Side-hung self-guided automatic detection operation robot for highway guardrail plate

Abstract

The utility model relates to a side-hung self-guiding type automatic detection operation robot for highway guardrail plates. The robot comprises a hanging rail type frame structure, a sliding supporting mechanism, a power driving mechanism, a thickness detection mechanism, a visual scanning mechanism and a height detection mechanism. The thickness detection mechanism, the visual scanning mechanism and the height detection mechanism are all installed on the hanging rail type frame structure. According to the robot, multi-parameter collection and analysis can be rapidly, stably and uninterruptedly carried out under the complex highway guardrail working condition, the problems that existing sampling points are difficult to unify, and sampling errors and sampling leakage are likely to happen are solved, customized design is carried out on work under the working condition influenced by complex factors such as terrain, road conditions and lane lines, and the working efficiency is improved. In addition, due to the fact that the width of the robot is small, the robot can be arranged on the side of a central green belt, traffic is not affected, and high-precision automatic detection under various complex terrains and working conditions can be achieved.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present application relates to the technical field of highway guardrail detection, and in particular to a side-mounted self-guided highway guardrail automatic detection operation robot. Background Art

[0002] As the transportation infrastructure gradually enters the maintenance period, the performance degradation of the in-service corrugated beam guardrail has seriously affected the stability and safety of the highway. The emergence of dangerous situations such as guardrail damage has greatly threatened the last line of defense for road traffic safety. There are cases where serious traffic accidents are directly or indirectly caused by guardrail damage caused by guardrail shedding, indentation, deformation, and thinning of the anti-corrosion coating related to the thickness parameters of the guardrail. Therefore, it is urgent to conduct periodic inspections and maintenance of guardrails, and conduct comprehensive inspections of parameters such as guardrail thickness, coating, center height, plate type, and inclination. Digital archiving and network management can timely and accurately evaluate and maintain the safety performance of highway guardrails, thereby ensuring traffic safety and the safety of life and property of passengers.

[0003] The traditional method is to use manual visual inspection combined with manual measurement to inspect highway guardrails. There are problems such as low detection efficiency, inaccurate and incomplete data, low efficiency, long time consumption and high safety risks for inspectors. In a complex traffic environment, manual inspection may be affected by the working environment, traffic flow, etc., and it is easy to ignore some small but important changes, leading to greater safety hazards. Therefore, traditional methods can no longer meet such a huge gap in the daily inspection needs of highway guardrails. Summary of the invention

[0004] In order to overcome at least one shortcoming in the prior art, the present application provides a side-mounted self-guided highway guardrail automatic inspection operation robot.

[0005] In a first aspect, a side-mounted self-guided highway guardrail automatic inspection robot is provided, comprising: a rail-mounted frame structure, a sliding support mechanism, a power drive mechanism, a thickness detection mechanism, a visual scanning mechanism, and a height detection mechanism; the thickness detection mechanism, the visual scanning mechanism, and the height detection mechanism are all installed on the rail-mounted frame structure;

[0006] The rail-mounted frame structure can be mounted on the guardrail plate through a sliding support mechanism and slide along the guardrail plate;

[0007] The power driving mechanism is used to drive the sliding support mechanism to slide along the guardrail plate;

[0008] The thickness detection mechanism is used to obtain the displacement between the thickness detection mechanism and the front and back sides of the guardrail plate, respectively, and the displacement is used to determine the thickness of the guardrail plate;

[0009] The visual scanning mechanism includes a line structured light emitter and an industrial camera. The line structured light emitter emits a light beam onto the guardrail plate, and the industrial camera collects an image of the guardrail plate illuminated by the light beam. The image is used to determine the deformation of the guardrail plate.

[0010] The height detection mechanism includes a laser displacement sensor, which is used to obtain the displacement between the laser displacement sensor and the ground, and the displacement is used to determine the height of the guardrail.

[0011] In one embodiment, the thickness detection mechanism includes a direct side laser ranging sensor, a reflective side laser ranging sensor, and a reflected light rotating mechanism. The direct side laser ranging sensor emits a light beam to the front of the guardrail plate, the reflective side laser ranging sensor emits a light beam to the reflected light rotating mechanism, and the reflected light rotating mechanism reflects the light beam to the back of the guardrail plate.

[0012] In one embodiment, the thickness detection mechanism further includes a sensor holder, which is mounted on the rail-hanging frame structure, and the direct-side laser ranging sensor and the reflective-side laser ranging sensor are mounted on the sensor holder.

[0013] In one embodiment, the reflected light rotation mechanism includes a base, a support arm, a ball plunger, a reflector, and a limit block. The base is installed on a rail-mounted frame structure, one end of the support arm is connected to the ball plunger, and the ball plunger is movably installed in the base so that the support arm can rotate relative to the base. The reflector is installed at the other end of the support arm; the limit block is installed on the base to limit the rotational displacement of the support arm.

[0014] In one embodiment, the thickness detection mechanism further includes a coating thickness measurement sensor, and the coating thickness measurement sensor is used to measure the coating thickness of the guardrail plate.

[0015] In one embodiment, the thickness detection mechanism also includes a telescopic claw, on which a coating thickness measurement sensor is installed. The telescopic claw is installed on a rail-mounted frame structure. When the telescopic claw is extended, it can drive the coating thickness measurement sensor to contact the guardrail plate to measure the coating thickness.

[0016] In one embodiment, the sliding support mechanism includes a top board auxiliary wheel sliding support structure and a bottom board auxiliary wheel sliding support structure. The top board auxiliary wheel sliding support structure is installed at the position where the hanging rail frame structure contacts the top board core of the guardrail board, and the bottom board auxiliary wheel sliding support structure is installed at the position where the hanging rail frame structure contacts the bottom board core of the guardrail board.

[0017] In one embodiment, the auxiliary wheel sliding support structure on the top of the board includes a top slide rail and a hub motor, and the auxiliary wheel sliding support structure on the bottom of the board includes a bottom slide rail and a hub motor; the top slide rail slides along the guardrail board under the power of the hub motor, and the bottom slide rail slides along the guardrail board under the power of the hub motor.

[0018] In one embodiment, the hanging rail frame structure has an L-shaped structure, and the hanging rail frame structure includes three layers, namely a top layer, a middle layer and a bottom layer. The top layer is provided with a power drive mechanism, the middle layer is provided with a battery, and the bottom layer is provided with a visual scanning mechanism.

[0019] In one embodiment, at least one hatch is provided on the side of the rail-mounted frame structure, and the hatch is used to replace the battery inside the rail-mounted frame structure or maintain the internal mechanism.

[0020] Compared with the prior art, the present application has the following beneficial effects: the robot of the present application maintains a vertical track-type fixed angle and distance with the guardrail structure during driving, ensuring the smooth operation of its main body, and collects various parameters of the guardrail in real time and transmits them back to the host computer during the automatic advancement of the robot; the robot of the present application can quickly, stably and continuously perform multi-parameter collection and analysis under complex highway guardrail working conditions, solving the problem that the existing sampling points are difficult to unify, easy to missample and miss sampling, and customized the work under working conditions affected by complex factors such as terrain, road conditions, lane lines, etc., avoiding parameter errors caused by the relative distance between the robot and the guardrail. In addition, due to its small width, it can be deployed on the side of the central green belt without affecting traffic, and can meet high-precision automated detection under a variety of complex terrains and working conditions. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0021] The present application may be better understood by referring to the following description given in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, which together with the following detailed description are included in this specification and form a part of this specification. In the drawings:

[0022] Figure 1 The overall structural diagram of the side-mounted self-guided highway guardrail automatic inspection robot is shown;

[0023] Figure 2 The schematic diagram of the installation of the side-mounted self-guided highway guardrail automatic inspection robot is shown;

[0024] Figure 3 A schematic diagram of a rail-hanging frame structure is shown;

[0025] Figure 4 shows a schematic diagram of a sliding support mechanism;

[0026] Figure 5 A schematic diagram of a thickness detection mechanism is shown.

[0027] Reference numerals:

[0028] 1- rail-hanging frame structure, 2- sliding support mechanism, 3- thickness detection mechanism, 4- power drive mechanism, 5- visual scanning mechanism, 6- battery, 7- robot main control, 8- industrial computer, 9- carrying handle, 10- board top slide rail, 11- wheel hub motor, 12- board bottom slide rail, 13- direct side laser ranging sensor, 14- reflection side laser ranging sensor, 15- reflected light rotation mechanism, 16- sensor holder, 17- support arm, 18- reflector, 19- direct side laser beam, 20- reflection side laser beam, 21- coating thickness measurement sensor, 22- hatch. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0029] The exemplary embodiments of the present application will be described below in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. For the sake of clarity and conciseness, not all features of the actual embodiments are described in the specification. However, it should be understood that many implementation-specific decisions can be made in the process of developing any such actual embodiments in order to achieve the specific goals of the developer, and these decisions may vary from embodiment to embodiment.

[0030] It is also necessary to explain here that, in order to avoid obscuring the present application due to unnecessary details, only the device structure closely related to the scheme according to the present application is shown in the drawings, while other details that are not closely related to the present application are omitted.

[0031] It should be understood that the present application is not limited to the described implementation forms due to the following description with reference to the accompanying drawings. In this article, where feasible, the embodiments can be combined with each other, features between different embodiments can be replaced or borrowed, and one or more features can be omitted in one embodiment.

[0032] The present application provides a side-mounted self-guided highway guardrail automatic detection robot. Figure 1 The overall structure diagram of the side-mounted self-guided highway guardrail automatic inspection robot is shown. Figure 2 The schematic diagram of the installation of a side-mounted self-guided highway guardrail automatic inspection robot is shown. The robot includes a rail-mounted frame structure 1, a sliding support mechanism 2, a power drive mechanism 4, a thickness detection mechanism 3, a visual scanning mechanism 5 and a height detection mechanism; the thickness detection mechanism 3, the visual scanning mechanism 5 and the height detection mechanism are all installed on the rail-mounted frame structure 1.

[0033] The rail-hanging frame structure 1 can be installed on the guardrail plate through the sliding support mechanism 2 and slide along the guardrail plate;

[0034] The power drive mechanism 4 is used to drive the sliding support mechanism 2 to slide along the guardrail plate;

[0035] The thickness detection mechanism 3 is used to obtain the displacement between the thickness detection mechanism 3 and the front and back sides of the guardrail plate, respectively, and the displacement is used to determine the thickness of the guardrail plate;

[0036] The visual scanning mechanism 5 includes a line structured light emitter and an industrial camera. The line structured light emitter emits a light beam onto the guardrail plate, and the industrial camera collects an image of the guardrail plate illuminated by the light beam, and the image is used to determine the deformation of the guardrail plate;

[0037] The height detection mechanism includes a laser displacement sensor, which is used to obtain the displacement between the laser displacement sensor and the ground, and the displacement is used to determine the height of the guardrail.

[0038] In this embodiment, a side-mounted self-guided highway guardrail automatic inspection robot is installed on the guardrail and slides along the length of the guardrail, and detects relevant parameters of the guardrail during the sliding process, such as the displacement between the thickness detection mechanism and the front and back sides of the guardrail, the image of the guardrail, the displacement between the laser displacement sensor and the ground, etc. The above parameters can be transmitted to the host computer to obtain information such as the thickness, deformation and height of the guardrail.

[0039] In one embodiment, Figure 3 A schematic diagram showing a rail-mounted frame structure is shown in FIG. Figure 3 The rail-mounted frame structure 1 has an L-shaped structure. The rail-mounted frame structure 1 includes three layers, namely, a top layer, a middle layer and a bottom layer. The top layer is provided with a power drive mechanism 4, the middle layer is provided with a battery 6, and the bottom layer is provided with a visual scanning mechanism 5. Here, the power drive mechanism can be two motor drivers.

[0040] Furthermore, the top layer is also provided with electrical circuits such as the robot main control 7 and the industrial computer 8.

[0041] Furthermore, at least one hatch 22 is provided on the side of the hanging rail type frame structure 1, and the hatch 22 is used to replace the battery 6 inside the hanging rail type frame structure 1 or maintain the internal mechanism. Here, the side of the hanging rail type frame structure 1 corresponding to the middle layer is provided with a hatch for replacing the battery 6 inside the hanging rail type frame structure 1, and the side of the hanging rail type frame structure 1 corresponding to the bottom layer is also provided with a hatch for maintaining the mechanism of the bottom layer.

[0042] Furthermore, a carrying handle 9 is provided on the side of the rail-hanging frame structure 1 for easy carrying.

[0043] In one embodiment, Figure 4 A schematic diagram of the sliding support mechanism is shown in FIG. Figure 4The sliding support mechanism 2 includes a top board auxiliary wheel sliding support structure and a bottom board auxiliary wheel sliding support structure. The top board auxiliary wheel sliding support structure is installed at the position where the hanging rail frame structure 1 contacts the top board core of the guardrail board, and the bottom board auxiliary wheel sliding support structure is installed at the position where the hanging rail frame structure 1 contacts the bottom board core of the guardrail board.

[0044] Specifically, the auxiliary wheel sliding support structure on the top of the board includes a board top slide rail 10 and a hub motor 11, and the auxiliary wheel sliding support structure on the bottom of the board includes a board bottom slide rail 12 and a hub motor 11. The board top slide rail 10 and the board bottom slide rail 12 have the same structure. Here, the board top slide rail 10 has a columnar structure, and a positioning disc is respectively provided on both ends, one end of which is connected to the hanging rail frame structure 1, and the other end is in contact with the top board core of the guardrail board. Here, the power drive mechanism 4 acts on the hub motor 11, so that the board top slide rail 10 slides along the guardrail board under the power of the hub motor 11. The board bottom slide rail 12 slides along the guardrail board under the power of the hub motor 11.

[0045] In one embodiment, Figure 5 A schematic diagram of a thickness detection mechanism is shown in FIG. Figure 5 The thickness detection mechanism 3 includes a direct-side laser distance sensor 13, a reflective-side laser distance sensor 14, and a reflected-light rotating mechanism 15. The direct-side laser distance sensor 13 emits a light beam (i.e., a direct-side laser light beam 19) to the front of the guardrail, and the reflective-side laser distance sensor 14 emits a light beam (i.e., a reflective-side laser light beam 20) to the reflected-light rotating mechanism 15. The reflected-light rotating mechanism 15 reflects the light beam to the back of the guardrail. Here, the thickness detection mechanism 3 can be arranged on the side of the rail-mounted frame structure 1.

[0046] The thickness detection mechanism 1 in this embodiment can avoid the spatial conflict between the laser displacement position and the connection point of the column, and perform non-contact real-time detection of the total thickness.

[0047] Specifically, the thickness detection mechanism 1 further includes a sensor holder 16 . The sensor holder 10 is mounted on the rail-hanging frame structure 1 . The direct-side laser distance sensor 13 and the reflective-side laser distance sensor 14 are mounted on the sensor holder 16 .

[0048] Specifically, the reflected light rotating mechanism 15 includes a base, a support arm 17, a ball plunger, a reflector 20, and a limit block. The base is installed on the rail-mounted frame structure 1, one end of the support arm 17 is connected to the ball plunger, and the ball plunger is movably installed in the base so that the support arm 17 can rotate relative to the base. The reflector 20 is installed at the other end of the support arm 17; the limit block is installed on the base to limit the rotational displacement of the support arm 17.

[0049] Furthermore, considering that there is a coating on the guardrail plate, in order to ensure the accuracy of the measured thickness of the guardrail plate, the thickness detection mechanism 3 also includes a coating thickness measurement sensor 21, which is used to measure the coating thickness of the guardrail plate.

[0050] Here, after measuring the displacement between the thickness detection mechanism 21 and the front and back sides of the guardrail plate, the difference in displacement is obtained, and then the thickness of the guardrail plate is obtained by subtracting the coating thickness.

[0051] In order to achieve the purpose of measuring the coating thickness by the coating thickness measuring sensor, the thickness detection mechanism also includes a telescopic claw, on which a coating thickness measuring sensor 21 is installed. The telescopic claw is installed on the rail-mounted frame structure 1. When the telescopic claw is extended, it can drive the coating thickness measuring sensor 21 to contact the guardrail plate to measure the coating thickness.

[0052] In summary, the robot of the present application maintains a vertical track-type fixed angle and distance with the guardrail structure during driving, ensuring the smooth operation of its main body, and collects various parameters of the guardrail in real time and transmits them back to the host computer during the automatic advancement of the robot; the robot of the present application can quickly, stably and continuously perform multi-parameter collection and analysis under complex highway guardrail working conditions, solving the problem that existing sampling points are difficult to unify, easy to missample and miss sampling, and customized design is carried out for working conditions affected by complex factors such as terrain, road conditions, lane lines, etc., avoiding parameter errors caused by the relative distance between the robot and the guardrail. In addition, due to its small width, it can be deployed on the side of the central green belt without affecting traffic, and can meet high-precision automated detection under a variety of complex terrains and working conditions.

[0053] The above are only various implementations of the present application, but the protection scope of the present application is not limited thereto. Any person skilled in the art who is familiar with the present technical field can easily think of changes or substitutions within the technical scope disclosed in the present application, which should be included in the protection scope of the present application. Therefore, the protection scope of the present application should be based on the protection scope of the claims.

Claims

1. A side-mounted self-guided highway guardrail automatic inspection robot, characterized in that: include: A rail-mounted frame structure (1), a sliding support mechanism (2), a power drive mechanism (4), a thickness detection mechanism (3), a visual scanning mechanism (5) and a height detection mechanism; the thickness detection mechanism (3), the visual scanning mechanism (5) and the height detection mechanism are all installed on the rail-mounted frame structure (1); The rail-hanging frame structure (1) can be installed on the guardrail plate through the sliding support mechanism (2) and slide along the guardrail plate; The power drive mechanism (4) is used to drive the sliding support mechanism (2) to slide along the guardrail plate; The thickness detection mechanism (3) is used to obtain the displacement between the thickness detection mechanism (3) and the front and back sides of the guardrail plate, respectively, and the displacement is used to determine the thickness of the guardrail plate; The visual scanning mechanism (5) comprises a line structured light emitter and an industrial camera, wherein the line structured light emitter emits a light beam onto the guardrail plate, and the industrial camera collects an image of the guardrail plate illuminated by the light beam, and the image is used to determine the deformation of the guardrail plate; The height detection mechanism includes a laser displacement sensor, which is used to obtain the displacement between the laser displacement sensor and the ground, and the displacement is used to determine the height of the guardrail plate.

2. The side-mounted self-guided highway guardrail automatic inspection robot according to claim 1, characterized in that: The thickness detection mechanism (3) comprises a direct-side laser distance measuring sensor (13), a reflective-side laser distance measuring sensor (14), and a reflected light rotating mechanism (15); the direct-side laser distance measuring sensor (13) emits a light beam to the front side of the guardrail plate; the reflective-side laser distance measuring sensor (14) emits a light beam to the reflected light rotating mechanism (15); and the reflected light rotating mechanism (15) reflects the light beam to the back side of the guardrail plate.

3. The side-mounted self-guided highway guardrail automatic inspection robot according to claim 2, characterized in that: The thickness detection mechanism (3) further comprises a sensor holder (16), wherein the sensor holder (16) is mounted on the rail-hanging frame structure (1), and the direct-side laser distance measuring sensor (13) and the reflective-side laser distance measuring sensor (14) are mounted on the sensor holder (16).

4. The side-mounted self-guided highway guardrail automatic inspection robot according to claim 2, characterized in that: The reflected light rotating mechanism (15) comprises a base, a support arm (17), a ball plunger, a reflector (18), and a limit block; the base is mounted on the rail-mounted frame structure (1); one end of the support arm (17) is connected to the ball plunger; the ball plunger is movably mounted in the base so that the support arm (17) can rotate relative to the base; the other end of the support arm (17) is mounted with the reflector (18); the limit block is mounted on the base to limit the rotational displacement of the support arm (17).

5. The side-mounted self-guided highway guardrail automatic inspection robot according to claim 1, characterized in that: The thickness detection mechanism (3) further comprises a coating thickness measurement sensor (21), wherein the coating thickness measurement sensor (21) is used to measure the coating thickness of the guardrail plate.

6. The side-mounted self-guided highway guardrail automatic inspection robot according to claim 5, characterized in that: The thickness detection mechanism (3) also includes a telescopic claw, on which the coating thickness measurement sensor (21) is mounted, and the telescopic claw is mounted on the rail-hanging frame structure (1), and when the telescopic claw is extended, it can drive the coating thickness measurement sensor (21) to contact the guardrail plate to measure the coating thickness.

7. The side-mounted self-guided highway guardrail automatic inspection robot according to claim 1, characterized in that: The sliding support mechanism (2) comprises a top auxiliary wheel sliding support structure and a bottom auxiliary wheel sliding support structure. The top auxiliary wheel sliding support structure is installed at a position where the rail-hanging frame structure (1) contacts the top board core of the guardrail board, and the bottom auxiliary wheel sliding support structure is installed at a position where the rail-hanging frame structure (1) contacts the bottom board core of the guardrail board.

8. The side-mounted self-guided highway guardrail automatic inspection robot according to claim 7, characterized in that: The board top auxiliary wheel sliding support structure comprises a board top slide rail (10) and a wheel hub motor (11), and the board bottom auxiliary wheel sliding support structure comprises a board bottom slide rail (12) and a wheel hub motor (11); the board top slide rail (10) slides along the guardrail board under the power of the wheel hub motor (11), and the board bottom slide rail (12) slides along the guardrail board under the power of the wheel hub motor (11).

9. The side-mounted self-guided highway guardrail automatic inspection robot according to claim 1, characterized in that: The rail-hanging frame structure (1) has an L-shaped structure. The rail-hanging frame structure (1) comprises three layers, namely a top layer, a middle layer and a bottom layer. The top layer is provided with the power drive mechanism (4), the middle layer is provided with a storage battery (6), and the bottom layer is provided with the visual scanning mechanism (5).

10. The side-mounted self-guided highway guardrail automatic inspection robot according to claim 1, characterized in that: At least one hatch (22) is provided on the side of the rail-hanging frame structure (1), and the hatch (22) is used to replace the storage battery (6) inside the rail-hanging frame structure (1) or maintain the internal mechanism.

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