JP4677048B1 - In-pipe travel device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To ensure a driving force even on a smooth and hard road surface in a crawler-type in-pipe travel device in which a roller is rotatably supported on a crawler shoe and movable in the left and right directions. Be able to communicate.
SOLUTION: An opening 13 is formed in a crawler shoe 11, and an abacus bead-like roller 14 is rotated in the opening 13 so that a rotation shaft 15 thereof is parallel to a traveling direction and protrudes from a tread surface of the crawler shoe 11. Support the shaft freely. The sharp peripheral end shape of the abacus bead-shaped roller 14 increases the load per contact area and improves the frictional force, so that the driving force can be reliably transmitted even when the road surface is smooth and hard and can move forward and backward without slipping.
[Selection] Figure 2

Description

  The present invention relates to a crawler-type in-pipe travel apparatus in which a roller is rotatably supported on a crawler shoe so as to be movable in the left-right direction.

  Conventionally, Patent Documents 1 to 3 disclose crawlers that can move not only in the front-rear direction but also in the left-right direction. These technologies are characterized in that a roller is pivotally supported on a crawler shoe so that its rotation axis is parallel to the traveling direction, and the crawler is driven by a crawler in the front-rear direction and the roller is rotated in the left-right direction. It was made possible to move.

  Further, if this crawler is provided symmetrically by tilting it to the left and right positions of the vehicle body at an angle that matches the left and right inclination of the road surface, as disclosed in Patent Document 4, the vehicle body is moved when traveling in a pipe with a circular cross section. When tilted, the roller rotates as the center of gravity moves in the vertical direction, and the posture can be corrected horizontally.

  By the way, the roller of the above-mentioned technology has a flat or spherical ground contact surface, so that the frictional force with a smooth and hard road surface such as a metal or concrete water pipe or culvert is low, and the crawler shoe slips during driving. There was a problem that power could not be transmitted.

JP 2003-306178 A JP-A-8-142938 Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 7-17442 Utility model registration No. 3096885

  The problem to be solved by the present invention is a crawler-type in-pipe traveling apparatus that eliminates these conventional problems and that is rotatably supported by a roller supported on a crawler shoe. When traveling in the direction, the driving force can be reliably transmitted even on a smooth and hard road surface.

The configuration of the present invention that solves this problem is as follows.
1) In a pipeline where crawlers are provided symmetrically at an angle that matches the left and right slopes of the road surface on the left and right sides of the vehicle body, and the inclined crawlers are allowed to run on the inner surface of a pipe with a circular cross section. A traveling device, wherein an opening is formed in a crawler shoe that constitutes the crawler, and an abacus bead-shaped roller is formed in the opening so that the rotation axis thereof is parallel to the traveling direction and protrudes from the tread surface of the crawler shoe. 2. In-pipe travel device characterized in that it is pivotally supported. 2) A pipe provided horizontally on the left and right positions of the vehicle body, and the crawler is grounded on the bottom surface of the pipe having a rectangular cross section. An in-road traveling device, wherein an opening is formed in a crawler shoe constituting the crawler, and an abacus bead-shaped roller is formed in the opening so that a rotation axis thereof is parallel to a traveling direction and a tread surface of the crawler shoe An in-pipe travel device 3) characterized in that the in-pipe travel device described in 1) or 2) removes dirt adhering to the inner surface of the conduit. It exists in the in-pipe travel apparatus which equips the vehicle body with the cleaner.

  According to the configuration described in 1) of the present invention, when the in-pipe travel device is arranged in a pipe having a circular cross section, when the vehicle body is tilted, the roller rotates so as to shift the center of gravity in the vertical direction, The body posture can be self-corrected horizontally. When traveling in the front-rear direction, the sharp peripheral edge shape of the abacus bead-shaped roller increases the load per contact area and improves the frictional force compared to the conventional technology, and the driving force even if the road surface is smooth and hard Can be transmitted reliably without slipping.

  According to the configuration described in 2) of the present invention, when the vehicle body is moved in the left-right direction, the roller rotates and the movement in the left-right direction can be performed smoothly. When traveling in the front-rear direction, the sharp peripheral edge shape of the abacus bead-shaped roller increases the load per contact area and improves the frictional force compared to the conventional technology, and the driving force even if the road surface is smooth and hard Can be transmitted reliably without slipping.

  In the configuration described in 3) of the present invention, according to the configuration in which the crawler is inclined, the vehicle travels in a pipeline having a circular cross section while correcting its posture horizontally, and the pipeline is removed by a cleaner provided in the vehicle body. The dirt attached to the inner surface can be removed with a stable posture. According to the configuration in which the crawler is provided horizontally, the filth attached to the inner surface of the pipeline with a cleaner provided in the vehicle body is spread over a wide range while moving in the right-and-left direction in the wide pipeline with a rectangular cross section. Can be removed efficiently.

It is a side view of the crawler of Example 1. 3 is a plan view of the crawler according to Embodiment 1. FIG. It is explanatory drawing of the crawler shoe of Example 1. FIG. It is a front view of the traveling apparatus in a pipe line of Example 1. It is a front view of the traveling apparatus in a pipe line of Example 2.

  DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, modes for carrying out the present invention will be specifically described with reference to each embodiment and drawings.

(Embodiment 1) Embodiment 1 shown in FIGS. 1 to 4 is an example of an in-pipe travel device that travels in a pipe having a circular cross section. 1 is a side view of the crawler of the first embodiment, FIG. 2 is a plan view of the crawler of the first embodiment, FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram of the crawler shoe of the first embodiment, and FIG. It is a front view. In the figure, 10 is a crawler, 11 is a crawler shoe, 12 is a link portion, 13 is an opening, 14 is a roller, 15 is a rotating shaft, 20 is a wheel, 30 is a traveling device in a pipeline, 31 is a vehicle body, 32 is an arm, C is a pipeline.

  As shown in FIGS. 1-3, the diamond-shaped opening 13 is formed in the crawler shoe 11 made from a steel plate on the right and left, and the abacus bead 14 made of hard rubber is inserted into the opening 13 so that the rotating shaft 15 is in the traveling direction. The roller 14 is rotatably supported so as to be parallel to each other, and the roller 14 is projected from the tread surface of the crawler shoe 11. The roller 14 may use a metal material such as an aluminum alloy or iron instead of the hard rubber, and may cover the surface of the metal material with hard rubber so as not to damage the road surface.

  The crawler shoe 11 is connected endlessly between the link portions 12 and wound around a wheel 20 with a built-in motor to form the crawler 10, and an angle corresponding to the left and right inclination of the inner surface of the pipe C at the left and right positions of the vehicle body 31. It is attached via an arm 32. Before and after the vehicle body 31, there are provided a rotating brush for scraping off dirt attached to the inner surface of the pipe C, a conveyor for collecting the scraped dirt, and the like (not shown).

  When the in-pipe travel device 30 is disposed in the pipe C having a circular cross section, when the vehicle body 31 is tilted, as shown in FIG. 31 postures are self-corrected horizontally. When traveling, the sharp peripheral end shape of the abacus bead-shaped roller 14 exerts a frictional force with a large load per contact area, and reliably transmits the driving force even if the road surface of the pipe C is smooth and hard. Go back and forth without slipping. Even if the conduit C bends midway and the posture of the vehicle body 31 changes, the roller 14 rotates each time and the posture of the vehicle body 31 is always kept horizontal. In this way, the dirt attached to the inner surface of the pipe C can be removed in a stable posture while the posture of the vehicle body 31 is self-corrected horizontally.

(Embodiment 2) Embodiment 2 shown in FIG. 5 is an example of an in-pipe travel apparatus that travels in a pipe having a rectangular cross section. FIG. 5 is a front view of the in-pipe travel device according to the second embodiment. In the second embodiment, as shown in FIG. 5, the arm 32 is linear, and the crawler 10 is attached in a horizontal posture. The configuration of the crawler 10 is the same as that of the first embodiment.

  When traveling, the sharp peripheral end shape of the abacus bead-shaped roller 14 exerts a frictional force with a large load per contact area, and reliably transmits the driving force even if the road surface of the pipe C is smooth and hard. Go back and forth without slipping. When the pipe line C is wide, when the vehicle body 31 is moved in the left-right direction by an auxiliary driving wheel (not shown) or by pressing from the outside, the roller 14 rotates and the movement in the left-right direction is smoothly performed. In this way, the filth adhering to the inner surface of the pipe C can be efficiently removed over a wide range while moving in the direction perpendicular to the front, rear, left and right. Other reference numerals and configurations are the same as those in the first embodiment.

  The technology of the present invention is used for running on a smooth and hard road surface such as a metal or concrete water pipe or a culvert.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Crawler 11 Crawler shoe 12 Link part 13 Opening 14 Roller 15 Rotating shaft 20 Wheel 30 In-pipe travel apparatus 31 Car body 32 Arm C Pipe line

Claims (3)

  An in-pipe travel device that allows crawlers to be inclined symmetrically to the left and right positions of the vehicle body at an angle that matches the left-right slope of the travel road surface, and that the inclined crawlers can run on the inner surface of a circular cross-section pipe. An opening is formed in the crawler shoe that constitutes the crawler, and an abacus bead-shaped roller is rotatable in the opening so that the rotation axis thereof is parallel to the traveling direction and protrudes from the tread surface of the crawler shoe. An in-pipe travel device characterized by being pivotally supported on the pipe.   An in-pipe travel device in which crawlers are provided horizontally at the left and right positions of a vehicle body, and the crawler is grounded on the bottom of a pipe having a rectangular cross section, and an opening is formed in a crawler shoe constituting the crawler An in-pipe travel device characterized in that an abacus bead-shaped roller is rotatably supported at its opening so that its rotational axis is parallel to the travel direction and so as to protrude from the tread surface of the crawler shoe. .   The in-pipe travel device according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the in-pipe travel device is provided with a cleaning device for removing dirt attached to the inner surface of the conduit.

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