Insulator flushing method based on the collaborative operation of two intelligent water flushing robots

Abstract

This invention discloses an insulator washing method based on the collaborative operation of two intelligent water-flushing robots. Specifically, the water-flushing robot positioned at the front identifies and locates the target insulator at the work site and acquires the distance information between itself and the target insulator. The three-dimensional coordinate information of the target insulator that meets the flushing distance requirements is saved. When the water-flushing robot positioned at the rear reaches the corresponding position of the front water-flushing robot, the saved target insulator coordinate information is transmitted to the control system of the rear water-flushing robot, adjusting the rotation of the flushing turret to achieve aimed flushing of the target insulator, thus completing the cleaning operation. This invention separates the target identification and positioning from the targeted flushing, completely avoiding the problem of water mist obstruction during the flushing process, effectively improving the accuracy of target insulator identification, and making the water-flushing robot's aimed flushing of the target insulator more accurate and stable.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention belongs to the field of automatic cleaning of rail transit insulators, and particularly relates to an insulator cleaning method based on the collaborative operation of two intelligent water flushing robots. Background Technology

[0002] Currently, the proportion of electrified railways in my country is increasing year by year. In order to ensure the safe operation of railway transportation, it is necessary to carry out regular live water cleaning of key components such as contact wire insulators to maintain the good insulation performance of the insulators at all times and avoid the occurrence of pollution flashover accidents.

[0003] Currently, the main method for cleaning overhead contact line insulators in engineering is to use manual handheld flushing equipment to rinse them with live water, which is inefficient. Therefore, some automated flushing devices have begun to emerge. Today, the most advanced method is the overhead contact line water rinsing robot, which is gradually being developed by combining machine vision technology. It uses machine vision to obtain the coordinates of the target insulator at the work site, and then controls the flushing water gun to aim and rinse, which greatly reduces the labor input cost and improves the efficiency of insulator cleaning operations.

[0004] However, the current water-washing robot for overhead contact line insulators still has significant problems: First, while the vision-based water-washing robot can accurately identify target insulators even when the water gun is not turned on, in actual operation, the target insulator may be partially or completely obscured by the water jet and the resulting mist, leading to the loss of the identified target. This causes the water-washing robot to become disordered, seriously affecting the stability of the insulator washing operation. Second, due to the interaction of the jet water during the washing operation, the water gun and the identification camera will produce a certain amount of vibration, causing deviations in the position coordinates of the target insulator identified by vision and the aiming position of the water gun, reducing the accuracy of the water-washing robot in cleaning the insulators. Summary of the Invention

[0005] To address the shortcomings of existing insulator water flushing robots, this invention provides an insulator flushing method based on the collaborative operation of two intelligent water flushing robots.

[0006] This invention discloses an insulator flushing method based on the collaborative operation of two intelligent water-flushing robots. The method separates target identification and positioning from the flushing process. The first water-flushing robot uses a camera to acquire the position coordinates of the target insulator, and the second water-flushing robot performs the flushing operation based on the acquired target position coordinates. Specifically, the method includes the following steps:

[0007] Step 1: The track maintenance vehicle carrying the contact wire insulator water washing robot moves at a constant speed. The water washing robot in front uses a camera to acquire real-time images of the work site and identifies the target insulator in the image based on the insulator deep learning model.

[0008] Step 2: Calculate the distance information of the target insulator relative to the water-washing robot based on the camera.

[0009] Step 3: Obtain and save the spatial coordinates (X,Y,Z) of the target insulator that meets the rinsing distance in the image and the current time T1. Record the absolute position of the water rinsing robot in front at this moment as A.

[0010] Step 4: Based on the relative arrangement distance L between the two water rinsing robots and the travel speed V of the maintenance vehicle, obtain the time relationship ΔT between the front and rear water rinsing robots.

[0011] Step 5: At time T2, transmit the target insulator spatial coordinates (X,Y,Z) saved in step 3 to the control system of the rear flushing robot, control the flushing turret to rotate, and perform water flushing operation on the target insulator.

[0012] Furthermore, two water-washing robots are positioned one in front of the other on the track maintenance vehicle to ensure that the positions of the two water-washing robots overlap as the maintenance vehicle moves.

[0013] Furthermore, the camera is mounted on a rotating flushing turret, with the camera's shooting direction aligned with the muzzle direction and rotating together with the muzzle.

[0014] Furthermore, the two water-washing robots, positioned at the front and rear of the same rail maintenance vehicle, can also be placed at the same location on two rail maintenance vehicles, in which case the two rail maintenance vehicles will travel at the same speed during operation.

[0015] Furthermore, in step 4, the time relationship ΔT between the two water rinsing robots is expressed as:

[0016] Furthermore, in step 5, time T2 refers to the current time when the water rinsing robot located at the rear reaches absolute position A. The relationship between time T2 and time T1 is expressed as: T2 = T1 + ΔT.

[0017] The beneficial technical effects of this invention are as follows:

[0018] (1) In view of the problem that the target recognition is lost due to the water mist obscuring the target during the actual washing operation of the previous insulator water washing robot based on machine vision, the present invention separates the target recognition and aiming washing, and uses two insulator water washing robots to complete the washing operation in cooperation. This allows the first water washing robot to perform target recognition in the absence of water mist, effectively avoiding the phenomenon of washing disorder caused by target loss during the washing process.

[0019] (2) The camera and the rinsing water gun used in this invention are located on two insulator water rinsing robots arranged in front and behind each other. This ensures that the after-effect of the water jet from the water gun will not affect the target recognition camera during operation, effectively improving the rinsing accuracy of the target insulator and ensuring the stability of the rinsing process. Attached Figure Description

[0020] Figure 1 This is a flowchart of the insulator flushing method based on the collaborative operation of two intelligent water flushing robots according to the present invention.

[0021] Figure 2 This is a schematic diagram of the servo control principle of the water rinsing robot of the present invention. Detailed Implementation

[0022] The method of the present invention will be further described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings and specific implementation methods.

[0023] This invention discloses an insulator washing method based on the collaborative operation of two intelligent water-flushing robots. The method separates target identification and positioning from the actual washing process. The first water-flushing robot uses a camera to acquire the target insulator's position coordinates, and the second water-flushing robot performs the washing operation based on these coordinates. Through the mutual linkage of the two robots, the target position coordinates are acquired using machine vision when the insulator is not being washed. Then, based on these coordinates, the target insulator is targeted and washed without visual intervention, thus avoiding the influence of the washing water mist.

[0024] Two water-washing robots are positioned one behind the other on a track-mounted maintenance vehicle, ensuring that their positions overlap as the vehicle moves. A camera is mounted on a rotating washing platform, with its shooting direction aligned with the muzzle and rotating with it.

[0025] The arrangement of two insulator water washing robots in a "front-to-back" configuration is not limited to a single railway maintenance vehicle. Specifically, the two water washing robots can be located at the front and rear of the same track maintenance vehicle; alternatively, they can be adjusted according to actual operating conditions, placing the two water washing robots at the same positions on two track maintenance vehicles, in which case the two track maintenance vehicles will travel at the same speed during operation.

[0026] The process of an insulator flushing method based on the collaborative operation of two intelligent water flushing robots according to the present invention is as follows: Figure 1 As shown,

[0027] Specifically, the following steps are included:

[0028] Step 1: The track maintenance vehicle carrying the contact wire insulator water washing robot moves at a constant speed. The water washing robot in front uses a camera to acquire real-time images of the work site and identifies the target insulator in the image based on the insulator deep learning model.

[0029] Step 2: Calculate the distance information of the target insulator relative to the water-washing robot based on the camera.

[0030] Step 3: Obtain and save the spatial coordinates (X,Y,Z) of the target insulator that meets the rinsing distance in the image and the current time T1. Record the absolute position of the water rinsing robot in front at this moment as A.

[0031] Step 4: Based on the relative arrangement distance L between the two water rinsing robots and the travel speed V of the maintenance vehicle, obtain the time relationship ΔT between the front and rear water rinsing robots.

[0032] The time relationship ΔT between the two water rinsing robots is expressed as:

[0033]

[0034] Step 5: At time T2, transmit the target insulator spatial coordinates (X,Y,Z) saved in step 3 to the control system of the rear flushing robot, control the flushing turret to rotate, and perform water flushing operation on the target insulator.

[0035] Time T2 refers to the current time when the water-washing robot located at the rear reaches absolute position A. The relationship between time T2 and time T1 is expressed as follows:

[0036] T2 = T1 + ΔT

[0037] Furthermore, this invention utilizes the first water-washing robot for visual positioning, and through data transmission combined with a controller, servo control of the second insulator water-washing robot can be achieved. The servo control principle is as follows: Figure 2 As shown, the spatial coordinate information of the target insulator obtained by the first water-washing robot provides an adjustment signal to the controller of the second water-washing robot. The servo driver adjusts the movement of the water gun. Based on the acquired distance information, the current aiming position coordinates of the water gun can be obtained and fed back to the insulator water-washing robot controller to achieve servo control.

Claims

1. An insulator flushing method based on the collaborative operation of two intelligent water flushing robots, characterized in that, Two water-washing robots are arranged one in front of the other on the track maintenance vehicle to ensure that the positions of the two water-washing robots can overlap as the maintenance vehicle moves; the two water-washing robots arranged one in front of the other are located at the front and rear of the same track maintenance vehicle; the target identification and positioning and the washing of the target are separated into steps. The first water-washing robot uses a camera to obtain the position coordinates of the target insulator, and the second water-washing robot performs the washing operation based on the obtained target position coordinates. Specifically, the following steps are included: Step 1: The track maintenance vehicle carrying the contact wire insulator water washing robot moves at a constant speed. The water washing robot in front uses a camera to acquire real-time images of the work site and identifies the target insulator in the image based on the insulator deep learning model. Step 2: Calculate the distance information of the target insulator relative to the water-washing robot based on the camera; Step 3: Obtain and save the spatial coordinates (X,Y,Z) of the target insulator that matches the rinsing distance in the image, as well as the current time T1. Record the absolute position of the water rinsing robot located in front at this moment as A. Step 4: Based on the relative arrangement distance L between the two water-washing robots and the travel speed V of the maintenance vehicle, obtain the time relationship ΔT between the front and rear water-washing robots. ΔT is expressed as: ; Step 5: At time T2, transmit the target insulator spatial coordinates (X,Y,Z) saved in step 3 to the control system of the rear flushing robot, control the flushing turret to rotate, and perform water flushing operation on the target insulator. Time T2 refers to the current time when the water-washing robot located at the rear reaches absolute position A. The relationship between time T2 and time T1 is expressed as follows: .

2. The insulator flushing method based on the collaborative operation of two intelligent water flushing robots according to claim 1, characterized in that, The camera is mounted on a rotating flushing turret, with its shooting direction aligned with the muzzle direction and rotating together with the muzzle.

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