Reducing robot and control method thereof

Abstract

The invention discloses a variable-diameter robot and a control method thereof, and relates to the field of robotics.The variable-diameter robot comprises a robot body, a walking mechanism, a variable-diameter driving mechanism, a main driving device and a detection device.The walking mechanism comprises a plurality of walking arms distributed on the periphery of the robot body in the circumferential direction, and each walking arm comprises a connecting end and a free end; each connecting end is rotatably connected to the robot body, and each free end is provided with a roller of which the radial section forms an included angle with the cross section of the to-be-detected pipeline; the variable-diameter driving mechanism can drive the free ends to be away from or close to the robot body. The main driving device can drive the robot body to axially move along the to-be-detected pipeline; the detection device can obtain the inner diameter and internal information of the to-be-detected pipeline so as to adjust the driving process of the variable-diameter driving mechanism to the free end according to the inner diameter, so that the variable-diameter robot can adapt to the change of the inner diameter of the pipeline, and detection work is completed. The variable-diameter robot control method can adapt to the inner diameter of the to-be-detected pipeline, and the detection quality is improved.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to the field of robots, and in particular to a diameter-variable robot suitable for detecting heating pipelines and a control method thereof. Background Art

[0002] The urban centralized heating system is an important municipal infrastructure, in which the heating pipelines are usually laid underground or overhead, and the inside of the pipelines are exposed to high temperatures of 70-130°C, high pressures of 0.6-2.5MPa, and complex media for a long time. Due to factors such as thermal expansion and contraction effects and geological subsidence, heating pipelines are prone to hidden dangers such as weld cracking, pipe wall corrosion, and stress concentration in variable diameter sections. Traditional manual inspections have problems such as insufficient blind spot coverage, low inspection efficiency, long inspection cycles, harsh environmental restrictions, and difficult-to-reach areas. They are unable to detect defects in heating pipelines in a timely manner, and require relevant pipeline robots to carry out inspections. Although there are pipeline robots suitable for heating pipeline inspections in the prior art, existing pipeline robots are difficult to adapt to the variable inner diameters of pipelines and are unable to complete inspections. Summary of the Invention

[0003] The purpose of the present invention is to provide a variable diameter robot suitable for heating pipe inspection and a control method thereof. The variable diameter robot can adapt to changes in the inner diameter of the pipe and can complete the inspection work, thus solving the problems existing in the above-mentioned prior art.

[0004] To achieve the above object, the present invention provides the following solutions:

[0005] The present invention provides a variable diameter robot, comprising a robot body, a walking mechanism, a variable diameter drive mechanism, a main drive device, and a detection device, wherein the walking mechanism comprises a plurality of walking arms, the plurality of walking arms being circumferentially distributed around the periphery of the robot body, each walking arm comprising a connecting end and a free end, each connecting end being rotatably connected to the robot body, each free end being provided with a roller capable of rolling contact with the inner wall of a pipeline to be tested, and a radial cross-section of the roller being arranged at an angle to a cross-section of the pipeline to be tested; the variable diameter drive mechanism is transmission-connected to each walking arm to drive each free end away from or toward the robot body; the main drive device is disposed on the robot body and is capable of driving the robot body to move axially along the pipeline to be tested; the detection device is disposed on the robot body or the walking mechanism and is capable of detecting the pipeline to be tested and obtaining the inner diameter and internal information of the pipeline to be tested; the detection device is communicatively connected to the variable diameter drive mechanism to adjust the driving process of the variable diameter drive mechanism on the free end according to the inner diameter.

[0006] In some embodiments, the variable diameter drive mechanism includes a variable diameter drive motor, a main transmission shaft, multiple auxiliary transmission shafts and an inner gear ring, the variable diameter drive motor includes an output shaft for outputting driving force; the main transmission shaft is coaxially fixedly connected to the output shaft, and a main transmission gear is fixed on the main transmission shaft; multiple auxiliary transmission shafts are evenly distributed along the circumference of the main transmission shaft, each of the auxiliary transmission shafts is arranged parallel to the main transmission shaft, and each of the auxiliary transmission shafts is fixed with an auxiliary transmission gear, and each of the auxiliary transmission gears is engaged with the main transmission gear to pass through the main transmission gear The rotation of the wheel drives the rotation of each of the auxiliary transmission gears, and then drives the rotation of each of the auxiliary transmission shafts; each of the auxiliary transmission shafts is also provided with a cam, and the cam and the auxiliary transmission gear are arranged at intervals; the number of the cams is the same as the number of the walking arms, and one of the cams abuts against the side wall of one of the walking arms, so as to drive the rotation of the cam through the rotation of the main transmission gear, and then push the free end of each of the walking arms away from or close to the robot body; each of the auxiliary transmission gears is arranged on the inner circumference of the inner gear ring, and each of the auxiliary transmission gears is meshed with the inner gear ring.

[0007] In some embodiments, two cams are provided on each of the auxiliary transmission shafts, and the two cams are respectively located on both sides of the auxiliary transmission gear and are respectively arranged near the two ends of the auxiliary transmission shaft; each walking arm is arranged perpendicular to the axis of the main transmission shaft, and each cam is arranged perpendicular to the axis of the main transmission shaft.

[0008] In some embodiments, the robot body includes a shell and two flow guide covers, the shell is provided with an open area for the walking arm to rotate, the connecting end can be rotatably connected to the shell, and a first elastic member is provided between the connecting end and the shell to press the walking arm against the working surface of the cam; the variable diameter drive mechanism is provided inside the shell; the two flow guide covers are symmetrically provided at both ends of the shell, and the cross-section of each flow guide cover gradually decreases in the direction away from the shell; there are two detection devices, and each flow guide cover is provided with a detection hole at one end away from the shell, and each flow guide cover is provided with a detection device to detect the pipeline to be tested through the corresponding detection hole.

[0009] In some embodiments, the shell includes two bottom shells, two end shells and the middle shell, all of which are hollow rings. The middle shell is fixed between the two end shells and coaxial with the two end shells, and the outer diameter of the middle shell is not greater than the inner diameter of the end shells. The two bottom shells are respectively fixed on the two end faces of the two end shells that are away from each other, and the opening area is located on the end shells; two thrust ball bearings are relatively arranged on the two end faces of the two end shells that are close to each other, and the shaft rings of the two thrust ball bearings are respectively fixedly connected to the end faces of the two end shells, and the seat rings of the two thrust ball bearings are respectively fixedly connected to the two sides of the main drive device, and the main drive device can push the robot body to move axially along the pipeline to be measured through the thrust ball bearings, so as to push the shell to drive the roller at the free end to spirally feed along the pipeline to be measured; each free end is provided with an angle adjustment device, and the angle adjustment device is transmission-connected to the roller to adjust the angle between the radial cross-section of the roller and the cross-section of the pipeline to be measured.

[0010] In some embodiments, the main drive device includes a main drive body, a driving swing arm, a driving wheel, a main drive motor, a steering swing arm, a steering wheel, and a steering motor, wherein opposite side walls of the main drive body are respectively fixedly connected to the races of the two thrust ball bearings, and the top of the main drive body is spaced apart from the middle shell; the driving swing arm is arranged at the bottom of the main drive body; the driving wheel is arranged at the end of the driving swing arm away from the main drive body via a driving wheel mounting bracket, the driving wheel is in rolling contact with the inner wall of the pipeline to be measured, and the rotating shaft of the driving wheel is perpendicular to the axis of the main transmission shaft; the main drive motor is fixed to the driving wheel mounting bracket, and the main drive motor can drive the driving wheel to rotate forward or reverse; the steering swing arm is arranged at the bottom of the main drive body; the steering wheel is in rolling contact with the inner wall of the pipeline to be measured and is mounted on the end of the steering swing arm away from the main drive body via a steering wheel mounting bracket; the steering motor is fixed to the steering swing arm, and the steering motor is in transmission connection with the steering wheel mounting bracket to drive the steering wheel to rotate horizontally.

[0011] In some embodiments, the main drive device also includes a rocker arm mounting frame and a second elastic member, the driving rocker arm and the steering rocker arm are rotatably connected to the main drive body through the rocker arm mounting frame, and the virtual plane where the rotation trajectories of the driving rocker arm and the steering rocker arm are located is parallel to the axis of the main transmission shaft; the second elastic member is arranged between the driving rocker arm and the steering rocker arm, one end of the second elastic member is fixedly connected to the driving rocker arm, and the other end of the second elastic member is fixedly connected to the steering rocker arm to provide an elastic restoring force tending to bring the two closer together when the driving rocker arm and the steering rocker arm are relatively separated.

[0012] In some embodiments, the variable diameter drive mechanism also includes a cam limiting mechanism capable of limiting the relative position of each cam and the auxiliary transmission shaft; the cam limiting mechanism is a polygonal frame, the number of sides of the polygonal frame is the same as the number of the auxiliary transmission shafts, and the polygonal frame is provided with through holes rotatably connected to the auxiliary transmission shafts, and the number and positions of the through holes are arranged in a one-to-one correspondence with the number and positions of the auxiliary transmission shafts; there are four polygonal frames, and the distances between each cam at one end of the main transmission shaft and the main transmission shaft are equal, and each cam at the same end of the main transmission shaft is clamped between two polygonal frames.

[0013] In some embodiments, the variable diameter robot also includes a motor housing, which includes a variable diameter drive motor housing, a main drive motor housing and a steering motor housing. The variable diameter drive motor housing is arranged inside the housing, and the variable diameter drive motor is arranged inside the variable diameter drive motor housing; the variable diameter drive mechanism also includes a motor fixing frame, which is used to fix the variable diameter drive motor housing, and the motor fixing frame is fixedly connected to the polygonal frame close to the side of the main transmission gear; the main drive motor housing is arranged on the driving rocker arm, and the main drive motor is arranged inside the main drive motor housing; the steering motor housing is arranged on the steering rocker arm, and the steering motor is arranged inside the steering motor housing.

[0014] The present invention also provides a control method for the above-mentioned variable-diameter robot, comprising:

[0015] Obtaining the inner diameter and internal information of the pipeline to be tested through the detection device;

[0016] The variable diameter driving mechanism adjusts the free end of the walking arm to move closer to or away from the robot body according to the inner diameter;

[0017] The robot body is driven by the main driving device to move axially along the pipeline to be tested so as to detect the pipeline to be tested by the detection device.

[0018] Compared with the prior art, the present invention has achieved the following technical effects:

[0019] The present invention provides a variable diameter robot. By providing a walking arm and a roller at the free end of the walking arm, whose radial cross-section forms an angle with the cross-section of the pipe to be tested, and by using a variable diameter drive mechanism to drive the free end of the walking arm away from or toward the robot body, the variable diameter robot can adjust the walking arm according to the inner diameter of the pipe, enabling the variable diameter robot to adapt to varying pipe inner diameters. Furthermore, a main drive device drives the robot body to move axially along the pipe to be tested, while simultaneously pushing the roller to spirally feed along the inner wall of the pipe to be tested, enabling the variable diameter robot to stably feed along the pipe to be tested, thereby improving the detection quality of the detection device.

[0020] The present invention also provides a control method for a variable-diameter robot, which obtains internal information of the pipeline to be tested through a detection device, and adjusts the free end of the walking arm close to or away from the robot body according to the internal information of the pipeline to be tested, so that the walking arm of the variable-diameter robot adapts to the inner diameter of the pipeline to be tested, and drives the robot body to move axially along the pipeline to be tested through a main drive device, while pushing the roller to feed spirally along the inner wall of the pipeline to be tested, so that the variable-diameter robot can feed stably along the pipeline to be tested, and can improve the detection quality of the detection device. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0021] In order to more clearly illustrate the embodiments of the present invention or the technical solutions in the prior art, the following briefly introduces the drawings required for use in the embodiments. Obviously, the drawings described below are only some embodiments of the present invention. For ordinary technicians in this field, other drawings can be obtained based on these drawings without paying any creative work.

[0022] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of the overall structure of the variable diameter robot in Example 1 provided by the present invention;

[0023] Figure 2 A side view of the variable diameter robot in the first embodiment of the present invention;

[0024] Figure 3 This is a schematic diagram of the coordination structure of the diameter-variable driving mechanism and the walking mechanism of the diameter-variable robot in the first embodiment of the present invention;

[0025] Figure 4 for Figure 3 A side view of the coordinated structure of the middle diameter-reducing drive mechanism and the traveling mechanism;

[0026] Figure 5 This is a schematic diagram of the overall structure of the variable diameter robot in Example 1 provided by the present invention after removing the air guide cover on one side;

[0027] Figure 6 This is a schematic structural diagram of the main drive device of the variable diameter robot in Example 1 provided by the present invention.

[0028] In the figure: 100 - variable diameter robot; 1 - robot body; 11 - housing; 111 - end housing; 112 - middle housing; 113 - bottom housing; 114 - opening area; 115 - thrust ball bearing; 12 - deflector; 121 - high temperature resistant underwater LED light; 2 - walking mechanism; 21 - walking arm; 22 - roller; 23 - first elastic member; 3 - variable diameter drive mechanism; 31 - variable diameter drive motor housing; 32 - main transmission shaft; 321 -main transmission gear; 33-secondary transmission shaft; 331-secondary transmission gear; 332-cam; 34-inner gear ring; 35-polygonal frame; 36-motor fixing frame; 4-main drive device; 41-main drive body; 42-driving rocker arm; 43-driving wheel; 44-main drive motor housing; 45-steering rocker arm; 46-steering wheel; 47-steering motor housing; 48-second elastic member; 5-detection device; 51-camera; 52-detection box. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0029] The following will clearly and completely describe the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present invention in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. Obviously, the described embodiments are only part of the embodiments of the present invention, not all of the embodiments. Based on the embodiments of the present invention, all other embodiments obtained by ordinary technicians in this field without making creative efforts are within the scope of protection of the present invention.

[0030] The purpose of the present invention is to provide a variable diameter robot suitable for heating pipe inspection and a control method thereof. The variable diameter robot can adapt to changes in the inner diameter of the pipe and can complete the inspection work, thus solving the problems existing in the above-mentioned prior art.

[0031] In order to make the above-mentioned objects, features and advantages of the present invention more clearly understood, the following Figures 1 to 6 The present invention is further described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings and specific embodiments.

[0032] Example 1

[0033] This embodiment provides a variable diameter robot 100, referring to Figures 1-2, including a robot body 1, a walking mechanism 2, a variable diameter drive mechanism 3, a main drive device 4 and a detection device 5, the walking mechanism 2 includes a plurality of walking arms 21, and the plurality of walking arms 21 are circumferentially distributed on the outer periphery of the robot body 1, each walking arm 21 includes a connecting end and a free end, each connecting end can be rotatably connected to the robot body 1, and each free end is provided with a roller 22 that can roll in contact with the inner wall of the pipeline to be tested, and the radial cross-section of the roller 22 is arranged at an angle to the cross-section of the pipeline to be tested; the variable diameter drive mechanism 3 is transmission-connected to each walking arm 21 to drive each free end away from or close to the robot body 1; the main drive device 4 is arranged on the robot body 1, and the main drive device 4 can drive the robot body 1 to move axially along the pipeline to be tested; the detection device 5 is arranged on the robot body 1 or the walking mechanism 2, and can detect the pipeline to be tested and obtain the inner diameter and internal information of the pipeline to be tested. The detection device 5 is communicatively connected to the variable diameter drive mechanism 3 to adjust the driving process of the variable diameter drive mechanism 3 on the free end according to the inner diameter. The variable diameter robot 100 provided in this embodiment is provided with a walking arm 21 and a roller 22 at the free end of the walking arm 21, whose radial cross-section is arranged at an angle to the cross-section of the pipeline to be tested. The variable diameter drive mechanism 3 drives the free end of the walking arm 21 away from or toward the robot body 1, so that the variable diameter robot 100 can adjust the walking arm 21 according to the inner diameter of the pipeline detected by the detection device 5, so that the roller 22 can always be in close contact with the inner wall of the pipeline to be tested. The variable diameter robot 100 can achieve a wide range of adaptive variable diameter effects. The main drive device 4 drives the robot body 1 to move axially along the pipeline to be tested, while simultaneously pushing the roller 22 to feed spirally along the inner wall of the pipeline to be tested, so that the variable diameter robot 100 can stably feed along the pipeline to be tested, thereby improving the detection quality of the detection device 5. In other embodiments, the roller 22 is made of a non-slip material, specifically a rubber wheel with a patterned design. The wheel body can also be made of other materials such as polyurethane to enhance the non-slip effect of the roller 22. In this embodiment, a plurality of water holes are further provided on the roller 22 to alleviate the resistance of the roller 22 to the hot water from the inside of the pipeline to be tested when the variable diameter robot 100 is fed axially along the pipeline to be tested.

[0034] In some embodiments, reference Figures 1 to 4The variable diameter drive mechanism 3 includes a variable diameter drive motor, a main transmission shaft 32, multiple sub-transmission shafts 33 and an inner gear ring 34. The variable diameter drive motor includes an output shaft for outputting driving force; the main transmission shaft 32 is coaxially fixedly connected to the output shaft, and a main transmission gear 321 is fixed on the main transmission shaft 32; multiple sub-transmission shafts 33 are evenly distributed along the circumference of the main transmission shaft 32, and each sub-transmission shaft 33 is arranged parallel to the main transmission shaft 32. A sub-transmission gear 331 is fixed on each sub-transmission shaft 33, and each sub-transmission gear 331 is meshed with the main transmission gear 321 to drive each sub-transmission through the rotation of the main transmission gear 321. The moving gear 331 rotates, thereby driving each auxiliary transmission shaft 33 to rotate; a cam 332 is also provided on each auxiliary transmission shaft 33, and the cam 332 is spaced apart from the auxiliary transmission gear 331; the number of cams 332 is the same as the number of walking arms 21, and one cam 332 abuts against the side wall of one walking arm 21, so as to drive the cam 332 to rotate through the rotation of the main transmission gear 321, thereby pushing the free end of each walking arm 21, that is, the end provided with the roller 22, away from or close to the robot body 1; each auxiliary transmission gear 331 is arranged on the inner periphery of the inner gear ring 34, and each auxiliary transmission gear 331 is meshed with the inner gear ring 34. In this embodiment, three auxiliary transmission shafts 33 are provided. In some other embodiments, the auxiliary transmission shafts 33 can be set to other numbers greater than three. The main transmission shaft 32 is driven by the variable diameter drive motor to drive the main transmission gear 321 to rotate. At the same time, the main transmission gear 321 drives the three auxiliary transmission gears 331 meshing with it to rotate, and then the rotation of the auxiliary transmission shaft 33 drives the cam 332 to rotate, so as to drive the walking arm 21 slidingly connected to the cam 332 to move closer to or away from the variable diameter robot 100 body to adapt to the change in the inner diameter of the pipeline to be measured. The transmission structure adopts a purely mechanical structure to achieve the variable diameter effect of adapting to the pipeline to be measured, which is more suitable for different sections and variable diameter environments in high-temperature (70℃~130℃) multi-steam heating pipelines, effectively reducing the impact of the internal environment of the pipeline to be measured on the variable diameter robot 100, and avoiding the problems of failure and malfunction of variable diameter devices such as traditional pneumatic parts and electric parts, ensuring that the variable diameter robot 100 can work normally and maintain stable performance. The inner gear ring 34 is provided to ensure effective meshing between the auxiliary transmission gear 331 and the main transmission gear 321. In other embodiments, other structures may be provided to ensure meshing between the auxiliary transmission gear 331 and the main transmission gear 321. In other embodiments, each cam 332 is provided with multiple water holes to alleviate the resistance of the hot water inside the pipe to be tested when the variable diameter robot 100 is axially fed along the pipe to be tested. In other embodiments, the output shaft of the variable diameter drive motor is connected to the main transmission shaft 32 via a parallel shaft gear reducer to adaptively adjust the output speed of the variable diameter drive motor.

[0035] In some embodiments, reference Figures 1 to 4Each secondary transmission shaft 33 is provided with two cams 332, and the two cams 332 are respectively located on either side of the secondary transmission gear 331 and are respectively disposed near the ends of the secondary transmission shaft 33. Each walking arm 21 is disposed perpendicular to the axis of the main transmission shaft 32, and each cam 332 is disposed perpendicular to the axis of the main transmission shaft 32. By providing two cams 332 on the secondary transmission gear 331 and respectively disposed at the ends of the secondary transmission shaft 33, the walking arms 21, which are slidably connected to the cams 332, are also located at the ends of the secondary transmission shaft 33. The walking arms 21 are disposed at both ends of the variable diameter robot 100, so that the forces on both ends of the variable diameter robot 100 are relatively balanced, and the robot 100 can move more stably in the pipeline to be tested, thereby improving the monitoring accuracy of the detection device 5. In addition, in this embodiment, the variable diameter robot 100 is counterweighted by multiple cams 332, which improves the overall weight and impact resistance of the variable diameter robot 100, achieves working stability and safety, and can be used for the detection of pipelines with different diameters and large water flow, thereby expanding the scope of application of the variable diameter robot 100 and improving the detection accuracy of the variable diameter robot 100.

[0036] In some embodiments, reference Figure 5The robot body 1 includes a shell 11 and two air guide covers 12. The shell 11 is provided with an opening area 114 for the walking arm 21 to rotate. The connecting end can be rotatably connected to the shell 11, and a first elastic member 23 is provided between the connecting end and the shell 11 to press the walking arm 21 against the working surface of the cam 332; the variable diameter drive mechanism 3 is arranged inside the shell 11; the two air guide covers 12 are symmetrically arranged at both ends of the shell 11, and the cross-section of each air guide cover 12 gradually decreases in the direction away from the shell 11; there are two detection devices 5, and each air guide cover 12 is provided with a detection hole at one end away from the shell 11. A detection device 5 is provided in each air guide cover 12 to detect the pipeline to be tested through the corresponding detection hole. By providing a housing 11 and disposing a first elastic member 23 between the connection end of the walking arm 21 and the housing 11, the first elastic member 23 presses the walking arm 21 against the cam 332. When adapting to a smaller pipe inner diameter, the walking arm 21 retracts into the interior of the variable diameter robot 100 body, and the first elastic member 23 promptly presses the walking arm 21 against the cam 332, thereby achieving a rapid response of the variable diameter robot 100. In this embodiment, the first elastic member 23 is a torsion spring, one end of which is fixed to the housing 11 and the other end is fixed to the walking arm 21. In other embodiments, the first elastic member 23 can also be other structures that can press the free end of the walking arm 21 against the cam 332. The provision of the deflector 12 can reduce the forward resistance of the variable diameter robot 100 in the pipe to be tested. When high-temperature water or steam exists in the pipe, the presence of the deflector 12 can reduce the impact of the high-temperature water or steam on the internal structure of the variable diameter robot 100, thereby extending the service life of the variable diameter robot 100. In this embodiment, a detection device 5 is provided in each of the two flow guide covers 12, so that both sides of the variable diameter robot 100 can detect the pipeline to be tested, so as to improve the detection efficiency of the variable diameter robot 100. In addition, when the variable diameter robot 100 turns around or changes direction for detection, timely detection of the pipeline to be tested can also be achieved. In this embodiment, the flow guide cover 12 is made of a transparent and high-temperature resistant material, and specifically a high-heat-resistant modified polypropylene material can be used, so that the flow guide cover 12 has good light transmittance, water shock resistance and high-temperature resistance, and reduces the material cost of the flow guide cover 12. A light source is provided inside the flow guide cover 12, specifically a high-temperature resistant underwater LED lamp 121, to provide suitable lighting conditions for the detection device 5. The detection device 5 is a wide-angle camera 51, which is installed in the detection box 52 to prevent high-temperature water or steam from impacting and eroding the wide-angle camera 51. The detection box 52 is made of a transparent, high-temperature resistant material, specifically a highly heat-resistant modified polypropylene material, to provide the detection box 52 with good light transmittance, water shock resistance, and high-temperature resistance, while reducing the material cost of the detection box 52. The detection box 52 is mounted inside the shroud 12 via a camera mounting bracket.

[0037] In some embodiments, reference Figures 1-2 The shell 11 includes two bottom shells 113, two end shells 111 and a middle shell 112. The end shells 111 and the middle shell 112 are both hollow rings. The middle shell 112 is fixed between the two end shells 111 and is coaxial with the two end shells 111. The outer diameter of the middle shell 112 is not greater than the inner diameter of the end shells 111. The two bottom shells 113 are respectively fixed on the two end surfaces of the two end shells 111 that are far away from each other. The opening area 114 is located on the end shells 111; the two end shells 111 are arranged opposite to each other on the two end surfaces that are close to each other. There are two thrust ball bearings 115, the shaft rings of the two thrust ball bearings 115 are respectively fixedly connected to the end faces of the two end shells 111, and the seat rings of the two thrust ball bearings 115 are respectively fixedly connected to the two sides of the main drive device 4. The main drive device 4 can push the robot body 1 to move axially along the pipeline to be measured through the thrust ball bearings 115, so as to push the shell 11 to drive the roller 22 at the free end to spirally feed along the pipeline to be measured; each free end is provided with an angle adjustment device, which is in transmission connection with the roller 22 to adjust the angle between the radial cross section of the roller 22 and the cross section of the pipeline to be measured. By arranging two thrust ball bearings 115 in opposition and fixing the main drive device 4 to the races of the two thrust ball bearings 115, it is possible to ensure that the main drive device 4 can transmit power to the robot body 1 in a timely manner regardless of whether it is driving forward or reverse. The axial movement of the robot body 1 drives the roller 22 to spirally feed along the pipeline to be measured. In addition, the free end of the walking arm 21 is provided with an angle adjustment device. In this embodiment, the angle adjustment device is an elastic clip-on adjustment device. The walking arm 21 is provided with an arc-shaped slide rail with multiple positioning grooves. The rotating shaft of the roller 22 is rotatably connected to the elastic clip. The end of the elastic clip is provided with a protrusion that matches the positioning groove. The protrusion of the elastic clip slides into different positioning grooves to achieve multi-level angle adjustment. In other embodiments, an angle adjustment motor can be provided, so that the roller 22 is mounted on the walking arm 21 via a roller mounting bracket. The angle adjustment motor drives the roller mounting bracket to rotate, thereby driving the roller 22 to rotate, thereby changing the angle between the radial cross section of the roller 22 and the cross section of the pipeline to be measured.

[0038] In some embodiments, reference Figure 1 and Figure 6The main drive device 4 includes a main drive body 41, a driving swing arm 42, a driving wheel 43, a main drive motor, a steering swing arm 45, a steering wheel 46 and a steering motor. The two opposite side walls of the main drive body 41 are fixedly connected to the seat rings of the two thrust ball bearings 115, and the top of the main drive body 41 is spaced apart from the middle shell 112; the driving swing arm 42 is arranged at the bottom of the main drive body 41; the driving wheel 43 is arranged at the end of the driving swing arm 42 away from the main drive body 41 through the driving wheel mounting bracket, and the driving wheel 43 is connected to the tube to be tested. The main drive body 41 is configured to rotate in a manner such that the main drive motor 41 is capable of rotating the driving wheel 43 in a rolling manner and the axis of the driving wheel 43 is perpendicular to the axis of the main transmission shaft 32. The main drive motor is fixed to the driving wheel mounting bracket and can drive the driving wheel 43 to rotate forward or reverse. A steering rocker arm 45 is provided at the bottom of the main drive body 41. The steering wheel 46 is in rolling contact with the inner wall of the pipeline to be tested and is mounted to the end of the steering rocker arm 45 away from the main drive body 41 via the steering wheel mounting bracket. The steering motor is fixed to the steering rocker arm 45 and is in transmission connection with the steering wheel mounting bracket to drive the steering wheel 46 to rotate horizontally. By providing the main drive motor to drive the driving wheel 43 in a forward and reverse direction, the robot body 1 is driven by the rotation of the driving motor to move the robot body 1 along the axial direction of the pipeline to be tested, and the variable diameter robot 100 can travel in both forward and reverse directions in the pipeline to be tested. The provision of the steering motor and steering wheel 46 enables the variable diameter robot 100 to steer in the pipeline to be tested, enabling the variable diameter robot 100 to adapt to complex pipeline conditions and improving the practicality and flexibility of the variable diameter robot 100. In this embodiment, two of each of the drive rocker 42, steering rocker 45, main drive motor, steering motor, drive wheel 43, and steering wheel 46 are provided, forming a four-wheel structure. This increases the driving force output by the main drive motor and improves the driving stability of the drive wheel 43. In other embodiments, the number of drive rocker 42, steering rocker 45, main drive motor, steering motor, drive wheel 43, and steering wheel 46 may also be provided. In other embodiments, the drive wheel 43 and steering wheel 46 are both made of a non-slip material, specifically a rubber wheel with a patterned design. Other materials such as polyurethane may also be used to enhance the non-slip properties of the drive wheel 43 and steering wheel 46. In other embodiments, the main drive motor is connected to the drive wheel 43 via a speed reducer to adaptively adjust the output speed of the main drive motor.

[0039] In some embodiments, reference Figure 1 and Figure 6The main drive device 4 also includes a rocker arm mounting frame and a second elastic member 48. The driving rocker arm 42 and the steering rocker arm 45 are rotatably connected to the main drive body 41 through the rocker arm mounting frame, and the virtual plane where the rotation trajectory of the driving rocker arm 42 and the steering rocker arm 45 is located is parallel to the axis of the main transmission shaft 32; the second elastic member 48 is arranged between the driving rocker arm 42 and the steering rocker arm 45, one end of the second elastic member 48 is fixedly connected to the driving rocker arm 42, and the other end of the second elastic member 48 is fixedly connected to the steering rocker arm 45, so as to provide an elastic restoring force tending to bring the two together when the driving rocker arm 42 and the steering rocker arm 45 are relatively separated. By providing a second elastic member 48, an elastic restoring force is provided to pull the driving rocker arm 42 and the steering rocker arm 45 closer together when they are relatively separated. When the free end of the walking arm 21 of the variable diameter robot 100 approaches the robot body 1, the driving rocker arm 42 and the steering rocker arm 45 move closer together, providing support for the robot body 1. This prevents the variable diameter robot 100 from separating from the pipe under test when changing diameter, thereby enhancing the stability of the variable diameter robot 100. Furthermore, when passing through small obstacles, the diameter can be changed by adjusting the walking arm 21 alone; the elastic force of the second elastic member 48 alone can achieve a slight change in diameter, making the use of the variable diameter robot 100 more flexible. In this embodiment, the second elastic member 48 is a spring. In other embodiments, the second elastic member 48 can also be other structures that can provide an elastic restoring force that pulls the driving rocker arm 42 and the steering rocker arm 45 closer together when they are relatively separated.

[0040] In some embodiments, reference Figures 3-4The variable diameter driving mechanism 3 also includes a cam limiting mechanism that can limit the relative position of each cam 332 and the auxiliary transmission shaft 33; the cam limiting mechanism is a polygonal frame 35, the number of sides of the polygonal frame 35 is the same as the number of auxiliary transmission shafts 33, and the polygonal frame 35 is provided with through holes rotatably connected to the auxiliary transmission shaft 33, and the number and position of the through holes are set in a one-to-one correspondence with the number and position of the auxiliary transmission shaft 33; there are four polygonal frames 35, and the distance between each cam 332 at one end of the main transmission shaft 32 and the main transmission shaft 32 is equal, and the cams 332 at the same end of the main transmission shaft 32 are clamped between two polygonal frames 35. In this embodiment, the polygonal frame 35 is specifically a triangular frame. Each vertex of the triangular frame has a through-hole for the secondary transmission shaft 33 to pass through. The triangular frame secures the cam 332, thereby maintaining its position while providing a counterweight to the variable diameter robot 100. This prevents displacement of the variable diameter robot 100 caused by the impact of water flow in the pipe under test, thereby improving the detection accuracy of the variable diameter robot 100. Furthermore, by locating the cam 332 at the same position on the secondary transmission shaft 33, the walking arm 21 is also arranged around the outer periphery of the cam 332, allowing the walking arm 21 and cam 332 to accurately extend or retract from the opening area 114 into the housing 11, thereby enabling the variable diameter drive mechanism 3 to achieve stable diameter change, thereby improving the reliability of the variable diameter robot 100. In this embodiment, the polygonal frame 35 is secured to the secondary transmission shaft 33 via a stopper step provided on the secondary transmission shaft 33 and a stopper nut threadedly engaged with the secondary transmission shaft 33.

[0041] In some embodiments, reference Figure 3 and Figure 6The variable diameter robot 100 also includes a motor housing, which includes a variable diameter drive motor housing 31, a main drive motor housing 44, and a steering motor housing 47. The variable diameter drive motor housing 31 is arranged inside the housing, and a variable diameter drive motor is arranged inside the variable diameter drive motor housing 31; the variable diameter drive mechanism 3 also includes a motor fixing frame 36, which is used to fix the variable diameter drive motor housing 31 and is fixedly connected to the polygonal frame 35 on the side near the main transmission gear 321; the main drive motor housing 44 is arranged on the driving rocker 42, and the main drive motor is arranged inside the main drive motor housing 44; the steering motor housing 47 is arranged on the steering rocker 45, and the steering motor is arranged inside the steering motor housing 47. Since the variable diameter robot 100 provided in this embodiment is suitable for the inspection of heating pipes, high waterproof requirements are required for the variable diameter drive motor, the main drive motor, and the steering motor. Therefore, the variable diameter drive motor housing 31, the main drive motor housing 44, and the steering motor housing 47 are provided to meet the waterproof requirements of the variable diameter robot 100. The motor housings are all high-temperature resistant and waterproof housings. Specifically, mica-filled modified polypropylene material can be used to make each motor housing have better heat resistance and waterproof effect.

[0042] In some other embodiments, a control unit is further included. The control unit is arranged inside the variable diameter drive motor housing 31 and is communicatively connected to the variable diameter drive motor, the camera 51, the main drive motor and the steering motor to control the rotation of the variable diameter drive motor according to the real-time detection content of the camera 51, so that the variable diameter robot 100 can adapt to the inner diameter of the pipeline to be measured and adjust the forward direction of the variable diameter robot 100 according to the specific direction of the pipeline.

[0043] Example 2

[0044] This embodiment provides a control method for the variable-diameter robot 100 in the first embodiment, including:

[0045] The inner diameter and internal information of the pipeline to be tested are obtained through the detection device 5;

[0046] The variable diameter driving mechanism 3 adjusts the free end of the walking arm 21 to move closer to or away from the robot body 1 according to the inner diameter;

[0047] The robot body 1 is driven by the main driving device 4 to move axially along the pipeline to be tested so as to detect the pipeline to be tested through the detection device 5 .

[0048] Specifically, during use, the angle between the radial cross-section of the roller 22 and the cross-section of the pipeline to be measured is first adjusted, and the driving force of the main drive motor is adjusted to ensure that neither the drive wheel 43 nor the roller 22 slips or drags. Then, the variable diameter robot 100 enters the pipeline to be measured and obtains the inner diameter and other internal information of the pipeline to be measured through the camera 51. At the same time, the control unit receives the inner diameter of the pipeline to be measured and adjusts the variable diameter drive motor to drive the main transmission shaft 32 to rotate, driving the cam 332 fixedly connected to the secondary transmission shaft 33 to rotate, pushing the walking arm 21 towards or away from the body of the variable diameter robot 100. After the walking arm 21 adapts to the inner diameter of the pipeline to be measured, the roller 22 fits the inner wall of the pipeline to be measured, and the drive wheel 43 is driven by the main drive motor to advance axially along the pipeline to be measured. At the same time, the steering motor controls the steering wheel 46 to rotate, pushing the robot body 1 to move along the pipeline to be measured, thereby pushing the roller 22 to spirally feed along the inner wall of the pipeline to be measured, thereby achieving stable feeding of the variable diameter robot 100 along the pipeline to be measured and improving the detection quality of the camera 51.

[0049] The present invention uses specific examples to illustrate the principles and implementation methods of the present invention. The above examples are only intended to help understand the method and core concept of the present invention. At the same time, those skilled in the art will find that the specific implementation methods and application scopes may vary based on the concept of the present invention. In summary, the contents of this specification should not be construed as limiting the present invention.

Claims

1. A variable diameter robot, characterized in that: include: Robot body, A walking mechanism, comprising a plurality of walking arms, the plurality of walking arms being circumferentially distributed around the periphery of the robot body, each of the walking arms comprising a connecting end and a free end, each of the connecting ends being rotatably connected to the robot body, each of the free ends being provided with a roller capable of rolling contact with the inner wall of the pipeline to be measured, and a radial cross-section of the roller being arranged at an angle to a cross-section of the pipeline to be measured; a variable diameter drive mechanism, the variable diameter drive mechanism being transmission-connected to each of the walking arms to drive each of the free ends away from or toward the robot body; A main driving device, the main driving device is provided on the robot body, and the main driving device can drive the robot body to move axially along the pipeline to be measured; A detection device is provided on the robot body or the walking mechanism, and is capable of detecting the pipeline to be tested and obtaining the inner diameter and internal information of the pipeline to be tested. The detection device is communicatively connected with the variable diameter drive mechanism to adjust the driving process of the variable diameter drive mechanism on the free end according to the inner diameter.

2. The variable diameter robot according to claim 1, characterized in that: The variable diameter driving mechanism comprises: A variable diameter drive motor, the variable diameter drive motor comprising an output shaft for outputting driving force; A main transmission shaft, the main transmission shaft is coaxially fixedly connected to the output shaft, and a main transmission gear is fixed on the main transmission shaft; A plurality of secondary transmission shafts are uniformly distributed along the circumference of the main transmission shaft, each of the secondary transmission shafts is arranged parallel to the main transmission shaft, a secondary transmission gear is fixed to each of the secondary transmission shafts, and each of the secondary transmission gears is engaged with the main transmission gear, so that the rotation of the main transmission gear drives the rotation of each of the secondary transmission gears, thereby driving the rotation of each of the secondary transmission shafts; a cam is also provided on each of the secondary transmission shafts, and the cam and the secondary transmission gear are arranged at intervals; the number of the cams is the same as the number of the walking arms, and one of the cams abuts against the side wall of one of the walking arms, so that the rotation of the main transmission gear drives the cam to rotate, thereby pushing the free end of each of the walking arms away from or close to the robot body; The internal gear ring is provided with each auxiliary transmission gear on the inner periphery of the internal gear ring, and each auxiliary transmission gear is meshed with the internal gear ring.

3. The variable diameter robot according to claim 2, characterized in that: Two cams are provided on each of the auxiliary transmission shafts, and the two cams are respectively located on both sides of the auxiliary transmission gear and are respectively arranged close to the two ends of the auxiliary transmission shaft; each walking arm is arranged perpendicular to the axis of the main transmission shaft, and each cam is arranged perpendicular to the axis of the main transmission shaft.

4. The variable diameter robot according to claim 2 or 3, characterized in that: The robot body comprises: A housing, wherein the housing is provided with an opening area for the walking arm to rotate, the connecting end is rotatably connected to the housing, and a first elastic member is provided between the connecting end and the housing to press the walking arm against the working surface of the cam; the variable diameter drive mechanism is provided inside the housing; Two flow guide covers are symmetrically arranged at both ends of the shell, and the cross-section of each flow guide cover gradually decreases in the direction away from the shell; two detection devices are provided, and a detection hole is opened at the end of each flow guide cover away from the shell, and a detection device is provided in each flow guide cover to detect the pipeline to be tested through the corresponding detection hole.

5. The variable diameter robot according to claim 4, characterized in that: The shell includes two bottom shells, two end shells and a middle shell. The end shells and the middle shell are both hollow rings. The middle shell is fixed between the two end shells and is coaxial with the two end shells. The outer diameter of the middle shell is not larger than the inner diameter of the end shells. The two bottom shells are respectively fixed to the two end surfaces of the two end shells that are away from each other. The opening area is located on the end shells. Two thrust ball bearings are oppositely arranged on the two end surfaces of the two end shells that are close to each other. The shaft rings of the two thrust ball bearings are respectively fixedly connected to the end surfaces of the two end shells. The seat rings of the two thrust ball bearings are respectively fixedly connected to the two sides of the main drive device. The main drive device can push the robot body to move axially along the pipeline to be tested through the thrust ball bearings, so as to push the shell to drive the roller at the free end to spirally feed along the pipeline to be tested. Each free end is provided with an angle adjustment device, and the angle adjustment device is transmission-connected to the roller to adjust the angle between the radial cross section of the roller and the cross section of the pipeline to be measured.

6. The variable diameter robot according to claim 5, characterized in that: The main drive device comprises: A main driving body, wherein opposite side walls of the main driving body are respectively fixedly connected to the races of the two thrust ball bearings, and the top of the main driving body is spaced apart from the middle shell; A driving rocker arm is provided at the bottom of the main driving body; A driving wheel is mounted on an end of the driving rocker arm away from the main driving body via a driving wheel mounting bracket, the driving wheel is in rolling contact with the inner wall of the pipe to be tested, and the rotating shaft of the driving wheel is perpendicular to the axis of the main transmission shaft; A main drive motor is fixed to the drive wheel mounting bracket, and the main drive motor can drive the drive wheel to rotate forward or reverse; A steering rocker arm is provided at the bottom of the main driving body; A steering wheel, the steering wheel being in rolling contact with the inner wall of the pipe to be measured and being mounted on an end of the steering rocker arm away from the main driving body via a steering wheel mounting bracket; The steering motor is fixed on the steering rocker arm, and the steering motor is in transmission connection with the steering wheel mounting bracket to drive the steering wheel to rotate horizontally.

7. The variable diameter robot according to claim 6, characterized in that: The main drive device also includes: a rocker arm mounting frame, wherein the driving rocker arm and the steering rocker arm are rotatably connected to the main driving body via the rocker arm mounting frame, and a virtual plane where the rotational trajectories of the driving rocker arm and the steering rocker arm lie is parallel to the axis of the main transmission shaft; A second elastic member is arranged between the driving rocker arm and the steering rocker arm, one end of the second elastic member is fixedly connected to the driving rocker arm, and the other end of the second elastic member is fixedly connected to the steering rocker arm, so as to provide an elastic restoring force tending to bring the driving rocker arm and the steering rocker arm closer together when the driving rocker arm and the steering rocker arm are relatively separated.

8. The variable diameter robot according to claim 6, characterized in that: The variable diameter drive mechanism also includes a cam limiting mechanism capable of limiting the relative position of each cam and the auxiliary transmission shaft; the cam limiting mechanism is a polygonal frame, the number of sides of the polygonal frame is the same as the number of the auxiliary transmission shafts, and the polygonal frame is provided with through holes rotatably connected to the auxiliary transmission shafts, and the number and positions of the through holes are arranged in a one-to-one correspondence with the number and positions of the auxiliary transmission shafts; there are four polygonal frames, and the distances between each cam at one end of the main transmission shaft and the main transmission shaft are equal, and the cams at the same end of the main transmission shaft are clamped between two polygonal frames.

9. The variable diameter robot according to claim 8, characterized in that: Also included is a motor housing, the motor housing comprising: A variable diameter drive motor housing, the variable diameter drive motor housing being arranged inside the housing, and the variable diameter drive motor being arranged inside the variable diameter drive motor housing; the variable diameter drive mechanism further comprising a motor fixing bracket, the motor fixing bracket being used to fix the variable diameter drive motor housing, the motor fixing bracket being fixedly connected to the polygonal frame body on a side close to the main transmission gear; A main drive motor housing, wherein the main drive motor housing is arranged on the drive rocker, and the main drive motor is arranged inside the main drive motor housing; A steering motor housing is provided on the steering rocker arm, and the steering motor is provided inside the steering motor housing.

10. A control method for a diameter-variable robot according to any one of claims 1 to 9, characterized in that: include: Obtaining the inner diameter and internal information of the pipeline to be tested through the detection device; The variable diameter driving mechanism adjusts the free end of the walking arm to move closer to or away from the robot body according to the inner diameter; The robot body is driven by the main driving device to move axially along the pipeline to be tested so as to detect the pipeline to be tested by the detection device.

Images