JP5616475B2 - In-pipe inspection device - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to an in-pipe inspection apparatus for inspecting a state in a pipe such as a water pipe using a camera.

Conventionally, as an in-pipe inspection apparatus for confirming a state in a pipe such as a water pipe from the outside, the following Patent Document 1 describes a device as shown in FIG. The inspection device V ₂ is attached to the distal end of the cable 50 has a cylindrical camera unit 51 having a built-in camera on the front end side, the driving portion 52 of substantially the same diameter as the camera unit 51 at the back is positioned Yes.

  The camera unit 51 and the drive unit 52 are connected via a flexible rubber pipe 53 through which a signal cable or the like to the camera is inserted. The rubber pipe 53 can be of the same diameter as the camera unit 51 and the drive unit 52. It is covered with a rubber tube 54 having flexibility.

  Inside the rubber tube 54, a pair of wires 55 and 56 are stretched on both sides of the rubber pipe 53 so as to connect the camera unit 51 and the actuator 57 of the drive unit 52. It is inserted through an intermediate ring 58 that is externally fitted to the part.

In order to inspect the inside of the pipe 1 using the inspection device V ₂ , the equipment such as a fire hydrant is removed from the branch pipe 2 branched from the pipe 1 and attached to the tip of the cable 50 fed out from the drum of the delivery device. The device V ₂ is inserted into the tube 1 via the branch tube 2.

Then, when the camera unit 51 reaches the inside of the tube 1, one of the wires 55 and 56 is pulled along with the driving of the actuator 57, so that the camera unit 51 faces the axial direction of the tube 1. In contrast, the rubber pipe 53 is bent. This makes it possible to smoothly inserted into the testing device V ₂ to the tube 1.

JP-A-8-286124

However, in the inspection apparatus V ₂ as described above, since the bending direction of the rubber pipes 53 and the camera unit 51 connects the drive unit 57 is limited only to the opposite fixed direction, toward the camera unit 51 in the direction that you want to proceed It may not be possible.

  On the other hand, in order to avoid this restriction and bend the rubber pipe 53 in multiple directions, it is necessary to increase the number of wires as well as the pair of wires 55 and 56 so that each wire can be driven and controlled. In this case, there arises a problem that the structure becomes complicated.

  Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to increase the degree of freedom of the operation of bending the camera portion with respect to the rear portion with a simple structure.

In order to solve the above problems, the present invention is an in-pipe inspection apparatus that attaches to the tip of a cable and inserts it in a pipe, projects an image photographed by a camera on a monitor outside the pipe, and observes the situation inside the pipe. A camera unit provided with a camera located at the front end side that is the front side when inserted into the tube, and a drive unit connected to the cable located behind the camera unit, the camera unit being connected to the drive unit via a lever By linking, the axis can be freely oscillated with respect to the longitudinal axis from the camera unit to the drive unit with this axis as the axis of symmetry , and this oscillating operation is performed by a oscillating motor built in the drive unit. Because the front part connected to the camera part can be swiveled around the axis in the front-rear direction with respect to the rear part to which the cable is connected, and this turning operation is performed by a turning motor built in the drive part. That.

Further, the driving unit, and a swing drive unit of the front swinging motor is built, the turning motor consisted of a turning drive unit of the rear built, and a rotation driving unit swing drive unit It is connected to a longitudinal axis through a coil spring so as to be able to bend and stretch.

The pipe inspection apparatus according to the present invention, a camera unit connected via a lever to a drive unit, with swings relative to the longitudinal direction of the axis with the driving of the swing motor, the front and rear directions with the driving of the turning motor Since it rotates around the axis, the camera unit can be freely bent with respect to the drive unit behind it by combining these operations.

In addition, since the swinging drive unit and the turning drive unit constituting the drive unit are connected via a coil spring, even when the inspection device is long in the axial direction of the front-rear direction, it is attached to a bent part such as a branch part of the pipeline. Correspondingly, the drive portion bends at the coil spring portion, and can smoothly pass through the bent portion of the pipeline.

Side view of the in-pipe inspection apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention Partially cutaway plan view of the same in-pipe inspection device Sectional views along (a) IIIa-IIIa, (b) IIIb-IIIb, (c) IIIc-IIIc in FIG. Schematic elevation showing the insertion process from the branch pipe to the pipe to be inspected Schematic elevation showing the insertion process from the branch pipe to the pipe to be inspected Schematic plan view showing the passage process of the pipe branch Schematic plan view showing the passage process of the pipe branch Elevated schematic diagram showing the process of inserting a conventional in-pipe inspection device into a pipe

  Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

As shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, the inspection device V ₁ is attached to the distal end portion of the cable 10 and is configured to be connected to a cylindrical member, and is forward when inserted into a tube. A camera unit 11 provided on the front end side and a drive unit 12 connected to the cable 10 located behind the camera unit 11 are provided.

  The camera unit 11 includes a camera 13 having a lens and an image sensor, and an LED-type irradiation lamp 14 facing the front end surface. An image photographed by the camera 13 is displayed on an external monitor via the wiring in the cable 10.

The rear part of the camera unit 11 is connected to the drive unit 12 via the lever 15, and the axis is symmetrical with respect to the longitudinal axis from the camera unit 11 to the drive unit 12 as the lever 15 swings. the camera unit 11 is adapted to swing.

The drive unit 12 includes a front swing drive unit 16 and a rear swing drive unit 17, and the swing drive unit 16 and the swing drive unit 17 are connected to the axis of the cable 10 via a coil spring 18. It is connected to bend and stretch freely.

The turning drive unit 17 includes a rear fixing unit 19 that is connected and fixed so as not to rotate with respect to the cable 10, and a rotating unit that is positioned on the front side and is rotatable about an axis in the front-rear direction with respect to the fixing unit 19. 20. The front end of the coil spring 18 is held by a receiving portion on the rear end side of the swing driving portion 16, and the rear end is held by a receiving portion of the rotating portion 20.

The swing drive unit 16 has a built-in swing motor 21, and its rotation is transmitted to the lever 15 via the speed reducer 22, the worm 23 and the worm wheel 24 provided in the swing drive unit 16, thereby The lever 15 swings. The swing angle of the lever 15 is detected by a potentiometer (not shown) provided in the swing drive unit 16, and the swing motor 21 is controlled based on the detected value.

  The turning drive unit 17 includes a turning motor 26, and the rotation thereof is transmitted to the rotating unit 20 via a speed reducer 27 and several stages of gears 28 provided in the turning drive unit 17. The rotation angle of the rotating unit 20 is detected by a potentiometer (not shown) provided in the turning drive unit 17, and the turning motor 26 is controlled based on the detected value.

In order to inspect the inside of the pipe 1 using the inspection apparatus V ₁ , as shown in FIG. 4, the equipment such as a fire hydrant is removed from the branch pipe 2 branched from the pipe 1, and the cable fed from the drum of the delivery apparatus The inspection device V ₁ attached to the tip of 10 is inserted into the tube 1 through the branch tube 2.

At this time, the guide plate 3 tip is bent obliquely, as the inclined portion toward the direction of advancing the inspection device V ₁ in line of the tube 1, is inserted in advance through the branch pipe 2 to the tube 1 Place is lowered by and along the inspection device V ₁ thereto.

Next, it is determined from the image of the camera 13 or the feeling of contact with the bottom of the tube 1 that the camera unit 11 has reached the inside of the tube 1 as the cable 10 is unwound, and then the rocking drive unit 16 is swung. The moving motor 21 is driven to swing the lever 15, and the camera unit 11 is swung in the traveling direction of the pipe 1 with respect to the longitudinal axis.

Then, as shown in FIG. 5, when the cable 10 is further extended and the inspection device V ₁ is advanced, the swing drive unit 16 and the swing drive unit 17 of the drive unit 12 are bent at the coil spring 18 portion, inspection device V ₁ is being smoothly inserted into the inside of the tube 1 over the entire length. The camera unit 11 is returned in a direction that coincides with the longitudinal axial direction.

In the above working example, the method of bringing the inspection device V _{1 along} the guide plate 3 is illustrated, but the inspection device V ₁ can be inserted into the tube 1 without using the guide plate 3.

In addition, as shown in FIG. 6, in the inspection process of the tube 1, the swing motor 21 of the swing drive unit 16 is driven even when the pipe line of the tube 1 reaches a portion branched in a T shape. , to oscillate the lever 15, the camera unit 11 with respect to longitudinal axis, is swung toward the direction you want to proceed, it is possible to reliably enter that direction inspection device V _1.

By the way, as shown in FIG. 7, when the branching direction of the tube 1 and the swingable direction of the camera unit 11 do not coincide with each other, the camera unit 11 cannot be directed in the direction in which the camera unit 11 is desired to travel, It can not be advanced inspection device V ₁ in that direction.

In such a case, by driving the turning motor 26 of the turning drive unit 17 and rotating the rotating unit 20, the portion in front of the rotating unit 20 is turned around the axis in the front-rear direction, and then the swing driving unit 16. drives the swing motor 21, the camera unit 11, by swinging with respect to the longitudinal direction of the axis, toward the camera unit 11 in the direction you want to proceed, be advanced inspection device V ₁ to the direction it can.

As described above, the inspection apparatus V ₁ according to the present invention, the camera unit 11 connected via a lever 15 to the swing drive section 16, swing to the longitudinal axis with the driving of the swinging motor 21 At the same time, as the turning motor 26 is driven, it turns around the axis in the front-rear direction. By combining this operation, the camera part 11 can be freely bent with respect to the driving part 12 behind it, and it is desired to make it proceed. Can be directed.

Further, the swing drive unit 16 and the swing drive unit 17 constituting the driving unit 12, since linked via a coil spring 18, the inspection device V ₁ is even longer in the axial direction of the front-rear direction, of the pipe Corresponding to a bent portion such as a branching portion, the swing drive portion 16 and the turning drive portion 17 bend at the coil spring 18 and can smoothly pass through the bent portion of the conduit.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Pipe | tube 2 Branch pipe 3 Guide board V ₁ Inspection apparatus 10 Cable 11 Camera part 12 Drive part 13 Camera 14 Irradiation lamp 15 Lever 16 Oscillation drive part 17 Rotation drive part 18 Coil spring 19 Fixing part 20 Rotation part 21 Oscillation motor 22 Reducer 23 Worm 24 Worm wheel 26 Turning motor 27 Reducer 28 Gear

Claims (2)

At the end of the cable (10) and inserted into the tube, the image taken by the camera is displayed on the monitor outside the tube via the cable (10), and the in-pipe inspection device for observing the inside of the tube is inserted into the tube. A camera unit (11) provided with a camera (13) located on the front end side that is the front, and a drive unit (12) connected to the cable (10) located behind the camera unit (11). ) Is connected to the drive unit (12) via the lever (15), so that it swings with this axis as the axis of symmetry with respect to the longitudinal axis from the camera unit (11) to the drive unit (12). The swinging motion is performed by a swinging motor (21) built in the drive unit (12), and the cable (10) is connected to the front side portion where the camera unit (11) of the drive unit (12) is connected. The connected rear part can be swiveled around the longitudinal axis, and this swivel operation is performed by the swivel motor (26) built in the drive unit (12). Pipe testing apparatus is characterized in that the. 2. The in-pipe inspection apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the drive unit (12) includes a front swing drive unit (16) including a swing motor (21) and a swing motor (26). The swing drive section (16) and the swing drive section (17) are connected to the longitudinal axis via a coil spring (18) so as to be able to bend and extend. An in-pipe inspection apparatus characterized by that.

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