Drill pipe grabbing manipulator with inspection function

Abstract

This invention belongs to the field of coal mine drilling rigs and discloses a drill rod gripping robot with inspection function, including a series of lifting joints, tilting joints, rotating joints, and gripper joints, as well as inspection sensors. The lifting cylinder is installed vertically inside the column, driving the subsequent joints to lift and lower; the tilting reducer drives the tilting arm to rotate about a direction perpendicular to the axis of the lifting cylinder; the rotating reducer drives the rotating arm to rotate about a direction perpendicular to the axis of the tilting arm; the clamping cylinder drives the gripper to clamp or release the drill rod. The inspection sensor is installed on the tilting arm or tilting base, and sweeps across the drill rod box as the robot moves, detecting the distance between the tops of each row of drill rods to count the number of drill rods. This invention allows a single robot to independently complete the entire drill rod transfer process, shortening the drill rod transfer path, reducing the number of mechanisms and installation space, and achieving automatic drill rod counting, meeting the needs of automatic drill rod loading and unloading operations and intelligent scheduling of underground coal mine drilling rigs.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention belongs to the field of coal mine automated drilling rig technology, and relates to a drill rod gripping robot with inspection function. Background Technology

[0002] With the development trend of intelligent drilling technology in coal mines, automation and unmanned operation of underground drilling have become the mainstream of industry technology development. Automatic drill pipe loading and unloading, as a frequently performed key process in drilling operations, is one of the core links in achieving the goal of "reducing manpower and increasing efficiency," and its efficiency and reliability directly affect the overall drilling efficiency of the drilling rig. The robotic arm, as the key actuator for automatic drill pipe loading and unloading, undertakes the task of grasping and transferring drill pipes from the drill pipe box to the power head; its structural design and performance level directly determine the efficiency, reliability, and degree of automation of drill pipe loading and unloading.

[0003] Existing automatic drilling rigs in coal mines mostly employ a dual-manipulator collaborative operation for drill rod loading and unloading, consisting of two independent mechanisms: a clamping manipulator (main manipulator) and a rod-delivering manipulator (auxiliary manipulator). The auxiliary manipulator grabs the drill rod from the drill rod box and delivers it to a transfer position, after which the main manipulator clamps the drill rod from the transfer position and delivers it to the power head. The two manipulators coordinate with each other to complete the entire drill rod transfer process. This solution, to a certain extent, replaces manual operation and reduces the labor intensity of operators. However, the dual-manipulator collaborative solution has the following technical problems in practical engineering applications: Firstly, the transfer of drill pipe from the drill pipe box to the power head requires coordination between the main and auxiliary robotic arms, resulting in a lengthy transfer process. During this process, the drill pipe needs secondary positioning to ensure positional accuracy between the two robotic arms, or a dedicated drill pipe transfer mechanism may be required to assist in the temporary storage and transfer of the drill pipe. These additional positioning operations and transfer mechanisms significantly extend non-drilling auxiliary time, limiting the improvement of drill pipe loading and unloading efficiency.

[0004] Secondly, the dual-manipulator collaborative solution requires the simultaneous installation of two independent rotary drive mechanisms, telescopic drive mechanisms, lifting drive mechanisms, and supporting installation positions on the drilling rig body. This significantly increases the overall installation and operating space occupied by the manipulators, especially in the vertical direction. Coal mine underground roadways are low and narrow, severely limiting the overall height of the drilling rig. The large space occupation of the dual-manipulator solution makes it poorly adaptable to the construction conditions in low and confined underground roadways of coal mines, thus limiting the drilling rig's ability to operate in confined spaces.

[0005] Third, during the loading and unloading of drill pipes, the dual robotic arms working in conjunction with the transfer mechanism involve multi-mechanism linkage and timing control. This requires precise coordination of the action sequence and timing of multiple actuators, making the automated control process quite complex. In actual operation, due to differences in the response characteristics of each mechanism and the influence of external interference factors, action timing deviations are prone to occur, seriously affecting the stability of automated operations and the reliability of continuous operation.

[0006] Furthermore, to achieve unmanned continuous operation, the drilling rig's automatic control system needs to monitor the drill rod storage volume in the drill rod box in real time to enable reasonable work scheduling and timely replenishment. However, existing technologies lack a device and method integrated into a robotic arm that can conveniently and automatically count the number of drill rods in the drill rod box. Currently, most systems still rely on manual counting or simple mechanical counting methods, which suffer from problems such as inaccurate counting, poor real-time performance, and insufficient automated scheduling capabilities.

[0007] In summary, existing dual-manipulator collaborative loading and unloading technologies suffer from technical problems such as long drill pipe transport paths, large space occupation, complex control processes, and insufficient operational stability. Furthermore, they lack convenient and reliable automatic drill pipe balance statistics methods, failing to meet the industry's development needs for efficient, continuous, and stable automated drilling in the low and confined spaces of underground coal mines. There is an urgent need to provide a drill pipe gripping manipulator solution that is compact in structure, highly efficient in loading and unloading, easy to control, and also has drill pipe box inspection functions. Summary of the Invention

[0008] In view of this, the purpose of the present invention is to solve the above problems and provide a drill rod gripping robot with inspection function.

[0009] To achieve the above objectives, the present invention provides the following technical solution: A drill pipe gripping robot with inspection function includes a lifting joint, a tilting joint, a rotating joint and a gripper joint connected in series, as well as an inspection sensor; The lifting joint includes a lifting cylinder and a column. The lifting cylinder is installed vertically inside the column. The piston rod end of the lifting cylinder passes upward through the top of the column and is fixedly connected to the tilting joint, which is used to drive the tilting joint and its subsequent joints to perform lifting movements. The tilting joint includes a tilting seat, a tilting reducer, and a tilting arm. The tilting seat is located above the column and is fixedly connected to the piston rod end of the lifting cylinder. The tilting reducer is fixedly installed on the tilting seat. The output end of the tilting reducer is connected to one end of the tilting arm and is used to drive the tilting arm to rotate around a pivot perpendicular to the axis of the lifting cylinder. The rotary joint includes a rotary reducer and a rotary arm. The rotary reducer is installed at the other end of the tilting arm away from the tilting seat. The output end of the rotary reducer is connected to the rotary arm and is used to drive the rotary arm to rotate about a pivot perpendicular to the axis of the tilting arm. The gripper joint includes a clamping cylinder and a gripper, which are installed at the end of the rotary arm away from the rotary reducer. The clamping cylinder drives the gripper to open and close to clamp or release the drill rod. The inspection sensor is fixedly installed on the tilting arm or tilting seat. Driven by the robot arm, it sweeps over the top of the drill rod box and counts the number of drill rods in each row and the total number of drill rods by detecting the distance from the top of each row of drill rods to the sensor.

[0010] Furthermore, the inspection sensor is a laser distance sensor or an ultrasonic distance sensor; it is connected to the communication module via a mining cable and uploads the distance data to the programmable logic controller; the method for the inspection sensor to count the number of drill rods includes the following steps: a) System initialization and dynamic benchmark calibration: When the drill pipe box is in an empty state, the benchmark calibration inspection process is started. The distance data D0 from the sensor to the bottom of the empty box is collected by the inspection sensor and stored in the internal register of the controller as the reference benchmark for subsequent drill pipe height calculation. b) Drill pipe scanning and real-time data acquisition: The data processing unit determines the precise position of the current drill pipe based on the data from the inspection sensor (911) or the wire displacement sensor on the drill pipe box; c) Drill pipe column position locking: The data processing unit determines the precise position of the current drill pipe column based on the data from the inspection sensor or the wire displacement sensor on the drill pipe box; d) Drill pipe counting processing: The data processing unit processes the distance data D received in each cycle, calculates the difference between the distance data D and the reference distance data D0 of the empty box at the same location, obtains the drill pipe height value for a single cycle, and determines and records the cumulative height of the drill pipe corresponding to the effective feature segment based on the preset drill pipe diameter d. The calculation method for the drill pipe quantity value N is as follows:

[0011] Where N is the number of drill rods, D0 is the distance data from the inspection sensor to the bottom of the empty box, D is the actual distance from the inspection sensor to the top of the drill rod, d is the diameter of the drill rod, and Round is the rounding function.

[0012] Furthermore, the tilting seat includes a cylinder connecting seat and a reducer connecting seat connected to each other. The cylinder connecting seat is fixedly connected to the piston rod end of the lifting cylinder by a pin or screw, and the tilting reducer is fixedly installed on one side of the reducer connecting seat.

[0013] Furthermore, a tilt angle sensor is provided on the side of the reducer connecting seat opposite to the mounting of the tilt reducer. The detection shaft of the tilt angle sensor is connected to the tilt arm through a coupling and is used to detect the rotation angle of the tilt arm.

[0014] Furthermore, the tilting arm includes a connecting flange, a rotating arm, and a rotary reducer connecting seat. The connecting flange is located at one end of the tilting arm near the tilting seat and is fixedly connected to the output end of the tilting reducer by screws. The rotating arm has a cylindrical structure and is connected between the connecting flange and the rotary reducer connecting seat. The rotary reducer is fixedly installed on one side of the rotary reducer connecting seat.

[0015] Furthermore, a rotation angle sensor is provided on the side of the slewing reducer connecting seat opposite to the slewing reducer mounting, for detecting the rotation angle of the slewing arm.

[0016] Furthermore, the slewing arm includes a reducer flange, a connecting pipe, and a gripper body. The reducer flange is located at one end of the slewing arm near the slewing reducer and is fixedly connected to the output end of the slewing reducer by screws. The connecting pipe is a cylindrical structure and is connected between the reducer flange and the gripper body. The clamping cylinder and the gripper are installed in the gripper body.

[0017] Furthermore, a connecting block is provided on one side of the column. The connecting block is used to connect with a translation joint on one side of the drill pipe box. The translation joint drives the robot arm to move horizontally in the direction of approaching or moving away from the frame, thereby driving the inspection sensor to complete the scanning of each row of drill pipes in the drill pipe box.

[0018] Furthermore, the translation joint is driven by a hydraulic motor or a drive motor, and transmitted through a gear and rack mechanism or a ball screw mechanism.

[0019] Further, in step c), when the inspection sensor (911) is used, the data processing unit identifies the minimum point of distance data D in the trajectory based on the arc-shaped feature of the inspection sensor (911) along the scanning trajectory perpendicular to the drill rod axis, determines the corresponding movement position of the robot arm, and locks the position as the precise position of the current drill rod.

[0020] The data processing unit analyzes the received real-time distance data stream, identifies the local minimum point in the distance data sequence based on the arc characteristics of the scanning trajectory and the arrangement pattern of the drill rod, records the pulse value of the encoder of the translation joint drive motor when the minimum value is generated, and locks the position as the precise position of the current drill rod column.

[0021] Furthermore, in step c), when a wire displacement sensor is used, during the control system debugging phase before the drilling rig leaves the site, the extreme far end of the drill rod box that the robot arm can reach is calibrated and set as the initial zero point reference of the wire displacement sensor of the drill rod box. Then, based on the center position of each storage column of the drill rod box, the distance from the initial position is calibrated sequentially as the position locking distance of each column of drill rods. During operation, each storage column is locked sequentially at intervals.

[0022] Furthermore, in step a), the collected reference distance data D0 is the average value of multiple measurements, stored in the non-volatile memory of the programmable logic controller, and dynamically updated to compensate for installation errors.

[0023] Furthermore, both the rotating arm and the connecting pipe are hollow cylindrical structures, which reduces their own weight while ensuring structural strength.

[0024] Furthermore, the flip angle sensor is a rotary encoder, whose detection data provides an angle feedback signal for the precise position control of the flip joint, thereby realizing closed-loop control of the flip motion.

[0025] Furthermore, the rotation angle sensor is a rotary encoder, whose detection data provides an angle feedback signal for the precise position control of the rotary joint, thereby realizing closed-loop control of the rotational motion.

[0026] Furthermore, the working process of the robotic arm includes the following steps: The translational joint drives the robotic arm to move horizontally to the drill rod retrieval position in the drill rod box. The lifting cylinder drives the robotic arm to descend to the target drill rod position. The clamping cylinder drives the grippers to open, and the rotary reducer and tilt reducer work together to adjust the gripper's position, aligning it with the target drill rod. The clamping cylinder then drives the grippers to close and clamp the drill rod. Subsequently, the lifting cylinder drives the robotic arm to lift, and the translational joint drives the robotic arm to move horizontally to the power head delivery position. The tilt reducer and rotary reducer work together to adjust the drill rod's posture and orientation, aligning the drill rod's axis with the power head's axis. The lifting cylinder drives the robotic arm to descend and deliver the drill rod to the power head position. The clamping cylinder then drives the grippers to open and release the drill rod, completing one drill rod loading and unloading cycle. During the robotic arm's translation, inspection sensors scan the drill rod box in real time, counting the number of drill rods in each column and for the entire machine, providing data support for subsequent rod retrieval operations.

[0027] Furthermore, the statistical results of the inspection sensors are used by the drilling rig to calculate the motion control parameters and positioning coordinates of the robotic arm, and at the same time automatically determine whether the remaining drill rods meet the drilling requirements of the next stage. When the remaining drill rods are insufficient, an early warning signal is issued through the electronic control system to realize the intelligent scheduling of drill rod loading and unloading operations.

[0028] The beneficial effects of this invention are as follows: 1. This invention, by setting up a structure in which four joints—lifting joint, tilting joint, rotating joint, and gripper joint—are connected in series, enables a single robotic arm to have sufficient degrees of freedom of movement and spatial reach. It can independently complete the entire process of picking up the drill rod from the drill rod box and transferring it to the power head chuck position for release, without the need for secondary positioning or a dedicated transfer mechanism. This significantly shortens the transmission path of the drill rod from the drill rod box to the power head, significantly reduces the non-operational auxiliary time and operation procedures for drill rod loading and unloading, and improves the overall efficiency of automated drill rod loading and unloading.

[0029] 2. The four-joint tandem structure of the present invention only requires one set of driving actuators such as lifting cylinder, tilting reducer, slewing reducer and clamping cylinder. Compared with the existing technology where two manipulators are independently configured with slewing, telescopic and lifting driving actuators, the number of driving and actuators is greatly reduced, the required installation space and movement space of the machine body are significantly reduced, especially the space occupied in the height direction is effectively reduced, the overall size and weight of the drilling rig are reduced, and the adaptability of the drilling rig in the low and narrow roadways of coal mines is improved.

[0030] 3. This invention integrates inspection sensors into the robotic arm, enabling it to automatically scan the drill pipe box during drill pipe transfer. Based on laser or ultrasonic ranging principles, the inspection sensors calculate the difference between the empty box's baseline distance and the real-time detection distance, combined with the drill pipe diameter, to accurately and non-contactly count the quantity of each row or even all drill pipes within the box. This provides reliable data support for the automated scheduling of drill pipe loading and unloading operations and the real-time management of drill pipe inventory, achieving intelligent sensing of drill pipe storage status and further improving the intelligence level and system reliability of automated drill pipe loading and unloading operations.

[0031] 4. This invention, by equipping the robotic arm with flip angle sensors and rotation angle sensors, achieves real-time and accurate detection of the rotation angles of each joint, providing reliable position feedback data for precise positioning control of each joint. Combined with inspection sensors, this forms a complete robotic arm sensing system, enhancing the controllability and accuracy of the operation process. The statistical results from the inspection sensors can also be used to automatically determine whether the remaining drill rods meet the drilling requirements for the next stage. When the remaining drill rods are insufficient, a warning signal is issued through the electronic control system, enabling intelligent scheduling of drill rod loading and unloading operations.

[0032] Other advantages, objectives, and features of the invention will be set forth in part in the description which follows, and in part will be apparent to those skilled in the art from the following examination, or may be learned from practice of the invention. The objectives and other advantages of the invention can be realized and obtained through the following description. Attached Figure Description

[0033] To make the objectives, technical solutions, and advantages of the present invention clearer, the preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings, wherein: Figure 1 This is an isometric view of the robot arm facing the frame in this invention.

[0034] Figure 2 This is an isometric view of the robot arm facing the drill pipe box in this invention.

[0035] Figure 3 This is an isometric view of the flip-up seat in this invention.

[0036] Figure 4 This is an isometric view of the tilting arm in this invention.

[0037] Figure 5 This is an isometric view of the slewing arm in this invention.

[0038] Reference numerals: 901-Lifting cylinder; 902-Column; 903-Tilting seat; 904-Tilting reducer; 905-Slewing reducer; 906-Tilting arm; 907-Slewing arm; 908-Clamping cylinder; 909-Gripper; 910-Tilting angle sensor; 911-Inspection sensor; 912-Slewing angle sensor; 90301-Cylinder connecting seat; 90302-Reducer connecting seat; 90601-Connecting flange; 90602-Rotating arm; 90603-Slewing reducer connecting seat; 90701-Reducer flange; 90702-Connecting pipe; 90703-Gripper body. Detailed Implementation

[0039] The following specific examples illustrate the implementation of the present invention. Those skilled in the art can easily understand other advantages and effects of the present invention from the content disclosed in this specification. The present invention can also be implemented or applied through other different specific embodiments, and various details in this specification can be modified or changed based on different viewpoints and applications without departing from the spirit of the present invention. It should be noted that the illustrations provided in the following embodiments are only schematic representations of the basic concept of the present invention. Unless otherwise specified, the following embodiments and features can be combined with each other.

[0040] The accompanying drawings are for illustrative purposes only and are schematic diagrams, not actual pictures. They should not be construed as limiting the invention. To better illustrate the embodiments of the invention, some parts in the drawings may be omitted, enlarged, or reduced, and do not represent the actual product dimensions. It is understandable to those skilled in the art that some well-known structures and their descriptions may be omitted in the drawings.

[0041] In the accompanying drawings of the embodiments of the present invention, the same or similar reference numerals correspond to the same or similar components. In the description of the present invention, it should be understood that if terms such as "upper," "lower," "left," "right," "front," and "rear" indicate the orientation or positional relationship based on the orientation or positional relationship shown in the drawings, they are only for the convenience of describing the present invention 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, the terms used to describe positional relationships in the drawings are only for illustrative purposes and should not be construed as limiting the present invention. For those skilled in the art, the specific meaning of the above terms can be understood according to the specific circumstances.

[0042] Example 1 like Figures 1 to 5 As shown, this is a drill pipe gripping robot with inspection function, including a lifting joint, a flipping joint, a rotating joint, and a gripper joint connected in series, as well as an inspection sensor 911. The joints connected in series form a single robot full-process operation mechanism, which can independently complete all actions of gripping, lifting, flipping, rotating, and releasing the drill pipe from the drill pipe box to the power head. At the same time, the integrated inspection sensor 911 can automatically count the number of drill pipes in the drill pipe box during the robot's translation process.

[0043] The lifting joint consists of a lifting cylinder 901 and a column 902. The lifting cylinder 901 is installed vertically inside the column 902, and the piston rod end of the lifting cylinder 901 passes upward through the top of the column 902 and is fixedly connected to the tilting seat 903 of the upper tilting joint. The lifting cylinder 901 drives the tilting seat 903 and the tilting joint, rotary joint, and gripper joint connected above it to move up and down as a whole through the extension and retraction of the piston rod, thereby realizing the vertical position adjustment of the robot.

[0044] A connecting block is provided on one side of the column 902 for connecting to the translation joint on one side of the drill pipe box. The translation joint is driven by a hydraulic motor or drive motor, and is transmitted through a gear rack mechanism or ball screw mechanism to realize the horizontal translation movement of the entire robot arm along the direction of approaching or moving away from the frame. This completes the switching of the robot arm between the rod picking position and the rod delivery position of the power head in the drill pipe box. At the same time, during the translation process, the inspection sensor 911 is driven to complete the scanning of each row of drill pipes in the drill pipe box.

[0045] The tilting joint consists of a tilting base 903, a tilting reducer 904, and a tilting arm 906. The tilting base 903 includes two parts: a cylinder connecting seat 90301 and a reducer connecting seat 90302. The piston rod of the lifting cylinder 901 is fixedly connected to the cylinder connecting seat 90301 via a pin or screw, transmitting the lifting motion of the lifting cylinder 901 to the tilting base 903. The tilting reducer 904 is fixedly installed on one side of the reducer connecting seat 90302, and a tilting angle sensor 910 is installed on the other side of the reducer connecting seat 90302 opposite to the side where the tilting reducer 904 is installed.

[0046] The tilting reducer 904 is fixedly mounted on the reducer connecting seat 90302 of the tilting base 903. The output end of the tilting reducer 904 is connected to one end of the tilting arm 906, driving the tilting arm 906 to rotate around a rotating shaft perpendicular to the axis of the lifting cylinder 901. The rotational motion of the tilting arm 906 causes the rotary joint and chuck joint mounted on it to rotate together, realizing the attitude conversion of the drill pipe between different directions.

[0047] The tilting arm 906 includes a connecting flange 90601, a swing arm 90602, and a rotary reducer connecting seat 90603. The connecting flange 90601 is located at the end of the tilting arm 906 near the tilting seat 903 and is fixedly connected to the output end of the tilting reducer 904 by screws, transmitting the output torque of the tilting reducer 904 to the tilting arm 906. The swing arm 90602 has a hollow cylindrical structure, reducing the weight of the tilting arm 906 while maintaining structural strength. The swing arm 90602 connects the connecting flange 90601 and the rotary reducer connecting seat 90603, forming the main structure of the tilting arm 906. The rotary reducer connecting seat 90603 is located at the other end of the tilting arm 906 away from the tilting seat 903. The rotary reducer 905 is fixedly installed on one side of the rotary reducer connecting seat 90603, and a rotation angle sensor 912 is installed on the opposite side of the rotary reducer connecting seat 90603.

[0048] The rotary joint consists of a rotary reducer 905 and a rotary arm 907. The rotary reducer 905 is fixedly mounted on one side of the rotary reducer connecting seat 90603 of the tilting arm 906. The output end of the rotary reducer 905 is connected to the rotary arm 907, driving the rotary arm 907 to rotate around a pivot perpendicular to the axis of the tilting arm 906. The rotation of the rotary arm 907 enables the adjustment of the angle of the gripper and the gripped drill rod in the horizontal plane, allowing the robot arm to accurately deliver the drill rod to the axial position of the power head.

[0049] The slewing arm 907 includes a reducer flange 90701, a connecting pipe 90702, and a gripper body 90703. The reducer flange 90701 is located at the end of the slewing arm 907 near the slewing reducer 905, and is fixedly connected to the output end of the slewing reducer 905 by screws, transmitting the output torque of the slewing reducer 905 to the slewing arm 907. The connecting pipe 90702 is a hollow cylindrical structure, which reduces the weight of the slewing arm 907 while ensuring structural strength. The connecting pipe 90702 connects the reducer flange 90701 and the gripper body 90703, forming the main structure of the slewing arm 907. The gripper body 90703 is located at the end of the slewing arm 907 and is used to install the clamping cylinder 908 and the gripper 909.

[0050] The chuck joint is a general-purpose technology, consisting of a clamping cylinder 908 and a chuck 909. The clamping cylinder 908 and the chuck 909 are installed in the chuck body 90703 at the end of the rotary arm 907. The clamping cylinder 908 drives the chuck 909 to open and close, clamping or releasing the drill pipe. When the chuck 909 is open, it allows the drill pipe to enter or leave the clamping area; when the chuck 909 is closed, it reliably clamps the drill pipe, ensuring its stable position during transport.

[0051] The robotic arm sensor system includes a flip angle sensor 910, an inspection sensor 911, and a rotation angle sensor 912.

[0052] The tilt angle sensor 910 is fixedly mounted on the reducer connecting seat 90302 of the tilting base 903, on the side opposite to the tilting reducer 904. Its detection shaft is connected to the tilting arm 906 via a coupling, and is used to detect the rotation angle of the tilting arm 906 in real time. The tilt angle sensor 910 is preferably a rotary encoder, whose detection data provides angle feedback signals for the precise position control of the tilting joint, realizing closed-loop control of the tilting motion.

[0053] A rotation angle sensor 912 is fixedly mounted on the rotation reducer connector 90603 of the tilting arm 906, on the side opposite to the rotation reducer 905, and is used to detect the rotation angle of the tilting arm 907 in real time. The rotation angle sensor 912 is preferably a rotary encoder, whose detection data provides angle feedback signals for the precise position control of the rotary joint, realizing closed-loop control of the rotational motion. The detection data from the tilting angle sensor 910 and the rotation angle sensor 912 provide angle feedback signals for the precise position control of each joint of the robot, realizing closed-loop control of the robot's motion.

[0054] The inspection sensor 911 is fixedly installed on the rotating arm 90602 of the tilting arm 906 or at an appropriate position on the tilting base 903. The inspection sensor 911 is preferably a laser distance sensor or an ultrasonic distance sensor, which is connected to a communication module (such as an EL6021 module) via a mining cable, and uploads real-time distance data to a programmable logic controller (PLC) for data processing and storage via a fieldbus such as RS485 bus.

[0055] The method for counting drill pipes using the 911 inspection sensor includes the following steps: a) System Initialization and Dynamic Reference Calibration: When the drill pipe box is empty, the reference calibration inspection process is initiated. Driven by the translation joint, the robot arm moves the inspection sensor 911 along a preset arc trajectory perpendicular to the drill pipe axis at a constant speed. The inspection sensor 911 emits a detection signal (such as a laser pulse) at a set period and receives the return signal, calculating the real-time distance from the sensor's emission point to the bottom of the drill pipe box. The collected distance data sequence is stored in the internal register of the controller (PLC). This data is processed, and the average value of the stable segment is taken as the reference distance D0 in the empty box state. D0 is stored in the non-volatile memory of the programmable logic controller and can be dynamically updated through subsequent calibration processes to compensate for minor installation errors of the robot arm or drill pipe box.

[0056] b) Drill Rod Scanning and Real-time Data Acquisition: After the drill rod is loaded into the drill rod box, it enters the drill rod counting mode. The robot arm, driven by the translation joint, moves at a constant speed along the same preset trajectory. The inspection sensor 911 scans at the same set cycle, acquiring the distance D from the sensor to the top of the drill rod at the current scanning point in real time, and transmitting the distance data to the data processing unit via the communication module. Since the drill rod is cylindrical and arranged in columns, when the sensor scanning trajectory passes exactly through the highest point of a column of drill rods (i.e., the apex of the cylinder generatrix), the distance D will reach the minimum value of that column.

[0057] c) Drill Rod Row Position Locking: The data processing unit can determine the precise position of the current row of drill rods based on data from the inspection sensor 911 or the displacement sensor on the drill rod box. In this embodiment, the inspection sensor 911 is used, and the data processing unit analyzes the received real-time distance data stream. Based on the arc-shaped scanning trajectory of the inspection sensor 911 along the perpendicular axis of the drill rod, and the pattern of the drill rod arrangement, local minimum points in the distance data sequence are identified. These minimum points correspond to the top center position of each row of drill rods. The data processing unit records the pulse value of the encoder of the translation joint drive motor when the minimum value is generated, determines the corresponding movement position of the robot arm, and locks this position as the precise position of the current row of drill rods. This step helps improve the accuracy of subsequent counting and can identify the approximate distribution of drill rods within the row.

[0058] d) Drill pipe counting processing: The data processing unit processes the distance data D received in each cycle, calculates the difference between the distance data D and the reference distance data D0 of the empty box at the same location, obtains the drill pipe height value for a single cycle, and determines and records the cumulative height of the drill pipe corresponding to the effective feature segment based on the preset drill pipe diameter d. The calculation method for the drill pipe quantity value N is as follows:

[0059] Where N is the number of drill rods, D0 is the distance data from the inspection sensor to the bottom of the empty box, D is the actual distance from the inspection sensor to the top of the drill rod, d is the diameter of the drill rod, and Round is the rounding function.

[0060] By summing the quantities in all columns, the total number of drill rods in the drill rod box can be obtained. The statistical results are used to automatically determine whether the remaining drill rods meet the drilling requirements for the next stage. When the remaining drill rods are insufficient, an early warning signal is issued through the electrical control system, realizing intelligent scheduling of drill rod loading and unloading operations.

[0061] The working process of the robotic arm in this embodiment is as follows: The translational joint drives the manipulator to move horizontally to the drill rod removal position in the drill rod box. The lifting cylinder 901 drives the manipulator to descend to the target drill rod position. The clamping cylinder 908 drives the gripper 909 to open. The rotary reducer 905 and the tilting reducer 904 work together to adjust the position of the gripper 909 so that the gripper 909 is aligned with the target drill rod. The clamping cylinder 908 drives the gripper 909 to close and clamp the drill rod. Then, the lifting cylinder 901 drives the manipulator to lift. The translational joint drives the manipulator to move horizontally to the power head rod delivery position. The tilting reducer 904 and the rotary reducer 905 work together to adjust the attitude and orientation of the drill rod so that the drill rod axis is aligned with the power head axis. The lifting cylinder 901 drives the manipulator to descend and deliver the drill rod to the power head position. The clamping cylinder 908 drives the gripper 909 to open and release the drill rod, completing one drill rod loading and unloading cycle. The 911 inspection sensor scans the drill rod box in real time during the robot's translation process, counting the number of drill rods in each column and the total number of drill rods, providing data support for subsequent rod retrieval operations.

[0062] Example 2 The difference between this embodiment and embodiment 1 is that: in step c), the position locking of the drill rod column uses the data of the wire displacement sensor on the drill rod box. During the control system debugging stage before the drilling rig leaves the site, the position of the manipulator at the farthest point from the drill rod box is calibrated as the initial position of the wire displacement sensor on the drill rod box. Then, according to the center position of each storage column of the drill rod box, the distance from the initial position is calibrated sequentially as the position locking distance of each drill rod column. During operation, each storage column is locked sequentially at intervals.

[0063] This invention employs a single-manipulator four-joint serial structure. Through the coordinated operation of the lifting, flipping, rotating, and gripping joints, a single manipulator independently completes the entire process of transferring drill rods from the drill rod box to the power head. This eliminates the drill rod handover link and transfer mechanism between the main and auxiliary manipulators in a dual-manipulator solution, significantly shortening the drill rod transfer path and non-drilling auxiliary time, reducing the number of drive mechanisms, lowering the overall installation space required, simplifying the automation control process, improving the efficiency and stability of automatic drill rod loading and unloading, and enhancing the adaptability of the drilling rig to low and narrow underground roadways in coal mines. The integrated inspection sensor 911 automatically completes non-contact statistics of the number of drill rods in the drill rod box using the translational motion of the manipulator, providing reliable data support for drill rod loading and unloading operation scheduling and drill rod surplus management, further improving the intelligence level of automated drill rod loading and unloading operations.

[0064] Finally, it should be noted that the above embodiments are only used to illustrate the technical solutions of the present invention and are not intended to limit it. Although the present invention has been described in detail with reference to preferred embodiments, those skilled in the art should understand that modifications or equivalent substitutions can be made to the technical solutions of the present invention without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention, and all such modifications or substitutions should be covered within the scope of the claims of the present invention.

Claims

1. A drill pipe gripping robot with inspection function, characterized in that, It includes a series-connected lifting joint, tilting joint, rotating joint and gripper joint, as well as an inspection sensor (911). The lifting joint includes a lifting cylinder (901) and a column (902). The lifting cylinder (901) is installed vertically inside the column (902). The piston rod end of the lifting cylinder (901) passes upward through the top of the column (902) and is fixedly connected to the tilting joint, which is used to drive the tilting joint and its subsequent joints to perform lifting and lowering movements. The tilting joint includes a tilting seat (903), a tilting reducer (904), and a tilting arm (906). The tilting seat (903) is located above the column (902) and is fixedly connected to the piston rod end of the lifting cylinder (901). The tilting reducer (904) is fixedly installed on the tilting seat (903). The output end of the tilting reducer (904) is connected to one end of the tilting arm (906) to drive the tilting arm (906) to rotate around a pivot perpendicular to the axis of the lifting cylinder (901). The rotary joint includes a rotary reducer (905) and a rotary arm (907). The rotary reducer (905) is installed at the other end of the tilting arm (906) away from the tilting seat (903). The output end of the rotary reducer (905) is connected to the rotary arm (907) to drive the rotary arm (907) to rotate about a pivot perpendicular to the axis of the tilting arm (906). The chuck joint includes a clamping cylinder (908) and a chuck (909), which are installed at the end of the rotary arm (907) away from the rotary reducer (905). The clamping cylinder (908) drives the chuck (909) to open and close to clamp or release the drill rod. The inspection sensor (911) is fixedly installed on the tilting arm (906) or the tilting seat (903). Driven by the robot, it sweeps over the top of the drill rod box and counts the number of each row and all drill rods by detecting the distance from the top of each row of drill rods to the sensor.

2. The drill rod gripping robot with inspection function according to claim 1, characterized in that: The inspection sensor (911) is a laser distance sensor or an ultrasonic distance sensor; it is connected to the communication module via a mining cable and uploads the distance data to the programmable logic controller; the method by which the inspection sensor (911) counts the number of drill rods includes the following steps: a) System initialization and dynamic benchmark calibration: When the drill pipe box is in an empty box state, the benchmark calibration inspection process is started. The distance data D0 from the sensor to the bottom of the empty box is collected by the inspection sensor (911) and stored in the internal register of the controller as the reference benchmark for subsequent drill pipe height calculation. b) Drill rod scanning and real-time data acquisition: After the drill rod is loaded into the drill rod box, the robot arm drives the inspection sensor (911) to move along the direction perpendicular to the drill rod axis according to the preset trajectory. The inspection sensor (911) scans the top of each row of drill rods at a set period, obtains the distance D from the sensor to the top of the drill rod in real time, and transmits it to the data processing unit. c) Drill rod column position locking: The data processing unit determines the precise position of the current drill rod column based on the data from the inspection sensor (911) or the wire displacement sensor on the drill rod box; d) Drill pipe counting processing: The data processing unit processes the distance data D received in each cycle, calculates the difference between the distance data D and the reference distance data D0 of the empty box at the same location, obtains the drill pipe height value for a single cycle, and determines and records the cumulative height of the drill pipe corresponding to the effective feature segment based on the preset drill pipe diameter d. The calculation method for the drill pipe quantity value N is as follows: Where N is the number of drill rods, D0 is the distance data from the inspection sensor to the bottom of the empty box, D is the actual distance from the inspection sensor to the top of the drill rod, d is the diameter of the drill rod, and Round is the rounding function.

3. The drill rod gripping robot with inspection function according to claim 1, characterized in that: The tilting seat (903) includes a cylinder connecting seat (90301) and a reducer connecting seat (90302) connected to each other. The cylinder connecting seat (90301) is fixedly connected to the piston rod end of the lifting cylinder (901) by a pin or screw. The tilting reducer (904) is fixedly installed on one side of the reducer connecting seat (90302).

4. The drill pipe gripping robot with inspection function according to claim 3, characterized in that: A tilt angle sensor (910) is provided on the side of the reducer connecting seat (90302) opposite to the side where the tilt reducer (904) is installed. The detection shaft of the tilt angle sensor (910) is connected to the tilt arm (906) through a coupling and is used to detect the rotation angle of the tilt arm (906).

5. The drill rod gripping robot with inspection function according to claim 1, characterized in that: The tilting arm (906) includes a connecting flange (90601), a rotating arm (90602), and a rotary reducer connecting seat (90603). The connecting flange (90601) is located at one end of the tilting arm (906) near the tilting seat (903) and is fixedly connected to the output end of the tilting reducer (904) by screws. The rotating arm (90602) is a cylindrical structure and is connected between the connecting flange (90601) and the rotary reducer connecting seat (90603). The rotary reducer (905) is fixedly installed on one side of the rotary reducer connecting seat (90603).

6. The drill rod gripping robot with inspection function according to claim 5, characterized in that: A rotation angle sensor (912) is provided on the side of the slewing reducer connector (90603) opposite to the slewing reducer (905) for detecting the rotation angle of the slewing arm (907).

7. The drill pipe gripping robot with inspection function according to claim 5, characterized in that: The rotary arm (907) includes a reducer flange (90701), a connecting pipe (90702), and a gripper body (90703). The reducer flange (90701) is located at one end of the rotary arm (907) near the rotary reducer (905) and is fixedly connected to the output end of the rotary reducer (905) by screws. The connecting pipe (90702) is a cylindrical structure and is connected between the reducer flange (90701) and the gripper body (90703). The clamping cylinder (908) and the gripper (909) are installed in the gripper body (90703).

8. The drill pipe gripping robot with inspection function according to claim 1, characterized in that: A connecting block is provided on one side of the column (902). The connecting block is used to connect with the translation joint on one side of the drill pipe box. The translation joint drives the robot arm to move horizontally in the direction of approaching or moving away from the frame, thereby driving the inspection sensor (911) to complete the scanning of each row of drill pipes in the drill pipe box.

9. The drill pipe gripping robot with inspection function according to claim 8, characterized in that: The translational joint is driven by a hydraulic motor or a drive motor, and transmitted through a gear and rack mechanism or a ball screw mechanism.

10. The drill rod gripping robot with inspection function according to claim 2, characterized in that: In step c), when the inspection sensor (911) is used, the data processing unit identifies the minimum point of distance data D in the trajectory based on the arc-shaped feature of the inspection sensor (911) along the scanning trajectory perpendicular to the drill rod axis, determines the corresponding movement position of the robot arm, and locks the position as the precise position of the current drill rod.

11. The drill pipe gripping robot with inspection function according to claim 10, characterized in that: The data processing unit analyzes the received real-time distance data stream, identifies the local minimum point in the distance data sequence based on the arc characteristics of the scanning trajectory and the arrangement pattern of the drill rod, records the pulse value of the encoder of the translation joint drive motor when the minimum value is generated, and locks the position as the precise position of the current drill rod column.

12. The drill pipe gripping robot with inspection function according to claim 2, characterized in that: In step c), when a wire displacement sensor is used, during the control system debugging process before the drilling rig leaves the factory, the far end of the drill rod box that the robot arm can reach is calibrated and set as the initial zero point reference of the wire displacement sensor of the drill rod box. Then, according to the center position of each storage column of the drill rod box, the distance from the initial reference is calibrated sequentially as the position locking distance of each column of drill rods. During operation, each storage column is locked sequentially at intervals.

13. The drill pipe gripping robot with inspection function according to claim 2, characterized in that: In step a), the collected reference distance data D0 is the average value of multiple measurements, stored in the non-volatile memory of the programmable logic controller, and dynamically updated to compensate for installation errors.

14. The drill pipe gripping robot with inspection function according to claim 7, characterized in that: Both the rotating arm (90602) and the connecting pipe (90702) are hollow cylindrical structures.

15. The drill pipe gripping robot with inspection function according to claim 4, characterized in that: The flip angle sensor (910) is a rotary encoder. Its detection data provides angle feedback signals for the precise position control of the flip joint, thereby realizing closed-loop control of the flip motion.

16. The drill pipe gripping robot with inspection function according to claim 6, characterized in that: The rotation angle sensor (912) is a rotary encoder. Its detection data provides angle feedback signals for the precise position control of the rotary joint, thereby realizing closed-loop control of the rotation motion.

17. The drill pipe gripping robot with inspection function according to claim 1, characterized in that: The working process of the robotic arm includes the following steps: The translational joint drives the robot arm to move horizontally to the drill rod box pick-up position. The lifting cylinder (901) drives the robot arm to descend to the target drill rod position. The clamping cylinder (908) drives the gripper (909) to open. The rotary reducer (905) and the tilting reducer (904) work together to adjust the position of the gripper (909) so that the gripper is aligned with the target drill rod. The clamping cylinder (908) drives the gripper (909) to close and clamp the drill rod. Then, the lifting cylinder (901) drives the robot arm to lift, and the translational joint drives the robot arm to translate. Upon reaching the power head rod delivery station, the tilting reducer (904) and the slewing reducer (905) work together to adjust the drill rod's posture and orientation so that the drill rod axis aligns with the power head axis. The lifting cylinder (901) drives the robot arm to descend and deliver the drill rod to the power head position. The clamping cylinder (908) drives the gripper (909) to open and release the drill rod, completing one drill rod loading and unloading cycle. The inspection sensor (911) scans the drill rod box in real time during the robot arm's translation process, counts the number of drill rods in each column and the total number of drill rods, and provides data support for subsequent rod removal operations.

18. The drill pipe gripping robot with inspection function according to claim 17, characterized in that: The statistical results of the inspection sensor (911) are used by the drilling rig to calculate the motion control parameters and positioning coordinates of the robotic arm, and at the same time automatically determine whether the remaining drill rods meet the drilling requirements of the next stage. When the remaining drill rods are insufficient, an early warning signal is issued through the electronic control system to realize the intelligent scheduling of drill rod loading and unloading operations.

Images