Classifications

• • F—MECHANICAL ENGINEERING; LIGHTING; HEATING; WEAPONS; BLASTING
  • F16—ENGINEERING ELEMENTS AND UNITS; GENERAL MEASURES FOR PRODUCING AND MAINTAINING EFFECTIVE FUNCTIONING OF MACHINES OR INSTALLATIONS; THERMAL INSULATION IN GENERAL
  • F16L—PIPES; JOINTS OR FITTINGS FOR PIPES; SUPPORTS FOR PIPES, CABLES OR PROTECTIVE TUBING; MEANS FOR THERMAL INSULATION IN GENERAL
  • F16L55/00—Devices or appurtenances for use in, or in connection with, pipes or pipe systems
  • F16L55/26—Pigs or moles, i.e. devices movable in a pipe or conduit with or without self-contained propulsion means
• • F—MECHANICAL ENGINEERING; LIGHTING; HEATING; WEAPONS; BLASTING
  • F16—ENGINEERING ELEMENTS AND UNITS; GENERAL MEASURES FOR PRODUCING AND MAINTAINING EFFECTIVE FUNCTIONING OF MACHINES OR INSTALLATIONS; THERMAL INSULATION IN GENERAL
  • F16L—PIPES; JOINTS OR FITTINGS FOR PIPES; SUPPORTS FOR PIPES, CABLES OR PROTECTIVE TUBING; MEANS FOR THERMAL INSULATION IN GENERAL
  • F16L55/00—Devices or appurtenances for use in, or in connection with, pipes or pipe systems
  • F16L55/16—Devices for covering leaks in pipes or hoses, e.g. hose-menders
  • F16L55/162—Devices for covering leaks in pipes or hoses, e.g. hose-menders from inside the pipe
  • F16L55/1645—Devices for covering leaks in pipes or hoses, e.g. hose-menders from inside the pipe a sealing material being introduced inside the pipe by means of a tool moving in the pipe
• • F—MECHANICAL ENGINEERING; LIGHTING; HEATING; WEAPONS; BLASTING
  • F16—ENGINEERING ELEMENTS AND UNITS; GENERAL MEASURES FOR PRODUCING AND MAINTAINING EFFECTIVE FUNCTIONING OF MACHINES OR INSTALLATIONS; THERMAL INSULATION IN GENERAL
  • F16L—PIPES; JOINTS OR FITTINGS FOR PIPES; SUPPORTS FOR PIPES, CABLES OR PROTECTIVE TUBING; MEANS FOR THERMAL INSULATION IN GENERAL
  • F16L55/00—Devices or appurtenances for use in, or in connection with, pipes or pipe systems
  • F16L55/16—Devices for covering leaks in pipes or hoses, e.g. hose-menders
  • F16L55/179—Devices for covering leaks in pipes or hoses, e.g. hose-menders specially adapted for bends, branch units, branching pipes or the like
• • F—MECHANICAL ENGINEERING; LIGHTING; HEATING; WEAPONS; BLASTING
  • F16—ENGINEERING ELEMENTS AND UNITS; GENERAL MEASURES FOR PRODUCING AND MAINTAINING EFFECTIVE FUNCTIONING OF MACHINES OR INSTALLATIONS; THERMAL INSULATION IN GENERAL
  • F16L—PIPES; JOINTS OR FITTINGS FOR PIPES; SUPPORTS FOR PIPES, CABLES OR PROTECTIVE TUBING; MEANS FOR THERMAL INSULATION IN GENERAL
  • F16L55/00—Devices or appurtenances for use in, or in connection with, pipes or pipe systems
  • F16L55/18—Appliances for use in repairing pipes

Definitions

• the present invention relates to a method and an apparatus for processing conduit pipes, for example sewer pipes, that cannot be accessed from the inside for renovation or other purposes.
• conduit pipes for example sewer pipes
• the invention allows lateral branches in such line pipes to be closed or opened and repairs to be carried out at damaged locations.
• So-called sewer rehabilitation robots are known for this purpose, which include a small, elongated, self-propelled vehicle that can run in the conduit, the vehicle being designed as a robot by using processing tools, for example a milling head, as well as injection syringes and fillers wearing.
• the robot vehicle is also equipped with a video camera and can therefore be operated from a supply and control unit, which are arranged above ground, are operated.
• the supply and control unit is usually permanently installed in a special vehicle, for example in a truck box body, in a truck box trailer or in an easily movable container.
• the milling cutter of the milling head is movable.
• a site to be renovated can be milled out under video observation, after which filler is sprayed from a cartridge, which is housed in the robot vehicle, into the milled-out area. Finally, the area is pressed and smoothed using a press shoe.
• the object is achieved by a method for the internal processing of inaccessible conduit pipes, in which a remote-controlled robot with a video-monitored working head, which is moved into the pipe conduit to be machined by a supply and control unit arranged above ground, the one to be opened or repaired Milled out place, or placed a pig at the point to be closed and braced by inflation in the conduit, the method being characterized by the characterizing features of claim 1.
• Another aspect of the object is achieved by a method for the internal processing of inaccessible conduit pipes according to claim 1, in which the opening to be opened is milled with the characterizing method steps according to claim 2.
• a device for carrying out the method according to claim 1 or 2 with a remote-controlled robot which can be moved into the line pipe to be machined and has a video-monitored working head and an associated supply and control unit, the device being characterized by the characterizing features according to claim 3.
• the invention also permits machining toward the front, that is to say at a dead end of a conduit or at a blockage in the front. Due to the special technical design of the robot, it is particularly powerful and the processing is accordingly efficient and versatile. Much time can be saved by mixing the leveling compound by continuously feeding two components of an appropriate epoxy resin at the processing location. In addition, only as much filler is prepared as is actually used and no unnecessary waste is produced, as is inevitable when using cartridges, the content of which is often only partially consumed per operation.
• Figure 1 A train composition of locomotive, control valve unit and robot
• FIG. 2 The working head, here designed as a milling head, pivotally mounted between the fork tips, seen from above;
• FIG. 3 The milling head with milling cutter and the video camera, pivotally mounted in the likewise pivoting fork, seen from the side;
• Figure 4 The milling head seen in a cross section from the side;
• FIG. 5 the milling head between the fork end seen from the front with the sliding shafts, which make it possible to extend the milling head
• Figure 6 The pressing unit, mounted on the milling head
• Figure 7 The counter-rotating spiral mixer, partially cut open, seen from the side;
• Figure 8 The synchronous drive of the locomotive with gear wheels.
• the device forms a train composition consisting of locomotive 8, control valve unit 14 and the actual robot 1.
• These individual composition elements 1, 8 and 14 are connected to one another via swivel joints 15, 16.
• the elements 1, 8 and 14 can thus be pivoted up and down to one another and sideways become.
• the locomotive 8 is responsible for shifting the entire train composition. To do this, it must be able to apply the greatest possible pulling or pushing force.
• a synchronous all-wheel drive which works via four wheels 12 with special stud tires 28, which ensure good adhesion to the mostly wet and slippery inner walls of the conduit pipes.
• the drive takes place via a single electric motor housed in the locomotive 8 and will be described in more detail later.
• the pneumatic feed line 34 leads from the valve control unit 14, although combined in a single tubular sleeve, branches into the actual robot 1, where the compressed air is required for various functions.
• the robot 1 consists of a cylindrical drive and control part 36. This is provided on the outside with skids 37 or wheels on which it slides or rolls in the conduit without being damaged.
• This cylindrical drive and control part 36 is of relatively heavy construction, since it has to absorb the reaction forces during processing and give the entire robot 1 the necessary stability.
• a plate disk 9 sits like an end cover.
• This plate disk 9 can be rotated about the longitudinal axis of the robot 1 via a gear drive by means of an air motor, specifically by up to 420 °.
• a fork 10 is mounted on this plate disk 9 and has a swivel joint 13.
• the actual working head 2 is pivotally arranged between the fork ends or fork tips 11.
• the working head 2 can be a milling unit 4 for milling conduit locations or as a blowing unit for bracing pigs, as a pressing unit 23 (FIG. 6) for pressing and smoothing of epoxy resin, as a centrifugal unit for internally coating pipes, or as a combination of such units 4; 23.
• the working head 2 is a milling unit 4 with a milling cutter 5.
• a video camera 7 with a halogen lamp 21 is mounted between the fork 10, which can be pivoted there and can be fastened in any position.
• the train composed of locomotive 8, control valve unit 14 and robot 1 is usually pushed by hand from a shaft into a conduit to be processed.
• the setting of the pivot angle of the fork 10 at the fork joint 13 is adapted to the diameter of the line pipe to be processed. Thanks to this joint 13, about which the fork can be swiveled by approximately 60 °, pipes with an inner diameter of approximately 850 mm can be processed.
• the locomotive 8 pushes the robot 1 and the valve control unit 14 forward after the pushing-in of the train composition into the conduit to the desired processing point, which is monitored with video surveillance from the supply and control unit, that is to say from the day.
• the supply and control unit is advantageously housed in a truck box body, in a truck box trailer or in an easily movable container. The rest of the work can only be done from the control panel of this supply and control unit.
• the locomotive 8 has to tighten the supply and control lines 3; 33-35, which is why a strong drive for the locomotive 8 is essential.
• the closer arrangement of the working head 2, here the milling unit 4, is shown in FIG. 2 in a view from above. This milling unit 4 is pivotally arranged between the fork ends 11.
• the drive for its motorized pivoting can be seen on one side of the milling unit 4. It is a gearwheel 39, in which a worm 41 engages, which is pneumatically driven by the drive and control part 36 of the robot 1, that is to say by an air motor.
• the power transmission can take place, for example, via cardan shafts with universal joints or via a string.
• the milling unit 4 can thus be moved into the desired swivel position under video surveillance, and the self-locking of the worm drive ensures good stability, so that the milling unit 4 can easily absorb the reaction forces of the machining in the set swivel position.
• the back of the milling unit 4 is rounded in accordance with the pivoting radius, so that it does not get stuck anywhere when the motor is pivoted.
• the fork 10 with the milling unit 4 arranged in between is shown in a view from the side.
• the fork 10 is mounted on the plate 9, which can be rotated by 420 ° by means of an air motor via a gear drive.
• the plate 10 also rotates the fork 10 and the working head 2 arranged between its ends, here the milling unit 4.
• the fork 10 has a joint 13 around which the front part of the fork 10 is rotated by approximately 60 ° is pivotable upwards. Together with the rotation of the plate disk 9, this results in a further machining area for the working head or the milling unit 4, which describes a correspondingly large circle when the plate disk 9 rotates.
• the swivel position of which is fixed in such a way that the objective 30 is directed approximately in the direction of the processing point.
• a water nozzle is directed onto the objective 30, through which it is sprayed on with high pressure if necessary.
• the milling unit 4 sits with the milling cutter 5, where it can be pivoted by means of the worm drive described, as indicated by the arrows. So that the video camera 7 itself can also be pivoted remotely, it can also be built directly on the working head 2. It can then be positioned better for a closer look at the inner tube walls, in particular the inner tube walls of confluent tubes.
• the milling unit 4 is shown in FIG. 4 in a cross section. It consists of a housing 18 in which the actual milling head 17 is accommodated in a translationally displaceable manner.
• the milling cutter 5 is driven pneumatically via a turbine 40.
• a hollow shaft 6 runs axially along the milling cutter axis, through which cooling water can be pumped, which can cool the actual milling cutter 5 from the inside and then emerges laterally.
• the displacement of the cutter head 17 in the housing 18th takes place pneumatically in both directions.
• the milling head 17 is held in a desired extended position according to the invention by means of pneumatically operated oil brake cylinders.
• the oil circuit which supplies the said oil brake cylinders with hydraulic oil, is closed within the milling unit 4. In this way it becomes possible, despite the fact that the milling unit 4 is only supplied with air, to generate a very high braking force, so that the milling head 17 extended in the housing 18 can absorb large reaction forces during milling.
• FIG. 5 shows the milling unit 4 sitting between the fork ends 11 of the fork 10 in a view from the front, the fork 10 being here in the extended position.
• the fork 10 is rounded on its outer sides, so that when the plate disk 9 is rotated in a narrow tube, the fork 10 cannot get stuck with one edge anywhere.
• the worm drive for pivoting the working head 2, here the milling unit 4, can also be seen.
• This includes the worm 41 driven from the robot housing and the gearwheel 39, which is firmly connected to the pivot axis of the housing 18.
• the milling head 17 is mounted inside the housing 18 by means of two opposing sliding shafts made of hardened round steels.
• Two hardened, parallel arranged round steels 19 are fastened to the milling head 17 on two opposite sides of the milling head 17.
• the play of the slide bearing formed in this way can be set by means of the screws 22 on the housing 18, which act on the round steels 20 and thus determine their contact pressure.
• the oil brake cylinder 43 can be seen. If a pressing shoe is built onto the milling head 17, the epoxy resin line is connected to point 48 in FIG. 6.
• the working head can also be a separate blowing unit without a milling device, which has a compressed air nipple for attaching the inflation hose of a pig, which is equipped with a one-way valve.
• the robot 1 With the robot 1, the pig is placed in the conduit or in an opening to be closed and then inflated by means of compressed air, so that it braces in the inner tube in question.
• the side niches can then be pressed around the entire pig with epoxy resin.
• the working head can also be a centrifugal unit, which essentially has a pneumatically operated centrifugal disc, onto which a coating material or a paint coat in liquid form can be sprayed from the nozzle on the centrifugal disc on the working head.
• the control valve unit 14 contains the electrically operated pneumatic valves for controlling the robot 1. All the drives of the robot 1 are pneumatic or pneumatic-mechanical, on the one hand, the plate disk 9 is rotated via a toothed wheel gear, which in turn is driven by an air motor, then the working head 2 or the milling unit 4 is pivoted by means of the mechanical worm gear, the worm in turn being driven by an air motor. Furthermore, the milling head 17 is pneumatically retracted and extended and held in any extension position by means of pneumatically operated oil brake cylinders.
• the actual milling drive is also pneumatic, in that a turbine 40 inside the milling unit 4 is supplied with compressed air.
• This drive allows cutter speeds of around 45,000 rpm and correspondingly high milling performance. All of these functions are controlled via the electrically controllable air valves in the control valve unit 14.
• the spiral mixer is attached below the control valve unit 14.
• the robot unit 36 advantageously contains in its interior a cross profile running along its longitudinal axis, so that four cross-sectionally V-shaped recesses are formed.
• the first air motor is accommodated in a first recess, the supply lines for the compressed air and the electrical control lines in a second and fourth recess.
• the second air motor for the drives is accommodated in a third recess.
• the individual movements of the robot 1 and the machining operations carried out by it can be carried out continuously monitored by the video camera 8 sitting between the fork 10 and controlled from the above-mentioned supply and control unit, which is equipped with a corresponding monitor, on the basis of the camera image.
• the control unit even allows the automatic milling of programmable milling curves, which is particularly advantageous for milling out side openings that open. If such a lateral junction is to be newly created or a closed junction is to be reopened, then the pipe wall of the conduit in which the robot 1 is located must be milled out as precisely as possible along the inner contour of the junctioning pipe. The first thing to do is locate the area to be milled.
• a previously closed point In cases where a previously closed point is to be opened again, this can be done optically by moving the suspected area of the junction and viewing it with the video camera.
• the previously closed point is usually visually recognizable.
• an ultrasonic sensor is used, which is mounted on the milling head. The reflected ultrasound signals are different when they hit a pipe wall behind which there is a cavity, for example the interior of a pipe that opens. If this point is found roughly, it is drilled with the milling cutter 5 under video surveillance. Then the milling cutter 5 is moved from the drilled hole over two intersecting directions up to the respective stop.
• the milling paths can be adjusted via potentiometers be recorded.
• the control unit is equipped with electronics which, on the basis of the milling paths covered and recorded by the potentiometers in the form of electrical signals, make it possible to calculate the center and the dimension of the merging pipe and to save them as data material.
• the electronics can calculate a round milling curve and then electronically control the milling cutter in such a way that it precisely follows the calculated milling curve, as a result of which the said point is opened cleanly.
• the pressing of epoxy resin for the purpose of repairing or closing a line pipe location is carried out after the completion of the milling work or after the insertion of a pig, a pressing unit 23, which can be installed as a separate component instead of the milling unit between the fork ends 11.
• the pressing unit 23 is designed as an attachment, which can be placed directly on the milling head 17 and fastened there by means of screws, as can be seen from FIG. 6.
• the pressing unit 23 consists of a shoe 24, the shape of which forms a cutout from a hollow cylinder. Skids 25 are mounted on the rounded longitudinal edges of the pressing shoe 24. During processing, these runners 25 rest on the intact line pipe wall on both sides of the point to be processed and thus act as a spacer.
• the rear end edge of the pressing shoe 24 is designed as a special smoothing edge 26 which acts as a smoothing spatula.
• Approximately in the middle of the pressing shoe 24 is the outlet Opening 48 for the epoxy resin to be pressed.
• a nipple is arranged around the outlet opening, on which the hose for the epoxy resin is mounted.
• the pressing shoe 24 is moved under video surveillance to the point to be repaired or closed and then pressed onto this point by extending the milling head 17.
• the lateral runners 25 rest on an intact area around the point to be pressed and define the position of the pressing shoe 24.
• the supply unit pre-presses the two components of the epoxy resin from the supply unit, which are directly in front of the Use and processed virtually on site in a spiral mixer 46, as will be described. If it is determined by the video surveillance that the injected epoxy resin has filled the site sufficiently, the pressing shoe 24 is pivoted about its radius of curvature along its runners 25 by pivoting the milling unit 4 or by rotating the fork 10 by means of the plate disk 9.
• the smoothing edge 26 brushes precisely at the level of the runners 25 and thus at the level of the surrounding inner wall area over the point pressed with epoxy resin and smooths the epoxy resin cleanly.
• FIG. 7 shows a counter-rotating spiral mixer in a side view with the wall partially cut open. It is a plastic tube 46 with a slightly tapering diameter towards the front. Inside the art Fabric tube 46 is arranged a row of rectangles 47 each twisted by 180 °, so that their longitudinal edges each form a helical shape. The individual twisted rectangles 47 or twisting elements 47 are lined up in such a way that the straight end edges or broad sides of the twisted rectangles 47 adjoin one another at right angles to one another. The two components of the epoxy resin pressed by this spiral mixer are rotated by 180 ° by each twisting element 47 and then each component is divided in two by the front edge of the next twisting element 46 and brought together with half of the other component.
• each twist element 47 two new parts arriving separately from the preceding twist element 47 are therefore mixed together on both sides of the surface. This process extends over approximately 10 torsion elements 47, as a result of which a very intimate mixing of the two original components is achieved.
• This spiral mixer 46 is accommodated below the valve control unit 14. From there, the finished epoxy resin mixture thus emerges from the supply line 35 and reaches the pressing unit 23, by means of which the epoxy resin is applied to the point in the conduit to be repaired or sealed.
• the electric motor in the interior of the locomotive housing has, for example, a nominal motor voltage of 60 V at 5 A current. It is equipped with a tachometer generator which is coupled to a transformer and amplifier in the supply and control unit. A voltage drop due to a drop in the speed of the electric motor is automatically compensated by the supply and control unit by means of the transformer and the amplifier with a higher current intensity in accordance with an optimized characteristic characteristic of the motor.
• the four specially developed solid rubber studded tires 28, which are provided with many rubber studs all around the visible tire cross-section, ensure optimal power transmission of the locomotive 8 in order to achieve the highest possible adhesion to the curved inner wall of the conduits used.
• the robot 1 can be equipped in two places with chassis legs which can be extended by it instead of runners .
• chassis legs can be extended pneumatically, for example, and held in any extended position by means of pneumatically operated oil brake cylinders.
• the undercarriage legs are advantageously equipped with freewheeling wheels in such a way that the robot 1 can be stabilized about its longitudinal axis in the center in the center for processing in large-diameter pipes and still remains displaceable by the locomotive 8.

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• Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
• General Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
• Mechanical Engineering (AREA)
• Chemical & Material Sciences (AREA)
• Combustion & Propulsion (AREA)
• Manipulator (AREA)
• Pipe Accessories (AREA)

Priority Applications (6)

Applications Claiming Priority (2)

Publications (1)

Family

ID=4236208

Family Applications (1)

Country Status (10)

Cited By (31)

Families Citing this family (5)

Citations (6)

• 1992
  • 1992-08-28 BR BR9205435A patent/BR9205435A/pt not_active Application Discontinuation
  • 1992-08-28 WO PCT/CH1992/000175 patent/WO1993005334A1/de not_active Application Discontinuation
  • 1992-08-28 JP JP5504793A patent/JPH06501767A/ja active Pending
  • 1992-08-28 CA CA002095143A patent/CA2095143A1/en not_active Abandoned
  • 1992-08-28 CZ CZ93738A patent/CZ73893A3/cs unknown
  • 1992-08-28 EP EP92918096A patent/EP0556358A1/de not_active Withdrawn
  • 1992-08-28 AU AU24488/92A patent/AU2448892A/en not_active Abandoned
  • 1992-08-28 HU HU9301175A patent/HUT67874A/hu unknown
• 1993
  • 1993-04-27 NO NO93931520A patent/NO931520L/no unknown
  • 1993-04-29 FI FI931922A patent/FI931922A0/fi not_active Application Discontinuation

Patent Citations (6)

Non-Patent Citations (1)

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