Branch Conduit Opening Detection in Lined Pipes Using Infrared Mapping
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing methods for inspecting and performing operations within enclosed or dangerous spaces, such as water and sewer pipes, are inefficient and prone to errors due to reliance on human intervention and the inability to accurately correlate disparate data sets.
Innovation Solution
A robotic system equipped with multiple sensors, including cameras, infrared scanners, and LIDAR, that uses sensor fusion and artificial intelligence to create accurate digital maps of the environment and perform tasks like cutting with high precision.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If conventional manual inspection techniques are used, then human operators can detect features and defects, but the process is susceptible to errors and lacks efficiency
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces manual mechanical inspection with an automated robotic system that uses infrared cameras and sensors to detect features and defects. The robot navigates through the pipe autonomously, eliminating human operators from the inspection process while improving both reliability through consistent sensor-based detection and productivity through automated continuous operation.
Solution Approach 2:
The robotic inspection system is self-contained with onboard sensors, processing capabilities, and navigation systems. The robot independently detects features, maps the environment, and identifies defects without requiring continuous human intervention, thereby improving inspection efficiency while maintaining high detection accuracy through automated analysis.
2Loss of information
If visual cameras are used for mapping, then features can be detected, but the data is disjointed and requires manual observation
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines multiple sensor types including infrared cameras, visual cameras, LIDAR, and temperature sensors into a single integrated robotic system. This merging of disparate data sources creates a coherent unified map of the pipe environment, eliminating the need for manual correlation of separate data sets while reducing information loss through comprehensive multi-sensor coverage.
Solution Approach 2:
The robotic system performs multiple functions simultaneously: visual mapping, thermal imaging, defect detection, and navigation. This multi-functionality allows the system to gather comprehensive data about the pipe environment in a single pass, creating coherent information without requiring separate manual observation steps for each type of feature.
3Measurement precision
If infrared cameras are used to detect temperature variations, then thermal features can be identified, but the data remains disjointed from other measurements
Solution Approach 1:
The patent integrates infrared thermal imaging data with visual camera footage, LIDAR measurements, and other sensor readings into a single unified data set. The robotic system processes all these measurements simultaneously, maintaining precise temperature detection accuracy while eliminating data disjointedness through automated correlation and integration of all sensor inputs into a coherent environmental model.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The system enables accurate and efficient inspection and operation within enclosed spaces by providing a coherent representation of the environment and allowing real-time control of robotic tools, thereby reducing errors and improving safety and efficiency.
Implementation Method 1
scanning the liner using an infrared scanner mounted on the robot. A temperature drop outside the liner as compared to the adjacent surfaces to acquire infrared data is sensed with an infrared scanner.
Data Source
AI summary
A method and system for locating a branch conduit opening into a main pipe following lining the main pipe with a liner includes moving a robot down the lined main pipe and scanning the liner using an infrared scanner mounted on the robot. A temperature drop outside the liner as compared to the adjacent surfaces to acquire infrared data is sensed with an infrared scanner. The infrared data is compared with other location data regarding the branch conduit opening and a branch conduit opening location outside of the liner is determined based on the infrared data and the other data. In another aspect, the infrared scanner is tuned to more particularly sense temperatures associated with the presence of a branch conduit opening.