Detection robot for bridge structure
By designing waterproof and cleaning components for a bridge structure inspection robot, the problems of accuracy and stability in underwater inspection were solved, achieving high precision and stability in bridge pier inspection.
Patent Information
- Application Number
- CN202511257894.7
- Authority / Receiving Office
- CN · China
- Patent Type
- Applications(China)
- Current Assignee / Owner
- Filing Date
- 2025-09-04
- Publication Date
- 2025-11-11
- Estimated Expiration
- Not applicable · inactive patent
AI Technical Summary
Existing underwater robots lack sufficient accuracy and operational stability in bridge pier inspection. Their accuracy is also reduced due to the influence of water and obstruction by debris on the bridge piers.
A bridge structure inspection robot was designed, equipped with waterproof components, drainage components, support components, cleaning components, sweeping components, and drive components. The waterproof cover isolates the water medium, cleans up dirt, and discharges water during inspection. The negative pressure suction cup maintains stability and ensures accurate sensor detection.
This improved the accuracy and stability of bridge pier detection, ensuring that the sensor could effectively clean itself of dirt and remain stable in flowing water, thus enhancing detection precision.
Smart Images

Figure CN120922322A_ABST
Abstract
Description
Technical Field
[0001] This invention relates to the field of special-purpose robot technology, and in particular to a bridge structure inspection robot. Background Technology
[0002] As a crucial component of transportation infrastructure, the structural safety of bridges directly impacts traffic safety and socio-economic efficiency. Bridge piers, as the primary load-bearing structures, are constantly subjected to complex underwater environments, including water erosion, sediment abrasion, water corrosion, and the attachment of aquatic organisms such as algae and shellfish. This makes them prone to structural damage such as concrete spalling, steel reinforcement corrosion, and the initiation and propagation of cracks. Failure to detect and address this damage in a timely manner can lead to a decrease in the load-bearing capacity of the piers and even cause major safety accidents such as bridge collapse.
[0003] In existing technologies, special-purpose robots, namely underwater robots, are used for detection. However, current underwater robots still face many technical bottlenecks in bridge pier inspection scenarios: Insufficient detection accuracy: On the one hand, the water medium will attenuate and refract the signals of ultrasonic and optical detection sensors, resulting in deviations in the detection data; on the other hand, the silt, algae and other dirt attached to the surface of the bridge pier will directly block the detection area, making it impossible for the sensor to obtain true structural status information.
[0004] Poor operational stability: In flowing water environments, underwater robots are easily affected by the thrust of the water flow, causing positional shifts or posture swaying, making it difficult to maintain a stable relative position between the sensor and the bridge pier detection surface, further reducing detection accuracy. Summary of the Invention
[0005] The purpose of this invention is to address the problems existing in the background art by proposing a bridge structure inspection robot that can clean dirt on bridge piers and drain internal water during inspection to prevent the water medium from affecting the inspection results.
[0006] The technical solution of the present invention: a bridge structure inspection robot, comprising, Underwater robots; Waterproof components are mounted on the underwater robot; A detection sensor is disposed within the waterproof assembly; A drainage component is provided on the waterproof component; A support component is disposed on the waterproof component; Clean the component and slide it onto the support component; The cleaning component is rotatably mounted on the support component; A swing component, mounted on the support component, is used to drive the cleaning component to reciprocate. A drive component, mounted on the support component, is used to drive the cleaning component and the sweeping component to work.
[0007] Preferably, the underwater robot includes a frame, a control unit disposed on the frame, and a thruster disposed on the frame.
[0008] Preferably, the waterproof assembly includes a waterproof cover disposed on the frame and having an opening, an isolation plate disposed inside the waterproof cover, and a sealing gasket disposed on the waterproof cover and located at the opening; the detection sensor is disposed inside the isolation plate.
[0009] Preferably, the drainage assembly includes a diversion pipe disposed on the waterproof cover, an air inlet pipe disposed on the diversion pipe, and a one-way drain pipe disposed at the lower end of the waterproof cover.
[0010] Preferably, the support assembly includes a mounting cover disposed at the lower end of the waterproof cover, a mounting bracket disposed on the mounting cover, and a guide bracket disposed on the mounting bracket.
[0011] Preferably, the cleaning assembly includes a guide rail slidably mounted on the mounting bracket, a sliding plate mounted on the guide rail, two scraper rods rotatably mounted on the sliding plate, two scraper rods rotatably mounted on the sliding plate, and two sets of gears, two in each set, meshing with each other, with the two gears respectively mounted on the scraper rods 1 and 2.
[0012] Preferably, the cleaning assembly includes a rotating shaft rotatably mounted on the mounting bracket and a spiral cleaning blade mounted on the rotating shaft.
[0013] Preferably, the oscillating assembly includes two sets of two sliding rods respectively disposed on scraper rod one and scraper rod two; four sliding rods slidably disposed on the guide frame and slidably connected to the sliding rods; two connecting rods rotatably hinged to the sliding rods; a sliding block slidably disposed on the mounting cover and rotatably hinged to the two connecting rods; a reciprocating screw rotatably disposed on the mounting cover and threadedly connected to the sliding block; and two sets of two elastic elements disposed on the sliding rods for pushing the sliding rods to move.
[0014] Preferably, the guide frame is provided with a guide groove, the slide rod is slidably disposed in the guide groove and slides up and down along the guide groove, the slide rod is provided with a sliding groove, the slide rod is embedded in the sliding groove, and the sliding groove slides on the slide rod.
[0015] Preferably, the drive assembly includes a drive motor disposed on the mounting cover and whose output end is connected to the rotating shaft, two pulleys disposed on the rotating shaft and the reciprocating lead screw respectively, and a transmission belt disposed on the two pulleys.
[0016] Compared with the prior art, the present invention has the following beneficial technical effects: In this invention, ... Attached Figure Description
[0017] To more clearly illustrate the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present invention, the accompanying drawings used in the description of the embodiments will be briefly introduced below. Obviously, the accompanying drawings described below are only some embodiments of the present invention. For those skilled in the art, other drawings can be obtained based on these drawings without creative effort.
[0018] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of an embodiment of the present invention; Figure 2 This is a partial structural diagram of an embodiment of the present invention; Figure 3 This is an exploded view of the structure of an embodiment of the present invention; Figure 4 This is a partial exploded view of an embodiment of the present invention; Figure 5 This is a schematic diagram of the supporting component in this invention; Figure 6 for Figure 5 A magnified schematic diagram of the local structure at point A; Figure 7 This is a schematic diagram of the cleaning component in this invention; Figure 8 for Figure 7 A magnified view of the structure at point B in the middle; Figure 9 This is a schematic diagram of the swing component in this invention.
[0019] Reference numerals: 1. Underwater robot; 101. Frame; 102. Control unit; 103. Thruster; 2. Waterproof assembly; 201. Waterproof cover; 202. Isolation plate; 203. Sealing gasket; 3. Drainage assembly; 301. Air inlet pipe; 302. Diverter pipe; 303. One-way drain pipe; 4. Support assembly; 401. Mounting cover; 402. Mounting frame; 403. Guide frame; 4031. Guide groove; 5. Cleaning assembly; 501. Scraper bar 1; 502, Scraper bar 2; 503, Gear; 504, Sliding plate; 505, Guide rail; 6, Sweeping assembly; 601, Spiral sweeping blade; 602, Rotating shaft; 7, Drive assembly; 701, Drive motor; 702, Pulley; 703, Transmission belt; 8, Swing assembly; 801, Sliding rod; 802, Sliding bar; 803, Connecting rod; 804, Sliding block; 805, Reciprocating lead screw; 806, Elastic element; 8011, Sliding groove. Detailed Implementation
[0020] To make the above-mentioned objects, features and advantages of the present invention more apparent and understandable, the specific embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings.
[0021] Many specific details are set forth in the following description in order to provide a full understanding of the invention. However, the invention may also be practiced in other ways different from those described herein, and those skilled in the art can make similar extensions without departing from the spirit of the invention. Therefore, the invention is not limited to the specific embodiments disclosed below.
[0022] Secondly, the term "an embodiment" or "embodiment" as used herein refers to a specific feature, structure, or characteristic that may be included in at least one implementation of the present invention. The phrase "in one embodiment" appearing in different places throughout this specification does not necessarily refer to the same embodiment, nor is it an embodiment that is mutually exclusive, either alone or selectively, with other embodiments.
[0023] Secondly, the present invention is described in detail with reference to the schematic diagrams. When detailing the embodiments of the present invention, for ease of explanation, the cross-sectional views illustrating the device structure may be partially enlarged, not according to the usual scale. Furthermore, the schematic diagrams are merely examples and should not limit the scope of protection of the present invention. In addition, actual fabrication should include three-dimensional spatial dimensions of length, width, and depth.
[0024] Example 1 like Figure 1-9 As shown, the present invention proposes a bridge structure inspection robot, which includes an underwater robot 1, a waterproof component 2, a detection sensor, a drainage component 3, a support component 4, a cleaning component 5, a sweeping component 6, a drive component 7, and a swing component 8. A waterproof component 2 is mounted on the underwater robot 1; a detection sensor is mounted inside the waterproof component 2; a drainage component 3 is mounted on the waterproof component 2; a support component 4 is mounted on the waterproof component 2; a cleaning component 5 is slidably mounted on the support component 4; a sweeping component 6 is rotatably mounted on the support component 4; a swinging component 8 is mounted on the support component 4 to drive the cleaning component 5 to reciprocate; and a drive component 7 is mounted on the support component 4 to drive the cleaning component 5 and the sweeping component 6 to work. The underwater robot 1 includes a frame 101, a control unit 102 mounted on the frame 101, and a thruster 103 mounted on the frame 101.
[0025] The waterproof component 2 includes a waterproof cover 201 with an opening mounted on the frame 101, an isolation plate 202 disposed within the waterproof cover 201, and a sealing gasket 203 disposed on the waterproof cover 201 at the opening; a detection sensor is disposed within the isolation plate 202. The support component 4 includes a mounting cover 401 disposed at the lower end of the waterproof cover 201, a mounting bracket 402 disposed on the mounting cover 401, and a guide bracket 403 disposed on the mounting bracket 402.
[0026] In this embodiment, the frame 101 is used to support the waterproof cover 201 and is controlled by the control unit 102. The thruster 103 is used to push the frame 101 to move, so that the underwater robot 1 can move the waterproof component 2 to the bottom of the water, thereby enabling the underwater part of the bridge pier to be inspected.
[0027] In use, the underwater robot 1 moves the waterproof component 2 so that the opening of the waterproof cover 201 faces the bridge pier. The underwater robot 1 dives to move the waterproof component 2 to the depth to be tested. At this time, the underwater robot 1 drives the waterproof cover 201 to press against the bridge pier and activates the drive component 7. The drive component 7 drives the swing component 8 and the cleaning component 6 to work. The swing component 8 drives the cleaning component 5 to reciprocate, so that the cleaning component 5 can scrape the bridge pier in the area to be tested, scraping off the dirt attached to the bridge pier. The cleaning component 6 can clean up the remaining dirt. Then the waterproof component 2 continues to move downward so that it can cover the cleaned area.
[0028] At this time, air is injected into the waterproof cover 201 through the drainage component 3, which increases the air pressure inside the waterproof cover 201. This causes the water inside the waterproof cover 201 to be discharged through the sealing gasket 203, creating a relatively waterless state inside the waterproof cover 201. When the water inside the waterproof cover 201 is discharged to the point that the isolation plate 202 is completely exposed and the operation of the detection sensor is no longer affected, the air is extracted from the waterproof cover 201 by the air pump, creating a negative pressure inside the waterproof cover 201. The sealing gasket 203 can then be firmly adhered to the pier. Since the pier has been cleaned by the cleaning component 5 and the sweeping component 6, the sealing performance of the sealing gasket 203 can be improved, thus maintaining stability. By applying a negative pressure to form a suction cup structure, the waterproof cover 201 remains in its current position, preventing shaking even in flowing water and preventing water from entering the waterproof cover 201. The detection sensor inside the isolation plate 202 can detect the pier through the isolation plate 202, thereby improving the accuracy of the detection.
[0029] In this invention, the detection sensor is installed in a transparent isolation plate 202 to isolate water and prevent it from affecting the operation of the detection sensor. Before detection, the bridge pier is cleaned to prevent dirt on the bridge pier from affecting the detection sensor. At the same time, during detection, the water in the waterproof cover 201 is extracted to prevent water from affecting the detection results. By drawing negative pressure out of the waterproof cover 201, a suction cup structure is formed, which keeps the waterproof cover 201 in the current position, so that the detection sensor can detect the bridge pier more stably. After the detection is completed, a certain amount of air is injected, and with the help of the underwater robot 1, the waterproof component 2 is moved, so that it can be moved to a new position for detection.
[0030] Example 2 like Figure 1-9 As shown, the bridge structure inspection robot proposed in this invention, compared with the first embodiment, the drainage component 3 in this embodiment includes a diversion pipe 302 disposed on the waterproof cover 201, an air inlet pipe 301 disposed on the diversion pipe 302, and a one-way drainage pipe 303 disposed at the lower end of the waterproof cover 201.
[0031] In this embodiment, the air inlet pipe 301 is connected to an air pump. During use, the underwater robot 1 first moves the waterproof component 2 to the bridge pier, ensuring that the waterproof component 2 is in contact with the bridge pier. The underwater robot 1 then moves the waterproof component 2 downwards to the underwater part of the bridge pier. After the cleaning component 5 and the sweeping component 6 have cleaned the dirt attached to the bridge pier, air is injected into the air inlet pipe 301 through the air pump, increasing the air pressure inside the waterproof cover 201 and thus expelling the water from the waterproof cover 201. The underwater robot 1 then pushes the waterproof component 2 against the bridge pier, causing the water inside the waterproof cover 201 to drain out through the one-way drain pipe 303. After the water is drained, the detection sensor is exposed, ensuring that the water will not affect the operation of the detection sensor. Then, the air inside the waterproof cover 201 is extracted, creating a negative pressure inside the waterproof cover 201, which causes the waterproof cover 201 to adhere to the bridge pier. This ensures greater stability and reliability during detection and prevents movement.
[0032] Example 3 like Figure 1-9 As shown, the bridge structure inspection robot proposed in this invention, compared with Embodiment 1 or Embodiment 2, the cleaning component 6 in this embodiment includes a rotating shaft 602 rotatably mounted on the mounting frame 402, and a spiral cleaning blade 601 mounted on the rotating shaft 602.
[0033] The drive assembly 7 includes a drive motor 701 mounted on the mounting cover 401 and connected to the rotating shaft 602 at its output end, two pulleys 702 mounted on the rotating shaft 602 and the reciprocating lead screw 805 respectively, and a transmission belt 703 mounted on the two pulleys 702.
[0034] In this embodiment, the drive motor 701 drives the rotating shaft 602 to rotate, which in turn drives the pulley 702 to rotate. The transmission belt 703 drives another pulley 702 to rotate, which in turn drives the reciprocating screw 805 to rotate. This allows the cleaning component 5 to reciprocate and scrape to clean the bridge pier. At the same time, the rotating shaft 602 drives the spiral cleaning blade 601 to rotate. The spiral cleaning blade 601 is made of soft rubber material and can sweep away the dirt remaining after the scraper 501 has removed it, thus ensuring that the bridge pier is clean and tidy, and thus enabling better inspection of the bridge pier.
[0035] Example 4 like Figure 1-9As shown, the bridge structure inspection robot proposed in this invention, compared with Embodiment 1, Embodiment 2 or Embodiment 3, the cleaning component 5 in this embodiment includes a guide rail 505 slidably mounted on the mounting frame 402, a sliding plate 504 mounted on the guide rail 505, two scraper rods 501 rotatably mounted on the sliding plate 504, two scraper rods 502 rotatably mounted on the sliding plate 504, and two sets of gears 503, two in each set, and each set meshing with each other, the two gears 503 being respectively mounted on scraper rod 501 and scraper rod 502.
[0036] The swing assembly 8 includes two sets of sliding rods 801, each set consisting of two rods, respectively mounted on scraper rod 1 501 and scraper rod 2 502; four sliding rods 802, slidably mounted on guide frame 403 and slidably connected to sliding rods 801; two connecting rods 803, rotatably hinged to sliding rods 802; sliding blocks 804, slidably mounted on mounting cover 401 and rotatably hinged to the two connecting rods 803; a reciprocating screw 805, rotatably mounted on mounting cover 401 and threadedly connected to sliding blocks 804; and two sets of elastic members 806, each set consisting of two members, mounted on sliding rods 802 for pushing sliding rods 801 to move.
[0037] The guide frame 403 is provided with a guide groove 4031, the slide rod 802 is slidably disposed in the guide groove 4031 and slides up and down along the guide groove 4031, the slide rod 801 is provided with a slide groove 8011, the slide rod 802 is embedded in the slide groove 8011, and the slide groove 8011 slides on the slide rod 802.
[0038] In this embodiment, the drive assembly 7 drives the reciprocating screw 805 to rotate, the reciprocating screw 805 drives the sliding block 804 to move back and forth, the sliding block 804 drives the two connecting rods 803 to move, the connecting rods 803 push the sliding rod 802 to move up and down in the guide groove 4031, the sliding rod 802 drives the sliding rod 801 to move, the sliding rod 801 drives the scraper 501 to swing up and down, so that the scraper 501 swings up and down around the sliding plate 504, thereby scraping and cleaning the dirt attached to the bridge pier. Due to the rigid structure of the scraper 501, it can scrape more heavily attached areas. The scraper 501, together with the sliding rod 801, the sliding rod 802 and the connecting rod 803, forms a scissor transmission structure. The scraper 501 is a force-saving lever structure, which can obtain a large shearing force and can better clean the bridge pier.
[0039] The second scraper 502 is driven to rotate by the gear 503, so that the second scraper 502 can swing with the first scraper 501, thus enabling simultaneous cleaning operations. After the dirt on the bridge pier is cleaned, the detection sensor can easily detect the bridge pier.
[0040] An elastic element 806 is provided on the guide rail 505. The elastic element 806 pushes the sliding rod 801 to move, and the elastic element 806 on the guide rail 505 pushes the sliding plate 504 to move. The sliding plate 504 drives the scraper 501 to move, so that the scraper 501 can press on the bridge pier, thereby providing pressure and cleaning the bridge pier better, and cleaning the area to be inspected.
[0041] After the waterproof component 2 is attached to the bridge pier, the underwater robot 1 moves the waterproof component 2 downwards, allowing the cleaning component 5 to clean the bridge pier first, removing dirt from the area to be detected. This enables the detection sensor to better detect the bridge pier and avoids the detection sensor from being affected by dirt adhering to the bridge pier.
[0042] The embodiments of the present invention have been described in detail above with reference to the accompanying drawings. However, the present invention is not limited thereto. Various changes can be made within the scope of knowledge possessed by those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit of the present invention.
Claims
1. A bridge structure inspection robot, characterized in that: include, Underwater robot (1); A waterproof component (2) is mounted on the underwater robot (1); A detection sensor is disposed within the waterproof component (2); A drainage component (3) is disposed on the waterproof component (2); Support component (4) is disposed on the waterproof component (2); Cleaning component (5) is slidably mounted on the support component (4); The cleaning component (6) is rotatably mounted on the support component (4); A swing component (8) is mounted on the support component (4) for driving the cleaning component (5) to reciprocate; A drive component (7) is mounted on the support component (4) for driving the cleaning component (5) and the sweeping component (6) to work.
2. The bridge structure inspection robot according to claim 1, characterized in that, The underwater robot (1) includes a frame (101), a control unit (102) disposed on the frame (101), and a thruster (103) disposed on the frame (101).
3. The bridge structure inspection robot according to claim 2, characterized in that, The waterproof component (2) includes a waterproof cover (201) with an opening disposed on the frame (101), an isolation plate (202) disposed inside the waterproof cover (201), and a sealing gasket (203) disposed on the waterproof cover (201) and located at the opening; the detection sensor is disposed inside the isolation plate (202).
4. The bridge structure inspection robot according to claim 3, characterized in that, The drainage assembly (3) includes a diversion pipe (302) disposed on the waterproof cover (201), an air inlet pipe (301) disposed on the diversion pipe (302), and a one-way drain pipe (303) disposed at the lower end of the waterproof cover (201).
5. The bridge structure inspection robot according to claim 4, characterized in that, The support assembly (4) includes a mounting cover (401) disposed at the lower end of the waterproof cover (201), a mounting bracket (402) disposed on the mounting cover (401), and a guide bracket (403) disposed on the mounting bracket (402).
6. The bridge structure inspection robot according to claim 5, characterized in that, The cleaning assembly (5) includes a guide rail (505) slidably mounted on the mounting bracket (402), a sliding plate (504) mounted on the guide rail (505), two scraper rods (501) rotatably mounted on the sliding plate (504), two scraper rods (502) rotatably mounted on the sliding plate (504), and two sets of gears (503) meshing with each other, with the two gears (503) respectively mounted on the scraper rods (501) and the scraper rods (502).
7. The bridge structure inspection robot according to claim 6, characterized in that, The cleaning assembly (6) includes a rotating shaft (602) rotatably mounted on the mounting bracket (402) and a spiral cleaning blade (601) mounted on the rotating shaft (602).
8. The bridge structure inspection robot according to claim 7, characterized in that, The swing assembly (8) includes two sets of two sliding rods respectively disposed on the first scraper (501) and the second scraper (502), four sliding rods (802) slidably disposed on the guide frame (403) and slidably connected to the sliding rods (801), two connecting rods (803) rotatably hinged to the sliding rods (802), a sliding block (804) slidably disposed on the mounting cover (401) and rotatably hinged to the two connecting rods (803), a reciprocating screw (805) rotatably disposed on the mounting cover (401) and threadedly connected to the sliding block (804), and two sets of two elastic elements (806) disposed on the sliding rods (802) for pushing the sliding rods (801) to move.
9. A bridge structure inspection robot according to claim 8, characterized in that, The guide frame (403) is provided with a guide groove (4031), the slide rod (802) is slidably disposed in the guide groove (4031) and slides up and down along the guide groove (4031), the slide rod (801) is provided with a slide groove (8011), the slide rod (802) is embedded in the slide groove (8011), and the slide groove (8011) slides on the slide rod (802).
10. A bridge structure inspection robot according to claim 9, characterized in that, The drive assembly (7) includes a drive motor (701) mounted on the mounting cover (401) and connected at its output end to the rotating shaft (602), two pulleys (702) mounted on the rotating shaft (602) and the reciprocating lead screw (805) respectively, and a transmission belt (703) mounted on the two pulleys (702).