Remotely Controlled Cleaning Machine for Industrial Plants
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Solution Overview
Problem
Manual high-pressure cleaning of industrial plant components, such as tube bundle devices, poses hazards due to high water pressure and potential aerosol releases, necessitating expensive personal protective equipment and limiting operator safety.
Innovation Solution
An automated high-pressure cleaning machine comprising modular sub-units with a motor-driven lance that can be controlled remotely, featuring a counterweight system to maintain stability and a rotating nozzle for enhanced cleaning, along with a control device and camera for safe operation from a distance.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If manual high-pressure cleaning is used, then cleaning effectiveness is achieved, but operator safety deteriorates due to high water pressure and aerosol hazards
Solution Approach 1:
A remotely controllable cleaning machine serves as an intermediary device between the operator and the hazardous cleaning environment. The machine includes a lance with nozzle that can be positioned and controlled from a safe distance, allowing the operator to clean tube bundle devices without direct exposure to high-pressure water jets and aerosols. The remote control system transmits commands to move the lance and activate the nozzle, eliminating the need for operators to wear expensive protective equipment while maintaining cleaning effectiveness.
2Reliability
If automated cleaning machine is introduced, then operator safety is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The automated cleaning machine is divided into several independent modular units that can be separately controlled and maintained. The system includes a remotely controllable lance unit with nozzle, a carriage system for positioning, and a control system. Each module can be independently operated or replaced, simplifying the overall complexity management. The lance can be inserted through existing manholes without requiring major structural modifications to the plant.
Solution Approach 2:
The cleaning machine incorporates self-positioning and self-adjustment capabilities through automated control systems. The carriage can autonomously move along rails to position the lance, and the nozzle can be automatically directed toward target areas. This reduces the need for complex manual intervention mechanisms and simplifies the control architecture while maintaining safety.
3Reliability
If remote control is implemented, then operator safety is improved, but control precision deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The remote control system incorporates feedback mechanisms that provide real-time information about lance position, nozzle orientation, and cleaning progress to the operator. Sensors and monitoring systems transmit data about the current state of the cleaning machine, allowing the operator to make precise adjustments remotely. This feedback loop ensures that positioning accuracy is maintained despite the remote operating mode, eliminating the trade-off between safety and precision.
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
Enables safe and efficient cleaning of industrial plant components without the need for operators to be in close proximity, reducing the risk of injury and eliminating the requirement for expensive personal protective equipment while improving cleaning effectiveness.
Implementation Method 1
This movement changes the center of mass. To counteract this, the weight carriage is provided, which works in the opposite direction to the carriage. It is preferably always driven in such a way that the center of mass essentially does not shift.
Implementation Method 2
Water emerges from this nozzle under high pressure. In this way, the pipes are cleaned, this process is also known as drilling.
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2
Figure 3~4
AI summary
The cleaning machine for cleaning tube bundle apparatus (60) using high-pressure water has a beam-shaped horizontal unit (20) comprising a frame (26) forming a linear guide, a drive unit (30) arranged at one end of the frame (26), a carriage (28) guided along the linear guide and displaceable by means of the drive unit (30), a weight carriage (36) guided along the linear guide and displaceable in the opposite direction to the carriage (28) by means of the drive unit (30), and a counterweight (38) held on the weight carriage (36). The cleaning machine also has a vertical beam unit (22) attached to the carriage (28), extending transversely from the beam-shaped horizontal unit (20), and comprising a vertical beam (44) and a lance (46) which is guided by a motor so as to be displaceable along the vertical beam (44).