An adaptive pipe climbing robot based on metamorphic gripper

Abstract

The application relates to the technical field of robots and discloses a self-adaptive pipe climbing robot based on a metamorphic hand claw, which comprises an upper frame, a lower frame, a waist mechanism, arm assemblies, arm turning mechanisms and a hand claw mechanism, the upper frame and the lower frame are oppositely arranged, the waist mechanism is arranged between the upper frame and the lower frame and is used for changing the angle formed between the upper frame and the lower frame, the number of the arm assemblies is four, and each two of the arm assemblies are arranged on the upper frame and the lower frame respectively, the number of the arm turning mechanisms is the same as that of the arm assemblies, and each arm turning mechanism is fixed on the upper frame or the lower frame, the arm turning mechanisms and the arm assemblies are in one-to-one transmission connection and are used for changing the relative postures of the arm assemblies and the upper frame or the lower frame. The self-adaptive pipe climbing robot based on the metamorphic hand claw can perform peristaltic pipe climbing, walking pipe climbing and other actions to realize obstacle crossing, pipe bending and pipe transferring, and is more flexible than the pipe climbing robot in the prior art.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to the field of robotics, and more particularly to an adaptive pipe-climbing robot based on a variable-cell gripper. Background Technology

[0002] For workers in the chemical and steel industries, pipeline inspection and maintenance are essential. However, this work often involves significant risks, and worker safety is a major concern. Furthermore, relying on manual labor to complete this task cannot guarantee a high level of accuracy. For these reasons, pipe-climbing robots have emerged.

[0003] A pipe-climbing robot, disclosed in CN113415353A, is mounted on the outer wall of a pipe. Each climbing mechanism has climbing drive wheels that abut against the pipe and are evenly distributed along it. When the robot moves upwards on the pipe, the output of the drive device drives the connecting part to move upwards on the climbing frame. The connecting part, through the drive unit, drives the climbing drive wheels to roll, allowing the robot to climb upwards on the pipe. It can be used for cleaning, damage inspection, or repair of the outer wall of the pipe. However, it has the following problems: 1. Due to obstacles such as flanges in the pipe, the robot needs obstacle-crossing ability, but the robot in this design has poor obstacle-crossing ability; 2. Due to the connection of straight and curved pipes in the pipe, the robot needs the ability to pass through intersecting bends. Because the robot is cylindrical, it cannot pass through bends with large angles such as 90 degrees, nor can it move along intersecting pipes; 3. Due to the connection of pipes with different diameters, the robot needs the ability to adapt to changes in pipe diameter, but this design has low adaptability to different pipe diameters; 4. This design is not applicable in scenarios requiring transfer between independent pipes. In general, existing pipe-climbing robots suffer from problems such as limited climbing methods, poor obstacle-crossing and load-bearing capacity, poor adaptability to different pipe diameters, and difficulty in moving between independent pipes. Summary of the Invention

[0004] In view of this, the present invention proposes an adaptive pipe-climbing robot based on a variable-cell gripper. It can change its climbing mode by setting four variable-cell grippers in conjunction with waist mechanism, arm components, etc., and can be applied to pipe climbing operations of different diameters. It also has the ability to transfer between adjacent independent pipes.

[0005] The technical solution of this invention is implemented as follows: This invention provides an adaptive pipe-climbing robot based on a variable-cell gripper, comprising an upper frame, a lower frame, a waist mechanism, an arm assembly, an arm steering mechanism, and a gripper mechanism, wherein,

[0006] The upper rack and lower rack are arranged opposite to each other;

[0007] The waist mechanism is located between the upper frame and the lower frame and is used to change the angle formed between the upper frame and the lower frame;

[0008] There are four arm components, and they are installed in pairs on the upper frame and the lower frame respectively;

[0009] The number of boom steering mechanisms is the same as the number of boom components, and they are fixed on the upper frame and the lower frame respectively. The boom steering mechanisms are connected to the boom components in a one-to-one transmission manner. The boom steering mechanisms can drive the boom components to rotate more than 180 degrees, which is used to change the relative posture of the boom components and the upper or lower frame.

[0010] A gripper mechanism is located at the end of the arm assembly and is used to grip the tubing. The gripper mechanism includes an opening and closing drive unit, finger roots, finger middle sections, and fingertips.

[0011] The opening and closing drive unit is fixed to the arm assembly, and it has a linear movable end for driving the gripper mechanism to perform opening and closing actions.

[0012] One end of the finger root is hinged to the opening and closing drive unit;

[0013] One end of the finger is hinged to the other end of the base of the finger;

[0014] One end of the fingertip is hinged to the other end of the middle finger. There are two finger roots, two middle fingers, and two fingertips, and they are mirror images of each other with the direction of movement of the linear movable end of the opening and closing drive as the center line.

[0015] When clamping the pipeline, the base of the finger, the middle of the finger, and the tip of the finger sequentially contact the outer wall of the pipeline.

[0016] Based on the above technical solutions, preferably, a camera is also included, which is fixed on the upper frame and used to capture real-time images.

[0017] Based on the above technical solutions, preferably, the arm steering mechanism includes a steering motor and an arm rotation shaft, the arm rotation shaft is connected to the output end of the steering motor, and the end of the arm assembly away from the gripper mechanism is fixed on the arm rotation shaft.

[0018] Based on the above technical solutions, preferably, the gripper mechanism further includes a linkage component, a gripper connecting seat, a gripper connecting rod one, a triangular plate, and a gripper connecting rod two, wherein...

[0019] The linkage component is fixed on the linear movable end of the opening and closing drive unit;

[0020] The gripper connecting seat is fixed relative to the opening and closing drive part, and both ends are respectively hinged to the two finger roots;

[0021] There are two gripper linkages, which are respectively hinged to both ends of the linkage component;

[0022] There are two triangular plates, which are respectively hinged to both ends of the gripper connecting seat, and the two triangular plates are respectively hinged to the two gripper connecting rods.

[0023] There are two gripper links, one end of which is hinged to the end of each of the two triangular plates away from the gripper link one, and the other end of the gripper link two is hinged to the fingertip.

[0024] Based on the above technical solutions, preferably, the waist mechanism includes a waist connecting seat, a waist U-shaped seat, a waist motor, and a waist gear set, wherein,

[0025] The waist connecting seat is hinged to the waist U-shaped seat and fixed to the opposite sides of the upper frame and the lower frame, respectively;

[0026] The waist motor is fixed on the waist connecting seat, and its output end is connected to the waist U-shaped seat through the waist gear set to drive the waist connecting seat and the waist U-shaped seat to rotate relative to each other.

[0027] More preferably, the opening and closing drive unit includes a fixed platform, a slider, an opening and closing motor, and a lead screw, wherein,

[0028] The two ends of the fixed platform are respectively fixedly connected to the end of the arm assembly and the gripper connecting seat;

[0029] The slider is slidably mounted on the fixed platform, serving as the linear movable end of the opening and closing drive unit;

[0030] The opening and closing motor is fixed on the fixed platform;

[0031] The lead screw is connected to the output end of the opening and closing motor and passes through the slider, and is threadedly connected to the slider.

[0032] Based on the above technical solutions, preferably, the side of the finger root, middle finger, and fingertip used for contacting the pipeline is provided with an arc-shaped groove.

[0033] Based on the above technical solutions, preferably, the arm assembly includes a first hinge seat, a second hinge seat, an arm linkage assembly, and an arm drive component, wherein...

[0034] The articulated base is fixed to the arm steering mechanism;

[0035] Hinged seat two is fixed to the gripper mechanism;

[0036] The two ends of the arm link assembly are hinged to hinge seat one and hinge seat two, respectively.

[0037] The arm drive has an output end and is fixed on the hinge seat. The output end of the arm drive is connected to the arm linkage assembly for transmission.

[0038] More preferably, the arm linkage assembly includes arm linkage one, arm linkage two, arm linkage three, and arm linkage four, wherein,

[0039] The two ends of the arm connecting rod one are respectively hinged to hinge seat one and hinge seat two;

[0040] One end of the second arm link is hinged to the first hinge seat;

[0041] The two ends of the arm link three are respectively hinged to the other end of the arm link two and the hinge seat two;

[0042] One end of arm link four is hinged to the connection between arm link two and arm link three, and the other end is hinged to arm link one.

[0043] More preferably, the gripper connector has a clearance groove for accommodating part of the pipeline.

[0044] The adaptive pipe-climbing robot based on a variable-cell gripper of the present invention has the following advantages over the prior art:

[0045] (1) By setting up a waist mechanism, the upper frame and the lower frame can be adjusted relative to each other. Combined with the arm assembly, arm turning mechanism and gripper mechanism, the robot can perform actions such as crawling and walking on the pipe to achieve operations such as obstacle crossing, bending and crawling, and pipe transfer. Compared with the existing pipe climbing robots, it is more flexible.

[0046] (2) The main components of the gripper mechanism are set as three sections: the root of the finger, the middle of the finger and the tip of the finger. The three sections are attached to the outside of the pipe wall in sequence to clamp the pipe, so as to adapt to pipes of different diameters and have higher applicability. Especially for the transfer between connecting pipes and independent pipes of different diameters, the stability of the climbing pipe is stronger.

[0047] (3) By setting arc-shaped grooves on the base, middle and tip of the fingers, the robot can be stably gripped on the pipeline when the gripper mechanism is gripping the pipeline or when it is not gripping the pipeline at a 90-degree angle, thereby further improving its climbing stability and adaptability to pipelines of different diameters. Attached Figure Description

[0048] To more clearly illustrate the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present invention or the prior art, the drawings used in the description of the embodiments or the prior art will be briefly introduced below. Obviously, the 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.

[0049] Figure 1 This is a perspective view of the adaptive pipe-climbing robot based on the variable-cell gripper of the present invention.

[0050] Figure 2 This is a perspective view of the waist mechanism of the adaptive pipe-climbing robot based on the variable-cell gripper of the present invention.

[0051] Figure 3 This is a perspective view of the arm component of the adaptive pipe-climbing robot based on the variable-cell gripper of the present invention.

[0052] Figure 4 This is a perspective view of the arm steering mechanism of the adaptive pipe-climbing robot based on the variable-cell gripper of the present invention.

[0053] Figure 5 This is a perspective view of the gripper mechanism of the adaptive pipe-climbing robot based on the variable-cell gripper of the present invention.

[0054] Figure 6 This is a schematic diagram of the gripper mechanism of the adaptive pipe-climbing robot based on the variable-cell gripper of the present invention, showing the pipe gripping process.

[0055] Figure 7-8 This is a schematic diagram of the vertical pipe crawling gait of the adaptive pipe-climbing robot based on the variable-cell gripper of the present invention;

[0056] Figure 9 This is a schematic diagram of the transfer motion of the adaptive pipe-climbing robot based on the variable-cell gripper of the present invention between adjacent pipes;

[0057] Figure 10 This is a schematic diagram of the transfer motion of the adaptive pipe-climbing robot based on the variable-cell gripper of the present invention from a vertical pipe to a horizontal pipe;

[0058] Figure 11 This is a schematic diagram illustrating the obstacle-crossing motion of the adaptive pipe-climbing robot based on a variable-cell gripper according to the present invention. Detailed Implementation

[0059] The technical solutions of the present invention will be clearly and completely described below with reference to the embodiments of the present invention. Obviously, the described embodiments are only a part of the embodiments of the present invention, and not all of the embodiments. Based on the embodiments of the present invention, all other embodiments obtained by those of ordinary skill in the art without creative effort are within the scope of protection of the present invention.

[0060] like Figure 1-5As shown, the adaptive pipe-climbing robot based on a variable-cell gripper of the present invention has an overall structure divided into three parts: upper, waist, and lower. The upper part includes an upper torso, a left upper limb, and a right upper limb; the lower part includes a lower torso, a left lower limb, and a right lower limb. The left upper limb, right upper limb, left lower limb, and right lower limb have identical structures, and the upper and lower torsos have identical structures and are symmetrical. The overall layout is as follows: the left and right upper limbs are symmetrically mounted at both ends of the upper torso, and the left and right lower limbs are symmetrically mounted at both ends of the lower torso. The upper and lower torsos are connected by a waist section. Specifically, it includes an upper frame 1, a lower frame 2, a waist mechanism 3, an arm assembly 4, an arm steering mechanism 5, and a gripper mechanism 6.

[0061] The upper frame 1 and lower frame 2 are positioned opposite each other, serving as the upper and lower torsos of the robot, respectively. The upper frame 1 is mainly a rectangular frame, with an upper partition located slightly above the center of the frame to support and connect the various components in the upper torso. The lower half is divided into four sections by another horizontal partition and two vertical partitions, each with waist holes to reduce overall weight and facilitate wiring. In addition, a rectangular hole is cut out at the bottom left of the upper frame 1 for mounting the waist mechanism 3.

[0062] Except for the rectangular holes, the upper frame 1 and the lower frame 2 are completely symmetrical. Components that can be installed on the upper frame 1 and the lower frame 2 include circuit boards, batteries, etc.

[0063] The waist mechanism 3, serving as the waist of the robot as a whole, is located between the upper frame 1 and the lower frame 2. By changing the angle formed between the upper frame 1 and the lower frame 2, the distance and posture of the robot's upper and lower limbs can be changed, allowing the upper frame 1 and the lower frame 2 to bend together, enabling the robot to perform crawling movements, or to move at bends in pipes by adjusting the posture of the upper frame 1 and the lower frame 2, adapting to different pipe crawling scenarios.

[0064] There are four arm components 4, which are set in pairs on the upper frame 1 and the lower frame 2 respectively. The arm components 4 are used to connect the gripper mechanism 6 and the robot's torso.

[0065] The number of arm steering mechanisms 5 is the same as that of arm components 4, and they are fixed on the upper frame 1 and the lower frame 2 respectively. The arm steering mechanisms 5 and arm components 4 are connected in a one-to-one transmission connection. The arm steering mechanisms 5 can drive the arm components 4 to rotate more than 180 degrees, which is used to change the relative posture of the arm components 4 with the upper frame 1 or the lower frame 2. The arm steering mechanisms 5, in conjunction with the arm components 4, can change the distance and relative posture between the gripper mechanism 6 and the robot body, so that the gripper mechanism 6 can repeatedly grip the pipeline to drive the robot body to move. In addition, during the movement, it can easily cross obstacles such as flanges.

[0066] The gripper mechanism 6 is located at the end of the arm assembly 4 and is used to clamp the pipeline. The gripper mechanism 6 includes an opening and closing drive part 61, finger roots 62, finger middles 63, and fingertips 64. The opening and closing drive part 61 is fixed to the arm assembly 4 and has a linear movable end for driving the gripper mechanism 6 to perform opening and closing actions. One end of the finger root 62 is hinged to the opening and closing drive part 61, one end of the finger middle 63 is hinged to the other end of the finger root 62, and one end of the fingertips 64 is hinged to the other end of the finger middle 63. There are two of each of the finger roots 62, finger middle 63, and fingertips 64, and they are mirror images of each other with the direction of movement of the linear movable end of the opening and closing drive part 61 as the center line. When clamping the pipeline, the finger roots 62, finger middle 63, and fingertips 64 contact the outer wall of the pipeline in sequence.

[0067] The opening and closing drive unit 61 drives the finger root 62, finger middle 63 and finger tip 64 to contact the pipeline in sequence, and the pipeline is clamped by the symmetrical structure, which has better pipeline diameter adaptability and better gripping stability.

[0068] The arm assembly 4, arm steering mechanism 5, and gripper mechanism 6 together form the robot's limbs, namely the left upper limb, right upper limb, left lower limb, and right lower limb. The four limbs have the same structure. The arm steering mechanism 5 is equivalent to the shoulder of the limb. The arm assembly 4, arm steering mechanism 5, and gripper mechanism 6 work together to realize multi-directional movement of the limbs and complete more kinds of crawling combination actions of the robot.

[0069] In this embodiment, a camera 7 is also included. The camera 7 is fixed on the upper frame 1 and is used to capture real-time images. The captured images can be viewed by maintenance personnel and can also be used for operations such as path recognition.

[0070] The arm steering mechanism 5 of this embodiment includes a steering motor 51 and an arm rotation shaft 52. The arm rotation shaft 52 is connected to the output end of the steering motor 51. The end of the arm assembly 4 away from the gripper mechanism 6 is fixed on the arm rotation shaft 52. Specifically, it also includes a U-shaped bearing seat, a motor mounting seat, and a coupling. Both the motor mounting seat and the U-shaped bearing seat are fixed to the robot's torso. The steering motor 51 is fixed to the motor mounting seat by bolts. The arm rotation shaft 52 is mounted on the U-shaped bearing seat. The U-shaped bearing seat supports the arm rotation shaft 52 through two built-in bearings. At the same time, the arm rotation shaft 52 and the output end of the steering motor 51 are connected to each other through the coupling. The steering motor 51 outputs power to the arm rotation shaft 52 through the coupling, causing it to rotate, which in turn drives the arm assembly 4 to rotate relative to the robot's torso.

[0071] Through structural design, the arm steering mechanism 5 allows for a wide range of rotation angles for the entire limb, nearly 360°, thereby enabling the arm assembly to rotate 180 degrees to grasp adjacent pipes and transfer them between different pipes.

[0072] In this embodiment, the gripper mechanism 6 further includes a linkage 65, a gripper connecting seat 66, a gripper connecting rod 67, a triangular plate 68, and a gripper connecting rod 69. The linkage 65 is fixed on the linear movable end of the opening and closing drive part 61. The gripper connecting seat 66 is fixed relative to the opening and closing drive part 61 and its two ends are respectively hinged to two finger roots 62. There are two gripper connecting rods 67, which are respectively hinged to both ends of the linkage 65. There are two triangular plates 68, which are respectively hinged to both ends of the gripper connecting seat 66. The two triangular plates 68 are respectively hinged to the two gripper connecting rods 67. There are two gripper connecting rods 69, and one end of each is hinged to the end of the two triangular plates 68 away from the gripper connecting rod 67. The other end of the gripper connecting rod 69 is hinged to the fingertip 64.

[0073] Specifically, the triangular plate 68 has three vertices, which respectively connect the gripper connecting seat 66, the gripper connecting rod 67, and the gripper connecting rod 69. The length of the gripper connecting rod 69 is greater than that of the middle finger 63, so that the two fingertips 64 always deflect towards the opposite side. During the specific clamping process of the pipeline, the gripper connecting seat 66 is relatively stationary, and the linkage 65 moves towards the direction of the fingertips 64, pushing the gripper connecting rod 69 to move, causing the triangular plate 68 to rotate on the gripper connecting seat 66, and then pushing the gripper connecting rod 69 to move, so that the two fingertips 64 move towards the opposite side. During this process, the root of the finger 62 and the middle finger 63 contact the outer wall of the pipeline in sequence. When the root of the finger 62, the middle finger 63 and the fingertips 64 have all contacted the outer wall of the pipeline, they can be locked, thereby gripping the pipeline.

[0074] In this embodiment, the waist mechanism 3 includes a waist connecting seat 31, a waist U-shaped seat 32, a waist motor 33, and a waist gear set 34. The waist connecting seat 31 and the waist U-shaped seat 32 are hinged and fixed on opposite sides of the upper frame 1 and the lower frame 2, respectively. The waist motor 33 is fixed on the waist connecting seat 31, and its output end is connected to the waist U-shaped seat 32 through the waist gear set 34 to drive the waist connecting seat 31 and the waist U-shaped seat 32 to rotate relative to each other.

[0075] Specifically, a connecting shaft is also provided on the waist U-shaped seat 32 and fixed thereto. The connecting shaft is mounted on the waist connecting seat 31 through bearings. The waist U-shaped seat 32 and the waist connecting seat 31 are hinged through the connecting shaft. The waist motor 33 drives the connecting shaft to rotate relative to the waist connecting seat 31 through the waist gear set 34, so that the waist U-shaped seat 32 rotates synchronously, thereby changing the included angle between the waist connecting seat 31 and the waist U-shaped seat 32. The waist gear set 34 includes a waist driving gear and a waist driven gear. The waist driven gear is fixed on the connecting shaft, and the waist driving gear is fixed on the waist motor 33 and meshes with the waist driven gear.

[0076] In a preferred embodiment, the opening and closing drive unit 61 includes a fixed platform 611, a slider 612, an opening and closing motor 613, and a lead screw 614. The two ends of the fixed platform 611 are fixedly connected to the end of the arm assembly 4 and the gripper connecting seat 66, respectively. The slider 612 is slidably disposed on the fixed platform 611, serving as the linear movable end of the opening and closing drive unit 61. The opening and closing motor 613 is fixed on the fixed platform 611. The lead screw 614 is drivenly connected to the output end of the opening and closing motor 613, passes through the slider 612, and is threadedly connected to the slider 612.

[0077] The opening and closing motor 613 drives the lead screw 614 to rotate, which in turn pushes the fixed platform 611 to move. It should be noted that a guide rail is also provided on the fixed platform 611. The guide rail is parallel to the length direction of the lead screw 614, so that the force on the slider 612 is transmitted to the guide rail, avoiding wear on the lead screw 614.

[0078] In a preferred embodiment, the finger root 62, finger middle 63 and finger tip 64 are all provided with arc-shaped grooves 601 on the side for contacting the pipeline. The arc-shaped grooves 601 can better adapt to the arc surface of the pipeline, especially when the gripper mechanism is tilted to grasp the pipeline. In addition, a clearance groove 661 is provided on the gripper connecting seat 66. All the arc-shaped grooves 601 and clearance grooves 661 belong to the same arc on the same circle.

[0079] In this embodiment, the arm assembly 4 includes a first hinge seat 41, a second hinge seat 42, an arm linkage assembly 43, and an arm drive member 44. The first hinge seat 41 is fixed to the arm steering mechanism 5, the second hinge seat 42 is fixed to the gripper mechanism 6, the two ends of the arm linkage assembly 43 are hinged to the first hinge seat 41 and the second hinge seat 42 respectively, and the arm drive member 44 has an output end and is fixed to the first hinge seat 41. The output end of the arm drive member 44 is connected to the arm linkage assembly 43 in a transmission manner.

[0080] The arm drive component 44 drives the arm linkage assembly 43 to move, thereby changing the relative posture of the first hinge seat 41 and the second hinge seat 42, and thus changing the relative position of the gripper mechanism 6 and the robot torso.

[0081] Specifically, the arm link assembly 43 includes an arm link one 431, an arm link two 432, an arm link three 433, and an arm link four 434. The two ends of the arm link one 431 are respectively hinged to the hinge seat one 41 and the hinge seat two 42. One end of the arm link two 432 is hinged to the hinge seat one 41. The two ends of the arm link three 433 are respectively hinged to the other end of the arm link two 432 and the hinge seat two 42. One end of the arm link four 434 is hinged at the connection between the arm link two 432 and the arm link three 433, and the other end is hinged to the arm link one 431.

[0082] The arm drive component 44 includes an arm motor, an arm drive gear, and an arm driven gear. A hinge seat 41 is fixed to the arm rotation shaft 52 and is driven by a key. The arm motor is fixed to the hinge seat 41. Two rotatable shafts are provided on the hinge seat 41, and these two shafts are parallel to each other. The arm drive gear is fixed to the output end of the arm motor. The arm driven gear is fixed to one of the two shafts and meshes with the arm drive gear. Arm connecting rod 431 and arm connecting rod 432 are respectively fixed to the two shafts. The arm motor drives arm connecting rod 432 to rotate via the arm drive gear and the arm driven gear, which in turn drives arm connecting rod 431 to rotate via arm connecting rod 434. During this process, the length of arm connecting rod 431 remains constant, while the distance between the opposite ends of arm connecting rod 432 and arm connecting rod 433 changes, causing the gripper mechanism 6 to change its orientation as it moves.

[0083] like Figure 6 As shown, the gripper mechanism 6 performs four clamping actions when grasping the pipeline, from the initial contact with the pipeline to the final clamping of the pipeline.

[0084] In addition, to facilitate understanding of the various crawling methods and crawling scenarios described in this embodiment, which mainly include crawling with two gaits, transfer between adjacent pipes, transfer between straight and horizontal pipes, and obstacle crossing, detailed descriptions are provided below.

[0085] like Figure 7-8 As shown, the robot has two gaits when crawling in a vertical pipe: 1. Treating the left and right upper limbs as a whole, they move upwards synchronously to clamp the pipe. Treating the entire lower part as a whole, the rotation of the waist mechanism 3 causes the entire lower part to rotate upwards. After reaching the ideal position, the left and right lower limbs clamp the pipe. At this time, the entire lower part is fixed, and the gripper mechanisms 6 of the left and right upper limbs slightly open. Then, through the reverse rotation of the waist mechanism 3, the entire upper part is driven to rotate upwards, thereby driving the entire robot to crawl upwards, similar to the crawling action of an insect; 2. The left and right upper limbs alternately clamp the pipe upwards, and the remaining actions are the same as in point 1, similar to the climbing action of a human.

[0086] like Figure 9 As shown, the robot's transfer motion between adjacent pipes is as follows: Assuming the robot is in a standard state, with all four limbs horizontal to the ground, taking the right upper limb as an example, the rotation of the steering motor 51 drives the entire right upper limb to rotate around the upper torso until the gripper mechanism 6 of the right upper limb contacts another pipe and then clamps it. The left upper limb, left lower limb, and right lower limb work in the same way, clamping another pipe in sequence. Finally, the camera 7 rotates 180°, completing the robot's transfer between adjacent pipes.

[0087] like Figure 10 As shown, the robot's transfer motion from a vertical pipe to a horizontal pipe is as follows: The robot first moves to the ideal position below the horizontal pipe. Taking the right upper limb as an example, the steering motor 51 rotates, causing the entire right upper limb 5 to rotate until the center of the gripper mechanism 6 coincides with the center of the pipe. The same applies to the left upper limb. Then, the left and right upper limbs crawl forward a distance and clamp onto the pipe. Next, the waist rotates, causing the entire lower body to rotate until the gripper mechanism 6 of the left and right lower limbs coincides with the center of the pipe. At this point, the left and right lower limbs clamp onto the pipe, thus completing the robot's transfer motion from the vertical pipe to the horizontal pipe.

[0088] like Figure 11 As shown, the robot's obstacle-crossing action is as follows: The robot first moves to a position below the obstacle. Taking the right upper limb as an example, it first opens the gripper mechanism 6. Through the movement of the arm component 4, the right upper limb swings outward around the arm component 4 until it is no longer obstructed by the obstacle. At this point, the swinging of the arm component 4 stops. Next, the steering motor 51 starts to move, driving the right upper limb to rotate upward around the upper torso until the gripper mechanism 6 reaches the limit position where it can clamp the pipe after the right upper limb rotates. Then, through the reverse movement of the arm component 4, the right upper limb swings inward around the arm component 4 until the center of the gripper mechanism 6 coincides with the center of the pipe, at which point it clamps the pipe. The left upper limb follows the same process and moves synchronously. Next, the robot crawls a distance according to normal crawling movements until the left and right lower limbs reach below the obstacle. At this point, the left and right lower limbs move in the same way as the right upper limb, and finally all four limbs cross the obstacle, completing the robot's obstacle-crossing action.

[0089] The above description is only a preferred embodiment of the present invention and is not intended to limit the present invention. Any modifications, equivalent substitutions, improvements, etc., made within the spirit and principles of the present invention should be included within the protection scope of the present invention.

Claims

1. An adaptive pipe-climbing robot based on a variable-cell gripper, characterized in that: It includes an upper frame (1), a lower frame (2), a waist mechanism (3), an arm assembly (4), an arm steering mechanism (5), and a gripper mechanism (6), among which, The upper frame (1) and the lower frame (2) are arranged opposite to each other; The waist mechanism (3) is located between the upper frame (1) and the lower frame (2) to change the angle formed between the upper frame (1) and the lower frame (2); The number of arm components (4) is four, and they are arranged in pairs on the upper frame (1) and the lower frame (2); The arm steering mechanism (5) is the same number as the arm assembly (4) and is fixed on the upper frame (1) and the lower frame (2) respectively. The arm steering mechanism (5) and the arm assembly (4) are connected in a one-to-one transmission connection. The arm steering mechanism (5) can drive the arm assembly (4) to rotate more than 180 degrees to change the relative posture of the arm assembly (4) and the upper frame (1) or the lower frame (2). The arm steering mechanism (5) includes a steering motor (51) and an arm rotation shaft (52). The arm rotation shaft (52) is connected to the output end of the steering motor (51). The arm assembly (4) is fixed on the arm rotation shaft (52) at one end away from the gripper mechanism (6). The gripper mechanism (6) is located at the end of the arm assembly (4) and is used to clamp the pipeline. The gripper mechanism (6) includes an opening and closing drive unit (61), finger root (62), finger middle (63), finger tip (64), linkage (65), gripper connecting seat (66), gripper connecting rod one (67), triangular plate (68), and gripper connecting rod two (69). The opening and closing drive unit (61) is fixed to the arm assembly (4), and has a linear movable end for driving the gripper mechanism (6) to perform opening and closing actions; One end of the finger root (62) is hinged to the opening and closing drive part (61); One end of the middle finger (63) is hinged to the other end of the root finger (62); One end of the fingertip (64) is hinged to the other end of the middle finger (63). There are two finger roots (62), two middle fingers (63) and two fingertips (64), and they are mirror images of each other with the direction of movement of the linear moving end of the opening and closing drive part (61) as the center line. The linkage (65) is fixed on the linear movable end of the opening and closing drive unit (61); The gripper connecting seat (66) is fixed relative to the opening and closing drive part (61), and both ends are respectively hinged to the two finger roots (62); There are two gripper linkages (67), which are respectively hinged to both ends of the linkage (65); There are two triangular plates (68), which are respectively hinged to both ends of the gripper connecting seat (66), and the two triangular plates (68) are respectively hinged to the two gripper connecting rods (67); There are two gripper links (69), one end of which is hinged to the end of the two triangular plates (68) away from the gripper link (67), and the other end of the gripper link (69) is hinged to the fingertip (64); When clamping the pipeline, the base of the finger (62), the middle of the finger (63) and the tip of the finger (64) contact the outer wall of the pipeline in sequence; The waist mechanism (3) includes a waist connecting seat (31), a waist U-shaped seat (32), a waist motor (33), and a waist gear set (34), wherein, The waist connecting seat (31) is hinged to the waist U-shaped seat (32) and fixed on the opposite sides of the upper frame (1) and the lower frame (2), respectively; The waist motor (33) is fixed on the waist connecting seat (31), and its output end is connected to the waist U-shaped seat (32) through the waist gear set (34) to drive the waist connecting seat (31) and the waist U-shaped seat (32) to rotate relative to each other.

2. The adaptive pipe-climbing robot based on a variable-cell gripper as described in claim 1, characterized in that: It also includes a camera (7), which is fixed on the upper frame (1) for capturing real-time images.

3. The adaptive pipe-climbing robot based on a variable-cell gripper as described in claim 1, characterized in that: The opening and closing drive unit (61) includes a fixed platform (611), a slider (612), an opening and closing motor (613), and a lead screw (614), wherein, The two ends of the fixed platform (611) are fixedly connected to the end of the arm assembly (4) and the gripper connecting seat (66), respectively; The slider (612) is slidably mounted on the fixed platform (611), which serves as the linear movable end of the opening and closing drive unit (61); The opening and closing motor (613) is fixed on the fixed platform (611); The lead screw (614) is connected to the output end of the opening and closing motor (613) and passes through the slider (612), and is threadedly connected to the slider (612).

4. The adaptive pipe-climbing robot based on a variable-cell gripper as described in claim 1, characterized in that: The finger root (62), finger middle (63) and finger tip (64) are all provided with arc-shaped grooves (601) on the side that is used to contact the pipeline.

5. The adaptive pipe-climbing robot based on a variable-cell gripper as described in claim 1, characterized in that: The arm assembly (4) includes a first hinge seat (41), a second hinge seat (42), an arm linkage assembly (43), and an arm drive component (44), wherein, The articulated seat (41) is fixed to the arm steering mechanism (5); Hinged seat 2 (42) is fixed on the gripper mechanism (6); The two ends of the arm link assembly (43) are respectively hinged to hinge seat one (41) and hinge seat two (42); The arm drive (44) has an output end and is fixed on the hinge seat (41). The output end of the arm drive (44) is connected to the arm linkage assembly (43) for transmission.

6. The adaptive pipe-climbing robot based on a variable-cell gripper as described in claim 5, characterized in that: The arm linkage assembly (43) includes arm linkage one (431), arm linkage two (432), arm linkage three (433) and arm linkage four (434), wherein, The two ends of the arm connecting rod 1 (431) are respectively hinged to the hinge seat 1 (41) and the hinge seat 2 (42); One end of the arm link 2 (432) is hinged to the hinge seat 1 (41); The two ends of the arm link three (433) are respectively hinged to the other end of the arm link two (432) and the hinge seat two (42); One end of arm link four (434) is hinged to the connection between arm link two (432) and arm link three (433), and the other end is hinged to arm link one (431).

7. The adaptive pipe-climbing robot based on a variable-cell gripper as described in claim 1, characterized in that: The gripper connector (66) is provided with a clearance groove (661) for accommodating part of the pipeline.

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