AI defrosting specialized robot for refrigeration house

Abstract

The AI defrosting specialized robot comprises a trunk and at least four sets of limb units distributed in a scorpion leg shape and assembled on the trunk, and each limb unit comprises a bendable connecting arm rotationally connected with the trunk and a mechanical claw assembled on the end, away from the trunk, of the connecting arm and used for clamping a tubular body. After the positions of the four connecting arms are adjusted, inchworm motion can be simulated to climb tubes, the obstacle crossing capacity can be improved, the tube climbing quality and tube climbing efficiency can be improved, and after the positions of the four connecting arms are adjusted, each connecting arm can simulate the angle and shape of a leg of a scorpion, so that the motion of the scorpion during climbing is simulated, and the working efficiency of the scorpion is improved. The scorpion crawling robot has excellent crawling movement speed and stability, can be switched between scorpion crawling movement and inchworm movement, can advance on different distributed tubular parts, and is simple in structure and high in practicability.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to the technical field of pipe-climbing robots, and more specifically, to a special AI defrosting robot for cold storage. Background Art

[0002] An external pipe-climbing robot is an intelligent device specifically used for moving, detecting, and maintaining on the outside or surface of pipes, and is widely used in various industries. A cold storage pipe-climbing defrosting robot is an automated device designed specifically for the problem of frost formation on the surface of evaporator pipes in cold storage. Its core advantage lies in solving the problems of low efficiency, high risk, and high energy consumption of traditional manual defrosting.

[0003] Existing defrosting robots are divided into tracked robots and pipe-climbing robots. Tracked robots travel on the ground and cooperate with robotic arms and ultrasonic defrosters or other defrosting structures to defrost the outer surface of pipes. Tracked robots are large in size, inconvenient to carry, and cannot defrost the pipes in the area after being blocked during the defrosting process; Pipe-climbing robots crawl on pipes for defrosting and can operate in narrow spaces. However, the existing pipe-climbing robots have a single crawling motion posture and cannot adapt to the changing pipeline distributions in different cold storages. Moreover, the single motion posture will also affect the obstacle-crossing function of the robot. Therefore, it is necessary to design a special AI defrosting robot for cold storage. Summary of the Invention

[0004] Aiming at the above technical problems, the purpose of the present invention is to overcome the problem that robots in the prior art cannot adapt to complex and changeable usage environments.

[0005] To achieve the above purpose, the present invention provides a special AI defrosting robot for cold storage, including: a torso and at least four limb units distributed in a scorpion-leg shape and all assembled on the torso. The limb unit includes a bendable connecting arm rotatably connected to the torso and a mechanical claw assembled on the end of the connecting arm away from the torso for clamping a tubular body.

[0006] Preferably, the connecting arm includes a joint member rotatably connected to the torso through a first rotating shaft, a first arm rotatably connected to the joint member through a second rotating shaft whose axis is perpendicular to the axis of the first rotating shaft, a second arm rotatably connected to the end of the first arm away from the second rotating shaft through a third rotating shaft, and a third arm rotatably connected to the end of the second arm away from the first arm through a fourth rotating shaft; The length directions of the first arm, the second arm, and the third arm are all perpendicular to the length direction of the second rotating shaft. The third rotating shaft and the fourth rotating shaft are both arranged parallel to the second rotating shaft, and the four first rotating shafts in the four limb units are arranged in parallel.

[0007] Preferably, the mechanical claw is assembled at the end of the third arm far from the second arm, and a plurality of rubber parts are assembled on the mechanical claw, and pressure sensors are integrally connected to the rubber parts.

[0008] Preferably, the mechanical claw includes a pair of arc-shaped claws arranged symmetrically and each assembled on the end of the third arm through a fifth rotating shaft, and the fifth rotating shaft, the third arm and the second rotating shaft are perpendicular to each other in pairs; The arc-shaped claw includes a plurality of sub-claws arranged at intervals along the length direction of the fifth rotating shaft and at least one claw nail parallel to the fifth rotating shaft and fixedly connected to the plurality of sub-claws, and the rubber part is a rubber sleeve with a notch that can be sleeved on the claw nail and is located between two adjacent sub-claws.

[0009] Preferably, the joint member is in the shape of a cylinder coaxially arranged with the first rotating shaft, and a first positioning portion is convexly arranged on the outer wall of the joint member, and a second positioning portion matching the first positioning portion is arranged on the torso.

[0010] Preferably, servo motors for driving the rotation are arranged at the first rotating shaft, the second rotating shaft, the third rotating shaft and the fourth rotating shaft.

[0011] Preferably, an ultrasonic cavitation jet defrosting module is assembled on the torso through a robotic arm.

[0012] Preferably, a millimeter-wave radar and a camera are assembled on the torso.

[0013] Preferably, an ultrasonic obstacle avoider is assembled on the head of the torso.

[0014] According to the above technical solutions, an AI defrosting special robot for cold storage provided by the present invention has the following beneficial technical effects compared with the prior art: First, after the four connecting arms adjust their positions, they can simulate the movement of an inchworm to climb a pipe, which can not only improve the obstacle crossing ability, but also improve the pipe climbing quality and efficiency; Second, after the four connecting arms adjust their positions, each connecting arm can simulate the angle and shape of a scorpion's leg, so as to simulate the movement of a scorpion when crawling, with excellent crawling speed and stability, and can be switched between the scorpion crawling movement and the inchworm movement, and can move forward on different distributed tubular parts, with simple structure and strong practicability; Third, when there is only a single tubular part, two of the limb units can also simulate the movement mode of an inchworm to crawl on the tubular part, and it is also applicable to some high-risk places such as high-voltage electric poles and oil pipes.

[0015] Other features and advantages of the present invention will be described in detail in the subsequent specific implementation part; and the parts not involved in the present invention are the same as or can be implemented by using the prior art. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0016] The drawings are used to provide a further understanding of the present invention and constitute a part of the specification. Together with the following specific embodiments, they are used to explain the present invention, but do not constitute a limitation to the present invention. In the drawings: Figure 1 is a schematic three-dimensional structure diagram of a special AI defrosting robot for cold storage provided by the present invention; Figure 2 is a special AI defrosting robot for cold storage provided by the present invention Figure 1 an enlarged schematic view of part A in; Figure 3 is a special AI defrosting robot for cold storage provided by the present invention Figure 1 an enlarged schematic view of part B in.

[0017] DESCRIPTION OF REFERENCE NUMERALS 1, torso; 2, mechanical claw; 5, first rotating shaft; 6, joint member; 7, second rotating shaft; 8, first arm; 9, second arm; 10, third arm; 11, rubber member; 12, fifth rotating shaft; 13, arc-shaped claw; 14, first positioning portion; 15, second positioning portion; 16, ultrasonic obstacle avoidance device; 17, robotic arm; 18, ultrasonic cavitation jet defrosting module. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0018] The following is a detailed description of the specific embodiments of the present invention with reference to the drawings. It should be understood that the specific embodiments described herein are only for explaining and illustrating the present invention, and are not used to limit the present invention.

[0019] In the present invention, unless otherwise specified, the directional terms such as "upper, lower, inner, outer" included in the terms only represent the directions in the normal use state of the terms, or the common names understood by those skilled in the art, and should not be regarded as a limitation to the terms.

[0020] As Figures 1-3 shown, a special AI defrosting robot for cold storage includes: a torso 1 and at least four sets of limb units distributed in a scorpion leg shape and all assembled on the torso 1. The limb units include a bendable connecting arm rotatably connected to the torso 1 and a mechanical claw 2 assembled on the end of the connecting arm far from the torso 1 for clamping a tubular body.

[0021] In the above technical solution, a main control unit is provided inside the torso 1. The STM32F4 series microcontroller is adopted, which not only includes single-cycle digital signal processor instructions, but also integrates a processor dedicated to floating-point operations. The flash memory of the STM32F407IGT6 memory is up to 1MB, and it provides 3 analog / digital converters, 2 digital / analog converters, 10 general-purpose timers, a low-power real-time clock, and a random number generator.

[0022] The four limb units are the left front limb, the left hind limb, the right front limb, and the right hind limb respectively. When crawling is required, the connecting arms in the left front limb, the left hind limb, the right front limb, and the right hind limb all rotate towards the middle of the torso 1, that is, the left front limb and the left hind limb rotate and move closer to each other to the same side of the torso 1, and the right front limb and the right hind limb rotate and move closer to each other to the same side of the torso 1. Under the condition that the four limb units are distributed in the shape of scorpion legs, each connecting arm can simulate the angle and shape of the scorpion leg, so as to simulate the movement of the scorpion when crawling. During the crawling process, the corresponding connecting arm will rotate and bend and stretch to move forward. Through the setting of this structure, the robot can simulate the crawling of the scorpion and has excellent crawling speed and stability.

[0023] When climbing a pipe, the left front limb and the left hind limb rotate so that a pair of connecting arms in the left hind limb and the left front limb are in the same plane. At the same time, the right front limb and the right hind limb rotate so that a pair of connecting arms in the right hind limb and the right front limb are in the same plane. A pair of mechanical claws 2 in the left front limb and the left hind limb clamp on one of the tubular parts, and a pair of mechanical claws 2 in the right hind limb and the right front limb clamp on another parallel tubular part. During the pipe climbing process, it can simulate the movement law of the inchworm to achieve periodic crawling; When simulating the inchworm climbing a pipe, the mechanical claws 2 of the right hind limb and the left hind limb grip the tubular part, while the mechanical claws 2 of the right front limb and the left front limb are loose. The four connecting arms stretch, and the mechanical claws 2 in the right front limb and the left front limb will slide forward on the tubular part. Then the mechanical claws 2 in the right front limb and the left front limb grip the tubular part, and the mechanical claws 2 of the right hind limb and the left hind limb are loose. The four connecting arms bend, and the mechanical claws 2 in the right hind limb and the left hind limb slide forward on the tubular part, realizing a forward periodic crawling motion. By circulating this periodic motion, continuous pipe climbing simulating the inchworm movement can be achieved. If an obstacle is encountered, the mechanical claws 2 of the left hind limb and the right hind limb clamp the tubular part, and the mechanical claws 2 in the left front limb and the right front limb can be loosened and then cross the obstacle to grip other parts of the tubular part, improving the obstacle crossing ability, pipe climbing quality and pipe climbing efficiency.

[0024] When there is only a single tubular part, the left front limb and the left hind limb clamp on the tubular part, or the right front limb and the right hind limb clamp on the tubular part, and it can also simulate the movement mode of the inchworm to crawl on the tubular part, and it is also applicable to some high-risk places such as high-voltage power poles and oil pipes.

[0025] In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the connecting arm includes a joint member 6 rotatably connected to the torso 1 through a first rotating shaft 5, a first arm 8 rotatably connected to the joint member 6 through a second rotating shaft 7 whose axis is perpendicular to the axis of the first rotating shaft 5, a second arm 9 rotatably connected to the end of the first arm 8 away from the second rotating shaft 7 through a third rotating shaft, and a third arm 10 rotatably connected to the end of the second arm 9 away from the first arm 8 through a fourth rotating shaft; The length directions of the first arm 8, the second arm 9, and the third arm 10 are all perpendicular to the length direction of the second rotating shaft 7. The third rotating shaft and the fourth rotating shaft are both arranged parallel to the second rotating shaft 7, and the four first rotating shafts 5 in the four limb-trunk units are arranged in parallel.

[0026] In the above technical solution, the first rotating shafts 5 in the four limb-trunk units are arranged in parallel, enabling the four connecting arms to rotate and simulate the movement of scorpion legs, and also enabling the connecting arms in the left front limb and the left hind limb to be in the same plane to simulate the movement of a measuring worm climbing a pipe; the first rotating shaft 5, the second rotating shaft 7, the third rotating shaft, and the fourth rotating shaft can all rotate independently, facilitating the robot to overcome obstacles and crawl in multiple motion postures.

[0027] By controlling the rotational movements of the second rotating shaft 7 and the fourth rotating shaft, it is possible to ensure that the mechanical claw 2 is perpendicular to the tubular member, which is beneficial for clamping the tubular member.

[0028] In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the mechanical claw 2 is assembled on the end of the third arm 10 away from the second arm 9, and a plurality of rubber members 11 are assembled on the mechanical claw 2, and a pressure sensor is integrally connected to the rubber member 11.

[0029] In the above technical solution, by providing the rubber member 11, the stiffness of the mechanical claw 2 can be reduced, the peak contact pressure can be reduced, and thus the damage to the pipe wall caused by friction during grasping the tubular member can be weakened; the pressure sensor is electrically connected to the main control unit, which can timely feedback the pressure signal, control the clamping force of the mechanical claw 2, and can monitor the abnormal pressure value of the mechanical claw 2 and stop working for maintenance in time.

[0030] In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the mechanical claw 2 includes a pair of arc-shaped claws 13 that are symmetrically arranged and are both assembled on the end of the third arm 10 through a fifth rotating shaft 12. The fifth rotating shaft 12, the third arm 10, and the second rotating shaft 7 are perpendicular to each other in pairs; The arc-shaped claw 13 includes a plurality of sub-claws arranged at intervals along the length direction of the fifth rotating shaft 12 and at least one claw nail parallel to the fifth rotating shaft 12 and fixedly connected to the plurality of sub-claws. The rubber member 11 is a rubber sleeve with a notch that can be sleeved on the claw nail and is located between adjacent sub-claws.

[0031] In the above technical solution, a notch is provided on the rubber sleeve, which facilitates the replacement of the rubber sleeve. Moreover, a plurality of sub-gripping claws can increase the gripping area of the entire arc-shaped claw 13, which can not only improve the clamping force but also increase the error tolerance rate. In addition, the spaced sub-gripping claws are also beneficial for the installation of the rubber sleeve.

[0032] In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the joint member 6 is in the shape of a cylinder coaxially arranged with the first rotating shaft 5. A first positioning portion 14 is protrudingly provided on the outer wall of the joint member 6, and a second positioning portion 15 matching the first positioning portion 14 is provided on the trunk 1.

[0033] In the above technical solution, since the joint member 6 is in the shape of a cylinder, when the tubular member rotates in two directions, the first positioning portion 14 can contact the second positioning portion 15. Through the cooperation of the first positioning portion 14 and the second positioning portion 15, the rotation range of the joint member 6 can be controlled, and it can also play a positioning role. For example, when simulating the pipe climbing of a caterpillar, the connecting arms in the left front limb and the left hind limb are in the same plane, and at this time, the first positioning portion 14 contacts the second positioning portion 15.

[0034] In a preferred embodiment of the invention, servo motors for driving the rotation are provided at the first rotating shaft 5, the second rotating shaft 7, the third rotating shaft, and the fourth rotating shaft.

[0035] In the above technical solution, the main control unit can control the corresponding servo motor to start, and can also control multiple servo motors to start in cooperation.

[0036] In a preferred embodiment of the invention, an ultrasonic cavitation jet defrosting module 18 is assembled on the trunk 1 through a robotic arm 17.

[0037] In the above technical solution, the main mechanism of ultrasonic defrosting is to utilize the resonance between the natural frequency and the vibration frequency of the frost crystals, resulting in the combined effect of ultrasonic shear stress and ultrasonic acceleration effect. Frost separation is due to the shear force formed by the speed difference between the frost and the fin; cavitation is the phenomenon of the explosive growth, development, and collapse of microbubbles caused by the local low pressure in the liquid flow system. Cavitation jet uses the powerful impact force caused by the collapse of the cavitation bubbles to improve its ability to break the frost formation.

[0038] The advantages of ultrasonic cavitation jet are as follows: The defrosting method is simple and pollution-free. The water pressure difference required for the ultrasonic cavitation jet technology is generally ≤2 MPa, and the cavitation jet technology has higher safety and reliability. The investment and operation costs are low, the maintenance is convenient, the performance is more stable, it is easy to realize automation and mechanization, and the defrosting efficiency is high.

[0039] In a preferred embodiment of the invention, a millimeter-wave radar and a camera are assembled on the trunk 1.

[0040] In the above technical solution, the millimeter-wave radar and the camera are fixed on the torso 1 to ensure that the relative position between the two remains unchanged; the internal parameters fx, fy, u0, and v0 of the camera are measured by using a checkerboard and the Matlab camera calibration toolbox; the rotation matrix R3×3 of the machine table is calibrated by a spirit level, and the translation matrix T3×1 of the machine table is obtained by using OpenCV and the radar corner reflector for mean fitting in multiple sites. The frost layer area distribution is accurately located by AI vision fusion with the radar, and defrosting on demand is achieved.

[0041] In a preferred embodiment of the invention, an ultrasonic obstacle avoider 16 is assembled on the head of the torso 1.

[0042] In the above technical solution, the working principle of the ultrasonic obstacle avoider 16 is based on the emission, propagation, reflection, and reception of ultrasonic waves, and combines the time difference and the speed of sound to calculate the distance and position of the obstacle, and can detect the obstacles during the movement of the robot.

[0043] The preferred embodiments of the present invention have been described in detail above with reference to the accompanying drawings. However, the present invention is not limited to the specific details in the above embodiments. Within the scope of the technical concept of the present invention, various simple modifications can be made to the technical solution of the present invention, and these simple modifications all fall within the protection scope of the present invention.

[0044] In addition, it should be noted that, in the above specific embodiments, the various specific technical features described can be combined in any suitable manner without contradiction. To avoid unnecessary repetition, the present invention will not separately describe various possible combination methods.

[0045] In addition, any combination can be made between various different embodiments of the present invention as long as it does not violate the idea of the present invention, and it should also be regarded as the content disclosed by the present invention.

Claims

1. An AI defrosting special robot for cold storage, characterized in that, Comprising: A torso (1) and at least four sets of limb units distributed in a scorpion-leg shape and all assembled on the torso (1), each limb unit including a bendable connecting arm rotatably connected to the torso (1) and a mechanical claw (2) assembled on the end of the connecting arm away from the torso (1) for clamping a tubular body.

2. The special robot for AI defrosting in a cold storage according to claim 1, characterized in that, The connecting arm includes a joint member (6) rotatably connected to the torso (1) through a first rotating shaft (5), a first arm (8) rotatably connected to the joint member (6) through a second rotating shaft (7) whose axis is perpendicular to the axis of the first rotating shaft (5), a second arm (9) rotatably connected to the end of the first arm (8) away from the second rotating shaft (7) through a third rotating shaft, and a third arm (10) rotatably connected to the end of the second arm (9) away from the first arm (8) through a fourth rotating shaft; The length directions of the first arm (8), the second arm (9) and the third arm (10) are all perpendicular to the length direction of the second rotating shaft (7), the third rotating shaft and the fourth rotating shaft are both arranged parallel to the second rotating shaft (7), and the four first rotating shafts (5) in the four sets of limb units are arranged parallel to each other.

3. An AI defrosting special robot for cold storage according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that, The mechanical claw (2) is assembled on the end of the third arm (10) away from the second arm (9), several rubber parts (11) are assembled on the mechanical claw (2), and pressure sensors are integrally connected to the rubber parts (11).

4. The AI defrosting special robot for cold storage according to claim 3, characterized in that, The mechanical claw (2) includes a pair of arc-shaped claws (13) arranged symmetrically and both assembled on the end of the third arm (10) through a fifth rotating shaft (12), and the fifth rotating shaft (12), the third arm (10) and the second rotating shaft (7) are perpendicular to each other in pairs; The arc-shaped claw (13) includes several sub-claws arranged at intervals along the length direction of the fifth rotating shaft (12) and at least one claw nail parallel to the fifth rotating shaft (12) and fixedly connected to the several sub-claws, and the rubber part (11) is a rubber sleeve with a notch that can be sleeved on the claw nail and is located between two adjacent sub-claws.

5. The special AI defrosting robot for cold storage according to claim 2, characterized in that, The joint member (6) is in a cylindrical shape coaxial with the first rotating shaft (5), a first positioning portion (14) protrudes from the outer wall of the joint member (6), and a second positioning portion (15) matching the first positioning portion (14) is provided on the torso (1).

6. The AI defrosting special robot for cold storage according to claim 2, characterized in that, Servos for driving their rotation are provided at the first rotating shaft (5), the second rotating shaft (7), the third rotating shaft and the fourth rotating shaft.

7. An AI defrosting special robot for cold storage according to claim 1, characterized in that, An ultrasonic cavitation jet defrosting module (18) is assembled on the torso (1) through a robotic arm (17).

8. The special AI defrosting robot for cold storage according to claim 1, characterized in that, A millimeter-wave radar and a camera are assembled on the torso (1).

9. The special AI defrosting robot for cold storage according to claim 1, characterized in that, An ultrasonic obstacle avoider (16) is assembled on the head of the torso (1).

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