WO2002101278A1

WO2002101278A1 - Small diameter in-situ pipe winding machine

Info

Publication number: WO2002101278A1
Application number: PCT/AU2002/000736
Authority: WO
Inventors: Ian Roger Bateman
Original assignee: Rib Loc Australia Pty Ltd
Priority date: 2001-06-08
Filing date: 2002-06-07
Publication date: 2002-12-19
Also published as: NO327631B1; ECSP034879A; HRP20040007A2; MY131117A; MXPA03011353A; SK287179B6; EG23195A; CZ303123B6; PA8547301A1; ECSP034880A; YU97303A; RS51000B; TW587136B; HRPK20040007B3; AR034446A1; GT200200110A; CZ200411A3; NO20035289D0; AUPR557201A0; SK16392003A3

Abstract

An elongate machine (10) for winding a helically wound pipe from a strip (12). The machine comprises: a frame (20) having at least three circumferentially spaced guide rollers adapted to bear against the inner periphery of the pipe being wound; an elongate strip guide (40) for guiding the strip axially through the machine from an entrance position adjacent the trailing end of the machine to an exit position (44) adjacent one of the three guide rollers; a strip drive pinch roller assembly (24), mounted to the trailing end of the frame adjacent the entrance position, for driving the strip (12) though the strip guide (40) in compression to around the outside of the rollers so as to follow a helical path and cause adjacent edge portions of adjacent convolutions of the strip (12) to interlock; and a motor (26) for driving the strip drive roller means (24), whereby, in use, the strip (12) is continuously driven by the strip drive roller means (24) through the strip guide (40) to a position adjacent the last convolution wound to thereby form a helical pipe.

Description

SMALL DIAMETER IN-SITU PIPE WINDING MACHINE

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

This invention relates to apparatus for winding pipes from an elongate strip. In particular, the invention relates to apparatus for winding small diameter helical pipes.

BACKGROUND

It is now known to repair conduits such as sewer pipes by the insertion of a helically wound tube of smaller diameter than the corroded or damaged conduit. Earlier patents by the same inventor disclose machines for winding a helically wound pipe from a strip.

Pipe winding machines that travel along the inside of conduits while relining them, such as those disclosed in the applicant's earlier patent application PCT/AU99/00808 titled "Method and Apparatus for Winding a Helical Pipe from its Inside", become more elongate as their diameter reduces. There are a number of reasons for this including: the increasing ratio of strip-width to pipe diameter necessitating longer rollers and the difficulty in packaging componentry within the restricted diameter between such rollers. With these smaller diameter machines, those capable of winding pipes of 500mm or less in diameter and particularly those capable of winding pipes of 200mm or less in diameter, feeding of the end of the strip into the machine at the commencement of winding becomes difficult. Also access for maintenance to the pinch rollers that drive the strip becomes problematic. Finally, because the small diameter machines are elongate it can be difficult to get them in and out of the conduit to be relined through small vertical man holes. It is an object of the invention to overcome at least some of the above problems.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENπON

According to a first aspect of the invention there is provided an elongate machine for winding a helically wound pipe from a strip having complementary connecting formations extending along opposite edge portions thereof and which are adapted to interlock when the strip is helically wound, the machine comprising: a frame having at least three circumferentially spaced guide rollers adapted to bear against the inner periphery of the pipe being wound, the rollers forming a guide to a enable the strip to follow a helical path along which the strip is directed when the machine is in use, the frame having a leading end and a trailing end; an elongate strip guide for guiding the strip axially through the machine from an entrance position adjacent the trailing end of the machine to an exit position adjacent one of the at least three guide rollers and facing towards the helical path; strip drive roller means, mounted to the trailing end of the frame adjacent the entrance position, for driving the strip though the strip guide in compression to around the outside of the rollers so as to follow the helical path and cause the adjacent edge portions of adjacent convolutions of the strip to interlock; and drive means for driving the strip drive roller means, whereby, in use, the strip is continuously driven by the strip drive roller means through the strip guide to a position adjacent the last convolution wound to thereby form a helical pipe.

Preferably the machine the strip guide comprises a continuous tube with a cross- section substantially rectangular in shape. Preferably the further comprises a means for adjusting the angle at which the strip exits the strip guide.

Preferably the frame further comprises an adjustment means for adjusting both the radial positions of the guide rollers and the angles of the axes of the guide rollers relative to the longitudinal axis of the machine.

According to a second aspect of the invention there is provided an elongate machine for winding a helically wound pipe within a conduit from a strip having complementary connecting formations extending along opposite edge portions thereof and which are adapted to interlock when the strip is helically wound, the machine comprising: a leading portion having means for supplying power; an intermediate portion rotatably connected to the leading portion, the rotatable connection arranged to allow transmission of power from the leading portion to the intermediate portion during rotation; a trailing portion having at least three circumferentially spaced guide rollers adapted to bear against the inner periphery of the pipe being wound and a strip drive roller means for driving the strip around the outside of the rollers so as to cause the adjacent edge portions of adjacent convolutions of the strip to interlock; and hinge means hingedly connecting the trailing portion to the intermediate portion, wherein, in use, the intermediate and trailing portions rotate together with respect to the leading portion and wherein the leading and intermediate portions can pivot about the hinge means with respect to the trailing portion to allow the machine to be pulled from a horizontal conduit up through and out of a manhole. Preferably the leading portion contains control components.

Preferably the hinge means comprises a universal joint.

Specific embodiments of the invention will now be described in some further detail with reference to and as illustrated in the accompanying figures. These embodiments are illustrative, and are not meant to be restrictive of the scope of the invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPΗON OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS OF THE INVENTION

Preferred embodiments of the invention are illustrated in the accompanying representations in which:

Figure 1 is a schematic cut away view of an underground conduit with a pipe winding machine in operation lining the conduit.

Figure 2 is a perspective view of a pipe winding machine.

Figure 3 shows a perspective view of a pipe winding machine according to a first embodiment of the invention.

Figure 4 shows a partial view of the pipe winding machine of Figure 3 in a first orientation.

Figure 5 shows a partial view of the pipe winding machine of Figure 3 in a second orientation.

Figure 5a shows a magnified partial view of the pipe winding machine of Figure 3 in a third orientation. Figure 6 shows a perspective view of a pipe winding machine according to a second embodiment of the invention with some components removed for clarity.

Figure 7 shows the pipe winding machine of Figure 6 in a bent condition.

An elongate machine 10 for helically winding a helically wound pipe from a strip having complimentary connecting formations extending along opposite edge portions thereof and which are adapted to interlock when the strip is helically wound, according to a first embodiment of the invention, is shown in Figures 3, 4 and 5. Referring first to Figure 3, the machine 10 comprises a leading power supply and control portion 17, an intermediate portion 18 rotatably connected to the leading portion 17 by a rotary union assembly 72, and a trailing portion 19. The trailing portion 19 has eight circumferentially spaced guide rollers 31 to 37 (only 32 is shown in Figure 3) which are adapted to bear against the inner periphery of the pipe being wound. The trailing portion 19 includes a drive assembly 24 mounted to the trailing end 13 of the machine 10. A hinge 70 is located between the intermediate portion 18 and the trailing portion 19. Referring to Figures 1 and 3, the hinge 70 allows the machine to be bent so that it can be pulled from a horizontal conduit 5 up through a vertical man hole 4.

An earlier pipe winding machine 10' shown in Figure 2 (disclosed in the applicant's earlier patent application PCT/ AU99/ 00808) shows how a helical pipe can be wound by driving a strip of ribbed plastics material a helical path and interlocking adjacent edge portions of adjacent convolutions of the strip 12. A hydraulic fluid hose 51 located at the front of the machine provides power through a hydraulic coupling 52 to a hydraulic motor 26. Hydraulic motor 26 drives gear box 25 which drives pinch rollers 27 and 28 through drive shafts 46. In order to commence winding of a new liner pipe with the machine 10 - shown in Figure 2, it is first necessary to engage the end of the strip 12 between the drive rollers 27 and 28. In order to achieve this, the strip 12 must be fed through the machine axially. In practice, particularly with smaller diameter machines, this is difficult. Also access to the pinch rollers 27 and 28 for maintenance purposes can be difficult.

With the first embodiment of the invention shown in Figures 3, 4 and 5, (and with the second embodiment of the invention shown in Figures 6 and 7) an elongate strip guide 40 is provided to guide the strip axially through the machine 10 from an entrance position 42 adjacent the trailing end 13 of the machine 10 to an exit position 44 adjacent rollers 30 and 31. The exit position 44 is shown most clearly in Figures 5 and 5a. The strip 12 exits from the strip guide 40 between rollers 30 and 31. Rollers 30, 31, 32 and 37 are shown in dashed outline to clearly reveal the strip guide 40. In practice, when the machine is placed within a pipe to be relined, once a first convolution of strip has been wound, that convolution provides a "track" for the strip so that the strip forms a continuous helically wound pipe within the pipe being relined.

With this embodiment of the invention, the strip guide 40 comprises a continuous tube with a cross-section that is substantially rectangular. Other embodiments of the invention may use a different tube arrangement or a series of adjacent rollers as a strip guide.

The winding machine 10 is adjustable to vary the diameter of the pipe being wound. Radial arms 16 move outwards under hydraulic pressure within cylinders 15 as shown in Figure 3. A spring arrangement (not shown) is provided to retract arms 16.

During winding of a pipe hydraulic pressure is applied to cylinders 15 to ensure that the maximum diameter is achieved within the particular section of that pipe being re-lined. The hydraulic cylinders 15 only provide limited travel. Therefore shims or spacers can also be used prior to the commencement of winding to suit particular pipe diameters.

Referring to Figure 5, at the exit of the strip guide 40 is a strip guide exit angle adjuster 41. This adjuster 41 is mounted to the frame 20 of the pipe winding machine 10 by pivot 43 and helix angle adjuster screw 45. Adjuster 41 is connected to the exit end of the strip guide 40 and the flexibility of the strip guide 40 allows limited adjustment of the strip exit angle from mouth 44. The adjustability allows approximate matching of the strip exit angle with the helix angle of the strip being wound.

Referring to Figure 4 the drive assembly 24 can be seen mounted to the trailing end 13 of the frame 20 of the pipe winding machine 10. The drive assembly 24 comprises a pair of outer pinch rollers 28 which drive against inner pinch roller 27 (not visible in Figure 4) to force the strip 12 in compression through strip guide tube 40 to around the outside of the rollers 30 to 37 so as to follow the helical path and cause the adjacent edge portions of adjacent convolutions of the strip 12 to interlock. The entire drive assembly 24 can be readily removed from the trailing end 13 of the frame 20 for maintenance or replacement. The initial feeding of the end of the strip 12 through the drive rollers 28 and 27 is easily achieved due to the location of the drive assembly 24 (compared to that of the pinch box and drive rollers 27 and 28 of the earlier pipe winding machine 10' as shown in Figure 2).

Referring to Figures 6 and 7, a second embodiment of the invention is shown in which the hinge joint 70 (as shown in Figure 3) is replaced by a universal joint 71. With this embodiment of the invention, the pipe winding machine 10 can continue to wind pipe as it traverses bends. Leading portion 17 which is connected to the hydraulic power source does not rotate relative to the conduit being lined. A rotary union assembly 72 enables transmission of power and control signal from the leading portion 17 to the intermediate portion 18 during rotation of the intermediate portion 18 as a pipe is wound. Intermediate portion 18 is connected via a universal joint 71 to the trailing portion of the machine 19. This universal joint ensures that the intermediate portion 18 and the trailing portion 19 rotate in unison even when their axes of rotation are not coincident (for instance, when a bend is being negotiated).

An advantage of both the first and second embodiments of the invention, is that they allow simple "spot repair" of a particular section of pipe. To achieve such a repair, strip 12 is first inserted into the pinch rollers 27 and 28 of the drive assembly 24 and driven partially into the strip guide 40 (without exiting its exit 44). Next, the machine 10 is placed into the mouth of the pipe requiring spot repair. T e machine 10 is then dragged into the portion requiring spot repair using a cable. Once in position, the hydraulic motor 26 of the drive assembly 24 is activated causing the strip 12 to exit the strip guide 40 and to commence winding a section of helical pipe. The length of strip 40 can be selected to ensure the appropriate length of pipe is wound to effect the spot repair.

While the present invention has been described in terms of preferred embodiments in order to facilitate a better understanding of the invention, it should be appreciated that various modifications can be made without departing from the principles of the invention. Therefore, the invention should be understood to include all such modifications within its scope.

Claims

THE CLAIMS DEFINING THE INVENTION ARE AS FOLLOWS:

1. An elongate machine for winding a helically wound pipe from a strip having complementary connecting formations extending along opposite edge portions thereof and which are adapted to interlock when the strip is helically wound, the machine comprising: a frame having at least three circumferentially spaced guide rollers adapted to bear against the inner periphery of the pipe being wound, the rollers forming a guide to a enable the strip to follow a helical path along which the strip is directed when the machine is in use, the frame having a leading end and a trailing end; an elongate strip guide for guiding the strip axially through the machine from an entrance position adjacent the trailing end of the machine to an exit position adjacent one of the at least three guide rollers and facing towards the helical path; strip drive roller means, mounted to the trailing end of the frame adjacent the entrance position, for driving the strip though the strip guide in compression to around the outside of the rollers so as to follow the helical path and cause the adjacent edge portions of adjacent convolutions of the strip to interlock; and drive means for driving the strip drive roller means, whereby, in use, the strip is continuously driven by the strip drive roller means through the strip guide to a position adjacent the last convolution wound to thereby form a helical pipe.

2. A machine as claimed in claim 1 wherein the strip guide comprises a continuous tube.

3. A machine as claimed in claim 2 wherein the continuous tube has a cross-section substantially rectangular in shape.

4. A machine as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 3 further comprising a means for adjusting the angle at which the strip exits the strip guide.

5. A machine as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 3 further comprising: leading portion having means for supplying power; an intermediate portion rotatably connected to the leading portion, the rotatable connection arranged to allow transmission of power from the leading portion to the intermediate portion during rotation; and hinge means hingedly connecting the frame the intermediate portion, wherein, in use, the intermediate portion and frame rotate together with respect to the leading portion and wherein the leading and intermediate portions can pivot about the hinge means with respect to the trailing portion to allow the machine to be pulled from a horizontal conduit up through and out of a manhole.

6. A machine as claimed in claim 5 wherein the leading portion contains control components.

7. A machine as claimed in either of claims 5 or 6 wherein the hinge means comprises a universal joint.

8. An elongate machine for winding a helically wound pipe within a conduit from a strip having complementary connecting formations extending along opposite edge portions thereof and which are adapted to interlock when the strip is helically wound, the machine comprising: a leading portion having means for supplying power; an intermediate portion rotatably connected to the leading portion, the rotatable connection arranged to allow transmission of power from the leading portion to the intermediate portion during rotation; a trailing portion having a frame supporting at least three circumferentially spaced guide rollers adapted to bear against the inner periphery of the pipe being wound and a strip drive roller means for driving the strip around the outside of the rollers so as to cause the adjacent edge portions of adjacent convolutions of the strip to interlock; and hinge means hingedly connecting the trailing portion to the intermediate portion, wherein, in use, the intermediate and trailing portions rotate together with respect to the leading portion and wherein the leading and intermediate portions can pivot about the hinge means with respect to the trailing portion to allow the machine to be pulled from a horizontal conduit up through and out of a manhole.

9. A machine as claimed in claim 8 wherein the leading portion contains control components.

10. A machine as claimed in either of claims 8 or 9 wherein the hinge means comprises a universal joint.

11. A machine as claimed in any one of claims 8, 9 or 10 further comprising an elongate strip guide for guiding the strip axially through the machine from an entrance position adjacent the trailing end of the machine to an exit position adjacent one of the at least three guide rollers and facing towards the helical path, wherein the strip drive roller means is mounted to the trailing end of the frame adjacent the entrance position and, in use, the strip drive roller means drives the strip though the strip guide in compression.

12. A machine as claimed in claim 11 wherein the continuous tube has a cross-section substantially rectangular in shape.

13. A machine as claimed in either of claims 11 or 12 further comprising a means for adjusting the angle at which the strip exits the strip guide.

14. A machine substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to and as illustrated in figures 3, 4, 5 and 5a.

15. A machine substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to and as illustrated in figures 6 and 7.