Hostname: page-component-78c5997874-ndw9j Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-04T21:38:55.482Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false

Multifunctional robot to maintain boiler water-cooling tubes

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  23 February 2009

Xueshan Gao*
Affiliation:
Intelligent Robotics Institute, Beijing Institute of Technology, 5 Zhongguancun Nandajie, Haidian District Beijing 100081, P. R. China
Dianguo Xu
Affiliation:
Robotics Institute, Harbin Institute of Technology, 92 Dazhi Street, Harbin 150001, P. R. China
Yan Wang
Affiliation:
Robotics Institute, Harbin Institute of Technology, 92 Dazhi Street, Harbin 150001, P. R. China
Huanhuan Pan
Affiliation:
Robotics Institute, Harbin Institute of Technology, 92 Dazhi Street, Harbin 150001, P. R. China
Weimin Shen
Affiliation:
Robotics Institute, Harbin Institute of Technology, 92 Dazhi Street, Harbin 150001, P. R. China
*
*Corresponding author. E-mail: [email protected]

Summary

A robot has been developed to maintain boiler water-cooling tubes. This robot has a double tracked moving mechanism, an ash cleaning device, a slag purging device, a tubes' thickness measurement device, a marking device, and a control system. This robot can climb up and down the tube wall. A method for the robot to complete many tasks for boiler maintenance in one process cycle is presented. The mechanism of the robot is described. Especially, a kind of special magnetic block structure is designed to obtain strong adhering force using permanent magnets. Experiments in laboratory and real thermal power station have verified that the robot cannot only climb on the surface of the tube wall smoothly, but also take heavy payloads for boiler maintenance operation.

Type
Article
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2009

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

1.Gao, Ying and Liu, Jianmin, Thermal Power Station (in Chinese) (Shanghai Jiaotong University Press, Shanghai, China, 1995) pp. 6670.Google Scholar
2.Zhang, Guangchun, Accident Analysis and Treatment Protective Measure in Large Power Station (in Chinese) (China Machine Press, Beijing, China, 1990) pp. 6173.Google Scholar
3.Han, Xiaohong, Maintenance and Service Technique for Boiler Equipments (in Chinese) (China Economic Press, Beijing, China, 1991) pp. 161176.Google Scholar
4.Park, Sangdeok, Don Jeong, Hee and Soo Lim, Zhong, “Development of Mobile Robot Systems for Automatic Diagnosis of Boiler Tube in Fossil Power Plants and Large Size Pipelines,” Proceedings of the 2002 IEEE/RSJ, International Conference on Intelligent Robots and Systems, Lausanne, Switzerland, 1880–1885 (2002) pp. 375377.Google Scholar
5.Suzuki, Masayuki, Yukawa, Toshihiro, Satoh, Yuichi and Okano, Hideharu, “Mechanisms of Autonomous Pipe-Surface Inspection Robot with Magnetic Elements,” IEEE International Conference on Systems, Man and Cybernetics, Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers Computer Society, Piscataway, USA (2006), Teipei, Taiwan, pp. 32863291.Google Scholar
6.Gan, Xiaoming, Xu, Binshi, Dong, Shiyun and Zhang, Xuming, “Outlook of pipe climbing robot” (in Chinese) Rob. Tech. Appl. 6, 510 (2003).Google Scholar
7.Deng, Zongquan, Liu, Fuli, Li, Xiao, Wang, Jie and Chen, Ming, “Some new techniques used for robots moving in pipe” (in Chinese) High Technol. Lett. 5, 1214 (1994).Google Scholar
8.Fukuda, Toshio, Hosokai, Hideki and Shimasaka, Naoki, “Autonomous Plant Maintenance Robot (Mechanism of Mark VI and Its Actuator Characteristics),” Proceedings of IEEE International Workshop on Intelligent Robots and Systems, Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers Computer Society, Piscataway, USA (1990), Tsuchiura, Japan, pp. 471478.Google Scholar
9.Pan, Huanhuan, Zhao, Yanzheng, Gao, Xueshan and Wang, Yan, “Structure design of climbing robot used in water-cooling wall of boiler” (in Chinese) Mech. Des. Manuf. Eng. 5, 710 (2000).Google Scholar
10.Zhou, Shouzeng, Rarecarth Permanent-Magnet Material and Its Application (in Chinese) (Metallurgical Industry Press, Beijing, China, 1990) pp. 1730.Google Scholar
11.Singh Guru, Bhag and Hiziroglu, Huseyin R., Electromagnetic Field and Electromagnetic Wave (Chinese edition) (China Machine Press, Beijing, China, 2006).Google Scholar
12.Lin, Qiren and Zhao, Youmin, Theory of Magnetic Circuit Design (Chinese edition) (China Machine Press, Beijing, China, 1987).Google Scholar
13.Wang, Yizhen, Magnetic Circuit Design (Chinese edition) (Tianjin Science and Technology Press, Tianjin, China, 1991).Google Scholar
14.Shen, W., Gu, J. and Shen, Y., “Proposed Wall Climbing Robot with Permanent Magnetic Tracks for Inspecting Oil Tanks,” Proceedings of the IEEE International Conference on Mechatronics & Automation, Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers Computer Society, Piscataway, USA (2005), Niagara Falls city, Canada, pp. 20722077.Google Scholar
15.Shen, W., Gu, J. and Shen, Y., “Permanent Magnetic System Design for the Wall-climbing Robot,” Proceedings of IEEE International Conference on Mechatronics & Automation, Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers Computer Society, Piscataway, USA (2005), Niagara Falls city, Canada, pp. 20782083.Google Scholar
16.Gao, X., Research on a Multi-jointed Wall Climbing Robot with Magnetic Crawlers. M.S. Thesis (Harbin Institute of Technology pp. 1628, 1996).Google Scholar