The experimental investigation of a pipe robot

Abstract

A novel mobile robot, using steel bristles for traction, was designed, built and tested during this research study. This kind of pipe robot can swiftly move forward in both straight and bent pipes and has been used for carrying out the inspection of the pipe. A theory for the bristle traction mechanism has been proposed based upon using the Euler analysis for the critical buckling load of a bristle. Relationships between various bristle properties and performance have been proposed and investigated. Experiments have been carried out on a steel bristled robot and a plastic bristled robot, using load cells to measure the forces at various points along its structure, during motion. Additional static tests have been carried out on bristles to investigate performance of the traction mechanism under transverse load. Ideas for further enhancement of the robot are also discussed. These ideas include: Improving the robot control system• Improving the robot structure alignment system• Improvement for payload carrying capability