JP2008028722A - In-pipe inspection camera apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an in-pipe inspection camera apparatus which achieves an in-pipe photography keeping up and down directions of an inside of a pipe of an inspection object constant, illuminates the inside of the pipe everywhere and uniformly and inspects the inside of the pipe precisely, in a camera head apparatus used by being mounted to a tip of a hard cable. <P>SOLUTION: A cone 17 to become a position controlling means to direct a camera unit 13 and an illumination unit 14 to a fixed position to a peripheral direction of the inside of the pipe of the inspection object is integrally formed in a rotating portion 16a of a slip ring 16. The in-pipe photography to always keep the up and down directions of the inside of the pipe of the inspection object constant is achieved by an action for the cone 17 to go toward a center of gravity, and a plurality of luminous elements 142 for a diffused lighting set in the illumination unit 14 are always positioned at an upper side from a center position of a camera lens 13A. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2008,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to an in-pipe inspection camera device suitable for application to, for example, a hard cable color camera system used for inspection of water pipes, sewer pipes, gas pipes and the like.

  As an in-pipe inspection camera device for inspection of water pipes, sewage pipes, gas pipes, etc., a camera head is attached to the tip of a hard cable, the camera head is inserted into the pipe to be inspected with a hard cable, and the inside of the pipe is moved with the camera head There is an in-pipe inspection camera device called a hard cable camera for photographing.

Conventionally, as this kind of in-pipe inspection camera device, there is a camera head device in which a camera is fixed in a case of the camera head.
Japanese Utility Model Publication No. 5-57972

  In this kind of camera head device that is used by attaching to the tip of a hard cable, when the camera head is inserted into the tube and used, the posture of the camera head is not constant, and from the captured image, There was a problem that the vertical relationship in the inspection target pipe could not be grasped.

  It is an object of the present invention to provide an in-pipe inspection camera device that enables in-pipe imaging in which the vertical direction in a pipe to be inspected is always constant, and that the inside of the pipe is uniformly illuminated without unevenness so that the inside of the pipe can be accurately inspected. Objective.

  The present invention provides a camera body that is movable forward and backward with respect to the inside of the inspection target tube, an image pickup device that is provided in a front portion of the camera main body and that images the inside of the inspection target tube, and a position that is biased with respect to the optical axis of the image pickup device A plurality of light emitting elements, an illumination unit that diffusely illuminates the inside of the inspection target tube by each of the light emitting elements, a support mechanism that rotatably supports the imaging element and the illumination unit with respect to an axis of the camera body, An in-pipe inspection camera provided with a position restricting unit that is provided in the camera body and that directs the imaging element and the illumination unit rotatably supported by the support mechanism to a fixed position with respect to a circumferential direction in the inspection target tube Providing the device.

  A camera head device that is attached to the tip of a hard cable enables in-tube imaging with the vertical direction in the tube to be inspected constant at all times, and evenly illuminates the inside of the tube evenly to accurately inspect the inside of the tube. it can.

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.
1 and 2 show the configuration of an in-pipe inspection camera device (hereinafter referred to as a camera head) according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 1 is a front view of the camera head, and FIG. 2 is a side sectional view of the camera head. The camera head 10 according to the embodiment of the present invention is attached to the distal end of the hard cable 12 and is pushed into the inspection target tube by the operation of the hard cable 12, and is extracted from the inspection target tube after the inspection.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the camera head 10 according to the embodiment of the present invention includes a camera body 11, a camera unit 13, an illumination unit 14, a slip ring 16, and a cable connection connector 18 housed in the camera body 11. And is configured.

  A camera lens 13A including a lens cover is attached to the center of the front surface of the camera main body 11, and a transparent cover 11A for illumination is provided integrally with the camera main body 11 around the camera lens 13A. The camera body 11 constitutes a waterproof camera head case having a sealed structure together with the camera lens 13A, the transparent cover 11A, and the cable connection connector 18.

  The hard cable 12 connected to the cable connection connector 18 has rigidity and bending elasticity, and includes a plurality of core wires. As shown in FIG. 3, the hard cable 12 is wound around the cable drum 2 and is used by being unwound from the cable drum 2 in accordance with a necessary amount for in-pipe inspection.

  The camera unit 13 is mounted with an imaging element 13a using, for example, a color CCD, which takes an image of the inside of the inspection target tube imaged by the camera lens 13A.

  The illumination unit 14 is provided with a plurality of (for example, four) light emitting elements 141, 141,... That illuminate the front in the inspection target tube, for example, using white LEDs.

  Further, the illumination unit 14 is provided with a plurality of (for example, eight) light emitting elements 142, 142,... For diffused illumination using, for example, white LEDs at positions deviated from the optical axis of the image sensor 15. Yes. The plurality of light emitting elements 142, 142,... For diffuse illumination are set with an optical axis so as to diffuse the irradiation light evenly from the side to the front in the inspection target tube, and at predetermined intervals as shown in FIG. Be placed.

  The camera unit 13 and the illumination unit 14 are fixed to a rotating portion of a slip ring 16 to be described later, and are provided to the camera body 11 so as to be rotatable in the circumferential direction with the optical axis of the camera body 11 as an axis.

  The slip ring 16 includes a rotating part (rotor) 16a and a fixed part (stator) 16b for connecting the camera unit 13 and the illumination unit 14 to the cable connection connector 18 in a rotatable manner.

  The fixing portion 16 b of the slip ring 16 is fixed to the camera body 11 together with the cable connection connector 18.

  The rotating unit 16 a of the slip ring 16 is provided with the camera unit 13 and the illumination unit 14 fixed on an axis in which the axis of the slip ring 16 and the optical axis of the camera unit 13 are aligned.

  That is, the rotating portion 16 a of the slip ring 16 serves as a support mechanism that supports the camera unit 13 and the illumination unit 14 so as to be rotatable in the circumferential direction with respect to the axis of the camera body 11.

  Further, the rotating portion 16a of the slip ring 16 is integrally formed with a weight body 17 serving as a position restricting means for directing the camera unit 13 and the illumination unit 14 to a fixed position with respect to the circumferential direction in the inspection target tube. . The weight 17 is configured using a metal material such as tungsten.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the weight 17 is formed integrally with the rotating portion 16a of the slip ring 16 so that the light emitting elements 142, 142,... Provided.

  FIG. 2 shows the arrangement positional relationship between the weight body 17 provided integrally with the rotating portion 16a of the slip ring 16 and the light emitting elements 142, 142,.

  Thereby, even if the camera body 11 is rotated along the side wall (rotated in the circumferential direction) within the inspection target tube, the light emitting elements 142, 142,... Provided in the illumination unit 14 are always at the center position of the camera lens 13A. The posture is controlled so as to be positioned higher.

  The cable connection connector 18 is fixed to the camera body 11, has a connection portion of the hard cable 12 at the rear end portion of the camera body 11, and includes various circuits including drive power sources for the camera unit 13 and the illumination unit 14. Circuit connection is made to each core wire of the hard cable 12 through the slip ring 16.

  The configuration of the in-tube inspection camera system using the camera head 10 having the above configuration is shown in FIG.

  The in-tube inspection camera system shown in FIG. 3 includes a cable drum 2 around which a hard cable 12 having a camera head 10 attached at the tip is wound, a control unit 3 that performs image processing inside the tube photographed by the camera head 10, and a control unit. And a monitor 4 for displaying the in-pipe image 5 processed in step 3.

  As described above, the camera head 10 is attached to the tip of the hard cable 12, and is pushed into the inspection target pipe (PA or PB) by the operation of the hard cable 12, and is pulled out from the inspection target pipe after the inspection.

  In the in-pipe inspection camera system shown in FIG. 3, the camera unit 13 and the illumination unit 14 are fixed to the rotating portion 16a of the slip ring 16 integrally provided with the weight body 17, so that the weight The action toward the direction of the center of gravity of the body 17 always enables in-pipe imaging with the vertical direction in the inspection target pipe made constant.

  In this case, the pipe to be inspected has a diameter larger than that of the camera head 10 as a matter of course, and the diffused illumination light emitting elements 142, 142,... Provided in the illumination unit 14 are always in the center of the camera lens 13A. Positioned above the position, the irradiation light is irradiated from the position, and the inside of the tube is diffusely illuminated.

  FIG. 4 shows an example of piping that is to be inspected by the camera head 10 described above. When the camera head 10 having the above configuration is applied to a pipe to be inspected (PA / PB) having a diameter 1.5 to 3 times (75 φ to 150 φ) with respect to the diameter (eg, 50 φ) of the camera head, Since the irradiation position of the light emitting elements 142, 142,... For diffusion illumination is always higher than the optical axis of the camera body 11, appropriate illumination with no spots in the vertical direction in the tube is performed. be able to.

  As described above, in a camera head that enables in-pipe imaging in which the vertical direction in the inspection target tube is always constant, a plurality of diffused illumination light emitting elements are arranged uniformly around the camera lens. FIG. 5A and FIG. 5B show the difference between the in-tube image 5 when the illumination is performed and when the inside of the inspection target tube is illuminated by the illumination unit 14 of the camera head 10 according to the embodiment. .

  In a camera head that enables in-tube shooting with the vertical direction in the inspection target tube always constant, and when the interior of the inspection target tube is illuminated with multiple light emitting elements for diffuse illumination evenly arranged around the camera lens Since the irradiation light is always irradiated from the irradiation position close to the bottom surface in the inspection target tube, as shown in FIG. 5 (a), a monitor image in which the tube bottom portion is always over-illuminated and the ceiling surface portion is under-illuminated. Become.

  On the other hand, in the camera head 10 having the structure of the above-described embodiment, since the irradiation position of the light source is always higher than the optical axis of the camera body 11, as shown in FIG. This enables illumination that is balanced in the vertical direction in the tube and has no spots.

1 is a side sectional view showing a configuration of an in-pipe inspection camera device according to an embodiment of the present invention. The front view which shows the structure of the in-pipe inspection camera apparatus which concerns on the said embodiment. The figure which shows the structure of the in-tube inspection camera system using the in-tube inspection camera apparatus which concerns on the said embodiment. The figure which shows an example of the piping which the in-pipe inspection camera apparatus which concerns on the said embodiment makes into inspection object. The figure which compares and shows the display image image | photographed with the in-tube inspection camera apparatus which concerns on the said embodiment, and the display image image | photographed with the other in-tube inspection camera apparatus.

Explanation of symbols

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 ... Camera head, 11 ... Camera body, 12 ... Hard cable, 13 ... Camera unit, 13a ... Imaging element, 14 ... Illumination unit, 16 ... Slip ring, 16a ... Rotating part (rotor), 16b ... Fixed part (stator) , 17 ... weight, 18 ... cable connector, 141 ... light emitting element for front illumination, 142 ... light emitting element for diffuse illumination.

Claims (8)

A camera body that can be moved back and forth with respect to the inspection target pipe;
An image sensor provided in a front portion of the camera body and photographing the inside of the inspection target tube;
A plurality of light emitting elements provided at positions deviated with respect to the optical axis of the imaging element, and an illumination unit that diffusely illuminates the inside of the inspection target tube by the light emitting elements
A support mechanism for rotatably supporting the image sensor and the illumination unit with respect to the axis of the camera body;
Position control means provided on the camera body and for directing the imaging device and the illumination unit rotatably supported by the support mechanism to a fixed position with respect to a circumferential direction in the inspection target tube. An in-pipe inspection camera device.   The position restricting means is a weight body that directs the imaging element and the illumination unit rotatably supported by the support mechanism in a direction in which the plurality of light emitting elements provided in the illumination unit are positioned above. The in-pipe inspection camera device according to claim 1.   The camera body includes a protective cover for transmitting the irradiation light of the illumination unit on a front surface, and a lens mechanism for forming an image in the inspection target tube on an imaging surface of the imaging element. The in-pipe inspection camera device according to Item 1.   The said camera main body was further equipped with the connector for connecting the hard cable which included the core wire circuit-connected to the said image pick-up element and an illumination unit in the rear end, The Claim 1 or Claim 3 characterized by the above-mentioned. In-pipe inspection camera device.   The in-pipe inspection camera device according to claim 1, wherein the support mechanism is a slip ring that rotatably connects the imaging device and the illumination unit to the connector.   The in-pipe inspection camera device according to claim 2, wherein the weight is configured integrally with the slip ring.   The illumination unit further includes a plurality of light emitting elements that illuminate the inside of the inspection target tube by irradiating irradiation light onto the optical axis of the imaging element in the inspection target tube. The in-pipe inspection camera device according to any one of 1 to 5.   The plurality of light emitting elements provided in the illumination unit that diffusely illuminate the inside of the inspection target tube and the plurality of light emitting elements that illuminate the front of the inspection target tube are white LEDs for illumination, and the inside of the inspection target tube 8. The in-pipe inspection camera device according to claim 7, wherein an optical axis is set in the plurality of light-emitting elements that perform diffuse illumination so that irradiation light is diffused laterally or forwardly in the inspection target tube.

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