A micro-robot for internal detection of the oil content in a transformer

Abstract

The present invention relates to a micro-robot for internal detection of the oil content in a transformer, which comprises a housing, a control module, an image acquisition module, a navigation module, a propulsion module and a power supply. The control module, the image acquisition module, the navigation module and the power supply are installed in the sealed housing. A groove for accommodating the propulsion module is formed in the housing. The control module is respectively connected to the image acquisition module, the navigation module and the propulsion module. Compared with the prior art, the present invention has the advantages of compact structure, convenient use, safety and reliability, etc.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a detection robot for a transformer, and in particular to a micro-robot for internal detection of the oil content in a transformer. Background Art

[0002] Large oil-immersed power transformers are the core equipment of the power grid, with large capacity, high value, and complex structure, and are the key points of concern in substation operation. When a fault occurs inside the transformer, it is often necessary to cut off the power and then detect and locate the internal defects to confirm the type of the fault and then determine the maintenance plan. Since the transformer oil tank is closed and the internal situation cannot be directly observed, it is often necessary to drain the oil during internal inspection, and then professional technicians wear one-piece work clothes and climb into the equipment box through the manhole to manually search for the fault points inside the equipment.

[0003] There are mainly several problems in traditional manual internal inspection:

[0004] First of all, the internal inspection period of large power transformers is relatively long and the process requirements are relatively high. It is necessary to carry out oil drainage before inspection, vacuum oil injection and hot oil circulation after inspection, and the internal inspection work has relatively high requirements for weather conditions and equipment storage conditions.

[0005] Secondly, the internal structure of the power transformer is complex and the space is compact. The manual internal inspection channel is narrow, and personnel can only move between the core and the tank wall. There are internal inspection "blind spots" that the human body cannot reach, and the internal space is dark and blocked, which causes great interference to the search and discrimination of fault points.

[0006] In addition, the oil and gas pollution in the internal inspection channel is serious, and various metal and insulating structure components are intertwined, threatening the personal safety and health of operators. Moreover, when manually entering, there have been mistakes such as bringing in external impurities and pollution sources and leaving behind tools, causing secondary harm to the operation of the equipment.

[0007] Based on the above problems, automated equipment for internal inspection of oil-immersed power transformers has emerged as the times require. However, the existing automated equipment still has problems such as a large structure and inconvenient use. Summary of the Invention

[0008] The purpose of the present invention is to overcome the defects of the above-mentioned existing technologies and provide a micro-robot for internal detection of the oil content in a transformer with a compact structure and convenient use.

[0009] The purpose of the present invention can be achieved by the following technical solutions:

[0010] A micro robot for internal detection of oil content in a transformer comprises a shell, a control module, an image acquisition module, a navigation module, a propulsion module and a power supply. The control module, the image acquisition module, the navigation module and the power supply are installed in a sealed shell. A groove for accommodating the propulsion module is provided on the shell. The control module is connected to the image acquisition module, the navigation module and the propulsion module respectively.

[0011] Furthermore, the image acquisition module includes a camera and a lighting device, a first through hole and a second through hole are opened on the side wall of the shell, the first through hole is covered with a glass panel for the camera to take external photos, and the lighting device is embedded in the second through hole through a sealing sleeve.

[0012] Furthermore, the glass panel is fixedly connected to the housing via a pressure cover.

[0013] Furthermore, the camera is fixed in the housing via a first fixing bracket.

[0014] Furthermore, the lighting device is a high-brightness white light lamp bead.

[0015] Furthermore, the control module includes a circuit board, and a main control chip and a propulsion controller installed on the circuit board, and the propulsion controller is connected to the propulsion module.

[0016] Furthermore, the control module also includes a dual-channel wireless communication chip that can communicate in both 2.4G and 5G frequency bands.

[0017] Furthermore, the propulsion controller adopts R1141-H40A chip.

[0018] Furthermore, the propulsion module includes a plurality of propellers arranged in different directions, and each of the propellers is fixed in a groove of the outer shell through a second fixing frame.

[0019] Furthermore, the thruster can meet the robot's movement requirements of fixed-point suspension, ascent, descent, and rotation in transformer oil, and the maximum moving speed is not less than 0.1 m / s.

[0020] Furthermore, the shell is made of high-strength plastic material, and comprises a cylinder and a cover plate encapsulating both ends of the cylinder, and the groove is formed by a depression in the middle of the cylinder.

[0021] Furthermore, a handle is provided on the cover plate.

[0022] Compared with the prior art, the present invention has the following beneficial effects:

[0023] 1. The present invention has the advantages of miniaturization, safety and reliability. The control module, image acquisition module, navigation module and power supply are installed in a sealed housing, and the propulsion module is installed in a groove on the housing. The overall structure is compact, effectively reducing the volume of the internal inspection robot, realizing a micro-robot, which can be conveniently applied to the internal work of different models of transformers, replacing the traditional manual internal inspection work, and can carry out rapid internal inspection without draining the transformer oil, improving the diagnostic efficiency of internal transformer faults.

[0024] 2. Through the design of the glass panel, the present invention ensures that other parts except the thruster are in a sealed state without affecting the field of view of the image acquisition module, improving reliability.

[0025] 3. The lighting device of the present invention is embedded in the housing through a sealed sleeve, ensuring sealing while not affecting the use of the lighting function, with high reliability.

[0026] 4. The present invention is also provided with a dual-channel wireless communication chip to realize real-time data transmission, and the redundant communication link design ensures the smooth communication of the robot and ensures that the robot will not get out of control during operation.

[0027] 5. The present invention is provided with a navigation module, which can provide high-precision positioning data for the robot in a signal-free environment inside the transformer, and can record the detection path to facilitate the safe and reliable return of the robot.

[0028] 6. The housing of the present invention is made of high-strength plastic material, which ensures hardness while providing a sealed environment for internal components, protecting the internal components from being affected when working in transformer oil, and also ensuring that the robot does not generate sparks externally during operation and does not cause the transformer oil to burn.

[0029] 7. The present invention is provided with multiple thrusters, which can meet the movement requirements of the robot for fixed-point suspension, ascent, descent and rotation in transformer oil, and is convenient to use.

[0030] 8. Compared with the existing technology, the present invention can enter the transformer from the position of the pressure relief valve at the top of the transformer, so it has a wider range of applicable transformers. By entering the inside of the transformer through the robot, it is possible to quickly and accurately detect the internal defect points of the transformer without draining the transformer oil. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0031] Figure 1 is a schematic structural diagram of the present invention;

[0032] Figure 2 is a top view of the present invention;

[0033] Figure 3 is Figure 1 the A-A cross-sectional view in

[0034] Figure 4 For Figure 1 Cross-sectional view B-B in the middle;

[0035] In the figure, 1 is the cylinder body, 2 is the thruster, 3 is the lamp bead, 4 is the camera, 5 is the compass, 6 is the glass panel, 7 is the gland, 8 is the sealing sleeve, 9 is the first fixing bracket, 10 is the cover plate, 11 is the main control chip, 12 is the wireless communication chip, 13 is the circuit board, 14 is the groove, 15 is the vulcanized bushing, 16 is the second fixing bracket, 17 is the propulsion controller, 18 is the battery end cap, 19 is the handle, and 20 is the pressing block. Specific embodiments

[0036] The present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings and specific embodiments. This embodiment is implemented on the premise of the technical solution of the present invention, and detailed implementation manners and specific operation processes are given. However, the protection scope of the present invention is not limited to the following embodiments.

[0037] The following detailed description of the embodiments of the present invention provided in the drawings is not intended to limit the scope of the claimed invention, but merely represents selected embodiments of the present invention. All other embodiments obtained by those of ordinary skill in the art based on the embodiments of the present invention without creative efforts fall within the scope of protection of the present invention.

[0038] It should be noted that similar reference numerals and letters indicate similar items in the following drawings. Therefore, once an item is defined in one drawing, it does not need to be further defined and explained in subsequent drawings.

[0039] In the description of the present invention, it should be noted that the terms "center", "upper", "lower", "left", "right", "vertical", "horizontal", "inner", "outer", etc. indicate the orientation or positional relationship based on the orientation or positional relationship shown in the drawings, or the orientation or positional relationship in which the product of the present invention is usually placed during use. It is only for the convenience of describing the present invention and simplifying the description, and does not indicate or imply that the device or element referred to must have a specific orientation, be constructed and operated in a specific orientation, and therefore cannot be understood as a limitation of the present invention. In addition, the terms "first", "second", etc. are only used for descriptive distinction and cannot be understood as indicating or implying relative importance.

[0040] In addition, terms such as "horizontal" and "vertical" do not mean that the components are required to be absolutely horizontal or hanging, but can be slightly inclined. For example, "horizontal" only means that its direction is more horizontal relative to "vertical", and does not mean that the structure must be completely horizontal, but can be slightly inclined.

[0041] Such as Figures 1 - 4As shown in the figure, this embodiment provides a micro robot for internal detection of the oil content in a transformer, which includes a housing, a control module, an image acquisition module, a navigation module, a propulsion module, and a power supply. The control module, the image acquisition module, the navigation module, and the power supply are installed in the sealed housing. A groove 14 for accommodating the propulsion module is provided on the housing. The control module is respectively connected to the image acquisition module, the navigation module, and the propulsion module, and the battery provides the working power for the above modules.

[0042] Refer to Figure 1 and Figure 2 As shown in the figure, the image acquisition module includes a camera 4 and a lighting device. A first through hole and a second through hole are provided on the side wall of the housing. The first through hole is covered with a glass panel 6 for the camera 4 to take external pictures. The lighting device is embedded in the second through hole through a sealing sleeve 8. The glass panel 6 is fixedly connected to the housing through a gland 7 to achieve the overall sealing of the housing. The camera 4 is fixed in the housing through a first fixing bracket 9.

[0043] The lighting device is a lamp bead 3, preferably a high-brightness white light lamp bead, which is turned on when the robot camera works to provide light for the camera to collect image data.

[0044] The control module includes a circuit board 13, a main control chip 11 and a propulsion controller 17 installed on the circuit board 13. The propulsion controller 17 is connected to the propulsion module. In a preferred embodiment, the propulsion controller uses an R1141-H40A chip.

[0045] The control module further includes a dual-channel wireless communication chip 12, which uses wireless dual-mode WIFI and is connected to the external control through a wireless network. In a preferred embodiment, the dual-channel wireless communication chip 12 can automatically switch between 2.4G and 5G frequencies to meet the reliability requirements of wireless communication inside the transformer.

[0046] The propulsion module includes a plurality of thrusters 2 arranged in different directions. Each thruster 2 is fixed in the groove 14 of the housing through a second fixing bracket 16. In a preferred embodiment, the propulsion module includes 5 independent micro thrusters, 2 are arranged vertically, with 1 upward and 1 downward, and the remaining 3 are arranged horizontally and are 120 degrees to each other, and a vulcanized bushing 15 is used to improve the service life of the thrusters.

[0047] The housing is made of high-strength plastic material and includes a cylinder body 1 and covers 10 that encapsulate both ends of the cylinder body 1. The groove 14 is formed by the middle part of the cylinder body 1 being concave. The housing can provide a sealed environment for the internal components while ensuring hardness, protect the internal components from being affected when working in the transformer oil, and also ensure that the robot does not generate sparks externally during operation and does not cause the transformer oil to burn.

[0048] Refer to Figure 4As shown, a handle 19 is provided on the cover plate 10, and the handle 19 can be fixed to the housing through a pressing block 20.

[0049] In this embodiment, the navigation module includes a compass 5, which can provide high-precision positioning data for the robot in a signal-free environment inside the transformer.

[0050] In this embodiment, the battery is a lithium-ion battery, and a battery end cover 18 for encapsulating the battery is provided on the housing.

[0051] During operation, the battery powers the robot;

[0052] The lighting device is turned on, the camera collects image data in real time, and transmits it to the external control terminal in real time through the dual-channel wireless communication chip;

[0053] The dual-channel wireless communication chip receives external control commands and transmits the commands to the propulsion controller;

[0054] After calculating the instructions, the propulsion controller obtains the action instructions for each thruster;

[0055] Each thruster works according to the action instructions issued by the propulsion controller;

[0056] The compass records the positioning information in real time according to the movement of the robot and transmits the data to the remote control terminal through the dual-channel wireless communication chip.

[0057] The preferred specific embodiments of the present invention have been described in detail above. It should be understood that those of ordinary skill in the art can make many modifications and variations based on the concept of the present invention without creative labor. Therefore, all technical solutions that can be obtained by those skilled in the art in the technical field of the present invention through logical analysis, reasoning or limited experiments based on the concept of the present invention on the basis of the prior art should be within the protection scope determined by the claims.

Claims

1. A micro-robot for internal detection of the oil content in a transformer, characterized in that, It includes a housing, a control module, an image acquisition module, a navigation module, a propulsion module and a power supply. The control module, the image acquisition module, the navigation module and the power supply are installed in the sealed housing. A groove (14) for accommodating the propulsion module is formed on the housing. The control module is respectively connected to the image acquisition module, the navigation module and the propulsion module; The image acquisition module includes a camera (4) and a lighting device. A first through hole and a second through hole are formed on the side wall of the housing. The first through hole is covered with a glass panel (6) for the camera (4) to take external pictures. The lighting device is embedded in the second through hole through a sealing sleeve (8). The glass panel (6) is fixedly connected to the housing through a gland (7) to realize the overall sealing of the housing. The camera (4) is fixed in the housing through a first fixing bracket (9); The propulsion module includes a plurality of thrusters (2) arranged in different directions. Each thruster (2) is fixed in the groove (14) of the housing through a second fixing bracket (16). A vulcanized bushing (15) is further arranged on the thruster (2); The housing is made of a high-strength plastic material and includes a cylinder body (1) and cover plates (10) for encapsulating both ends of the cylinder body (1). The groove (14) is formed by the middle part of the cylinder body (1) being recessed; 2. The internal detection micro-robot for the oil content of a transformer according to claim 1, characterized in that, The lighting device is a high-brightness white light bead.

3. The internal detection micro-robot for the oil content of a transformer according to claim 1, characterized in that, The control module includes a circuit board (13) and a main control chip (11) and a propulsion controller (17) installed on the circuit board (13). The propulsion controller (17) is connected to the propulsion module.

4. The internal detection micro-robot for the oil content of a transformer according to claim 3, wherein The control module further includes a dual-channel wireless communication chip (12).

5. The internal detection micro-robot for the oil content of a transformer according to claim 1, characterized in that, A handle (19) is arranged on one of the cover plates (10).

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