An ultrasonic detection mechanism and method

Abstract

The application discloses an ultrasonic detection mechanism and a detection method, and relates to the technical field of robots, in particular to an ultrasonic detection mechanism applied to a wall-climbing robot, which is used for climbing a tower column wall surface. The ultrasonic detection mechanism comprises a driving element, a sleeve and an ultrasonic probe. The driving end of the driving element is provided with a moving plate and is used for driving the moving plate to move linearly and reciprocally. One end of the sleeve is connected to the moving plate through an elastic connecting element and can be flipped and adjusted in posture relative to the moving plate, and the other end is used for abutting against the tower column wall surface. One end of the ultrasonic probe is connected to the moving plate through a flexible connecting element, and the other end is slidably arranged in the sleeve. The end face of the ultrasonic probe, which is away from the moving plate, and the inner wall of the sleeve enclose a filling cavity. An injection port, which is in communication with the filling cavity, is arranged through the side wall of the sleeve, and the other end of the injection port is in communication with a coupling agent supply assembly. The application can automatically fill the coupling agent between the ultrasonic probe and the tower column wall surface uniformly on the basis of ensuring that the ultrasonic probe and the tower column wall surface are kept in good contact.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to the field of wind turbine tower inspection technology, specifically to an ultrasonic testing mechanism and method. Background Technology

[0002] To ensure the quality of wind turbine towers, internal defects need to be detected after the towers are manufactured. Using a wall-climbing robot equipped with ultrasonic equipment is an effective method for detecting these internal defects. During the inspection, the ultrasonic probe must maintain good contact with the tower wall, and coupling agent must be filled between the probe and the tower wall to eliminate air between them.

[0003] Considering the unevenness of the tower wall, most existing ultrasonic devices use a spring between the compression mechanism and the ultrasonic probe to ensure a good fit between the ultrasonic probe and the tower wall. However, these devices are not convenient for uniformly filling the coupling agent between the ultrasonic probe and the tower wall, resulting in inconvenience and insufficient detection accuracy. Summary of the Invention

[0004] In view of this, the present invention provides an ultrasonic testing mechanism and testing method to solve the problems of existing ultrasonic equipment used for detecting internal defects in tower columns, which is inconvenient to use and has insufficient detection accuracy because it is not easy to uniformly fill the coupling agent between the ultrasonic probe and the tower column wall.

[0005] In a first aspect, the present invention provides an ultrasonic testing mechanism for use in a wall-climbing robot, the wall-climbing robot being used to climb the tower wall of a wind turbine, the ultrasonic testing mechanism comprising:

[0006] Drive components are installed on the wall-climbing robot;

[0007] A movable plate is disposed at the driving end of the driving component and is driven by the driving component to move linearly reciprocally.

[0008] A sleeve is connected to the movable plate via an elastic connector, so that the sleeve can be flipped relative to the movable plate to adjust its posture. The end face of the sleeve facing away from the movable plate is used to abut against the tower column wall.

[0009] An ultrasonic probe is connected to the moving plate at one end via a flexible connector, and the other end of the ultrasonic probe is slidably disposed within the sleeve; the flexible connector has a folded state and an unfolded state; the end face of the ultrasonic probe facing away from the moving plate and the inner wall of the sleeve form a filling cavity.

[0010] An injection port is provided through the side wall of the sleeve. One end of the injection port is connected to the filling cavity, and the other end is connected to the coupling agent supply assembly.

[0011] An ultrasonic testing mechanism according to the present invention has at least the following beneficial effects:

[0012] An elastic connector connects the moving plate and the sleeve, and a flexible connector connects the moving plate and the ultrasonic probe, achieving a soft connection between the moving plate, the sleeve, and the ultrasonic probe. An injection port is formed through the side wall of the sleeve. When using this ultrasonic testing mechanism to perform ultrasonic testing on a locally uneven tower wall, the climbing robot is first controlled to crawl along the tower wall to a set point and then stop. Then, the drive unit drives the sleeve and ultrasonic probe to move along with the moving plate towards the test position on the tower wall. After the sleeve makes partial contact with the tower wall, the elastic connector is compressed until the sleeve adjusts its posture and fits tightly against the tower wall for surface contact, forming a closed space in the filling cavity. During this process, the flexible connector remains folded, not transmitting thrust to the ultrasonic probe, thus preventing the ultrasonic probe from being relatively... The sleeve moves to ensure the ultrasonic probe does not obstruct the injection port; then, the coupling agent supply assembly is controlled to fill the filling cavity, forming a closed space, with coupling agent through the injection port; next, the drive unit drives the moving plate to compress the elastic connector and move closer to the tower wall. After the moving plate comes into contact with the ultrasonic probe, it pushes the ultrasonic probe, guided inside the sleeve, to move relative to the sleeve and closer to the tower wall, squeezing the coupling agent until the probe tip of the ultrasonic probe is tightly against the tower wall. During this process, the elastic connector is continuously compressed to ensure that the sleeve is always in surface contact with the tower wall, thereby ensuring that the coupling agent is evenly filled between the probe tip of the ultrasonic probe and the tower wall. This achieves automatic and even filling of the coupling agent between the ultrasonic probe and the tower wall while ensuring a good fit between the ultrasonic probe and the tower wall, thus ensuring detection accuracy.

[0013] In one optional embodiment, the sleeve has an overflow outlet recessed on the end face opposite to the movable plate, the overflow outlet penetrates the side wall of the sleeve radially, and the overflow outlet is located at the top of the sleeve in the vertical direction.

[0014] In one alternative embodiment, the coupling agent supply assembly includes:

[0015] Coupling agent container, mounted on the wall-climbing robot;

[0016] Connect the tubing, with one end connected to the coupling agent container and the other end connected to the injection port;

[0017] The pump body is connected between the connecting hose and the coupling agent container.

[0018] In one alternative embodiment, the flexible connector is configured as a connecting rope, which drives the moving plate to move via the driving member, thereby switching the connecting rope between the folded state and the unfolded state.

[0019] In one alternative embodiment, the elastic connector is configured as a helical spring, with the portion of the ultrasonic probe extending outside the sleeve located inside the helical spring.

[0020] Secondly, the present invention also provides a detection method, which uses the ultrasonic testing mechanism provided in the first aspect to detect the tower column wall surface, the detection method comprising the following steps:

[0021] Control the wall-climbing robot to crawl along the tower wall to the corresponding location to be inspected;

[0022] The control drive unit drives the sleeve and ultrasonic probe to move close to the tower wall along with the moving plate. After the sleeve makes partial contact with the tower wall, the elastic connector is compressed until the sleeve adjusts its posture and makes surface contact with the tower wall, thus forming a closed space in the filling cavity.

[0023] The coupling agent supply assembly is used to fill the filling cavity with coupling agent.

[0024] The control drive unit drives the moving plate to move close to the tower wall via the compression elastic connector, so that the moving plate abuts against the ultrasonic probe and pushes the ultrasonic probe to move relative to the sleeve and close to the tower wall within the sleeve until the probe end of the ultrasonic probe is in close contact with the tower wall, and the coupling agent is filled between the probe end of the ultrasonic probe and the tower wall.

[0025] According to a detection method of the present invention, at least the following beneficial effects are achieved:

[0026] An elastic connector connects the moving plate and the sleeve, and a flexible connector connects the moving plate and the ultrasonic probe, achieving a soft connection between the moving plate, the sleeve, and the ultrasonic probe. An injection port is formed through the side wall of the sleeve. When using this testing method to perform ultrasonic testing on a locally uneven tower wall based on an ultrasonic testing mechanism, first, the wall-climbing robot is controlled to crawl along the tower wall to a set point and then stop. Then, the drive unit is controlled to move the sleeve and the ultrasonic probe, along with the moving plate, towards the position to be tested on the tower wall. After the sleeve makes partial contact with the tower wall, the elastic connector is compressed until the sleeve adjusts its posture and tightly contacts the tower wall, forming a closed space in the filling cavity. During this process, the flexible connector remains folded and does not transmit thrust to the ultrasonic probe, keeping the ultrasonic probe essentially... The system prevents relative movement of the sleeve, ensuring the ultrasonic probe does not obstruct the injection port. Then, the coupling agent supply assembly is controlled to inject coupling agent into the filling cavity forming a closed space through the injection port. Next, the drive unit drives the moving plate, which then compresses the elastic connector and moves closer to the tower wall. After contacting the ultrasonic probe, the moving plate pushes the probe, guided inside the sleeve, to move relative to the sleeve and towards the tower wall, compressing the coupling agent until the probe's detection end is tightly against the tower wall. During this process, the elastic connector is continuously compressed, ensuring the sleeve remains in surface contact with the tower wall. This ensures the coupling agent is evenly filled between the probe's detection end and the tower wall, achieving automatic and even filling of the space between the ultrasonic probe and the tower wall while maintaining good contact, thus ensuring detection accuracy.

[0027] In one optional embodiment, the sleeve has an overflow port recessed on the end face opposite to the moving plate, the overflow port penetrating the side wall of the sleeve radially, and the overflow port is located at the top of the sleeve in the vertical direction; the step of pushing the ultrasonic probe to move relative to the sleeve and close to the tower wall within the sleeve further includes the following steps:

[0028] The coupling agent located in the filling cavity moves near the end face of the sleeve away from the moving plate, and part of the coupling agent flows out through the overflow port.

[0029] In one optional embodiment, after the ultrasonic probe is attached to the tower wall with a coupling agent to complete the ultrasonic detection, the following steps are further included:

[0030] The driving component is controlled to drive the moving plate away from the tower wall, so that the elastic connector gradually returns to its original position and the flexible connector gradually switches from a folded state to an unfolded state.

[0031] When the flexible connector is switched to the unfolded state, the elastic connector remains in the compressed state. Then, the moving plate is driven to move away from the tower wall, so that the flexible connector in the unfolded state drives the ultrasonic probe to move relative to the sleeve and closer to the driving member in the sleeve until the elastic connector is reset.

[0032] Next, the driving component is controlled to drive the moving plate away from the tower wall, so that the sleeve moves away from the tower wall and resets.

[0033] In one optional embodiment, the control coupling agent supply assembly fills the filling cavity with coupling agent, including the following steps:

[0034] The pump body is started to fill the filling cavity with the coupling agent located in the coupling agent container through the connecting hose and the injection port in sequence;

[0035] The pump body is stopped when the coupling agent in the filling cavity fills at least four-fifths of the volume space of the filling cavity.

[0036] In one alternative implementation, the pump is stopped when the coupling agent located in the filling cavity fills four-fifths of the volume space of the filling cavity. Attached Figure Description

[0037] To more clearly illustrate the specific embodiments of the present invention or the technical solutions in the prior art, the drawings used in the description of the specific embodiments or the prior art will be briefly introduced below. Obviously, the drawings described below are some embodiments of the present invention. For those skilled in the art, other drawings can be obtained from these drawings without creative effort.

[0038] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of the front view structure applied to the wall-climbing robot in this embodiment;

[0039] Figure 2 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of the wall-climbing robot adhering to the tower wall used in this embodiment;

[0040] Figure 3 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of the sleeve assembled on the wall-climbing robot in this embodiment after partial contact with the tower wall.

[0041] Figure 4 This is a schematic diagram of the structure after the filling cavity of the wall-climbing robot in this embodiment is filled with coupling agent;

[0042] Figure 5 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of the ultrasonic probe in this embodiment of the wall-climbing robot after the probe end is in close contact with the tower wall.

[0043] Figure 6 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of the sleeve assembled on the wall-climbing robot in this embodiment after it is separated from the tower wall.

[0044] Explanation of reference numerals in the attached figures:

[0045] 100 - Wall-climbing robot, 110 - Robot body, 120 - Suction cup, 130 - Connecting plate;

[0046] 200-Tower wall;

[0047] 3-Ultrasonic testing institutions;

[0048] 300-Driver;

[0049] 400-Mobile Board;

[0050] 500-Sleeve, 510-Elastic connector, 520-Filling cavity, 530-Injection port, 540-Overflow port;

[0051] 600 - Ultrasonic probe; 610 - Flexible connector;

[0052] 710 - Coupling agent container; 720 - Connecting hose; 730 - Pump body;

[0053] 800-Coupled Agent. Detailed Implementation

[0054] To make the objectives, technical solutions, and advantages of the embodiments of the present invention clearer, the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present invention will be clearly and completely described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. Obviously, the described embodiments are only some embodiments of the present invention, not all embodiments. Based on the embodiments of the present invention, all other embodiments obtained by those skilled in the art without creative effort are within the scope of protection of the present invention.

[0055] In the description of this embodiment, it should be noted that the terms "center," "upper," "lower," "left," "right," "vertical," "horizontal," "inner," and "outer," etc., indicate the orientation or positional relationship based on the orientation or positional relationship shown in the accompanying drawings. They are only for the convenience of describing this embodiment and simplifying the description, and do not indicate or imply that the device or element referred to must have a specific orientation, or be constructed and operated in a specific orientation. Therefore, they should not be construed as limitations on this embodiment. In addition, the terms "first," "second," and "third" are used for descriptive purposes only and should not be construed as indicating or implying relative importance.

[0056] In the description of this embodiment, it should be noted that, unless otherwise explicitly specified and limited, the terms "installation," "connection," and "linking" should be interpreted broadly. For example, they can refer to a fixed connection, a detachable connection, or an integral connection; they can refer to a mechanical connection or an electrical connection; they can refer to a direct connection or an indirect connection through an intermediate medium; and they can refer to the internal connection of two components. Those skilled in the art can understand the specific meaning of the above terms in this embodiment according to the specific circumstances.

[0057] The following is combined Figures 1 to 6 The following describes embodiments of the present invention.

[0058] According to a first aspect of the present invention, an ultrasonic testing mechanism is provided for use in a wall-climbing robot 100, which is used to climb the wall surface 200 of a wind turbine tower. The ultrasonic testing mechanism 3 includes a drive member 300, a sleeve 500, and an ultrasonic probe 600. The drive member 300 is mounted on the wall-climbing robot 100. A movable plate 400 is provided at the drive end of the drive member 300, and is used to drive the movable plate 400 to move linearly reciprocally. The sleeve 500 is connected to the movable plate 400 through an elastic connector 510, so that the sleeve 500 can be flipped relative to the movable plate 400 to adjust its posture. The end face of the sleeve 500 facing away from the moving plate 400 is used to abut against the tower wall 200; one end of the ultrasonic probe 600 is connected to the moving plate 400 through a flexible connector 610, and the other end of the ultrasonic probe 600 is slidably disposed inside the sleeve 500; the flexible connector 610 has a folded state and an unfolded state; the end face of the ultrasonic probe 600 facing away from the moving plate 400 and the inner wall of the sleeve 500 form a filling cavity 520; an injection port 530 is provided through the side wall of the sleeve 500, one end of the injection port 530 is connected to the filling cavity 520, and the other end is connected to the coupling agent supply assembly.

[0059] In this embodiment, the ultrasonic testing mechanism 3 is connected between the moving plate 400 and the sleeve 500 by an elastic connector 510, and between the moving plate 400 and the ultrasonic probe 600 by a flexible connector 610, thus achieving a soft connection between the moving plate 400, the sleeve 500, and the ultrasonic probe 600. An injection port 530 is formed through the side wall of the sleeve 500. When using the ultrasonic testing mechanism 3 of this embodiment to perform ultrasonic testing on a locally uneven tower wall 200, firstly, the wall-climbing robot 100 is controlled to climb the tower wall 200 to a set point and then stop. Then, the drive unit 300 is controlled to drive the sleeve 500 and the ultrasonic probe 600 to move together with the moving plate 400 towards the position to be tested on the tower wall 200. Figure 3 and Figure 4As shown, after the sleeve 500 partially contacts the tower wall 200, the elastic connector 510 is compressed until the sleeve 500 adjusts its posture to fit tightly against the tower wall 200 for surface contact, and the filling cavity 520 forms a closed space. During this process, the flexible connector 610 remains folded and does not transmit thrust to the ultrasonic probe 600, ensuring that the ultrasonic probe 600 does not move relative to the sleeve 500, thus ensuring that the ultrasonic probe 600 does not obstruct the injection port 530; Figure 4 As shown, the coupling agent supply assembly is then controlled to fill the filling cavity 520, which forms a closed space, with coupling agent 800 through the injection port 530; as shown Figure 5 As shown, the control drive 300 drives the moving plate 400 to compress the elastic connector 510 and move it closer to the tower wall 200. After the moving plate 400 comes into contact with the ultrasonic probe 600, it pushes the ultrasonic probe 600 to move relative to the sleeve 500 and closer to the tower wall 200 under the guidance inside the sleeve 500, squeezing the coupling agent 800. This fully removes the air between the ultrasonic probe 600 and the tower wall 200 until the detection end of the ultrasonic probe 600 is tightly attached to the tower wall 200. During this process, the elastic connector 510 is continuously compressed to ensure that the sleeve 500 is always in surface contact with the tower wall 200. This ensures that the coupling agent 800 is evenly filled between the detection end of the ultrasonic probe 600 and the tower wall 200. This achieves automatic and even filling of the coupling agent 800 between the ultrasonic probe 600 and the tower wall 200 while ensuring a good fit between the ultrasonic probe 600 and the tower wall 200, thus ensuring detection accuracy.

[0060] It should be noted that after the ultrasonic probe 600 is firmly attached to the tower wall 200 using coupling agent 800 to complete the ultrasonic testing, as follows: Figure 5 and Figure 6 As shown, the control drive 300 drives the moving plate 400 to move away from the tower wall 200. At this time, the elastic connector 510 gradually resets, and the flexible connector 610 gradually switches from the folded state to the unfolded state, ensuring that the elastic connector 510 remains compressed (i.e., not reset) after the flexible connector 610 switches to the unfolded state. Subsequently, as the moving plate 400 moves away from the tower wall 200 and the elastic connector 510 resets, the flexible connector 610 in the unfolded state can transmit tension to the ultrasonic probe 600, causing the ultrasonic probe 600 to move relative to the sleeve 500 and closer to the drive 300 within the sleeve 500. This ensures that after the drive sleeve 500 moves away from the tower wall 200 and resets, the ultrasonic probe 600 also resets and does not obstruct the injection port 530. This facilitates the wall-climbing robot 100 to transfer the ultrasonic detection mechanism 3 of this embodiment to another detection position on the corresponding tower wall 200 for detection.

[0061] It should be noted that during the process of adjusting the sleeve 500 to make surface contact with the tower wall 200, the foldable characteristics provided by the flexible connector 610 allow the ultrasonic probe 600 to adjust its posture accordingly along with the sleeve 500. It can be understood that the posture of the sleeve 500 mentioned in this text refers to its directional state in three-dimensional space.

[0062] It should be noted that in this embodiment, the end face of the sleeve 500 is first fully attached to the tower column wall 200 in a face-to-face contact manner, so that the filling cavity 520 forms a closed space, and then the coupling agent 800 is filled into the filling cavity 520. This can effectively prevent the coupling agent 800 from flowing out and being wasted during the filling process.

[0063] It is understandable that, such as Figure 4 As shown, when the end face of the sleeve 500 is fully pressed against the tower wall 200 in a face-to-face contact manner, the injection port 530 is located at the end face of the ultrasonic probe 600 away from the moving plate 400. During the process of starting the coupling agent supply component to inject coupling agent 800 into the filling cavity 520, it is ensured that the ultrasonic probe 600 will not block or seal the injection port 530, thereby ensuring that the coupling agent 800 is filled into the filling cavity 520 through the injection port 530.

[0064] In practical applications, the drive unit 300 can be set as either a linear motor or an electric telescopic rod, so that both the drive unit 300 and the wall-climbing robot 100 are powered by electricity, without the need for an additional air or hydraulic source, thus simplifying the structure.

[0065] In specific applications, such as Figure 2 As shown, the wall-climbing robot 100 is configured as a negative pressure adsorption type wheel-driven wall-climbing robot 100. The wall-climbing robot 100 includes a robot body 110. A suction cup 120 is provided on the underside of the robot body 110. When the wall-climbing robot 100 climbs to a set position on the tower wall 200, the robot body 110 is adsorbed and fixed on the tower wall 200 by vacuum adsorption using the suction cup 120. A connecting plate 130 is provided on the robot body 110. In this embodiment, the ultrasonic detection mechanism 3 is installed on the connecting plate 130.

[0066] like Figure 1 , Figure 3 and Figure 5As shown, in some embodiments, the sleeve 500 has an overflow port 540 recessed on the end face opposite to the moving plate 400. The overflow port 540 penetrates the side wall of the sleeve 500 radially and is located at the top of the sleeve 500 in the vertical direction. By placing the overflow port 540 at the top of the sleeve 500, with the overflow port 540 located on the end face of the sleeve 500 away from the moving plate 400, on the one hand, during the process of controlling the coupling agent supply assembly to inject the coupling agent 800 into the filling cavity 520, it is ensured that the coupling agent 800 in the filling cavity 520 will not flow out from the overflow port 540 under the action of gravity, thus reducing the waste of coupling agent 800; on the other hand, during the process of the moving plate 400 pushing the ultrasonic probe 600 to move relative to the sleeve 500 and close to the tower wall 200 under the guidance of the sleeve 500, the overflow port 540 can allow the air and excess coupling agent 800 located between the ultrasonic probe 600 and the tower wall 200 to flow out, which is convenient for pushing the ultrasonic probe 600 close to the tower wall 200 and also helps to uniformly fill the space between the probe end of the ultrasonic probe 600 and the tower wall 200 with coupling agent 800.

[0067] It should be understood that because the overflow port 540 is located on the end face of the sleeve 500 away from the moving plate 400, and the ultrasonic probe 600, after being moved into position relative to the tower wall 200 under the guidance inside the sleeve 500, blocks the overflow port 540, the coupling agent 800 injected into the filling cavity 520 moves towards the end face of the sleeve 500 away from the moving plate 400 under the push of the ultrasonic probe 600 and then flows out through the overflow port 540. This ensures that the coupling agent 800 is evenly filled between the detection end of the ultrasonic probe 600 and the tower wall 200.

[0068] like Figure 1 and Figure 2 As shown, in some embodiments, the coupling agent supply assembly includes a coupling agent container 710, a connecting hose 720, and a pump body 730. The coupling agent container 710 is mounted on the wall-climbing robot 100. One end of the connecting hose 720 is connected to the coupling agent container 710, and the other end is connected to the injection port 530. The pump body 730 is connected between the connecting hose 720 and the coupling agent container 710. The extension / retraction provided by the connecting hose 720 ensures that the sleeve 500 moves smoothly relative to the drive member 300 while the coupling agent container 710 is connected to the injection port 530.

[0069] In some embodiments, the flexible connector 610 is configured as a connecting rope, which drives the moving plate 400 to move via the driving member 300, allowing the connecting rope to switch between the folded state and the unfolded state. The connecting rope is inexpensive and lightweight, which helps to reduce the cost and weight of this embodiment, thereby making it more advantageous for the wall-climbing robot 100 to carry this embodiment along as it climbs the tower wall 200 of the wind turbine.

[0070] like Figures 3 to 6 As shown, in some embodiments, the elastic connector 510 is configured as a helical spring, and the portion of the ultrasonic probe 600 extending outside the sleeve 500 is located inside the helical spring. The two ends of the helical spring are connected to the moving plate 400 and the sleeve 500 respectively, encircling the helical spring once in its circumference. This facilitates a more even and stable transmission of the driving force applied to the moving plate 400 to the sleeve 500. It also allows the sleeve 500 to adjust its posture to fit tightly against the tower wall 200 in a surface-to-surface manner, and ensures that the tightness between the sleeve 500 and the tower wall 200 along the circumference of the helical spring is essentially the same at all positions. This effectively prevents the coupling agent 800 from flowing out and being wasted during the filling of the filling cavity 520.

[0071] like Figures 1 to 6 As shown, according to a second aspect of the present invention, a detection method is also provided, which uses the ultrasonic testing mechanism provided in the first aspect of the present invention to detect the tower column wall 200. The detection method includes the following steps:

[0072] Control the wall-climbing robot 100 to climb on the tower wall 200 to the corresponding position to be detected;

[0073] The control drive 300 drives the sleeve 500 and the ultrasonic probe 600 to move close to the tower wall 200 together with the moving plate 400. After the sleeve 500 makes partial contact with the tower wall 200, the elastic connector 510 is compressed until the sleeve 500 adjusts its posture and sticks tightly to the tower wall 200 for surface contact, and the filling cavity 520 forms a closed space.

[0074] The coupling agent supply assembly is used to fill the filling cavity 520 with coupling agent 800.

[0075] The control drive unit 300 drives the moving plate 400 to compress the elastic connector 510 and move it closer to the tower wall 200, so that the moving plate 400 abuts against the ultrasonic probe 600 and pushes the ultrasonic probe 600 within the sleeve 500 relative to the sleeve 500 and closer to the tower wall 200, until the detection end of the ultrasonic probe 600 is in close contact with the tower wall 200, and the coupling agent 800 is filled between the detection end of the ultrasonic probe 600 and the tower wall 200.

[0076] The ultrasonic testing mechanism used in this embodiment connects the moving plate 400 and the sleeve 500 via an elastic connector 510, and connects the moving plate 400 and the ultrasonic probe 600 via a flexible connector 610, thus achieving a soft connection between the moving plate 400, the sleeve 500, and the ultrasonic probe 600. An injection port 530 is formed through the side wall of the sleeve 500. When using the ultrasonic testing mechanism of this embodiment to perform ultrasonic testing on the locally uneven tower column wall 200, the climbing mechanism is first controlled... The wall robot 100 crawls along the tower wall 200 to a set point and then stops. Subsequently, the control drive 300 drives the sleeve 500 and the ultrasonic probe 600, along with the moving plate 400, to move closer to the detection position on the tower wall 200. After the sleeve 500 makes partial contact with the tower wall 200, the elastic connector 510 is compressed until the sleeve 500 adjusts its posture and adheres tightly to the tower wall 200 for surface contact, thus forming a closed space in the filling cavity 520. During this process, the flexible connector 610 remains folded and does not transmit thrust to the ultrasonic probe 600, preventing the ultrasonic probe from being fully activated. The ultrasonic probe 600 remains relatively stationary relative to the sleeve 500, ensuring that it does not obstruct the injection port 530. Then, the coupling agent supply assembly is controlled to inject coupling agent 800 into the filling cavity 520, forming a closed space, through the injection port 530. Next, the drive unit 300 drives the moving plate 400 to compress the elastic connector 510 and move it closer to the tower wall 200. After the moving plate 400 contacts the ultrasonic probe 600, it pushes the ultrasonic probe 600, guided within the sleeve 500, to move relative to the sleeve 500 and closer to the tower wall 200, compressing and coupling it. The coupling agent 800 is applied until the probe end of the ultrasonic probe 600 is tightly pressed against the tower wall 200. During this process, the elastic connector 510 is continuously pressed to ensure that the sleeve 500 is always in surface contact with the tower wall 200. This ensures that the coupling agent 800 is evenly filled between the probe end of the ultrasonic probe 600 and the tower wall 200, thereby automatically and evenly filling the space between the ultrasonic probe 600 and the tower wall 200 while ensuring a good fit between them, thus ensuring detection accuracy.

[0077] In some embodiments, the sleeve 500 has an overflow port 540 recessed on its end face away from the moving plate 400. The overflow port 540 penetrates the side wall of the sleeve 500 radially and is located at the top of the sleeve 500 in the vertical direction. The step of pushing the ultrasonic probe 600 to move within the sleeve 500 relative to the sleeve 500 near the tower column wall 200 further includes the following steps:

[0078] The coupling agent 800 located in the filling cavity 520 moves close to the end face of the sleeve 500 away from the moving plate 400, and part of the coupling agent 800 flows out through the overflow port 540.

[0079] The ultrasonic testing mechanism used in this embodiment has an overflow port 540 located at the top of the sleeve 500, and the overflow port 540 is located on the end face of the sleeve 500 away from the moving plate 400. During the process of the moving plate 400 pushing the ultrasonic probe 600 to move relative to the sleeve 500 and close to the tower wall 200 under the guidance of the sleeve 500, the overflow port 540 can allow the air and excess coupling agent 800 located between the ultrasonic probe 600 and the tower wall 200 to flow out. This facilitates pushing the ultrasonic probe 600 closer to the tower wall 200 and also helps to uniformly fill the space between the probe end of the ultrasonic probe 600 and the tower wall 200 with the coupling agent 800, thereby improving the detection accuracy.

[0080] like Figure 5 and Figure 6 As shown, in some embodiments, after the ultrasonic probe 600 is attached to the tower wall 200 by a coupling agent 800 to complete the ultrasonic detection, the detection method further includes the following steps:

[0081] The drive unit 300 is controlled to drive the moving plate 400 away from the tower wall 200, so that the elastic connector 510 gradually returns to its original position, and the flexible connector 610 gradually switches from the folded state to the unfolded state.

[0082] When the flexible connector 610 is switched to the unfolded state, the elastic connector 510 remains in the compressed state. Then, the moving plate 400 is driven to move away from the tower wall 200, so that the flexible connector 610 in the unfolded state drives the ultrasonic probe 600 to move relative to the sleeve 500 and closer to the driving member 300 within the sleeve 500 until the elastic connector 510 is reset.

[0083] Next, the drive unit 300 is controlled to drive the moving plate 400 away from the tower wall 200, so that the sleeve 500 moves away from the tower wall 200 and resets.

[0084] In this embodiment, the ultrasonic probe 600 is attached to the tower wall 200 by coupling agent 800 at its detection end to complete the ultrasonic detection. Figure 5 and Figure 6 As shown, the control drive 300 drives the moving plate 400 to move away from the tower wall 200. At this time, the elastic connector 510 gradually resets, and the flexible connector 610 gradually switches from the folded state to the unfolded state, ensuring that the elastic connector 510 remains compressed (i.e., not reset) after the flexible connector 610 switches to the unfolded state. Subsequently, as the moving plate 400 moves away from the tower wall 200 and the elastic connector 510 resets, the flexible connector 610 in the unfolded state can transmit tension to the ultrasonic probe 600, causing the ultrasonic probe 600 to move relative to the sleeve 500 and closer to the drive 300 within the sleeve 500. This ensures that after the drive sleeve 500 moves away from the tower wall 200 and resets, the ultrasonic probe 600 also resets and does not obstruct the injection port 530. This facilitates the wall-climbing robot 100 to transfer the ultrasonic detection mechanism 3 of this embodiment to another detection position on the corresponding tower wall 200 for detection.

[0085] In some embodiments, the control of the coupling agent supply assembly to fill the filling cavity 520 with coupling agent 800 includes the following steps:

[0086] The pump body 730 is started to fill the filling cavity 520 with the coupling agent 800 located in the coupling agent container 710 through the connecting hose 720 and the injection port 530 in sequence.

[0087] When the coupling agent 800 located in the filling cavity 520 fills at least four-fifths of the volume space of the filling cavity 520, the pump body 730 is controlled to stop.

[0088] In this embodiment, the pump body 730 is stopped after the coupling agent 800 has filled at least four-fifths of the volume space of the filling cavity 520, ensuring that the coupling agent 800 is uniformly filled between the ultrasonic probe 600 and the tower wall 200, thereby improving accuracy.

[0089] Considering that after the coupling agent 800 is filled into the filling cavity 520, it is necessary to push the ultrasonic probe 600 to move relative to the tower wall 200 under the guidance inside the sleeve 500 to squeeze the coupling agent 800, and to make some of the coupling agent 800 flow out through the overflow port 540, in order to reduce the waste of coupling agent 800 while ensuring that the coupling agent 800 is uniformly filled between the ultrasonic probe 600 and the tower wall 200, specifically, when the coupling agent 800 in the filling cavity 520 fills four-fifths of the volume space of the filling cavity 520, the pump body 730 is controlled to stop.

[0090] Although embodiments of the invention have been described in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, those skilled in the art can make various modifications and variations without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention, and all such modifications and variations fall within the scope defined by the appended invention.

Claims

1. An ultrasonic testing mechanism applied to a wall-climbing robot (100) for climbing on the tower wall (200) of a wind turbine, characterized in that, The ultrasonic testing mechanism includes: A drive unit (300) is mounted on the wall-climbing robot (100); A movable plate (400) is disposed at the driving end of the driving member (300) and is driven by the driving member (300) to move linearly back and forth. A sleeve (500) is connected to the movable plate (400) via an elastic connector (510) so that the sleeve (500) can be flipped relative to the movable plate (400) to adjust its posture. The end face of the sleeve (500) facing away from the movable plate (400) is used to abut against the tower column wall (200). An ultrasonic probe (600) is connected at one end to the movable plate (400) via a flexible connector (610), and the other end of the ultrasonic probe (600) is slidably disposed within the sleeve (500); the flexible connector (610) has a folded state and an unfolded state; the end face of the ultrasonic probe (600) facing away from the movable plate (400) and the inner wall of the sleeve (500) form a filling cavity (520). An injection port (530) is provided through the side wall of the sleeve (500). One end of the injection port (530) is connected to the filling cavity (520), and the other end is connected to the coupling agent supply assembly. The sleeve (500) has an overflow port (540) recessed on the end face away from the moving plate (400). The overflow port (540) penetrates the side wall of the sleeve (500) radially and is located at the top of the sleeve (500) in the vertical direction.

2. The ultrasonic testing mechanism according to claim 1, characterized in that, The coupling agent supply component includes: A coupling agent container (710) is mounted on the wall-climbing robot (100); Connecting hose (720), one end connected to the coupling agent container (710), the other end connected to the injection port (530); The pump body (730) is connected between the connecting hose (720) and the coupling agent container (710).

3. The ultrasonic testing mechanism according to claim 1, characterized in that, The flexible connector (610) is configured as a connecting rope, which drives the moving plate (400) to move through the driving member (300), so that the connecting rope switches between the folded state and the unfolded state.

4. The ultrasonic testing mechanism according to claim 1, characterized in that, The elastic connector (510) is configured as a helical spring, and the portion of the ultrasonic probe (600) extending outside the sleeve (500) is located inside the helical spring.

5. A detection method, characterized in that, The ultrasonic testing mechanism (3) according to any one of claims 1-4 is used to test the tower column wall (200), and the testing method includes the following steps: Control the wall-climbing robot (100) to climb on the tower wall (200) to the corresponding position to be detected; The control drive (300) drives the sleeve (500) and the ultrasonic probe (600) to move close to the tower wall (200) together with the moving plate (400). After the sleeve (500) makes partial contact with the tower wall (200), the elastic connector (510) is compressed until the sleeve (500) adjusts its posture and sticks tightly to the tower wall (200) for surface contact, and the filling cavity (520) forms a closed space. The coupling agent supply assembly is controlled to fill the filling cavity (520) with coupling agent (800); The control drive (300) drives the moving plate (400) to move close to the tower wall (200) and then compress the elastic connector (510), so that the moving plate (400) abuts against the ultrasonic probe (600) and pushes the ultrasonic probe (600) to move relative to the sleeve (500) close to the tower wall (200) within the sleeve (500) until the probe end of the ultrasonic probe (600) is in close contact with the tower wall (200), and the coupling agent (800) is filled between the probe end of the ultrasonic probe (600) and the tower wall (200).

6. The detection method according to claim 5, characterized in that, The step of pushing the ultrasonic probe (600) to move relative to the sleeve (500) towards the tower wall (200) within the sleeve (500) further includes the following steps: The coupling agent (800) located in the filling cavity (520) moves close to the end face of the sleeve (500) away from the moving plate (400), and part of the coupling agent (800) flows out through the overflow port (540).

7. The detection method according to claim 5, characterized in that, After the ultrasonic probe (600) is attached to the tower wall (200) by a coupling agent (800) to complete the ultrasonic detection, the following steps are also included: The drive unit (300) is controlled to drive the moving plate (400) to move away from the tower wall (200), so that the elastic connector (510) gradually resets and the flexible connector (610) gradually switches from the folded state to the unfolded state. When the flexible connector (610) switches to the unfolded state, the elastic connector (510) remains in the compressed state, and then drives the moving plate (400) to move away from the tower wall (200), so that the flexible connector (610) in the unfolded state drives the ultrasonic probe (600) to move relative to the sleeve (500) and closer to the driving member (300) in the sleeve (500) until the elastic connector (510) is reset; Then, the drive unit (300) is controlled to drive the moving plate (400) away from the tower wall (200), so that the sleeve (500) moves away from the tower wall (200) and resets.

8. The detection method according to claim 6, characterized in that, The control coupling agent supply assembly fills the filling cavity (520) with coupling agent (800), including the following steps: The control pump (730) is started to fill the filling cavity (520) with the coupling agent (800) located in the coupling agent container (710) through the connecting hose (720) and the injection port (530); The pump body (730) is controlled to stop when the coupling agent (800) located in the filling cavity (520) fills at least four-fifths of the volume space of the filling cavity (520).

9. The detection method according to claim 8, characterized in that, When the coupling agent (800) located in the filling cavity (520) fills four-fifths of the volume space of the filling cavity (520), the pump body (730) is controlled to stop.

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