthermore, the receiving transducer array, the transmitting transducer array, the sonar electronic box, the display and control unit, and the position and attitude sensor perform continuous large-scale imaging of the buried pipe and cable area to obtain continuous position information of the buried pipe and cable.

[0015] Furthermore, the transmitting transducer array and the receiving transducer array are separately arranged.

[0016] Furthermore, the transmitting transducer array and the receiving transducer array are in the same plane.

[0017] Furthermore, the axis of the receiving linear array is horizontal and parallel to the bow of the ship, and the array plane of the fish-hanging receiving linear array is arranged to be inclined downward, and the array plane has an inclined angle with the horizontal plane.

[0018] Furthermore, the transmitting transducer array transmits low-frequency sound waves toward the seabed at the inclined angle, and the receiving transducer array receives seabed and target echoes at the inclined angle.

[0019] Furthermore, the signals of the transmitting transducer array and the receiving transducer array are connected to the sonar electronic box through a watertight cable.

[0020] Furthermore, the sonar electronic box includes a high-voltage driving circuit, a signal acquisition circuit, a power conversion circuit, a signal processing circuit and a data transmission circuit. The high-voltage driving circuit generates a high-voltage electrical signal to drive the transmitting transducer array; the signal acquisition circuit completes the amplification, filtering and A / D conversion of the signals of each channel of the receiving transducer array to form array element domain data; the signal processing circuit performs synthetic aperture processing on the formed array element domain data to generate an underwater acoustic image.

[0021] Furthermore, the display and control unit is installed with sonar display and control software, and the display and control software can complete system parameter downloading, system start and stop control, acoustic image display and pipe and cable target management functions.

[0022] Furthermore, the frequencies of the transmitting transducer array and the receiving transducer array are less than 20 kHz.

[0023] By adopting the above technical solution, this application has the following technical effects:

[0024] 1. Since the detection system is hung on the side of the ship through a bracket, there is no need for a large A-frame or gantry crane, so the operation is more convenient. Since the detection system is directly set on the side of the ship, there is no need for a towing body.

[0025] Therefore, the position positioning is precise, making the detected cable information more accurate.

[0026] 2. Since the detection system uses low-frequency signals for detection, it effectively prevents the signal from attenuating in the water; through continuous large-scale imaging, the detection information is more accurate.

[0027] 3. The transmitting array and the receiving array are installed obliquely toward the outside of the ship, and the acoustic wave signals are directed obliquely downward from the transmitting array and the receiving array to illuminate the seabed and buried pipes and cables, thereby making the effective detection range larger and the detected information more comprehensive.

[0028] 4. The comprehensiveness and accuracy of imaging are effectively guaranteed by setting the transmitting array and receiving array planes, multiple linearly arranged receiving arrays, and the relationship between the axial direction of the receiving linear array and the bow direction of the ship. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0029] Figure 1 Block diagram of the portable buried pipe and cable detection system.

[0030] Figure 2 Transducer array installation layout Figure 1 (Side view).

[0031] Figure 3 Transducer array installation layout Figure 2 (Rear view).

[0032] Figure 4 Block diagram of the internal circuit composition of the sonar electronic box.

[0033] Transducer array 10 , sonar electronic box 20 , display and control unit 30 , position and attitude sensor 40 , hanger 101 , and operating vessel 600 . DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0034] The following will be combined with the drawings in the embodiments of the present invention to clearly and completely describe the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present invention. Obviously, the described embodiments are only part of the embodiments of the present invention, not all of the embodiments. Based on the embodiments of the present invention, all other embodiments obtained by ordinary technicians in this field without creative work are within the scope of protection of the present invention.

[0035] The method is described in more detail below in conjunction with the accompanying drawings and specific implementation methods.

[0036] according to Figure 1 As shown, the portable buried pipe and cable detection system of the present invention is composed of a fish hook 10, a sonar electronic box 20, a display and control unit 30, a position and attitude sensor 40 and a hanging rod 50. The fish hook 10 completes the transmission and reception of acoustic signals; the sonar electronic box 20 completes the driving, collection, processing and transmission of low-frequency acoustic signals, and outputs the buried pipe and cable acoustic image to the display and control unit 30; the display and control unit 30 completes the system control and completes the buried pipe and cable acoustic image display and positioning; the position and attitude sensor 40 completes the position positioning and attitude collection of the fish hook.

[0037] The fish hook 10 includes a transmitting transducer array 101 and a multi-channel receiving transducer array 102. The receiving transducer array and the transmitting transducer array form a linear array. Figure 2 shown.

[0038] The installation arrangement diagram of each part of the portable buried cable detection system of the present invention on the operating vessel is as follows: Figure 2 and Figure 3 shown.

[0039] The fish hanger 10 is installed on the hanger 50 through a flange, and the hanger rod 50 is rigidly fixed to the side of the ship 600. After installation, the fish hanger 10 is located below the water surface, and its linear array axis is horizontal, and the linear array axis is parallel to the bow direction of the ship 600. The angle between the base array plane of the fish hanger 10 and the horizontal is 50°, and the vertical beam of the transmitting transducer array 101 is tilted to irradiate the bottom of the water and the buried pipe cable, generating a corresponding acoustic echo, which returns to the receiving transducer array 102.

[0040] The display and control unit 30 and the sonar electronic box 20 are arranged on the deck of the workboat or in the cabin. The display and control unit can complete the system parameter download, system start and stop control, acoustic image display and pipe and cable target management functions. The display and control unit can input the position offset of the sensor and transducer array, so as to accurately obtain the array position and posture, and then locate the precise position of the buried target.

[0041] The position and posture sensor 40 is fixedly installed above the hanging rod to measure the position and posture of the center of the hanging fish.

[0042] Since the detection system is hung on the side of the ship through a bracket, there is no need for a large A-frame or gantry crane, so the operation is more convenient. Since the detection system is directly set on the side of the ship, no towing body is required, so the positioning is precise, making the detected cable information more accurate.

[0043] The portable buried pipe and cable detection system provided by the present invention has only the transducer array placed in the water, and the transducer array is rigidly connected to the operating vessel. When the system is in operation, it is easy to operate and easy to deploy; and no A frame is required, so the requirements for the operating vessel are low.

[0044] The transmitting and receiving signals of the fish hook 10 are introduced into the working cabin through a watertight cable and connected to the sonar electronic box 20. The data of the position attitude sensor 40 is connected to the sonar electronic box 20 through a data line. The display control unit 30 is connected to the sonar electronic box 20 through a data line.

[0045] The internal circuit module of the sonar electronic box 20 includes: a high-voltage driving circuit 201, a signal acquisition circuit 202, a power conversion circuit 203, a signal processing circuit 204 and a data transmission circuit 205. Among them, the power conversion circuit 203 completes voltage conversion and supplies power to all circuits in the sonar electronic box 20; the high-voltage driving circuit 201 generates a high-voltage electrical signal and outputs it to the transmitting transducer array; the signal acquisition circuit 202 amplifies, filters and A / D converts the channel signal of the receiving transducer array 102 to form array element domain data; the signal processing circuit 204 performs synthetic aperture processing on the array element domain data to generate a bottom acoustic image; the data transmission circuit 205 completes data exchange and transmission among the signal acquisition circuit 202, the signal processing circuit 204, the position and attitude sensor 40 and the display and control unit 30.

[0046] The sound wave frequencies emitted by the transmitting transducer array 101 and received by the receiving transducer array 102 are both acoustic signals below 20 kHz, which effectively prevents signal attenuation in water and ensures that the sound waves can penetrate the seabed and effectively detect buried targets under the seabed.

[0047] During the detection operation, the vessel 600 sails at a constant speed in a straight line, and the portable buried pipe and cable detection system emits sound waves to the bottom of the water and collects echo signals at a fixed period. By receiving signals from the transducer array 102 at different positions of the vessel and performing synthetic aperture processing, the portable buried pipe and cable detection system can obtain the sound map of the bottom of the water and the buried pipe and cable in real time, and display it on the display and control software of the display and control unit 30 in the form of a waterfall diagram.

[0048] After the buried umbilical cable is found, the navigation direction of the vessel 600 is adjusted according to the direction of the buried umbilical cable on the waterfall diagram so that the navigation direction of the vessel 600 is consistent with the direction of the buried umbilical cable, thereby realizing the tracking detection of the buried umbilical cable by the portable buried umbilical cable detection system of the present invention.

[0049] By using the dot positioning function of the display and control software of the display and control unit 30, the position information of the buried pipe and cable can be output, thereby realizing the positioning of the buried pipe and cable.

[0050] The present invention adopts synthetic aperture technology, which is more suitable for underwater sonar imaging technology. This technology uses the movement of a small aperture array to virtualize the imaging effect of a large aperture array with a length of several dozen times, thereby obtaining extremely high resolution in azimuth. Since the imaging resolution of synthetic aperture sonar is independent of the frequency of the acoustic signal, high imaging resolution can be obtained with a lower frequency. Low-frequency underwater acoustic signals can penetrate the seabed, so low-frequency synthetic aperture sonar can perform large scanning width imaging of buried pipes and cables, so that the data of pipe and cable detection has higher efficiency and accuracy.

[0051] Although embodiments of the present invention have been shown and described, it will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that various changes, modifications, substitutions and variations may be made to the embodiments without departing from the principles and spirit of the present invention, and that the scope of the present invention is defined by the appended claims and their equivalents.

Claims

1. A portable buried cable routing detection system, characterized in that: Including fish hanging, hanging rod, sonar electronic box, display and control unit, position and attitude sensor, The fish-hanging device is an acoustic-electric conversion device, including a transmitting transducer array and a receiving transducer array; The transmitting transducer array converts high-voltage electrical signals into low-frequency sound wave signals, and the high-voltage electrical signals are derived from the sonar electronic box; The receiving transducer array receives low-frequency acoustic signal echoes and converts the echoes into analog electrical signals, which are input into the sonar electronics box; The hanging rod fixes the hanging fish on the side of the operating vessel; The sonar electronic box generates the high-voltage electrical signal, receives the analog electrical signal to acquire channel data and data of the position and attitude sensor, performs fusion processing on the channel data and the sensor data, obtains an underwater buried pipe and cable acoustic image, and outputs the underwater buried pipe and cable acoustic image to the display and control unit; The display and control unit completes the control of the system, the acoustic image display and the positioning of the pipe and cable targets; The position and attitude sensor completes the position positioning and attitude acquisition of the system and outputs the position and attitude data of the system. The position and attitude sensor is fixedly installed above the hanging rod; The transmitting transducer array and the receiving transducer array are separately arranged, and the transmitting transducer array and the receiving transducer array array are in the same plane; The receiving transducer array and the transmitting transducer array form a linear array, the receiving linear array is axially horizontal and parallel to the bow of the ship, the receiving linear array array plane is tilted downward, and the array plane has an inclined angle with the horizontal plane; The transmitting transducer array transmits low-frequency sound waves toward the seabed at the inclined angle, and the receiving transducer array receives seabed and target echoes at the inclined angle.

2. The buried cable routing detection system according to claim 1, characterized in that: The receiving transducer array, the transmitting transducer array, the sonar electronic box, the display and control unit, and the position and attitude sensor perform continuous large-scale imaging of the buried pipe and cable area to obtain continuous position information of the buried pipe and cable.

3. The buried cable routing detection system according to claim 1, characterized in that: The signals of the transmitting transducer array and the receiving transducer array are connected to the sonar electronic box through a watertight cable.

4. The buried cable routing detection system according to claim 1, characterized in that: The sonar electronic box includes a high-voltage driving circuit, a signal acquisition circuit, a power conversion circuit, a signal processing circuit and a data transmission circuit. The high-voltage driving circuit generates a high-voltage electrical signal to drive the transmitting transducer array; the signal acquisition circuit completes the amplification, filtering and A / D conversion of the signals of each channel of the receiving transducer array to form array element domain data; the signal processing circuit performs synthetic aperture processing on the formed array element domain data to generate an underwater acoustic image.

5. The buried cable routing detection system according to claim 1, characterized in that: The display and control unit is installed with sonar display and control software, which can complete system parameter downloading, system start and stop control, acoustic image display and pipe and cable target management functions.

6. The buried cable routing detection system according to claim 1, characterized in that: The frequency of the transmitting transducer array and the receiving transducer array is less than 20 kHz.

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