A foreign object grabbing robot suitable for a steam generator outer ring gallery

Abstract

The application discloses a foreign matter grabbing robot suitable for a steam generator outer ring corridor, which comprises a shell, a walking mechanism, a grabbing mechanism, a storage mechanism and a cable, the walking mechanism is used for driving the foreign matter grabbing robot to walk on a tube plate along an inner wall of the steam generator, the grabbing mechanism is integrated with various foreign matter grabbing tools and is convenient to switch, the grabbing mechanism comprises electromagnets, guide pipes and cameras, the storage mechanism comprises a storage box, the storage box is movably arranged on the shell and can be extended out of or retracted into the shell and is used for collecting the grabbed foreign matters, the cable is built in the guide pipe and is used for driving the walking mechanism and guaranteeing the work of the electromagnets and the cameras. The foreign matter grabbing robot suitable for the steam generator outer ring corridor of the application preferentially uses the electromagnets to grab foreign matters, uses crocodile pliers or other similar tools to carry out remote manual grabbing for non-ferromagnetic foreign matters. The storage box is convenient to store the foreign matters and is convenient to continuously carry out the grabbing work.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to the field of steam generator maintenance technology, and in particular to a highly efficient and convenient foreign object grabbing device for the outer annular area inside an evaporator in a confined space. Background Technology

[0002] The steam generator is a crucial piece of equipment in nuclear power plants used for heat exchange in the primary and secondary loops, containing tens of thousands of tube bundles. During each reactor shutdown and maintenance, the secondary tube bundles of the steam generator are cleaned, followed by a video inspection. During these inspections, foreign objects are often found on the upper surface of the tube sheet, especially in the outer ring corridor area. These objects need to be removed to ensure the safe operation of the steam generator. For foreign objects in the outer ring corridor area, manual suction using a vacuum hose is generally the preferred method, and this is the most effective in practice. However, due to the hose's flexibility, the high skill required for operation, and the high radiation dose to personnel standing near the manhole for extended periods, the suction hose is sometimes ineffective at removing small, filamentous foreign objects, necessitating the use of alligator pliers or other conventional foreign object handling tools. Switching tools also increases the operation time, further increasing the radiation dose to the staff. After the foreign object is grabbed, since there is no storage device, the foreign object grabbing tool is usually taken out of the steam generator and then put back inside to continue grabbing work, making it impossible to carry out foreign object grabbing work continuously. Summary of the Invention

[0003] In view of this, in order to overcome the shortcomings of the prior art, the purpose of this invention is to provide a foreign object grasping robot suitable for the outer corridor of a steam generator, which integrates multiple foreign object grasping tools and is easy to switch, and can realize continuous foreign object grasping work.

[0004] To achieve the above objectives, the present invention adopts the following technical solution:

[0005] A foreign object grasping robot suitable for the outer corridor of a steam generator includes a shell, a walking mechanism, a grasping mechanism, a storage mechanism, and cables. The walking mechanism drives the robot to move along the inner wall of the steam generator on a tube sheet. The grasping mechanism integrates multiple foreign object grasping tools that can be easily switched, including an electromagnet, a guide tube, and a camera. The storage mechanism includes a storage box movably mounted on the shell and can extend or retract to collect the grasped foreign objects. The cables contain a guide tube that drives the walking mechanism and ensures the operation of the electromagnet and camera. The electromagnet can attract ferromagnetic foreign objects, and the guide tube allows conventional grasping tools such as alligator pliers to reach the foreign object and grasp it.

[0006] According to some preferred embodiments of the invention, the gripping mechanism includes a sleeve fitted over the electromagnet, guide tube, and camera. The cable has a certain degree of flexibility to allow rotation of the sleeve, and a certain degree of rigidity to allow conventional gripping tools such as alligator pliers to reach above the foreign object through the guide tube for gripping.

[0007] According to some preferred embodiments of the present invention, the sleeve is in the shape of a bent tube, with the end away from the housing being an actuating end for grasping foreign objects. The actuating end is perpendicular to the upper surface of the outer annular corridor. The end of the electromagnet extends outside the actuating end, and the end of the guide tube and the camera are located inside the actuating end. A rotating mechanism is provided at the end of the sleeve near the housing, and the rotating mechanism is used to drive the sleeve to rotate.

[0008] According to some preferred embodiments of the invention, a moving mechanism is included for driving the gripping mechanism to move up and down along the height direction of the housing, so as to control the distance between the actuating end of the sleeve and the upper surface of the outer annular corridor of the steam generator (i.e. the surface to be cleaned).

[0009] According to some preferred embodiments of the present invention, the moving mechanism includes a gear and a rack that cooperate with each other, a fixed plate fixed to the rack, and a first motor for driving the gear to rotate, the fixed plate being fixed to the rotating mechanism; a bracket plate for fixing the gear and the first motor is provided on the housing.

[0010] According to some preferred embodiments of the present invention, the housing is provided with an opening for the rack to move; the fixing plate has a blocking portion extending to both sides in the width direction of the fixing plate on the side near the rack; the housing is provided with a T-slot for the fixing plate and the blocking portion to move, and the T-slot and the opening are connected.

[0011] According to some preferred embodiments of the invention, the housing is provided with a stop that covers the T-slot and the opening.

[0012] According to some preferred embodiments of the present invention, the rotating mechanism includes one end of the rotating shaft connected to the sleeve, the other end of the rotating shaft rotatably connected to the fixed plate, and the fourth motor fixed to the fixed plate and used to drive the rotating shaft to rotate.

[0013] According to some preferred embodiments of the present invention, the storage mechanism includes a lead screw disposed within the housing, a second motor for driving the lead screw to rotate, and a nut block disposed on the storage box, the nut block being sleeved on the lead screw.

[0014] According to some preferred embodiments of the invention, the walking mechanism includes a magnetic wheel and a third motor for driving the magnetic wheel to rotate, and the walking mechanism is mounted on a housing.

[0015] According to some preferred embodiments of the invention, the bottom of the housing is provided with a support roller, which is in direct contact with the upper surface of the outer ring corridor.

[0016] Compared to existing technologies, the advantages of this invention, based on the above technical solutions, are as follows: The foreign object grasping robot of this invention, applicable to the outer corridor of a steam generator, integrates an electromagnet, a guide tube, and a camera on its grasping mechanism. The guide tube guides and facilitates the use of alligator pliers or other conventional foreign object grasping tools. The grasping mechanism can rotate left and right and adjust its height to cover the entire outer corridor area. With the assistance of the camera's field of view, the electromagnet is preferentially used for foreign object grasping. For non-ferromagnetic foreign objects, alligator pliers or other similar tools are used for remote manual grasping via the guide tube. The storage box can extend or retract from the shell for convenient storage of grasped foreign objects, facilitating continuous foreign object grasping operations. Attached Figure Description

[0017] To more clearly illustrate the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present invention, the accompanying drawings used in the description of the embodiments will be briefly introduced below. Obviously, the accompanying drawings described below are only some embodiments of the present invention. For those skilled in the art, other drawings can be obtained based on these drawings without creative effort.

[0018] Figure 1 and Figure 2 These are three-dimensional structural schematic diagrams of the foreign object grasping robot applicable to the outer ring corridor of a steam generator in a preferred embodiment of the present invention, viewed from different perspectives.

[0019] Figure 3 This is a three-dimensional structural diagram of the foreign object grasping robot, which is applicable to the outer ring corridor of a steam generator, after the shell of the hidden part is concealed, according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention.

[0020] Figure 4 This is a longitudinal cross-sectional schematic diagram of a foreign object grasping robot applicable to the outer ring corridor of a steam generator in a preferred embodiment of the present invention;

[0021] Figure 5 This is a partially enlarged schematic diagram of the foreign object grasping robot in a preferred embodiment of the present invention;

[0022] Figure 6 This is a schematic diagram of the cross-sectional structure of the sleeve execution end in a preferred embodiment of the present invention;

[0023] In the attached diagram, the components are: 1. Foreign object grasping robot; 2. Shell; 31. First motor; 32. Second motor; 33. Third motor; 4. Magnetic wheel; 5. Roller; 6. Support plate; 7. Storage box; 8. Lead screw; 9. Sleeve; 10. Fourth motor; 11. Gear; 12. Rack; 13. Fixing plate; 14. Block; 15. T-slot; 16. Opening; 17. Stop block; 18. Intermediate gear; 19. Rotating shaft; 20. Electromagnet; 21. Guide tube; 22. Camera; 23. Screw. Detailed Implementation

[0024] To enable those skilled in the art to better understand the technical solutions of the present invention, the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present invention will be clearly and completely described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. Obviously, the described embodiments are only some embodiments of the present invention, and not all embodiments. Based on the embodiments of the present invention, all other embodiments obtained by those skilled in the art without creative effort should fall within the scope of protection of the present invention.

[0025] This embodiment describes a foreign object grasping robot for steam generators during nuclear power plant shutdown and maintenance. It overcomes the shortcomings of manual foreign object grasping tools currently used in nuclear power plants at home and abroad, such as limited grasping function, inconvenient tool switching, and inability to continuously grasp foreign objects.

[0026] Specifically, such as Figure 1-5 As shown, the foreign object grasping robot 1 applicable to the outer corridor of a steam generator in this embodiment includes a housing 2, a walking mechanism, a grasping mechanism, a moving mechanism, a storage mechanism, and cables. The walking mechanism drives the foreign object grasping robot 1 to move along the outer corridor of the steam generator, the moving mechanism drives the grasping mechanism to move up and down along the height of the housing 2, the grasping mechanism is used to grasp foreign objects, and the storage mechanism is used to temporarily store the grasped foreign objects. An auxiliary camera device is provided on the side of the robot 1 to facilitate operator control of the robot 1 as it crawls. The specific structure of each mechanism is described below:

[0027] The walking mechanism includes magnetic wheels 4 mounted on the wide side of the housing 2, a third motor 33 driving the magnetic wheels 4 to rotate, and rollers 5 mounted on the bottom of the housing 2 in contact with the upper surface of the outer ring corridor. The robot 1 moves along the inner wall as a mobile carrier, driven by the third motor 33 and using the magnetic wheels 4. In this embodiment, there are two sets of magnetic wheels 4 and two rollers 5, all of which are not centrally located.

[0028] like Figure 6As shown, the gripping mechanism includes an electromagnet, a guide tube, a camera, and a sleeve 9 enclosing them. Cables are integrated into the outer wall of the guide tube. The sleeve 9 is curved, with its end furthest from the housing 2 serving as the actuating end for gripping foreign objects. It is perpendicular to the upper surface of the outer ring corridor. A rotating mechanism is located at the end of the sleeve 9 closest to the housing 2. This rotating mechanism includes a rotating shaft and a fourth motor, which drives the sleeve 9 to rotate along the vertical axis of the rotating shaft. The gripping mechanism achieves rotation through the rotating mechanism and height adjustment through the moving mechanism, thus achieving full coverage of the upper surface of the outer ring corridor. In this embodiment, screws 23 are provided at the ends of the sleeve 9 corresponding to the electromagnet, guide tube, and camera for fixation. The electromagnet can attract ferromagnetic foreign objects, and the guide tube is used to reach the foreign object using conventional gripping tools such as alligator pliers for gripping.

[0029] The moving mechanism is used to control the distance between the actuator end of the sleeve 9 and the upper surface of the outer annular corridor. It includes a gear 11 and a rack 12 that cooperate with each other, a fixing plate 13 fixed to the rack 12, and a first motor 31 for driving the gear 11 to rotate. The fixing plate 13 is connected to a rotating shaft and a fourth motor. A bracket plate 6 is provided on the housing 2 for fixing the gear 11 and the first motor 31. In this embodiment, a gear 11 that meshes with the rack 12 is provided on one side of the bracket plate 6, and an intermediate gear 17 is coaxially provided on the other side. The intermediate gear 17 meshes with a gear on the output shaft of the first motor 31 to achieve transmission. The structure is compact and effectively utilizes the internal space of the housing 2.

[0030] The storage mechanism includes a storage box 7, a lead screw 8 disposed within a housing 2, and a second motor 32 that drives the lead screw 8 to rotate. A nut block is provided on the storage box 7 and is fitted onto the lead screw 8. The storage box 7 is movably mounted on the housing 2 for collecting foreign objects after they have been grasped. That is, the storage box 7 can extend or retract under the action of the second motor 32 to facilitate the collection of grasped foreign objects and enable continuous foreign object grasping operations. In this embodiment, an outwardly extending guide portion is provided in the middle of the side wall of the storage box 7, and a corresponding groove is provided on the housing 2 to guide the movement of the storage box 7. In this embodiment, a gear is provided on the output shaft of the second motor 32, and a meshing gear is also provided at the end of the lead screw 8, thereby driving the lead screw 8 through the second motor 32 and the two gears.

[0031] The housing 2 has an opening 16 for the rack 12 to move; the fixing plate 13 has a blocking portion 14 extending to both sides in the width direction of the fixing plate 13 on the side near the rack 12. The housing 2 has a T-slot 15 for the fixing plate 13 and the blocking portion 14 to move, and the T-slot 15 and the opening 16 are connected. The housing 2 is provided with a stop block 17 covering the T-slot 15 and the opening 16. The stop block 17 and the T-slot 15 can simultaneously guide and limit the vertical movement of the fixing plate.

[0032] In this embodiment, the foreign object grasping robot 1 moves and rotates to place an electromagnet or guide tube above the foreign object, and completes the grasping of the foreign object with the assistance of a camera. After the grasping is completed, the moving mechanism lifts the grasping mechanism and rotates it to collect the storage box 7. At this time, the storage box 7 extends to receive the foreign object under the action of the second motor 32, and then retracts into the shell 2 after completion.

[0033] The steam generator foreign object grasping robot 1 in this embodiment includes a housing 2 and a walking mechanism, a grasping mechanism, a moving mechanism, and a storage mechanism mounted on the housing 2. The grasping mechanism is mounted to the housing 2 via a fixing plate 13, and the storage box 7 is integrated inside the housing 2. The housing 2 moves along its inner wall under the drive of a motor via a magnetic wheel 4. The grasping mechanism integrates an electromagnet, an alligator clamp guide tube, and a camera. With the assistance of the camera's field of vision, the electromagnet is used preferentially for grasping foreign objects. For non-ferromagnetic foreign objects, alligator clamps or other similar tools are used for remote manual grasping via the guide tube. The foreign object storage box 7 can extend or retract under the action of a motor to facilitate the storage of grasped foreign objects and to facilitate continuous foreign object grasping operations. The foreign object grasping robot 1 can select different foreign object grasping tools according to the material type of the foreign object and can put the grasped foreign objects into the storage box 7, reducing the difficulty of grasping foreign objects, improving the efficiency of grasping foreign objects, and reducing the radiation dose to personnel operating on site.

[0034] The above embodiments are only for illustrating the technical concept and features of the present invention, and are intended to enable those skilled in the art to understand the content of the present invention and implement it accordingly. They should not be construed as limiting the scope of protection of the present invention. All equivalent changes or modifications made in accordance with the spirit and essence of the present invention should be covered within the scope of protection of the present invention.

Claims

1. A foreign object grasping robot suitable for the outer corridor of a steam generator, characterized in that, The device includes a housing, a walking mechanism, a gripping mechanism, a storage mechanism, and cables. The walking mechanism drives the foreign object gripping robot to move within a steam generator. The gripping mechanism includes an electromagnet, a guide tube, and a camera. The storage mechanism includes a storage box, which is movably mounted on the housing and can extend or retract from the housing to collect the gripped foreign object. The cables are located on the outer wall of the guide tube, which allows the gripping tool to pass through for gripping the foreign object. The gripping mechanism includes a sleeve fitted over the electromagnet, guide tube, and camera. The electromagnet, guide tube, and camera are fixed inside the sleeve by fasteners. The end of the sleeve away from the housing is the actuating end for gripping foreign objects. The end of the electromagnet extends outside the actuating end, and the end of the guide tube and the camera are located inside the actuating end. A rotating mechanism is provided at the end of the sleeve close to the housing, which is used to drive the sleeve to rotate. The foreign object grasping robot includes a moving mechanism for driving the grasping mechanism to move up and down along the height direction of the shell, so as to control the distance between the execution end of the sleeve and the upper surface of the outer annular corridor of the steam generator; The moving mechanism includes a gear and a rack that cooperate with each other, a fixed plate fixed to the rack, and a first motor for driving the gear to rotate. The fixed plate is connected to the rotating mechanism. The housing is provided with a bracket plate for fixing the gear and the first motor. The storage mechanism includes a lead screw disposed inside the housing and a second motor that drives the lead screw to rotate. A nut block is disposed on the storage box and the nut block is sleeved on the lead screw.

2. The foreign object grasping robot according to claim 1, characterized in that, The housing has an opening for the rack to move; the fixing plate has a blocking part extending to both sides in the width direction of the fixing plate on the side near the rack; the housing has a T-shaped groove for the fixing plate and the blocking part to move, and the T-shaped groove and the opening are connected; the housing is provided with a stop block covering the T-shaped groove and the opening.

3. The foreign object grasping robot according to claim 1, characterized in that, The rotating mechanism includes a rotating shaft and a fourth motor. One end of the rotating shaft is connected to a sleeve, and the other end of the rotating shaft is rotatably connected to the fixed plate. The fourth motor is fixed to the fixed plate and is used to drive the rotating shaft to rotate.

4. The foreign object grasping robot according to claim 1, characterized in that, The walking mechanism includes a magnetic wheel and a third motor that drives the magnetic wheel to rotate.

5. The foreign object grasping robot according to claim 1, characterized in that, The bottom of the housing is provided with support rollers, which are in direct contact with the upper surface of the outer ring corridor.

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