Inspection assembly for imaging a pipeline

Abstract

An inspection apparatus 10 for viewing the internal surface of a pipeline comprises a main body having a longitudinal axis extending generally parallel to a direction of travel of the apparatus. The main body includes a camera 42 and a light source 46, the optical axis of the camera extending in a transverse direction, e.g. perpendicularly, to the longitudinal axis of the main body. The apparatus further comprises a sealing member 74 attached to the main body, which forms a seal against the internal surface of the pipeline such that a fluid flowing along the pipeline applies a driving force on the apparatus. The sealing member can be disposed forward of the camera along the longitudinal axis, and the main body can further comprise a second sealing member with the camera disposed between the sealing member and the second sealing member. The inspection apparatus can comprise a plurality of cameras spaced apart around the circumference of the main body. The cameras can lie in a single plane perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the main body and the fields of view of the cameras cover a full 360° of the internal surface of the pipeline. Figure 1