A lateral support mechanism and method for a confined space bending device

Abstract

The present invention provides a transverse support mechanism and method for a confined space bending device, especially for pipes coated with an insulation layer, PU foam / PUR rigid foam on the outside. A transverse support mechanism for a confined space bending device, comprising: a roller-type transverse support module, used to apply a transverse support force to the inner wall of the pipe; a fixed support module, used to connect and fix the roller-type transverse support module to the bending machine body; the roller-type transverse support module comprises: a spindle-shaped roller, a bearing, and a support shaft. This technical solution can prevent the ovality of the pipe from changing significantly during the bending process, meeting the ovality requirements of the pipe bending; the smooth spindle-shaped roller fully reduces the friction, improves the bending efficiency, reduces the damage to the inner wall of the pipe, and improves the quality of the pipe bending.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention generally relates to the field of devices used for confined space bending, and specifically relates to a lateral support mechanism and method for a confined space bending device. Background Art

[0002] Pipeline transport is suitable for situations where large amounts of fluids or gases are transported over long distances, especially crude oil, chemicals or drinking water. The pipeline usually consists of sections of a single pipe with a length of between 12 and 18 meters, which are laid on the ground, underground or in water and welded together to form a pipeline. Usually, the pipeline extends along the general contour of the ground surface in order to follow the contour of the ground and bypass any obstacles in the pipeline. A big challenge when planning and building these types of pipelines is to connect the ends of the individual pipes using high-quality welded joints. In order to follow the contour of the ground and bypass any obstacles in the pipeline, a change of direction in the pipeline is necessary. When a change of direction occurs, in order to minimize the number of welded joints and thus increase the reliability of the pipeline, the direction of the pipeline must be changed by bending the pipeline.

[0003] When the outside of the pipe to be bent is coated with an insulation layer, PU foam / PUR rigid foam, the bending method by applying external force to the outside of the pipe will inevitably damage the outer coating of the pipe, so the pipe bending can only be achieved by internal bending.

[0004] In order to ensure that the ovality of the pipe does not change significantly during the pipe bending process, improve the pipe bending quality, and improve the accuracy of pipe-to-pipe docking during pipe welding, thereby improving welding efficiency and quality, it is an urgent problem that technical personnel in this field need to solve by proposing a transverse support component for a pipe internal bending machine. Summary of the invention

[0005] like Figure 1 As shown, a confined space bending device provided according to the present invention comprises:

[0006] The bending machine body 1 is used to apply bending force during the pipe bending process;

[0007] Bending induction mechanism 2, used for fixed-point controllable induced bending;

[0008] Roll correction mechanism 3, used for coaxial maintenance and horizontal deflection correction of the bending device;

[0009] A walking and stepping mechanism 4 is used for the bending device to walk in steps inside the pipe;

[0010] The bending holding mechanism 5 is used to maintain the bending shape of the pipe during the pipe bending process;

[0011] A lateral support mechanism 6, used to provide lateral support force when the bending device is working;

[0012] The bending machine body 1 comprises: a base 1-1, a fixing unit 1-2, a lifting unit 1-3 and a lifting device 1-4. The base 1-1 is of smooth streamlined design, which can fully reduce the stress concentration phenomenon during the bending process; the fixing unit 1-2 and the lifting unit 1-3 are located at both ends of the base 1-1; the fixing unit 1-2 is used to fix the bending machine body 1 during the bending process; the lifting unit 1-3 is used to lift the pipeline during the bending process, and the lifting unit 1-3 contacts the inner wall of the pipeline under the lifting action of the lifting device 1-4, applies the lifting force to the inner wall of the pipeline and drives the pipeline to produce lifting displacement, so as to achieve the effect of lifting and bending the pipe.

[0013] On the one hand, the fixing unit 1 - 2 presses against the inner wall of the pipe under the lifting action of the hydraulic cylinder, so that the bending machine body 1 is fixed in the pipe.

[0014] On the one hand, the lifting unit 1-3 includes a contact component 1-31 and a connecting component 1-32; the contact component 1-31 is designed to be a geometric arc shape close to the bending radius of the pipe, so that the upper surface of the contact component 1-31 can be close to the operating area and can avoid warping, folding or other undesirable deformation of the pipe; the connecting component 1-32 connects the contact component 1-31 and the lifting device 1-4, and plays the role of fixing and transmitting bending force.

[0015] On the one hand, if Figure 3 As shown, the jacking device 1-4 adopts a direct-drive hydraulic drive mode to provide jacking power to the jacking unit 1-3. The jacking device 1-4 can be a vertically placed jacking hydraulic cylinder, which is placed inside the base 1-1 and directly contacts the jacking unit through the direct-drive hydraulic cylinder to drive the jacking unit to achieve jacking action. The direct-drive hydraulic cylinder does not have a force size and direction change during the action process. The hydraulic cylinder generates the necessary hydraulic pressure outside the pipeline through a hydraulic pump, and guides these forces to the hydraulic cylinder inside the bending machine through a pipeline or a hose, so that these hydraulic jacking forces are transmitted to the pipeline through the hydraulic cylinder arranged in a space-saving manner. The hydraulic jacking force directly drives the jacking unit 1-3 to move, and the driving force conversion efficiency is high. In this case, the action stroke of the jacking unit 1-3 is the hydraulic cylinder jacking stroke, and the hydraulic pressure required for bending can be determined according to the different specifications of the pipeline to be bent. For pipelines of the same specification, different jacking strokes can also be achieved by selecting different sizes of hydraulic pressure, and the stroke range is large and the stroke is variable.

[0016] On the one hand, the outside of the contact component 1-31 is covered with a rubber, plastic or polyurethane plastic material. When the force required for bending is introduced into the pipe, the contact component can adapt to the inner top surface of the pipe, thereby avoiding damage to the pipe.

[0017] The bending inducing mechanism 2 is located below the bending machine body 1 and is a cutting arc surface structure. The arc of the arc surface structure is the same as the arc of the pipe bending and lifting during the bending process. During the bending process, the pipe is induced to bend according to the cutting surface, so that the bending point position can be controlled and the bending force can be saved.

[0018] The roll correction mechanism 3 monitors the coaxial positioning of the bending machine body 1 and the pipeline in real time during operation, and automatically performs horizontal angle roll correction on the bending machine body 1 according to the deflection angle. The roll correction mechanism 3 includes: an angle detection mechanism 3-1, which is used to monitor the coaxial positioning of the bending machine and the pipeline; an angle correction mechanism 3-2, which is used to correct the horizontal deflection angle of the bending machine; and a transmission and feedback mechanism 3-3, which is used for data transmission, calculation and feedback.

[0019] The angle detection mechanism 3-1 monitors the coaxial positioning of the bending machine body 1 and the pipeline in real time during operation, detects the horizontal deflection angle and deflection direction of the bending machine body 1 in real time, encodes the detected deflection direction and deflection angle data according to the corresponding transmission method, and establishes communication with the transmission and feedback mechanism 3-3.

[0020] On the one hand, the angle detection device 3-1 can be an electronic level, through which the angle data is detected and transmitted. The angle detection device 3-1 includes but is not limited to electronic angle measurement sensor devices such as a level, a gyroscope, and a theodolite.

[0021] The angle correction mechanism 3-2 establishes communication with the transmission and feedback mechanism 3-3, receives the correction signal, and drives its own power device to complete the angle correction.

[0022] On the one hand, the angle correction mechanism 3 - 2 is a split structure and can be flexibly installed or disassembled at both ends of the bending machine body 1 as needed.

[0023] On the one hand, if Figure 7 As shown, the angle correction mechanism 3-2 can achieve angle correction through a hydraulic device and a bottom supporting universal wheel. The hydraulic cylinders distributed on both sides below the angle correction mechanism 3-2 are used to drive the arc-shaped contact end plate to move. After contacting the inner wall of the pipe, a force is applied to the inner wall of the pipe, so that the bending machine body 1 rolls under the action of the unilateral interaction force, thereby realizing the horizontal roll correction of the bending machine.

[0024] On the one hand, the contact surface of the contact end plate is developed into a geometric arc shape close to the bending radius of the pipe, so that the structure can be close to the operating area when contacting the inner wall of the pipe; a layer of plastic material is coated on the outside of the contact component so that the contact surface can better adapt to the inner wall of the pipe to increase the contact surface, increase the friction between the contact surfaces, and avoid warping, folding or other undesirable deformation of the pipe, thereby avoiding damage to the pipe.

[0025] The transmission and feedback mechanism 3-3 is used to establish data transmission communication with the angle detection mechanism and the angle correction mechanism, receive the relevant angle coding data sent by the angle detection mechanism in real time, calculate the received data, determine the angle deflection direction and deflection angle, and determine whether the current deflection angle meets the pipe bending requirements. If it is determined that the bending requirements are not met, the transmission and feedback mechanism is also used to send a correction signal to the angle correction mechanism, drive the correction mechanism to complete the correction operation, and continue to determine whether the angle correction is in place.

[0026] On the one hand, the transmission and feedback mechanism 3-3 can use embedded chips, PLCs, mobile terminals, tablet computers, computers, laptops and other smart devices to receive and process data. For example, using a data processing application running on a smart device, the angle data of the data detection mechanism is received and calculated, and then the angle correction mechanism is driven to achieve control.

[0027] On the one hand, the angle detection mechanism 3-1, the angle correction mechanism 3-2 and the transmission and feedback mechanism 3-3 can communicate data through various communication methods, including wired and wireless communication methods, including but not limited to communication connection through 232, 422, 485 wired serial ports, RJ Ethernet, wireless WiFi, Bluetooth connection or other networks.

[0028] On the one hand, if Figure 5 As shown, the walking stepping mechanism 4 is arranged on a winch stepping device outside the pipeline to drive the dragging steel cable, and the steel cable pulls the bending machine body 1 in the pipeline. The bending machine body 1 realizes the stepping walking function under the support of the bottom support wheel and the dragging action of the steel cable.

[0029] On the one hand, if Figure 5 As shown, the bending holding mechanism 5 is located at the bent end of the bent pipe. The bent end of the pipe is lifted by setting a bow-pulling lifting traction mechanism, and the pipe's own gravity is used to achieve the effect of maintaining the bent state of the pipe.

[0030] On the one hand, if Figure 4As shown, the lifting device 1-4 can adopt an eccentric gear drive mode to provide lifting power to the lifting unit 1-3. The horizontal lifting hydraulic cylinder is actuated to drive the connecting plate to move horizontally, and the connecting plate drives the gear to rotate. The gear transmission mode transmits the lifting force to the lifting unit to realize the lifting action of the lifting unit. The gear rotation process is highly controllable and can realize high-precision stroke lifting control of the lifting unit.

[0031] On the one hand, the angle correction mechanism 3-2 can realize angle correction through the form of differential tracks: two walking tracks are distributed below the head and tail ends of the bending machine body 1, and the two tracks are horizontally distributed on the left and right sides of the bending machine axis. When the tracks on the left and right sides rotate differentially, the bending machine can realize the horizontal angle adjustment of the base under the differential drive, thereby realizing the horizontal roll correction of the bending machine.

[0032] On the one hand, the lateral support mechanism 6 comprises:

[0033] The roller type lateral support module 6-1 is used to apply lateral support force to the inner wall of the pipeline;

[0034] A fixed support module 6-2, used to connect and fix the roller-type lateral support module 6-1 to the bending machine body 1;

[0035] On the one hand, the roller-type lateral support module 6-1 includes: a spindle-shaped roller 6-1-1, a bearing 6-1-2, and a support shaft 6-1-3; wherein the spindle-shaped roller 6-1-1 adopts a smooth spindle design, and the outer wall of the spindle-shaped roller 6-1-1 contacts the pipe, which fully reduces the friction between the pipes and makes it easier for the roller and the pipe to roll; the outer ring of the bearing 6-1-2 is connected to the inner wall of the spindle-shaped roller 6-1-1 and provides support force, and the inner ring of the bearing 6-1-2 is connected to the support shaft 6-1-3 and provided with support force by the support shaft 6-1-3.

[0036] On the one hand, one end of the fixed support module 6-2 is connected to the bending machine body 1, and the other end is connected to the support shaft 6-1-3 to provide supporting force.

[0037] On the one hand, the spindle-shaped roller 6-1-1 contacts the inner wall of the pipe only when the working pipe of the bending machine body 1 is lifted. After the pipe rebounds after bending, the two separate, ensuring that the bending device moves step by step inside the pipe.

[0038] On the one hand, the roller-type lateral support module 6-1 adopts a passive force application method. When the spindle-shaped roller 6-1-1 contacts the inner wall of the pipe, a support force is generated, thereby avoiding damage to the pipe caused by active force application and simplifying the complexity of the bending device system.

[0039] On the one hand, the roller-type lateral support module 6-1 is fixed to the lifting unit 1-3 at the front end of the bending machine body 1 through the fixed support module 6-2, providing lateral support force to the pipeline during the bending process of the bending device.

[0040] On the one hand, the lateral support mechanism 6 provides lateral support force when the bending device is working, so that the ovality of the pipeline does not change significantly, which can reduce the friction between the pipeline and the lateral support component, making the two easier to roll, thereby improving the pipeline bending efficiency and reducing damage to the inner wall of the pipeline.

[0041] On the one hand, for a specific coated pipe that needs internal bending, the present invention provides a lateral support method for a confined space bending device, which is implemented by a lateral support mechanism of the confined space bending device, and includes the following steps:

[0042] S1. One end of the pipe to be bent is used as a fixed end, and the fixed end is fixed;

[0043] S2. The other end of the pipe to be bent is used as the bent end, and the bent end is lifted by the bending holding mechanism;

[0044] S3. The mobile bending machine enters the interior of the pipe to be bent through the fixed end and moves through the pipe to be bent to the bending end;

[0045] S4. Move the bending machine to the position to be bent, and raise the fixing unit to fix the bending machine;

[0046] S5. The lifting unit is lifted up by the lifting device and pressed against the inner wall of the pipe, and the spindle-shaped roller 6-1-1 contacts the inner wall of the pipe. Then, the lifting unit 1-3 continues to lift up and generate lifting displacement to drive the pipe to bend until the required bending angle at the bending point is reached;

[0047] S6. Drop the lifting device to recover the lifting unit, the spindle-shaped roller 6-1-1 is out of contact with the inner wall of the pipe, drop the fixing unit to recover the fixing unit so that the bending machine body is released and moved to the next bending point;

[0048] S7. Repeat steps S4-S6 until the pipe bending is completed.

[0049] In one embodiment, in step S5 of the method for lateral support of a confined space bending device, Figure 6 An exemplary implementation diagram of the roll correction method is given, which specifically includes the following steps:

[0050] S51. The angle detection mechanism 3-1 acts on the bending machine body 1 to detect the horizontal deflection angle of the bending machine body 1 in real time;

[0051] S52. The transmission and feedback mechanism 3-3 receives the data transmitted by the angle detection mechanism 3-1, determines whether the current deflection angle meets the pipe bending requirements, and sends a drive signal to the angle correction mechanism 3-2 when correction is required;

[0052] S53. The angle correction mechanism 3-2 acts on the bending machine body 1, and causes the bending machine body 1 to undergo horizontal correction rotation by applying a deflection force to the bending machine body 1;

[0053] S54. After the current angle correction process is completed, the angle detection mechanism 3-1 continues to read the horizontal deflection angle at this time and determines whether the correction is in place, otherwise continues to repeat steps S51-S53 to perform correction operations until the deflection conditions are met.

[0054] The beneficial effects of the present invention are:

[0055] The present invention proposes a transverse support component for a pipe internal bending machine, and in particular relates to pipes that are not suitable for external bending and are coated with an insulation layer, PU foam / PUR hard foam, etc. on the outside. The device includes a roller-type transverse support module and a fixed support module, and the roller-type transverse support module is installed at the front end of the internal bending machine body through the fixed module. The roller-type transverse support module has a spindle-shaped roller, which can apply a transverse support force to the inner wall of the pipe when the internal bending machine is working, so that the ovality of the pipe does not change significantly; in addition, the smooth spindle-shaped roller fully reduces the friction between the pipe and the transverse support component, so that the two are more likely to roll during the bending process. The present invention proposes a transverse support component for a pipe internal bending machine, which can prevent the ovality of the pipe from changing significantly during the bending process, and meet the ovality requirements of pipe bending (ovality ≤ xx); the smooth spindle-shaped roller fully reduces the friction, so that the pipe and the transverse support component are more likely to roll, thereby improving the bending efficiency, reducing the damage to the inner wall of the pipe, and improving the quality of pipe bending. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0056] The above and other features, advantages and aspects of the embodiments of the present disclosure will become more apparent with reference to the following detailed description in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. In the accompanying drawings, the same or similar reference numerals represent the same or similar elements, wherein:

[0057] Figure 1 is a cross-sectional view of a confined space bending device;

[0058] Figure 2 is a schematic diagram of a horizontal roll angle section of a pipe bending device;

[0059] Figure 3 It is a schematic diagram of a direct-drive hydraulic jacking mechanism;

[0060] Figure 4It is a schematic diagram of the gear eccentric transmission type lifting structure;

[0061] Figure 5 It is a schematic diagram of the external mechanism of the bending device;

[0062] Figure 6 This is a diagram of the rolling correction mechanism of the bending device;

[0063] Figure 7 This is an example diagram of a hydraulic roll correction mechanism;

[0064] Figure 8 It is the structure diagram of the transverse support mechanism of the pipe internal bending machine and the bending machine body;

[0065] Fig. 9 is a cross-sectional view of a roller-type lateral support module;

[0066] Fig.10 It is a perspective cross-sectional view of the lateral support mechanism.

[0067] in, Figures 1 to 10 The corresponding relationship between the reference numerals and component names in the figure is:

[0068] 1 Bending machine body, 2 Bending induction mechanism, 3 Rolling correction mechanism, 4 Walking stepping mechanism, 5 Bending holding mechanism, 6 Lateral support mechanism, 1-1 Base, 1-2 Fixed unit, 1-3 Lifting unit, 1-4 Lifting device, 1-31 Contact assembly, 1-32 Connection assembly, 3-1 Angle detection mechanism, 3-2 Angle correction mechanism, 3-3 Transmission and feedback mechanism, 6-1 Roller type lateral support module, 6-2 Fixed support module, 6-1-1 Spindle roller, 6-1-2 Bearing, 6-1-3 Support shaft. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0069] In order to make the purpose, technical solution and advantages of the embodiments of the present invention clearer, the technical solution in the embodiments of the present invention will be clearly and completely described below in conjunction with the drawings in the embodiments of the present invention. Obviously, the described embodiments are part of the embodiments of the present disclosure, rather than all the embodiments. Based on the embodiments of the present invention, all other embodiments obtained by ordinary technicians in this field without creative work are within the scope of protection of the present invention.

[0070] In addition, the term "and / or" in this article is only a description of the association relationship between the associated objects, indicating that there can be three relationships. For example, A and / or B can represent: A exists alone, A and B exist at the same time, and B exists alone. In addition, the character " / " in this article generally indicates that the associated objects before and after are in an "or" relationship.

[0071] like Figure 1As shown, a confined space bending device provided according to the present invention comprises:

[0072] The bending machine body 1 is used to apply bending force during the pipe bending process;

[0073] Bending induction mechanism 2, used for fixed-point controllable induced bending;

[0074] Roll correction mechanism 3, used for coaxial maintenance and horizontal deflection correction of the bending device;

[0075] A walking and stepping mechanism 4 is used for the bending device to walk in steps inside the pipe;

[0076] The bending holding mechanism 5 is used to maintain the bending shape of the pipe during the pipe bending process;

[0077] A lateral support mechanism 6, used to provide lateral support force when the bending device is working;

[0078] The bending machine body 1 comprises: a base 1-1, a fixing unit 1-2, a lifting unit 1-3 and a lifting device 1-4. The base 1-1 is of smooth streamlined design, which can fully reduce the stress concentration phenomenon during the bending process; the fixing unit 1-2 and the lifting unit 1-3 are located at both ends of the base 1-1; the fixing unit 1-2 is used to fix the bending machine body 1 during the bending process; the lifting unit 1-3 is used to lift the pipeline during the bending process, and the lifting unit 1-3 contacts the inner wall of the pipeline under the lifting action of the lifting device 1-4, applies the lifting force to the inner wall of the pipeline and drives the pipeline to produce lifting displacement, so as to achieve the effect of lifting and bending the pipe.

[0079] In one embodiment, the fixing unit 1 - 2 presses against the inner wall of the pipe under the lifting action of the hydraulic cylinder, so that the bending machine body 1 is fixed in the pipe.

[0080] In one embodiment, the lifting unit 1-3 includes a contact component 1-31 and a connecting component 1-32; the contact component 1-31 is designed to have a geometric arc shape close to the bending radius of the pipe, so that the upper surface of the contact component 1-31 can be close to the operating area and can avoid warping, folding or other undesirable deformation of the pipe; the connecting component 1-32 connects the contact component 1-31 and the lifting device 1-4 to fix and transmit the bending force.

[0081] In one embodiment, if Figure 3As shown, the jacking device 1-4 adopts a direct-drive hydraulic drive mode to provide jacking power to the jacking unit 1-3. The jacking device 1-4 can be a vertically placed jacking hydraulic cylinder, which is placed inside the base 1-1 and directly contacts the jacking unit through the direct-drive hydraulic cylinder to drive the jacking unit to achieve jacking action. The direct-drive hydraulic cylinder does not have a force size and direction change during the action process. The hydraulic cylinder generates the necessary hydraulic pressure outside the pipeline through a hydraulic pump, and guides these forces to the hydraulic cylinder inside the bending machine through a pipeline or a hose, so that these hydraulic jacking forces are transmitted to the pipeline through the hydraulic cylinder arranged in a space-saving manner. The hydraulic jacking force directly drives the jacking unit 1-3 to move, and the driving force conversion efficiency is high. In this case, the action stroke of the jacking unit 1-3 is the hydraulic cylinder jacking stroke, and the hydraulic pressure required for bending can be determined according to the different specifications of the pipeline to be bent. For pipelines of the same specification, different jacking strokes can also be achieved by selecting different sizes of hydraulic pressure, and the stroke range is large and the stroke is variable.

[0082] In one embodiment, the outside of the contact component 1-31 is covered with a rubber, plastic or polyurethane plastic material. When the force required for bending is introduced into the pipe, the contact component can adapt to the inner top surface of the pipe, thereby avoiding damage to the pipe.

[0083] The bending inducing mechanism 2 is located below the bending machine body 1 and is a cutting arc surface structure. The arc of the arc surface structure is the same as the arc of the pipe bending and lifting during the bending process. During the bending process, the pipe is induced to bend according to the cutting surface, so that the bending point position can be controlled and the bending force can be saved.

[0084] The roll correction mechanism 3 monitors the coaxial positioning of the bending machine body 1 and the pipeline in real time during operation, and automatically performs horizontal angle roll correction on the bending machine body 1 according to the deflection angle. The roll correction mechanism 3 includes: an angle detection mechanism 3-1, which is used to monitor the coaxial positioning of the bending machine and the pipeline; an angle correction mechanism 3-2, which is used to correct the horizontal deflection angle of the bending machine; and a transmission and feedback mechanism 3-3, which is used for data transmission, calculation and feedback.

[0085] The angle detection mechanism 3-1 monitors the coaxial positioning of the bending machine body 1 and the pipeline in real time during operation, detects the horizontal deflection angle and deflection direction of the bending machine body 1 in real time, encodes the detected deflection direction and deflection angle data according to the corresponding transmission method, and establishes communication with the transmission and feedback mechanism 3-3.

[0086] In one embodiment, the angle detection device 3-1 may be an electronic level, through which the angle data is detected and transmitted. The angle detection device 3-1 includes but is not limited to electronic angle measurement sensor devices such as a level, a gyroscope, and a theodolite.

[0087] The angle correction mechanism 3-2 establishes communication with the transmission and feedback mechanism 3-3, receives the correction signal, and drives its own power device to complete the angle correction.

[0088] In one embodiment, the angle correction mechanism 3 - 2 is a split structure, which can be flexibly installed or disassembled at both ends of the bending machine body 1 as needed.

[0089] In one embodiment, if Figure 7 As shown, the angle correction mechanism 3-2 can achieve angle correction through a hydraulic device and a bottom supporting universal wheel. The hydraulic cylinders distributed on both sides below the angle correction mechanism 3-2 are used to drive the arc-shaped contact end plate to move. After contacting the inner wall of the pipe, a force is applied to the inner wall of the pipe, so that the bending machine body 1 rolls under the action of the unilateral interaction force, thereby realizing the horizontal roll correction of the bending machine.

[0090] In one embodiment, the contact surface of the contact end plate is developed into a geometric arc shape close to the bending radius of the pipe, so that the structure can fit closely to the operating area when contacting the inner wall of the pipe; a layer of plastic material is coated on the outside of the contact component so that the contact surface can better adapt to the inner wall of the pipe to increase the contact surface, increase the friction between the contact surfaces, and avoid warping, folding or other undesirable deformation of the pipe, thereby avoiding damage to the pipe.

[0091] The transmission and feedback mechanism 3-3 is used to establish data transmission communication with the angle detection mechanism and the angle correction mechanism, receive the relevant angle coding data sent by the angle detection mechanism in real time, calculate the received data, determine the angle deflection direction and deflection angle, and determine whether the current deflection angle meets the pipe bending requirements. If it is determined that the bending requirements are not met, the transmission and feedback mechanism is also used to send a correction signal to the angle correction mechanism, drive the correction mechanism to complete the correction operation, and continue to determine whether the angle correction is in place.

[0092] In one embodiment, the transmission and feedback mechanism 3-3 can use embedded chips, PLCs, mobile terminals, tablet computers, computers, laptop computers and other smart devices to receive and process data. For example, a data processing application running on a smart device is used to receive and calculate the angle data of the data detection mechanism, thereby driving the angle correction mechanism to achieve control.

[0093] In one embodiment, the angle detection mechanism 3-1, the angle correction mechanism 3-2 and the transmission and feedback mechanism 3-3 can communicate data through various communication methods, including wired and wireless communication methods, including but not limited to communication connection through 232, 422, 485 wired serial ports, RJ Ethernet, wireless WiFi, Bluetooth connection or other networks.

[0094] In one embodiment, if Figure 5 As shown, the walking stepping mechanism 4 is arranged on a winch stepping device outside the pipeline to drive the dragging steel cable, and the steel cable pulls the bending machine body 1 in the pipeline. The bending machine body 1 realizes the stepping walking function under the support of the bottom support wheel and the dragging action of the steel cable.

[0095] In one embodiment, if Figure 5 As shown, the bending holding mechanism 5 is located at the bent end of the bent pipe. The bent end of the pipe is lifted by setting a bow-pulling lifting traction mechanism, and the pipe's own gravity is used to achieve the effect of maintaining the bent state of the pipe.

[0096] In one embodiment, if Figure 4 As shown, the lifting device 1-4 can adopt an eccentric gear drive mode to provide lifting power to the lifting unit 1-3. The horizontal lifting hydraulic cylinder is actuated to drive the connecting plate to move horizontally, and the connecting plate drives the gear to rotate. The gear transmission mode transmits the lifting force to the lifting unit to realize the lifting action of the lifting unit. The gear rotation process is highly controllable and can realize high-precision stroke lifting control of the lifting unit.

[0097] In one embodiment, the angle correction mechanism 3-2 can achieve angle correction in the form of differential tracks: two walking tracks are distributed below the head and tail ends of the bending machine body 1, and the two tracks are horizontally distributed on the left and right sides of the bending machine axis. When the tracks on the left and right sides rotate differentially, the bending machine can achieve horizontal angle adjustment of the base under the differential drive, thereby achieving horizontal roll correction of the bending machine.

[0098] In one embodiment, the lateral support mechanism 6 comprises:

[0099] The roller type lateral support module 6-1 is used to apply lateral support force to the inner wall of the pipeline;

[0100] A fixed support module 6-2, used to connect and fix the roller-type lateral support module 6-1 to the bending machine body 1;

[0101] In one embodiment, the roller-type lateral support module 6-1 includes: a spindle-shaped roller 6-1-1, a bearing 6-1-2, and a support shaft 6-1-3; wherein the spindle-shaped roller 6-1-1 adopts a smooth spindle design, and the outer wall of the spindle-shaped roller 6-1-1 contacts the pipe, which fully reduces the friction between the pipes and makes it easier for the roller and the pipe to roll; the outer ring of the bearing 6-1-2 is connected to the inner wall of the spindle-shaped roller 6-1-1 and provides support force, and the inner ring of the bearing 6-1-2 is connected to the support shaft 6-1-3 and provided with support force by the support shaft 6-1-3.

[0102] In one embodiment, one end of the fixed support module 6-2 is connected to the bending machine body 1, and the other end is connected to the support shaft 6-1-3 to provide supporting force.

[0103] In one embodiment, the spindle-shaped roller 6-1-1 contacts the inner wall of the pipe only when the working pipe of the bending machine body 1 is lifted. After the pipe rebounds after bending, the two separate to ensure that the bending device moves step by step inside the pipe.

[0104] In one embodiment, the roller-type lateral support module 6-1 adopts a passive force application method. When the spindle-shaped roller 6-1-1 contacts the inner wall of the pipe, a support force is generated to avoid damage to the pipe caused by active force application and simplify the complexity of the bending device system.

[0105] In one embodiment, the roller-type lateral support module 6-1 is fixed to the lifting unit 1-3 at the front end of the bending machine body 1 through the fixed support module 6-2, providing lateral support force to the pipeline during the bending process of the bending device.

[0106] In one embodiment, the lateral support mechanism 6 provides lateral support force when the bending device is working, so that the ovality of the pipeline does not change significantly, which can reduce the friction between the pipeline and the lateral support component, making the two easier to roll, thereby improving the pipeline bending efficiency and reducing damage to the inner wall of the pipeline.

[0107] In one embodiment, for a specific coated pipe that needs to be internally bent, this embodiment provides a lateral support method for a confined space bending device, which is implemented using a lateral support mechanism for the confined space bending device, and includes the following steps:

[0108] S1. One end of the pipe to be bent is used as a fixed end, and the fixed end is fixed;

[0109] S2. The other end of the pipe to be bent is used as the bent end, and the bent end is lifted by the bending holding mechanism;

[0110] S3. The mobile bending machine enters the interior of the pipe to be bent through the fixed end and moves through the pipe to be bent to the bending end;

[0111] S4. Move the bending machine to the position to be bent, and raise the fixing unit to fix the bending machine;

[0112] S5. The lifting unit is lifted up by the lifting device and pressed against the inner wall of the pipe, and the spindle-shaped roller 6-1-1 contacts the inner wall of the pipe. Then, the lifting unit 1-3 continues to lift up and generate lifting displacement to drive the pipe to bend until the required bending angle at the bending point is reached;

[0113] S6. Drop the lifting device to recover the lifting unit, the spindle-shaped roller 6-1-1 is out of contact with the inner wall of the pipe, drop the fixing unit to recover the fixing unit so that the bending machine body is released and moved to the next bending point;

[0114] S7. Repeat steps S4-S6 until the pipe bending is completed.

[0115] In one embodiment, in step S5 of the method for lateral support of a confined space bending device, Figure 6 An exemplary implementation diagram of the roll correction method is given, which specifically includes the following steps:

[0116] S51. The angle detection mechanism 3-1 acts on the bending machine body 1 to detect the horizontal deflection angle of the bending machine body 1 in real time;

[0117] S52. The transmission and feedback mechanism 3-3 receives the data transmitted by the angle detection mechanism 3-1, determines whether the current deflection angle meets the pipe bending requirements, and sends a drive signal to the angle correction mechanism 3-2 when correction is required;

[0118] S53. The angle correction mechanism 3-2 acts on the bending machine body 1, and causes the bending machine body 1 to undergo horizontal correction rotation by applying a deflection force to the bending machine body 1;

[0119] S54. After the current angle correction process is completed, the angle detection mechanism 3-1 continues to read the horizontal deflection angle at this time and determines whether the correction is in place, otherwise continues to repeat steps S51-S53 to perform correction operations until the deflection conditions are met.

[0120] It is to be understood that in the present disclosure, "plurality" refers to two or more than two, and other quantifiers are similar. "And / or" describes the association relationship of associated objects, indicating that three relationships may exist. For example, A and / or B can represent: A exists alone, A and B exist at the same time, and B exists alone. The character " / " generally indicates that the associated objects before and after are in an "or" relationship. The singular forms "a", "the" and "the" are also intended to include plural forms, unless the context clearly indicates other meanings.

[0121] It is further understood that the terms "first", "second", etc. are used to describe various information, but such information should not be limited to these terms. These terms are only used to distinguish the same type of information from each other, and do not indicate a specific order or degree of importance. In fact, the expressions "first", "second", etc. can be used interchangeably. For example, without departing from the scope of the present disclosure, the first information can also be referred to as the second information, and similarly, the second information can also be referred to as the first information.

[0122] It will be further understood that the terms “center”, “longitudinal”, “lateral”, “front”, “back”, “up”, “down”, “left”, “right”, “vertical”, “horizontal”, “top”, “bottom”, “inside”, “outside”, etc., indicating orientations or positional relationships based on the orientations or positional relationships shown in the accompanying drawings, are only for the convenience of describing the present embodiment and simplifying the description, and do not indicate or imply that the device or element referred to must have a specific orientation, be constructed and operated in a specific orientation.

[0123] It can be further understood that, unless otherwise specified, “connection” includes a direct connection without other components between the two, and also includes an indirect connection with other components between the two.

[0124] It is further understood that, although the operations are described in a specific order in the drawings in the embodiments of the present disclosure, it should not be understood as requiring the operations to be performed in the specific order shown or in a serial order, or requiring the execution of all the operations shown to obtain the desired results. In certain environments, multitasking and parallel processing may be advantageous.

[0125] Those skilled in the art will readily appreciate other embodiments of the present disclosure after considering the specification and practicing the disclosure disclosed herein. The present disclosure is intended to cover any variations, uses, or adaptations of the present disclosure that follow the general principles of the present disclosure and include common knowledge or customary techniques in the art that are not disclosed in the present disclosure. The description and examples are to be considered exemplary only, and the true scope and spirit of the present disclosure are indicated by the following claims.

[0126] It should be understood that the present disclosure is not limited to the exact structures that have been described above and shown in the drawings, and that various modifications and changes may be made without departing from the scope thereof. The scope of the present disclosure is limited only by the appended claims.

Claims

1. A method for lateral support of a confined space bending device, characterized in that: A confined space bending device is used, comprising: Bending machine body, bending induction mechanism, rolling correction mechanism, walking stepping mechanism, bending holding mechanism, lateral support mechanism; The bending machine body comprises: Base, fixing unit, lifting unit and lifting device; The fixing unit and the lifting unit are located at both ends of the base; the fixing unit is used to fix the bending machine body during the bending process; the lifting unit is used to lift the pipeline during the bending process, and the lifting unit contacts the inner wall of the pipeline under the lifting action of the lifting device, applies the lifting force to the inner wall of the pipeline and drives the pipeline to generate lifting displacement; The bending induction mechanism is located below the bending machine body and is a cutting arc surface structure, the arc of which is the same as the arc of the pipe bending and lifting during the bending process; The roll correction mechanism monitors the coaxial positioning of the bending machine body and the pipeline in real time during operation, and automatically performs horizontal angle roll correction on the bending machine body according to the deflection angle; The walking stepping mechanism is arranged on a winch stepping device outside the pipeline to drive the dragging steel cable to move, and the steel cable pulls the bending machine body in the pipeline; The bending holding mechanism is located at the bent end of the bent pipe, and the bent end of the pipe is lifted by setting a bow-pulling lifting traction mechanism; The lateral support mechanism comprises: A roller-type lateral support module is used to apply lateral support force to the inner wall of the pipeline; A fixed support module, used to connect and fix the roller-type lateral support module to the bending machine body; The roller-type lateral support module comprises: a spindle-shaped roller, a bearing, and a support shaft; wherein the spindle-shaped roller adopts a smooth spindle design, and the outer wall of the spindle-shaped roller contacts the pipe; the outer ring of the bearing is connected to the inner wall of the spindle-shaped roller, and the inner ring of the bearing is connected to the support shaft; one end of the fixed support module is connected to the bending machine body, and the other end is connected to the support shaft; The lateral support method of the confined space bending device comprises the following steps: S1. Use one end of the pipe as a fixed end and fix the fixed end; S2. The other end of the pipe is used as a bent end, and the bent end is lifted by the bending holding mechanism; S3. Move the bending machine body through the fixed end into the interior of the pipe, and move through the pipe to the bending end; S4. Move the bending machine body to the position to be bent, and raise the fixing unit to fix the bending machine body; S5. The lifting unit is lifted up by the lifting device and pressed against the inner wall of the pipe, and the spindle-shaped roller contacts the inner wall of the pipe. Then, the lifting unit continues to lift up and generate lifting displacement to drive the pipe to bend until the required bending angle at the bending point is reached; S6. Drop the lifting device to retract the lifting unit, disengage the spindle-shaped roller from the inner wall of the pipe, drop the fixing unit to retract the fixing unit so that the bending machine body is released and moved to the next bending point; S7. Repeat steps S4-S6 until the pipe bending is completed.

2. The lateral support method of the confined space bending device according to claim 1 is characterized in that: The spindle-shaped roller contacts the inner wall of the pipe only when the working pipe of the bending machine body is lifted. The two are separated after the pipe rebounds after bending, so as to ensure that the bending device moves step by step inside the pipe.

3. The lateral support method of the confined space bending device according to claim 2, characterized in that: The roller-type lateral support module adopts a passive force application method. When the spindle-shaped roller contacts the inner wall of the pipe, a support force is generated, thereby avoiding damage to the pipe caused by active force application and simplifying the complexity of the bending device system.

4. The lateral support method of the confined space bending device according to claim 3 is characterized in that: The roller-type lateral support module is fixed to the lifting unit at the front end of the bending machine body through the fixed support module, and provides lateral support force to the pipeline during the bending process of the bending device.

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