JPH06122367A - Shifting device for robot in pipe - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To permit the smooth traveling of a T-pipe or an elbow pipe by arranging the second shiftable body at the top edge of the first guide rod, arranging the third shiftable body at the top edge of the second guide rod, arranging the second shiftable body on the top edge part of the first guide rod, and arranging the third shiftable body on the basic edge part of the second guide rod. CONSTITUTION:The first guide rod 33 set along the axis center direction is installed on one edge side of the first transfer body 31A having three first expandable legs 32A which are expandable in the radial direction in each equal angle, and three second expandable legs 32B which are expandable in the radial direction are installed at each equal angle on the second shiftable body 31B which is shiftable, guided by the first guide rod 33. The second guide rod 38 set along the axis center direction is installed on one edge side, and three third expandable legs 32c which are expandable in the radial direction are installed in each equal angle on the third shiftable body 31c, guided by the second guide rod 38, and a rod penetration hole for the insertion of the first guide rod 33 is formed.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a moving device for an in-pipe robot which is inserted into a pipe for inspection and cleaning.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A conventional moving apparatus for a robot in a pipe is, for example, a wheel traveling type having a plurality of traveling wheels that can move in and out in the radial direction, and a front and rear type having three or four legs that can extend and retract in the radial direction. There is a scale insect type in which moving bodies are connected by a telescopic cylinder device.

[0003]

However, in the case of the wheel traveling type, there is a problem that traveling of the connecting portion of the T-shaped pipe is difficult and a large grounding force cannot be obtained, so that traction force cannot be increased. It was Further, in the case of the above-mentioned length-adjusting insect type, if the stroke of the telescopic cylinder device is set to be large so as to straddle the connection opening of the T-shaped pipe, the length of the entire robot becomes large and it becomes difficult to run the elbow pipe. There was a problem.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is an object of the present invention to solve the above problems and to provide a moving apparatus for an in-pipe robot capable of smoothly running a T-shaped pipe or an elbow pipe.

[0005]

In order to solve the above problems, a moving device for an in-pipe robot according to the present invention is provided with at least three first telescopic legs which are extendable and contractible in a radial direction and are provided at equal angles. A first guide rod along the axial direction is provided on one end side of the first moving body, and a second moving body that is movable by being guided by the first guide rod is provided with at least three second moving bodies that are expandable and contractible in the radial direction. Telescopic legs are provided at equal angles, and a second guide rod is provided on one end side along the axial direction.
A third movable body that is movable by being guided by a guide rod is provided with at least three third telescopic legs that can be extended and contracted in the radial direction at equal angles, and a rod through hole through which the first guide rod is inserted is provided. It is a thing.

[0006]

According to the above construction, the telescopic legs can be expanded and contracted, and the movable bodies can be moved toward and away from each other along the guide rod to move in the tube like a scale. Then, by disposing three moving bodies, disposing the second moving body at the tip end portion of the first guide rod, and disposing the third moving body at the tip end portion of the second guide rod, The stroke up to the first moving body can be made large, the opening portion of the large-diameter T-shaped pipe can be easily straddled, and the connecting portion of the T-shaped pipe can be easily overcome. Further, the second moving body is arranged on the base end side of the first guide rod, the first guide rod is penetrated through the rod through hole, and the third moving body is arranged on the base end side of the second guide rod. This makes it possible to bring the moving body closest to each other and shorten the total length of the robot.
Smooth passage through the elbow pipe.

[0007]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An embodiment of a pipe cleaning robot equipped with a traveling device according to the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

As shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, the robot body 1
The cleaning device 2 is arranged at the front part of the vehicle and the traveling device 3 according to the present invention is arranged at the rear part thereof. The cleaning device 2
Is a collection plate 11 that covers the cross section of the pipe P on the front surface of the robot body 1 at an outer peripheral side at regular intervals, and the outer peripheral portion of the rotor 12 projecting at the front axial position of the collection plate 11 at equal angles. 4 blades 13 mounted in the radial direction and the blade 1
Cleaning brush 15 attached to the tip of 3 through a cutter plate 14 that is inclined so that the front portion is closer to the axial center side.
And two cleaning water jet nozzles 16 provided symmetrically in front of the recovery blade 13 of the rotor 12, the rotor 12 interlocking with a cleaning motor 17 provided in the robot body 1. The gears 18 and 19 are linked together. In addition, a suction port 21 to which a recovery hose 20 is connected is opened in the recovery plate 11, and a television camera 22A for remote operation and a light 23A for illumination are further provided.
Is provided.

Therefore, the cleaning motor 17 rotates the rotor 12 and the recovery blade 13 to inject high-pressure water from the cleaning water injection nozzle 16 to the inner surface of the pipe P to remove and remove the deposits, and the cleaning brush 15 to the pipe P. It makes sliding contact with the inner surface to promote peeling. In this way, the cleaning slag suspended in the pipe P can be received by the recovery plate 11, guided to the suction port 21 by the rotating recovery blade 13, and can be sucked and discharged from the recovery hose 20.

The traveling device 3 is provided with three first to third telescopic legs 32A to 32C, which are extendable and contractible in the radial direction, at equal angles, respectively, so that the traveling device 3 can move toward and away from each other along the axial direction. -It is comprised by the 3rd moving body 31A-31C.

That is, as shown in FIGS. 4 to 8, the first telescopic leg 32 is fixed at the rear axial position of the robot body 1.
A first moving body 31A having A is provided with three first guide rods 33 extending rearward along the axial direction, one of which has a worm tooth 34 formed along the longitudinal direction. The first guide rod 33a is configured.

A second moving body 31 having a second telescopic leg 32B.
B is formed with a guide hole 35 into which three first guide rods 33 are slidably fitted, and a first expansion / contraction device 36 for moving the second moving body 31B along the first guide rod 33. Is provided. This first telescopic device 3
The worm gear 3 is arranged such that the worm 38 attached to the output shaft of the first extension motor 37 faces the drive guide hole 35a into which the drive first guide rod 33a fits.
4 is configured to mesh. The second moving body 3
1B is provided with three second guide rods 38 extending rearward along the axial direction, one of which is a driving second guide rod 38a having worm teeth 39 formed along the length direction. It is configured.

A third moving body 31 having a third telescopic leg 32C.
C has a guide hole 40 into which three second guide rods 38 are slidably fitted, and three first guide rods 33.
Rod through-holes 41 are formed so that they can be inserted into and removed from each other, and a second telescopic device 42 for moving the third moving body 31C along the second guide rod 38 is provided. The second expansion / contraction device 42 includes a second expansion / contraction motor 43.
The worm 44 attached to the output shaft of the above is arranged so as to face the drive guide hole 40a into which the drive second guide rod 38a is fitted and meshes with the worm tooth 39. Reference numeral 45 denotes an end plate attached to the end portion of the second guide rod 38, which has a rod insertion hole 45a into which the first guide rod 33 can be inserted and removed and a rod fixing hole 45b into which the second guide rod 38 is fitted. A remote control TV camera 22B and a lighting light 23B are provided.

As shown in FIG. 9, the second moving body 31
B and the third moving body 31B are provided with position detection sensors 46A and 46B for detecting their respective positions, and magnet pieces embedded in predetermined positions of the driving first guide rod 33a and the driving second guide rod 38a. 47A,
It is configured to detect 47B, whereby the positions of the first to third moving bodies 31A to 31C can be detected and movement such as forward movement and backward movement can be performed. A power cable for supplying a drive source to the cleaning device 2 and the traveling device 3, a fresh water supply pipe, and a hydraulic pipe are fitted in the first and second guide rods 33 and 38. Further, as shown in FIG. 1, between the first moving body 31A and the end plate 45, tubular stretchable covers 48A to 48C that cover the first and second guide rods 33 and 38, respectively, are attached.

The first to third telescopic legs 32A to 32C have the same structure, and as shown in FIG. 10, a leg portion 52 consisting of a single-acting ground cylinder 51 having an extension spring 51a, and a ground detection portion 53. It is composed of.

In the grounding cylinder 51 of the leg portion 52, the tip end is supported by the first to third moving bodies 31A to 31C and the supporting member 54.
A cylindrical casing 56 is slidably fitted onto a piston 55a of a piston rod 55 which is fixed in a radial direction via a circular arc-shaped ground plate 57A extending along the inner peripheral surface of the pipe P at the tip of the casing 56. ~ 57C is attached. Then, the extension spring 51 is provided between the support member 54 provided on the piston rod 54 and the ground plates 57A to 57C.
a is interposed to urge the ground plates 57A to 57C outward,
Further, the piston rod 54 is provided with a hydraulic pressure supply path 58 communicating with the contraction chamber 56a inside the piston 55. By supplying pressure oil from the hydraulic pressure supply path 58 to the contraction chamber 56a, the leg spring is resisted against the extension spring 51a. The part 52 can be contracted.

The ground contact detecting portion 53 of the leg portion 52 has a guide groove 61 of a guide member 61 attached to a supporting member 54.
a, a sensor case 63 having built-in proximity sensors 62A to 62C is slidably fitted in the slide portion 63a, and the guide member 61 and the slide portion 63a are guided through the long hole 64 and the guide pin 65. Has been done. The sensor case 63 is connected to the ground plate 5
7A-57C, ground plate 57A-57C
Is configured to detect grounding on the inner surface of the pipe P,
Ground plate 57A-with the extendable legs 32A-32C extended
If 57C does not touch the ground, it is possible to determine the intersection of the T-shaped pipe or the like. And the position detection sensor 4
6A and 46B, the proximity sensors 62A to 62C, and the image of the television camera 22A, the cleaning robot is remotely controlled by a control device provided outside the pipe P (not shown).

Next, the traveling operation of the T-tube merging portion of the cleaning robot will be described with reference to FIG. When it is confirmed by the TV camera or the proximity sensor 62A that the cleaning robot has encountered the connecting portion of the T-shaped tube, (1) the ground plate 57B of the second telescopic leg 32B is connected to the tube in front of the opening S of the T-shaped tube. After being grounded to the inner surface of P, the third moving body 31
C is brought close to the second moving body 31B, the third telescopic leg 32C is extended, and the ground plate 57C is grounded (FIG. 11 (a)).

(2) The second telescopic leg 32B is contracted to separate the ground plate 57B from the inner surface of the pipe P [FIG. 11 (b)].
The telescopic device 36 and the second telescopic device 42 are activated, and the drive first guide rod 33a and the drive second guide rod 38 are activated.
a is moved forward so as to project to the second moving body 31B and the first moving body 31B.
The moving body 31A is moved forward [FIG. 11 (c)].

(3) The first telescopic leg 32A is extended to ground the ground plate 57A to the inner surface of the pipe P on the other side of the opening S of the T-shaped pipe [FIG. 11 (d)], and the third telescopic leg 32C is attached. It contracts to separate the ground plate 57C from the inner surface of the pipe P [FIG.
(E)].

(4) The first expansion device 36 and the second expansion device
The telescopic device 42 is activated, and the second moving body 3 is moved along the drive first guide rod 33a and the drive second guide rod 38a.
1B and the third moving body 31C are moved forward to be closest to each other [FIG. 11 (f)].

After that, the ground plate 57 of the second telescopic leg 32B.
B is grounded to the inner surface of the pipe P on the other side of the opening S of the T-shaped pipe, and normal traveling is started. Of course, during the movement of the robot body 1 that moves together with the first moving body 31A, the cleaning device 2
Is operated to clean the inner surface of the pipe P.

According to the above embodiment, the two located in the front part
The first guide rod 33 and the second guide rod 38 are provided on the first and second moving bodies 31A and 31B of the table, respectively,
Along the first guide rod 33, the second moving bodies 31B, 31
Since C is guided and the third moving body 31C is guided along the second guide rod 38, as shown in FIG. 7, the strokes of the first moving body 31A and the third moving body 31C can be made large, and the pipe P Connection opening S of T-tube with the same diameter as
Even if it is, you can easily straddle it.

Further, as shown in FIG. 8, the first guide rod 33 is penetrated through the third moving body 31C by the rod through hole 41 formed in the third moving body 31C so that the first to third moving bodies 31A to 31A. Since 31C can be extremely close to each other and the lengths of the first moving body 31A and the end plate 35 can be shortened, the elbow pipe E having the same radius R as the diameter D of the pipe P can also pass.

Further, unlike a conventional traveling device using rollers, a large ground contact force can be obtained, so that the traction force can be increased and the weight and work of the cleaning device 2 can be increased.

[0026]

As described above, according to the traveling apparatus for the in-pipe robot of the present invention, the telescopic legs are extended and retracted, and the moving bodies are moved toward and away from each other along the guide rod, thereby moving in the pipe like a scale. can do. Then, the three moving bodies are arranged, the second moving body is arranged at the tip end portion of the first guide rod in a state where the second moving body is supported by the first moving body, and the second guide rod is By arranging the third moving body at the tip portion, the third moving body is grounded at a position distant from the first moving body by a large stroke, so that the opening portion of the large-diameter T-shaped pipe can be easily straddled. , T-tube connection can be easily overcome. Further, the second moving body is arranged on the base end side of the first guide rod, the first guide rod is penetrated through the rod through hole, and the third moving body is arranged on the base end side of the second guide rod. Thereby, the moving body can be brought closest to the robot, the total length of the robot can be shortened, and the passage of the elbow pipe can be smoothly performed. Further, since the telescopic legs are grounded to the inner surface of the pipe to hold the robot body, a large grounding force can be obtained, so that the traction force can be increased and the weight and work of the cleaning device 2 can be increased.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a partially cutaway side view showing an embodiment of a cleaning robot according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a front view of the cleaning robot.

FIG. 3 is a rear view of the cleaning robot.

FIG. 4 is a schematic perspective view showing a basic structure of a traveling device of the cleaning robot.

FIG. 5 is a schematic exploded perspective view showing a basic structure of a traveling device of the cleaning robot.

FIG. 6 is a schematic side view showing a basic structure of a traveling device of the cleaning robot.

FIG. 7 is a schematic side view showing a basic operation of the traveling device of the cleaning robot.

FIG. 8 is a schematic side view showing a basic operation of the traveling device of the cleaning robot.

FIG. 9 is a front cross-sectional view showing telescopic legs of the traveling device of the cleaning robot.

FIG. 10 is a schematic perspective view showing an arrangement of sensors of a traveling device of the cleaning robot.

11 (a) to 11 (f) are side views each illustrating a traveling operation of the traveling device.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1 Robot body 2 Cleaning device 3 Traveling device 31A to 31C Moving body 32A to 32C Telescopic leg 33 First guide rod 33a Drive first guide rod 34 Worm tooth 35 Guide hole 35a Drive guide hole 36 First telescopic device 37 First telescopic motor 38 Worm 38 Second guide rod 38a Drive Second guide rod 39 Worm tooth 40 Guide hole 41 Rod through hole 42 Second telescopic device 43 Second telescopic motor 44 Worm 45 End plate 46A, 46B Position detection sensor 47A, 47B Magnet piece 48A ~ 48C Cylindrical expansion / contraction cover 51 Grounding cylinder 51a Extension spring 52 Leg 53 Grounding detector 62 Proximity sensor

─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continuation of the front page (51) Int.Cl. ⁵ Identification number Office reference number FI Technical indication location E03B 7/09 9125-2D E03F 9/00 7005-2D (72) Inventor Takayasu Sakai Osaka City, Osaka Prefecture Konohana Ward Nishikujo 5-3-28 Hitachi Shipbuilding Co., Ltd. (72) Inventor Mikio Majima Osaka Prefecture Konohana Ward Nishikujo 5-3-28 Hitachi Shipbuilding Co., Ltd. (72) Inventor Shuji Komada Osaka Hitachi Shipbuilding Co., Ltd. 5-3-28 Nishikujo, Konohana-ku, Osaka (72) Inventor Kazuhiko Arimoto 5-3-28 Nishikujo, Nishikojo, Konohana-ku, Osaka, Osaka

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A first guide rod extending in the axial direction is provided on one end side of a first moving body provided with at least three first telescopic legs that are extendable and contractible in the radial direction at equal angles. 1
The second movable body, which is guided by the guide rod and is movable, is provided with at least three second expandable and contractible legs that are expandable and contractible in the radial direction at equal angles, and the second guide rod along the axial direction is provided at one end side. At least three third telescopic legs that are extendable and contractible in the radial direction are provided at equal angles on a third movable body that is provided and is movable by being guided by the second guide rod, and the first guide rod is inserted therethrough. A moving device for a robot in a pipe, which is provided with a rod through hole.