Controllable Pipeline Robot for Cornering Based on Rotational Obstacle Avoidance

Abstract

This invention discloses a controllable pipe robot for cornering based on rotational obstacle avoidance, belonging to the field of pipe robot technology. The robot comprises three parts: a front body, a rotating connector, and a rear body. The front and rear bodies have identical internal structures, both equipped with the same bevel gears, worm gears, and obstacle avoidance and diameter-changing modules. The obstacle avoidance and diameter-changing modules rotate at a certain angle via the bevel gears and worm gears to overcome obstacles. While rotating, the obstacle avoidance and diameter-changing modules can also adapt to changes in pipe diameter, enabling the robot to change its diameter. The front and rear bodies are connected by the rotating connector. Four screw drive mechanisms are located on both sides of the rear body. Each screw has a slider, which is connected to a cylinder via a connecting rod. The screw drive mechanism causes the connecting rod to rotate the front body, enabling the robot to corner. This invention offers advantages in flexible obstacle avoidance and cornering, can adapt to more complex shapes and pipe diameters, and greatly improves work efficiency.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention belongs to the field of robotics technology, specifically a controllable pipeline robot for cornering based on rotational obstacle avoidance. Background Technology

[0002] Pipelines are widely used in the oil and gas industry, urban sewage systems, and semiconductor manufacturing plants, providing low-cost transportation for materials such as oil, natural gas, and wastewater. Pipeline maintenance and repair are crucial for the transport of resources like oil and natural gas, but the harsh environment and lack of light inside pipelines make them difficult for humans to work in, thus giving rise to robotics technology.

[0003] Pipeline robots often encounter obstacles and complex bends when operating in pipelines. Existing pipeline robots exhibit poor flexibility in obstacle crossing and bend navigating. Specifically, when overcoming obstacles, current robots primarily rely on changing their motion mode and utilizing gaps between their mechanisms, but this method is limited by the size of the obstacle. Regarding bend navigating, most existing robots use passive bends or wheeled steering. Passive bend navigating is limited to circular curves and cannot navigate complex bends such as T-shaped pipes. Wheeled steering, due to the contact between the drive wheels and the pipe wall, requires overcoming significant resistance during turning, causing body vibration and affecting motion stability.

[0004] Therefore, it is of great significance to study a pipeline robot that can adaptively overcome obstacles based on their size and actively navigate curves. Summary of the Invention

[0005] This invention overcomes the shortcomings of the prior art and proposes a controllable pipe robot based on rotational obstacle avoidance, which can flexibly overcome obstacles and bends, move in complex pipes and travel long distances smoothly.

[0006] To achieve the objectives of this invention, the technical solution adopted is as follows: a controllable pipe robot based on rotational obstacle avoidance, comprising a front body, a rear body, a body cover, and a rotating connector; the body cover is fixed to the front and rear bodies by bolts, and the front and rear bodies are connected by the rotating connector and can rotate left and right; an obstacle avoidance unit is disposed inside the front and rear bodies to enable the robot to avoid obstacles; a diameter changing unit is disposed on the obstacle avoidance unit to enable the robot to adapt to changes in pipe diameter; and a bending unit is disposed on both sides of the rear body and connected to the front body to deflect the front body, enabling the robot to navigate curves.

[0007] Furthermore, the front and rear main bodies each contain a drive bevel gear, a bevel gear shaft, a bearing, a bearing housing, a coupling, a transmission shaft, and a motor. The motor is fixed to the body cover. The drive bevel gear is fixed to the transmission shaft via a key and connected to the motor via the coupling. Four bearing housings are bolted to the inner walls of the front and rear main bodies and the body cover. Two bearing housings are installed on the upper and lower walls of the front and rear main bodies. Each bearing housing has a fixed bearing. The two ends of the bevel gear shaft are fixed inside the bearings, allowing it to rotate.

[0008] Furthermore, each obstacle avoidance unit includes a worm gear, a worm shaft, a rotating main component, a rotating shaft, and a variable diameter unit. Two worm gears are provided, distributed on both sides of the worm shaft and fixed to the rotating shaft via a key connection. The worm shaft is fixed to one side of a bevel gear shaft. The variable diameter unit is mounted on the rotating main component, which is welded to the rotating shaft. Both ends of the rotating shaft are fixed within bearings, allowing rotation. Depending on the size of the obstacle, the worm shaft acts as the driving component, simultaneously driving the two worm gears to rotate. The rotation of the worm gears, in turn, causes the variable diameter unit to rotate by a certain angle, creating a gap larger than the obstacle between adjacent variable diameter units, thus enabling the robot to flexibly avoid obstacles.

[0009] Furthermore, each of the variable diameter units includes a wheel cylinder, a variable diameter slider, a spring, a motor wheel, and a small connecting rod. The variable diameter slider and the spring are fixed to the rotating main component. The two ends of the small connecting rod are connected to the wheel cylinder and the variable diameter slider by pins. The motor wheel is fixed to the end of the wheel cylinder. When the pipe diameter decreases, the wheel cylinder is squeezed downward by the inner wall of the pipe, and drives the variable diameter slider to compress the spring through the small connecting rod, thereby adapting to the small diameter pipe. When the pipe diameter increases, the spring, due to its reset action, pushes the variable diameter slider back to its original position. The variable diameter slider drives the small connecting rod, causing the wheel cylinder to move back to its original position, thus realizing the robot's variable diameter function.

[0010] Furthermore, the cornering unit includes a lead screw, a slider, a connecting rod, and a pulley. Four lead screws are fixed to both sides of the rear main body, with two distributed vertically on one side. A pulley is installed at the tail of each lead screw. A slider is mounted on each lead screw. Four cylinders are welded to the rear sides of the front main body. The slider is connected to the cylinders on the front main body via two connecting rods, which are connected by a pin. The pulley drives the lead screw to rotate, causing the slider to move forward or backward on the lead screw. By controlling the distance of movement, the connecting rod causes the front main body to deflect to the left or right by a certain angle, enabling the robot to flexibly corner.

[0011] Furthermore, the wheel cylinder, the variable diameter slider, the spring, the motor wheel, and the small connecting rod form a variable diameter unit mounted on the rotating main component, integrating obstacle avoidance and diameter change into one unit. This allows the robot to rotate into any posture while avoiding obstacles and simultaneously change diameter, increasing the robot's movement flexibility.

[0012] Furthermore, the two lead screws on one side of the rear main body are driven by pulleys to ensure motion alignment and achieve synchronous movement of the sliders on the two lead screws.

[0013] The beneficial effects of this invention are as follows:

[0014] 1. The obstacle avoidance and diameter changing module of the present invention moves through a worm gear. The worm gear has self-locking properties, which can make better contact between the drive wheel and the pipe wall, ensuring that the obstacle avoidance and diameter changing module will not retract inward when rotating to avoid obstacles.

[0015] 2. The obstacle avoidance and diameter adjustment module of the present invention is driven by a worm gear. According to the size of the obstacle, the rotation angle of the obstacle avoidance and diameter adjustment module is adjusted by the worm gear to realize the robot's flexible obstacle avoidance.

[0016] 3. This invention achieves active cornering through lead screw transmission. The lead screw has self-locking properties, allowing the robot to maintain stability while the front and rear main bodies turn. By controlling the movement distance of the slider on the lead screw, the front main body can be deflected at different angles, thereby enabling the robot to flexibly navigate complex pipes such as T-shaped and Y-shaped tubes.

[0017] 4. The obstacle avoidance and diameter change module of the present invention integrates the drive mechanism and the diameter change mechanism. While the drive mechanism rotates when it encounters an obstacle, the robot can also perform the diameter change function. Therefore, it can realize the diameter change under any movement posture angle of the robot. Attached Figure Description

[0018] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of the overall structure of the present invention.

[0019] Figure 2 This is a schematic diagram of the rotating obstacle avoidance mode of the present invention.

[0020] Figure 3 This is a schematic diagram of the cornering mode of the present invention.

[0021] Figure 4 This is a schematic diagram of the fuselage cover unit of the present invention.

[0022] Figure 5 This is a schematic diagram of the internal structure of the main body of the present invention.

[0023] Figure 6 This is a schematic diagram of the variable diameter mechanism of the present invention.

[0024] Figure 7 This is a schematic diagram of the rotating obstacle avoidance module of the present invention.

[0025] Figure 8 This is a side view of the rotating obstacle avoidance module of the present invention. Detailed Implementation

[0026] 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 are within the scope of protection of the present invention.

[0027] Please see Figure 1-7 A controllable pipe robot based on rotational obstacle avoidance includes a front body (1), a rear body (2), a body cover (3), and a rotating connector (4). The body cover (3) is fixed to the front body (1) and the rear body (2) by bolts. The front body (1) and the rear body (2) are connected by the rotating connector (4) and can rotate left and right. An obstacle avoidance unit is set inside the front body (1) and the rear body (2) to enable the robot to avoid obstacles. A diameter changing unit is set on the obstacle avoidance unit to enable the robot to adapt to changes in pipe diameter. A bending unit is set on both sides of the rear body (2) and connected to the front body (1) to deflect the front body (1) and enable the robot to bend.

[0028] The front body (1) and rear body (2) include an active bevel gear (5), a bevel gear shaft (6), a bearing (7), a bearing seat (8), a coupling (9), a transmission shaft (10), and a motor (11). The motor (11) is fixed on the body cover (3). The active bevel gear (5) is fixed on the transmission shaft (10) by a key and connected to the motor (11) by the coupling (9). Four bearing seats (8) are installed on the inner wall of the front body (1), the inner wall of the rear body (2), and the body cover (3) by bolts. Two bearing seats (8) are installed on the upper and lower walls of the front body (1) and the rear body (2). Each bearing seat (8) is fixed with a bearing (7). The two ends of the bevel gear shaft (6) are fixed in the bearing (7) and can rotate on its own.

[0029] Each obstacle avoidance unit includes a worm gear (12), a worm (13), a rotating main component (14), a rotating shaft (15), and a variable diameter unit. Two worm gears (12) are provided, distributed on both sides of the worm (13) and fixed to the rotating shaft (15) by a key connection. The worm (13) is fixed to one side of the bevel gear shaft (6). The variable diameter unit is located on the rotating main component (14), which is welded to the rotating shaft (15). Both ends of the rotating shaft (15) are fixed within bearings (7), allowing rotation. Depending on the size of the obstacle, the worm (13) acts as the driving component, simultaneously driving the two worm gears (12) to rotate. The rotation of the worm gears (12) simultaneously drives the variable diameter unit to rotate by a certain angle, creating a gap larger than the obstacle between adjacent variable diameter units, thus enabling the robot to flexibly avoid obstacles.

[0030] Each variable diameter unit includes a wheel cylinder (16), a variable diameter slider (17), a spring (18), a motor wheel (19), and a small connecting rod (20). The variable diameter slider (17) and the spring (18) are fixed on the rotating main component (14). The two ends of the small connecting rod (20) are connected to the wheel cylinder (16) and the variable diameter slider (17) by pins. The motor wheel (19) is fixed at the end of the wheel cylinder (16). When the pipe diameter decreases, the wheel cylinder (16) is squeezed downward by the inner wall of the pipe. The small connecting rod (20) drives the variable diameter slider (17) to compress the spring (18) to adapt to the small pipe diameter. When the pipe diameter increases, the spring (18) pushes the variable diameter slider (17) back to its original position due to its reset function. The variable diameter slider (17) drives the small connecting rod (20) to make the wheel cylinder (16) move back to its original position, thus realizing the robot's variable diameter function.

[0031] The cornering unit includes a lead screw (21), a slider (22), a connecting rod (23), and a pulley (24). There are four lead screws (21), which are fixed on both sides of the rear main body (2), with two distributed on one side. A pulley (24) is installed at the tail of the lead screw (21). A slider (22) is provided on the lead screw (21). Four cylinders are welded to the rear of both sides of the front main body (1). The slider (22) is connected to the cylinder on the front main body (1) by two connecting rods (23). The two connecting rods (23) are connected together by a pin. The pulley (24) drives the lead screw (21) to rotate, so that the slider (22) moves forward or backward on the lead screw (21). By controlling the distance of movement, the connecting rod (23) drives the front main body (1) to deflect to the left or right by a certain angle, so that the robot can flexibly corner.

[0032] The wheel cylinder (16), the diameter-changing slider (17), the spring (18), the motor wheel (19), and the small connecting rod (20) form a diameter-changing unit, which is installed on the rotating main component (14). By integrating obstacle avoidance and diameter changing, the robot can change its diameter while rotating into any posture to avoid obstacles, thus increasing the flexibility of the robot's movement.

[0033] The two lead screws (21) on one side of the rear body (2) are driven by pulleys (24) to ensure motion alignment and realize the synchronous movement of the sliders (22) on the two lead screws (21).

[0034] When in use, the robot is placed inside the pipe. In the initial state, the overall size of the robot is adapted to the pipe diameter. The spring (18) on the rotating main component (14) is not compressed, and due to its reset function, the variable diameter slider (17) is pressed against the limit block. At this time, the worm gears (12) in the front body (1) and the rear body (2) do not rotate. The wheel cylinder (16) is placed vertically relative to the robot. The motor wheel (19) on the wheel cylinder (16) drives the robot to move forward under the drive of the hub motor. When the robot encounters an obstacle, the motor (11) inside the front body (1) and the rear body (2) starts to work. Through the coupling (9) and the transmission shaft (10), it drives the active bevel gear (5) to rotate, which in turn drives the bevel gear shaft (6). At this time, the worm (13) installed on the bevel gear shaft (6) starts to rotate, which in turn drives the worm gears (12) on both sides. According to the size of the obstacle, the variable diameter unit is deflected at a suitable angle by controlling the working time of the motor, so that the robot can pass through the obstacle.

[0035] In use, when the pipe diameter decreases, the robot wheel (16) begins to move downwards under the pressure of the pipe wall. Simultaneously, it drives the diameter-changing slider (17) connected to the small connecting rod (20) to compress the spring (18), causing the wheel (16) to form a certain angle relative to the robot's main plane, thus adapting to the small-diameter pipe. When the pipe diameter increases again, the spring (18) pushes the diameter-changing slider (17) back to its original position. At this time, the small connecting rod (20), under the action of the diameter-changing slider (17), drives the wheel (16) to reset, causing the motor wheel (19) to re-engage tightly with the pipe wall. Repeating the above movements realizes the robot's diameter-changing function within the pipe.

[0036] When the robot moves to a turning point, the pulleys (24) on both sides of the rear body (2) drive the lead screws (21) on both sides to rotate under the action of the motor. If a left turn is required, the pulley (24) on the left side of the rear body (2) drives the two lead screws (21) on the left side to rotate, which further drives the slider (22) on the lead screw (21) to move backward, so that the connecting rod (23) on the slider (22) gives a backward pulling force to the left side of the front body (1). The pulley (24) on the right side of the rear body (2) drives the two lead screws (21) on the right side to rotate in the opposite direction, which further drives the slider (22) on the lead screw (21) to move forward, so that the connecting rod (23) on the slider (22) gives a forward pushing force to the right side of the front body (1). Through these two movements, the robot's front body (1) deflects to the left. According to the angle of the curve, by controlling the distance of the slider (17) moving forward and backward, the robot's front body (1) deflects to a suitable angle, thereby passing through the curved pipe. Similarly, if a right turn is required, simply change the direction of the pulleys (24) on both sides.

Claims

1. A controllable pipeline robot for cornering based on rotational obstacle avoidance, characterized in that, include: The robot comprises a front body (1), a rear body (2), a body cover (3), and a rotating connector (4). The body cover (3) is bolted to the front body (1) and the rear body (2). The front body (1) and the rear body (2) are connected by the rotating connector (4) and can rotate left and right. An obstacle avoidance unit is located inside the front body (1) and the rear body (2) to enable the robot to avoid obstacles. A diameter changing unit is located on the obstacle avoidance unit to allow the robot to adapt to changes in pipe diameter. A bending unit is located on both sides of the rear body (2) and connected to the front body (1) to assist the robot in avoiding obstacles. To achieve the robot's cornering capability, each obstacle avoidance unit includes a worm gear (12), a worm (13), a rotating main component (14), a rotating shaft (15), and a variable diameter unit. Two worm gears (12) are provided, distributed on both sides of the worm (13) and fixed to the rotating shaft (15) via a key connection. The worm (13) is fixed to one side of the bevel gear shaft (6). The variable diameter unit is located on the rotating main component (14), which is fixed to the rotating shaft (15) by welding. Four bearing seats (8) are bolted to the inner wall of the front main body (1) and the body cover (3). The inner wall of the rear main body (2) and the body... Four bearing seats (8) are bolted to the cover (3). The two ends of the rotating shaft (15) are fixed in the bearings (7) of the bearing seats (8) and can rotate. Depending on the size of the obstacle, the worm (13) acts as the driving component and drives the two worm wheels (12) to rotate. When the worm wheels (12) rotate, they drive the variable diameter unit to rotate at a certain angle, so that a gap larger than the obstacle is formed between the two adjacent variable diameter units, realizing the robot's flexible obstacle avoidance function. The bending unit includes a lead screw (21), a slider (22), a connecting rod (23) and a pulley (24). There are four lead screws (21), which are fixed to the rear body (2). On both sides, there are two on one side, one above the other. The tail of the lead screw (21) is equipped with a pulley (24). A slider (22) is provided on the lead screw (21). Four cylinders are welded to the rear of both sides of the front body (1). The slider (22) is connected to the cylinder on the front body (1) by two connecting rods (23). The two connecting rods (23) are connected together by a pin. The pulley (24) drives the lead screw (21) to rotate, so that the slider (22) moves forward or backward on the lead screw (21). By controlling the distance of movement, the connecting rod (23) drives the front body (1) to deflect to the left or right by a certain angle, so that the robot can flexibly turn corners.

2. The controllable pipeline robot for cornering based on rotational obstacle avoidance according to claim 1, characterized in that: The front body (1) and rear body (2) include a drive bevel gear (5), a bevel gear shaft (6), a bearing (7), a bearing seat (8), a coupling (9), a transmission shaft (10), and a motor. The motor is fixed on the body cover (3). The drive bevel gear (5) is fixed on the transmission shaft (10) by a key and connected to the motor by the coupling (9). A bearing seat (8) is installed on the upper and lower walls of the front body (1) and a bearing seat (8) is installed on the upper and lower walls of the rear body (2). Each bearing seat (8) is fixed with a bearing (7). The two ends of the bevel gear shaft (6) are fixed in the bearing (7) and can rotate on its own.

3. The controllable pipeline robot for cornering based on rotational obstacle avoidance according to claim 1, characterized in that: Each of the aforementioned variable diameter units includes a wheel cylinder (16), a variable diameter slider (17), a spring (18), a motor wheel (19), and a small connecting rod (20). The variable diameter slider (17) and the spring (18) are fixed on the rotating main component (14). The two ends of the small connecting rod (20) are connected to the wheel cylinder (16) and the variable diameter slider (17) by pins. The motor wheel (19) is fixed to the end of the wheel cylinder (16). When the pipe diameter decreases, the wheel cylinder (16) is squeezed downward by the inner wall of the pipe, and the small connecting rod (20) drives the variable diameter slider (17) to compress the spring (18), thereby adapting to the smaller pipe diameter. When the pipe diameter increases, the spring (18) pushes the diameter-changing slider (17) back to its original position due to its reset function. The diameter-changing slider (17) drives the small connecting rod (20), causing the wheel cylinder (16) to move back to its original position, thus realizing the robot's diameter-changing function. Furthermore, the wheel cylinder (16), diameter-changing slider (17), spring (18), motor wheel (19), and small connecting rod (20) form a diameter-changing unit installed on the rotating main component (14), integrating obstacle avoidance and diameter changing. This allows the robot to change diameter while rotating into any posture during obstacle avoidance, increasing the robot's movement flexibility.

4. A controllable pipeline robot for cornering based on rotational obstacle avoidance according to claim 1, characterized in that: The rear body (2) is provided with pulleys (24) on the left and right sides respectively. Each pulley (24) drives the two lead screws (21) on that side. When the robot turns, the pulley (24) on one side drives the two lead screws (21) on that side to rotate, causing the slider (22) on the lead screw (21) on one side to move backward. The pulley (24) on the other side drives the two lead screws (21) on the other side to rotate in the opposite direction, causing the slider (22) on the lead screw (21) on the other side to move forward. The sliders (22) on both sides apply a backward pulling force and a forward pushing force to the front body (1) through the connecting rod (23) respectively, thereby forming a force couple that causes the front body (1) to deflect.

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