CN212398557U

CN212398557U - Probe driving mechanism and butt weld detection device

Info

Publication number: CN212398557U
Application number: CN202020554333.XU
Authority: CN
Inventors: 孔晨光; 李守彬; 罗立群; 于菲
Original assignee: China General Nuclear Power Corp; CGN Power Co Ltd; Guangdong Nuclear Power Joint Venture Co Ltd; China Nuclear Power Operation Technology Corp Ltd
Current assignee: China General Nuclear Power Corp; CGN Power Co Ltd; Guangdong Nuclear Power Joint Venture Co Ltd; China Nuclear Power Operation Technology Corp Ltd
Priority date: 2020-04-15
Filing date: 2020-04-15
Publication date: 2021-01-26
Anticipated expiration: 2030-04-15

Abstract

The application provides a probe actuating mechanism and butt weld detection device, probe actuating mechanism include drive assembly and be used for fixing the loop configuration of tubular structure periphery, drive assembly's output with loop configuration connects, makes drive assembly follows the loop configuration motion, the probe connection in drive assembly, the loop configuration includes that two can dismantle the semicircular structure of connection and be used for connecting two semicircular structure's connection structure, two tip docks respectively of two semicircular structures is the annular. The application provides a probe actuating mechanism and butt weld detection device, but loop configuration split becomes two semicircular structure, and the loop configuration's of being more convenient for installation, dismantlement and transportation provide probably for full-automatic weld detects.

Description

Probe driving mechanism and butt weld detection device

Technical Field

The application belongs to the technical field of weld joint detection, and particularly relates to a probe driving mechanism and a butt weld joint detection device.

Background

When the multi-section pipelines are connected in a welding mode, the defects of air holes, cracks, pits, undercuts and the like easily appear in the welding seams at the pipeline connecting parts, the defects have great influence on the sealing property and the reliability of the pipelines, and particularly in the nuclear power field, the requirements on the sealing property and the reliability of the pipelines are high. At present, the surface of the welding position of the pipeline is detected by adopting a manual or semi-automatic method for detecting the welding seam. If a full-automatic method is adopted to detect the circumference of the pipeline, the scanning probe needs to be matched with the motion track to move, the inner diameter of the motion track is larger than the outer diameter of the pipeline, and when the pipeline is thick, the motion track is difficult to install and transport, so that great challenge is brought to full-automatic weld detection.

Disclosure of Invention

An object of the embodiment of this application is to provide a probe actuating mechanism to the track that the welding seam scanning device that exists among the solution prior art is bulky, is difficult to the technical problem of transportation and installation.

In order to achieve the purpose, the technical scheme adopted by the application is as follows: the utility model provides a probe actuating mechanism for the periphery of drive probe removal with scanning tubular structure, include drive assembly and be used for fixing the loop configuration of tubular structure periphery, drive assembly's output with loop configuration connects, makes drive assembly follows the loop configuration motion, the probe connect in drive assembly, the loop configuration includes that two can dismantle the semicircular structure of connection and be used for connecting two semicircular structure's connection structure, two tip docks respectively of two semicircular structures are the annular.

In one embodiment, the connecting structure includes a first fixing base, a rotating arm rotatably connected to the first fixing base, and a connecting member for fixing the connecting arm and the other semicircular structure, the connecting arm is provided with a first connecting hole for the connecting member to pass through, the connecting structure is provided at one end of the semicircular structure, and the other end of the semicircular structure is provided with a second connecting hole for the connecting member to be inserted into.

In one embodiment, the first fixing seat and the connecting arm are rotatably connected through a rotating shaft, a first annular bulge is arranged on the surface of the first fixing seat, a second annular bulge is arranged at the end of the connecting arm, and the rotating shaft penetrates through the first annular bulge and the second annular bulge.

In one embodiment, one end of the semicircular structure, which is provided with the second connecting hole, is further provided with a second fixed seat, and the side wall of the second fixed seat is used for abutting against the side wall of the rotating arm, which is close to the end portion.

In one embodiment, the second fixing seat is L-shaped, and the second connecting hole is disposed at an inner side of the L-shaped second fixing seat.

In one embodiment, the drive assembly comprises a motor base, a motor fixed on the motor base and a gear driven by the motor, the annular structure comprises a gear ring meshed with the gear, the two semicircular structures comprise gear ring units, and the two gear ring units are butted to form the gear ring.

In one embodiment, the semicircular structure further comprises a guide rail unit fixedly connected with the gear ring unit, two guide rail units are butted to form an annular guide rail, the annular guide rail is provided with an annular groove, two inner walls of the annular groove are respectively provided with a first guide surface, a roller is arranged in the annular groove, the roller is fixedly connected with the motor base, and the periphery of the roller is provided with a second guide surface abutted against the two first guide surfaces.

In one embodiment, the first guide surface and the second guide surface are both annular, and the longitudinal section of the first guide surface and the longitudinal section of the second guide surface are obliquely arranged relative to the axial direction of the annular guide rail.

In one embodiment, the gear ring is fixed at the inner ring of the annular guide rail, the gear ring is an outer gear ring, and the driving assembly is arranged on the outer side of the outer gear ring.

In one embodiment, the connection structure is provided at an outer side of the rail unit.

In one embodiment, the driving assembly further comprises an arc-shaped cover plate covering one side of the opening of the annular groove, the motor base is fixed to one side, facing away from the opening of the annular groove, of the arc-shaped cover plate, and the roller is fixedly connected to the arc-shaped cover plate.

In one embodiment, the probe drive mechanism further comprises a plurality of mounting structures for securing the ring structure to the surface of the tubular structure, the plurality of mounting structures being circumferentially uniformly secured to the ring structure; the mounting structure comprises a mounting block fixed on the annular structure, a pressure foot block fixed on the mounting block, a sliding rod penetrating through the pressure foot block and connected with the pressure foot block in a sliding manner, a nut fixed on the pressure foot block, a screw rod connected with the nut and a cushion block fixed at the end part of the screw rod and used for abutting against the tubular structure, wherein the end part of the sliding rod is fixed on the cushion block.

The application still provides a butt weld detection device, including foretell probe actuating mechanism, still including the probe that is used for scanning the welding seam, the probe connect in drive assembly.

The application provides a probe actuating mechanism and butt weld detection device's beneficial effect lies in: compared with the prior art, this application probe actuating mechanism is used for the motion of drive probe, and probe actuating mechanism includes drive assembly and loop configuration, and drive assembly's output and loop configuration connect, and the periphery of tubular structure is located to the loop configuration, and the drive assembly during operation is because the loop configuration is fixed, makes drive assembly self remove along the loop configuration to drive the periphery of probe annular motion with scanning tubular structure. The annular structure includes two semicircular structures of dismantling the connection and connects two semicircular structures's connection structure for the annular structure can divide into two semicircular structures, and the annular structure's of being more convenient for installation, dismantlement and transportation provide probably for full-automatic weld detects.

Drawings

In order to more clearly illustrate the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present application, the drawings needed to be used in the embodiments or the prior art descriptions will be briefly described below, and it is obvious that the drawings in the following description are only some embodiments of the present application, and it is obvious for those skilled in the art to obtain other drawings based on these drawings without inventive exercise.

Fig. 1 is a perspective structural view of a probe driving mechanism provided in an embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 2 is an exploded view of a portion of the probe drive mechanism provided in an embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 3 is an enlarged view of a portion of FIG. 2;

fig. 4 is a perspective structural view of a driving assembly provided in an embodiment of the present application;

fig. 5 is a perspective structural view of a mounting structure provided in an embodiment of the present application;

fig. 6 is a perspective view of a butt weld detection apparatus according to an embodiment of the present application.

Wherein, in the figures, the respective reference numerals:

1-a drive assembly; 11-a motor; 12-a motor base; 13-a gear; 14-arc cover plate; 15-a roller; 151-second guide surface; 2-a ring-shaped structure; 20-an annular groove; 201-a first guide surface; 21-a gear ring; 22-a ring guide; 23-a semi-circular structure; 230-a second connection hole; 231-a ring gear unit; 232-guide rail unit; 24-a second fixed seat; 3-a linking structure; 31-a first fixed seat; 32-a rotating shaft; 33-a swivel arm; 330-a first connection hole; 34-a connector; 4-mounting a structure; 41-mounting block; 42-a presser foot block; 43-a nut; 44-screw rod; 45-a slide bar; 46-a cushion block; 5-probe.

Detailed Description

In order to make the technical problems, technical solutions and advantageous effects to be solved by the present application clearer, the present application is further described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings and embodiments. It should be understood that the specific embodiments described herein are merely illustrative of the present application and are not intended to limit the present application.

It will be understood that when an element is referred to as being "secured to" or "disposed on" another element, it can be directly on the other element or be indirectly on the other element. When an element is referred to as being "connected to" another element, it can be directly connected to the other element or be indirectly connected to the other element.

It will be understood that the terms "length," "width," "upper," "lower," "front," "rear," "left," "right," "vertical," "horizontal," "top," "bottom," "inner," "outer," and the like, as used herein, refer to an orientation or positional relationship indicated in the drawings that is solely for the purpose of facilitating the description and simplifying the description, and do not indicate or imply that the device or element being referred to must have a particular orientation, be constructed and operated in a particular orientation, and thus should not be considered as limiting the present application.

Furthermore, the terms "first", "second" and "first" are used for descriptive purposes only and are not to be construed as indicating or implying relative importance or implicitly indicating the number of technical features indicated. Thus, a feature defined as "first" or "second" may explicitly or implicitly include one or more of that feature. In the description of the present application, "a plurality" means two or more unless specifically limited otherwise.

The probe driving device provided in the embodiment of the present application will now be described. The probe driving device provided by the embodiment of the application is used for driving the probe 5 to move annularly, so that the probe 5 can scan the welding condition of a circle of welding seam of a pipeline, and automatic scanning is realized.

Referring to fig. 1 and 2, in one embodiment of the present application, the probe driving apparatus includes a driving assembly 1 and a ring structure 2, wherein the ring structure 2 is fixed on the outer periphery of the tubular structure, and the ring structure 2 is fixed. The output end of the driving assembly 1 is connected with the annular structure 2, and the annular structure 2 is fixed, so that the driving assembly 1 can move along the annular structure 2 when the driving assembly 1 works, the probe 5 is connected to the driving assembly 1, and the probe 5 can also move along with the annular structure 2 when the driving assembly 1 works, so that the pipeline can be annularly scanned. The ring structure 2 comprises two semi-circular structures 23 and a connecting structure 3 connecting the two semi-circular structures 23. The two semicircular structures 23 can be detachably connected, so that the annular structure 2 can be disassembled into two halves, the annular structure is suitable for the middle part of a pipeline and does not need to be sleeved in from the end part of the pipeline, and the two semicircular structures 23 occupy small volume and are easy to transport and install and disassemble. The connecting structure 3 can connect two ends of the two semicircular structures 23, so that the two semicircular structures 23 are butted to form a ring.

The probe driving device in the above embodiment comprises a driving assembly 1 and an annular structure 2, wherein the output end of the driving assembly 1 is connected with the annular structure 2, the annular structure 2 is arranged on the periphery of the tubular structure, and the driving assembly 1 is fixed and fixed during working because the annular structure 2 is fixed, so that the driving assembly 1 moves along the annular structure 2, and the probe 5 is driven to move in an annular mode to scan the periphery of the tubular structure. The ring structure 2 comprises two semicircular structures 23 which can be detachably connected and a connecting structure 3 which is connected with the two semicircular structures 23, so that the ring structure 2 can be divided into the two semicircular structures 23, the ring structure 2 is more convenient to install, detach and transport, and the full-automatic welding seam detection is possible.

In one embodiment of the present application, referring to fig. 3, the connecting structure 3 includes a first fixing seat 31, a rotating arm 33 and a connecting member 34. Specifically, one end of the rotating arm 33 is rotatably connected to the first fixing seat 31, and the other end of the rotating arm 33 is provided with a first connection hole 330. The first fixing seat 31 is fixed to one end of the semicircular structure 23, and the other end of the semicircular structure 23 is provided with a second connecting hole 230. The two semicircular structures 23 have the same specific structure, so that the replacement and the use are convenient. When the two semicircular structures 23 are butted, one end of one semicircular structure 23, which is provided with the connecting structure 3, is butted with one end of the other semicircular structure 23, which is provided with the second connecting hole 230, so that one connecting structure 3 is matched with one second connecting hole 230, the connecting piece 34 is inserted into the first connecting hole 330 and the second connecting hole 230 of the rotating arm 33, the two corresponding ends of the semicircular structure 23 are locked, and the remaining two ends of the two semicircular structures 23 are locked in the same mode, so that the two semicircular structures 23 form the annular structure 2. The attachment 34 may be selected from a screw, bolt, or other easily removable component. When the ring structure 2 is disassembled, the two connecting pieces 34 are correspondingly disassembled, and the rotating arm 33 is rotated to be separated from the adjacent semicircular structure 23.

Alternatively, the first fixing seat 31 and the rotating arm 33 are rotatably connected through the rotating shaft 32, a first annular protrusion is formed on the surface of the first fixing seat 31, a second annular protrusion is formed on the end of the rotating arm 33, and the rotating shaft 32 is disposed through the first annular protrusion and the second annular protrusion. Of course, the first fixed seat 31 and the rotating arm 33 can be directly hinged.

Furthermore, the semicircular structure 23 is further provided with a second fixing seat 24, and the second fixing seat 24 is specifically arranged at one end of the semicircular structure 23 close to the second connecting hole 230. The second fixing seat 24 is used for abutting against the end part of the rotating arm 33 and is arranged closer to the end part of the semicircular structure 23, so that the rotating arm 33 is tensioned, and a gap is prevented from being formed at the joint of the two semicircular structures 23. It can be understood that when the rotating arm 33 is rotated to align the first connecting hole 330 and the second connecting hole 230, a side wall of the end of the rotating arm 33 is abutted against a side wall of the second fixed seat 24, which is equivalent to fixing the rotating arm 33 in the circumferential direction of the ring structure 2, and then the rotating arm 33 can be pulled tight in the radial direction of the ring structure 2 by the connecting piece 34.

Optionally, the second fixing seat 24 is L-shaped, and the second connecting hole 230 is disposed inside the second connecting hole 230. More specifically, one side of the second fixing seat 24 is parallel to the end of the semicircular structure 23, and the inner side of the second fixing seat 24 is the side far away from the end of the semicircular structure 23. Because the second fixing seat 24 is L-shaped, and the inner side of the second fixing seat has two side surfaces, the second fixing seat 24 and the rotating arm 33 have two side surfaces which are abutted, so that the second fixing seat 24 has a limiting effect on the rotating arm 33 in two directions.

In one embodiment of the present application, referring to fig. 1 and 4, the driving assembly 1 includes a motor base 12, a motor 11 and a gear 13, the motor 11 is fixed on the motor base 12, an output end of the motor 11 is connected to the gear 13, the rotation of the motor 11 drives the gear 13 to rotate, and a speed reduction structure may be designed between the motor 11 and the gear 13. The ring structure 2 comprises a gear ring 21, the gear ring 21 and the gear 13 are mutually meshed, and the gear 13 rotates relative to the gear ring 21 at the same time, namely, the drive assembly 1 works to enable the gear 13 to rotate and revolve relative to the center of the gear ring 21. In order to enable the ring gear 21 to be split in half, the ring gear 21 includes two ring gear units 231. The movement of the drive assembly 1 along the ring structure 2 is achieved by the cooperation of the gear wheel 13 and the gear ring 21, thereby enabling the probe 5 to scan the outer ring of the tubular structure.

In one embodiment of the present application, referring to fig. 2, the semicircular structure 23 includes a gear ring unit 231, and further includes a guide rail unit 232, the guide rail unit 232 and the gear ring unit 231 are fixedly connected, and the two guide rail units 232 are butted to form the annular guide rail 22. The endless guide 22 serves to guide the drive assembly 1 and to stabilize the movement of the drive assembly 1. The annular guide rail 22 has an annular groove 20, and the center of the annular groove 20 is concentric with the center of the annular guide rail 22. The roller 15 is arranged in the annular groove 20, the roller 15 is clamped between two side walls of the annular groove 20, the roller 15 is fixedly connected to the motor base 12, and the roller 15 revolves along with the motor base 12 relative to the center of the annular guide rail 22. Both side walls of the annular groove 20 are provided with first guide surfaces 201, the periphery of the roller 15 is provided with second guide surfaces 151, and the first guide surfaces 201 and the second guide surfaces 151 are matched with each other. The provision of the rollers 15 increases the mating surface of the drive assembly 1 with the ring structure 2 and, therefore, makes the movement of the drive assembly 1 more stable.

More specifically, the first guide surface 201 and the second guide surface 151 are both annular, and a longitudinal section of the first guide surface 201 and a longitudinal section of the second guide surface 151 are inclined with respect to the axial direction of the annular guide rail 22, the longitudinal section of the first guide surface 201 is a plane passing through the central axis of the annular guide rail 22, and the longitudinal section of the second guide surface 151 is a plane passing through the central axis of the roller 15. The longitudinal sections of the first guide surface 201 and the second guide surface 151 are both inclined with respect to the axial direction of the annular guide rail 22, so that the cooperation of the first guide surface 201 and the first guide surface 151 enables the roller 15 to be limited in both the axial direction and the radial direction of the annular structure 2, thereby preventing the drive assembly 1 from moving in both directions.

In one embodiment of the present application, referring to fig. 1 and fig. 2, the ring gear 21 is an external ring gear, the gear 13 is disposed outside the ring gear 21, and the driving assembly 1 is correspondingly disposed outside the ring gear 21, so that there is no other structure inside the ring-shaped guide rail 22, and the installation of the ring-shaped guide rail 22 and the tubular structure is prevented from being interfered. The toothed ring 21 is fixed to the inner ring of the annular guide 22 so that the roller 15 can engage with the annular groove 20.

Alternatively, the connection structure 3 is provided outside the rail unit 232, which facilitates handling of the connection structure 3 from outside the loop structure 2, which facilitates mounting and dismounting of the loop structure 2.

In one embodiment of the present application, referring to fig. 1 and 2, the driving assembly 1 further includes an arc-shaped cover plate 14, the arc-shaped cover plate 14 is disposed on one side of the opening of the annular groove 20, one side of the arc-shaped cover plate 14 is fixedly connected to the motor base 12, the other side of the arc-shaped cover plate 14 faces the opening of the annular groove 20, and the roller 15 is also fixedly connected to the side. The arc cover plate 14 is used for connecting the motor base 12 and the roller 15, and the probe 5 and other structures can also be arranged on the arc cover plate 14.

In one embodiment of the present application, referring to fig. 1, the probe driving device further comprises a mounting structure 4, the mounting structure 4 being used for fixing the ring structure 2 to the surface of the tubular structure. The mounting structure 4 is arranged such that the position of the ring structure 2 relative to the tubular structure is fixed and no relative movement is possible. The number of the mounting structures 4 is a plurality, and the mounting structures are circumferentially and uniformly arranged on the annular structure 2. The mounting structure 4 is movable towards and away from the tubular structure to clamp to and release from the tubular structure.

Specifically, referring to fig. 5, the mounting structure 4 includes a mounting block 41, a presser foot block 42, a sliding rod 45, a nut 43, a screw 44, and a spacer 46. The mounting block 41 is fixed to the ring structure 2, in particular, the mounting block 41 may be fixed to the ring guide 22, and the presser foot block 42 is fixedly connected to the mounting block 41. The nut 43 is fixed on the presser foot block 42, the nut 43 is in threaded connection with the screw 44, the screw 44 is arranged through the presser foot block 42, and the end part of the screw 44 is fixedly connected with the cushion block 46, when the screw 44 is rotated, the screw 44 moves relative to the presser foot block because the nut 43 is fixed, so that the cushion block 46 is close to or far away from the tubular structure. The sliding rod 45 penetrates through the presser foot block 42 and is connected with the presser foot seat 42 in a sliding manner, and one end of the sliding rod 45 is fixed on the cushion block 46. Thus, when the screw 44 rotates, the screw 44 moves relative to the presser foot block 42 to move the spacer 46 closer to or away from the tubular structure, and at the same time, the spacer 46 drives the sliding rod 45 to slide relative to the presser foot block 42, and the sliding rod 45 is arranged such that the spacer 46 can only move in the radial direction without rotating.

Referring to fig. 6, an apparatus for detecting a butt weld according to an embodiment of the present application is further provided, including the probe driving apparatus in any of the embodiments, and further including a probe 5 for scanning a weld, where the probe 5 is connected to the driving assembly 1. Optionally, the probe 5 is attached to an arcuate cover plate 14. The probe driving device of the embodiment can be used for enabling the annular structure 2 to be detachable, is more convenient for installation, detachment and transportation of the annular structure 2, and provides possibility for designing full-automatic welding seam detection equipment.

The above description is only exemplary of the present application and should not be taken as limiting the present application, as any modification, equivalent replacement, or improvement made within the spirit and principle of the present application should be included in the protection scope of the present application.

Claims

1. The utility model provides a probe actuating mechanism for the periphery of drive probe removal in order to scan tubular structure, its characterized in that, include drive assembly and be used for fixing the loop configuration of tubular structure periphery, drive assembly's output with loop configuration connects, makes drive assembly follows the loop configuration motion, the probe connect in drive assembly, the loop configuration includes that two can dismantle the semicircular structure of connection and be used for connecting two semicircular structure's connection structure, two tip docks respectively of two semicircular structures are the annular.

2. The probe drive mechanism of claim 1, wherein: connection structure include first fixing base, with first fixing base rotates the rotor arm of connecting and is used for fixing rotor arm and another semicircular structure's connecting piece, the confession has been seted up to the rotor arm the first connecting hole that the connecting piece passed, connection structure locates semicircular structure's wherein one end, semicircular structure's the other end has been seted up the confession connecting piece male second connecting hole.

3. The probe drive mechanism of claim 2, wherein: the first fixing seat and the rotating arm are connected in a rotating mode through the rotating shaft, a first annular bulge is arranged on the surface of the first fixing seat, a second annular bulge is arranged at the end portion of the rotating arm, and the rotating shaft penetrates through the first annular bulge and the second annular bulge.

4. The probe drive mechanism of claim 2, wherein: the semicircular structure is provided with one end of the second connecting hole and is further provided with a second fixing seat, and the side wall of the second fixing seat is used for abutting against the side wall of the rotating arm close to the end part.

5. The probe drive mechanism according to claim 4, wherein: the second fixing seat is L-shaped, and the second connecting hole is formed in the L-shaped inner side of the second fixing seat.

6. The probe drive mechanism of claim 1, wherein: the drive assembly comprises a motor base, a motor fixed on the motor base and a gear driven by the motor, the annular structure comprises a gear ring meshed with the gear, the annular structure comprises a gear ring unit and two semicircular structures, and the gear ring units are in butt joint to form the gear ring.

7. The probe drive mechanism according to claim 6, wherein: semicircular structure still include with ring gear unit fixed connection's guide rail unit, two the butt joint of guide rail unit forms annular guide, annular guide has the annular groove, two inner walls of annular groove all have first spigot surface, be provided with the gyro wheel in the annular groove, the gyro wheel with motor cabinet fixed connection, just the periphery of gyro wheel have with two the second spigot surface of first spigot surface butt.

8. The probe drive mechanism according to claim 7, wherein: the first guide surface and the second guide surface are both annular, and the longitudinal section of the first guide surface and the longitudinal section of the second guide surface are inclined relative to the axial direction of the annular guide rail.

9. The probe drive mechanism according to claim 7, wherein: the ring gear is fixed in ring rail's inner circle department, just the ring gear is outer ring gear, drive assembly locates outer ring gear's the outside.

10. The probe drive mechanism according to claim 7, wherein: the connecting structure is arranged on the outer side of the guide rail unit.

11. The probe drive mechanism according to claim 7, wherein: the driving assembly further comprises an arc-shaped cover plate arranged on one side of the opening of the annular groove in a covering mode, the motor base is fixed on one side, back to the opening of the annular groove, of the arc-shaped cover plate, and the idler wheels are fixedly connected to the arc-shaped cover plate.

12. The probe drive mechanism of claim 1, wherein: the probe driving mechanism further comprises a plurality of mounting structures for fixing the annular structure on the surface of the tubular structure, and the plurality of mounting structures are circumferentially and uniformly fixed on the annular structure; the mounting structure comprises a mounting block fixed on the annular structure, a pressure foot block fixed on the mounting block, a sliding rod penetrating through the pressure foot block and connected with the pressure foot block in a sliding manner, a nut fixed on the pressure foot block, a screw rod connected with the nut and a cushion block fixed at the end part of the screw rod and used for abutting against the tubular structure, wherein the end part of the sliding rod is fixed on the cushion block.

13. Butt weld detection device, its characterized in that: comprising the probe drive mechanism of any of claims 1-12, further comprising a probe for scanning the weld, said probe being connected to said drive assembly.