EP0186488A2
Expired / Lapsed
EP
⏱️ 0.0 years remaining
Controllable vehicle for inspecting limited access areas
Assignee: Westinghouse Electric Corp
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Filing: 1985-12-23
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Granted: —
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Expires: 2005-12-23
Abstract
Abstract (D An electromagnetic crawler vehicle (10) and its control system are disclosed for inspecting or servicing limited access remote areas such as with a steam generator. The vehicle is introduced into the steam generator enclosure through an inspection opening and has a drive frame comprised of first and second opposing legs, and third and fourth opposing legs pivotable connected to the first and second legs to form a parallelogram. A drive mechanism is interconnected between the first and second legs of the parallelogram drive frame for spreading open or closing the drive frame. First and second attachment devices, illustratively in the form of magnets, are also attached to the first and second legs. The vehicle control system taking the form of a programmable computer in an illustrative embodiment of this invention responds to the opening and closing of the drive frame for alternatively actuating and deactuating the first and second magnets, whereby the vehicle is controllably made to crawl on a surface without falling.
Inventors
- 👤 Ronald Russell Stoner
- 👤 Robert Dean Senger
- 👤 Norman Albert Planck
- 👤 William Gardner Hall
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
EP
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-10-27 14:50
CPC Classifications
B; B62; B62D; B62D57/00; B62D57/02; F; F22; F22B; F22B37/00; F22B37/002; F22B37/006
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 19
Claim 1
Independent Claim
129 words
An unmanned remotely controllable inspection vehicle for controlled crawling movement along a surface, said vehicle comprising: a) a drive frame comprised of first and second opposing legs, and third and fourth opposing legs pivotably connected to said first and second legs to form said drive frame; b) drive means for selectively spreading open and collapsively closing said drive frame; characterized by c) first and second attachment means mounted on said drive frame and being actuable to become attached to said surface and being deactuable to be released from said surface; and d) control means responsive to the opening and closing of said drive frame for alternately actuating and deactuating said first and second attachment means, whereby said vehicle can be driven across the surface without falling off the surface.
Claim 2
Dependent Claim
129 words
An unmanned remotely controllable inspection vehicle for controlled crawling movement along a surface, said vehicle comprising: a) a drive frame comprised of first and second opposing legs, and third and fourth opposing legs pivotably connected to said first and second legs to form said drive frame; b) drive means for selectively spreading open and collapsively closing said drive frame; characterized by c) first and second attachment means mounted on said drive frame and being actuable to become attached to said surface and being deactuable to be released from said surface; and d) control means responsive to the opening and closing of said drive frame for alternately actuating and deactuating said first and second attachment means, whereby said vehicle can be driven across the surface without falling off the surface.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
36 words
The vehicle as claimed in claim 1, wherein said first attachment means is mounted on said first leg and said second attachment means is mounted upon said second leg, and wherein both said attachments comprise electromagnets.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
71 words
The vehicle as claimed in claim 2, wherein said control means is responsive to said opening of said drive frame for actuating one of said first and second attachment means and for deactuating the other of said first and second attachment means, and responsive to said closing of said frame for actuating said other attachment means and deactuating said one attachment means, whereby said vehicle is crawlingly driven across the surface.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
74 words
The vehicle as claimed in claim 3, wherein said control means comprises vehicle direction means for setting said first attachment means as said one attachment means and said second attachment means as said other attachment means to drive said vehicle in a first direction, and for setting said first attachment means as said other attachment means and said second attachment as said one attachment means to drive said vehicle in a second, different direction.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
29 words
The vehicle as claimed in claim 1, wherein said first and second attachment means are respectively first and second electromagnets, each electrically energized to be attracted to said surface.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim
107 words
The vehicle as claimed in claim 5, wherein each of said first and second magnets exhibits a gradual increase and decay of its attraction force in response respectively to the application and removal of an energizing signal, and said control means applies said energizing signal to one of said first and second magnets and removes the energizing signal from the other of said first and second magnets at a point in time preceding said opening of said drive frame to permit the attraction force of said one magnet to increase and the attraction force of said other magnet to decay, before said drive frame begins to open.
Claim 8
Dependent Claim
66 words
The vehicle as claimed in claim 6, wherein said control means comprises a DC voltage source and first and second switch means respectively coupling said DC voltage source in circuit with said first and second magnets, said control means selectively actuating said first and second switch means to apply the energizing signal as a DC voltage to said corresponding one of the first and second magnets.
Claim 9
Dependent Claim
54 words
The vehicle as claimed in claim 7, wherein said control means further includes first and second diode means coupled in parallel circuit with said first and second switch means respectively and forwardly biased with respect to the decaying voltages in said first and second magnets to respectively protect said first and second switch means.
Claim 10
Dependent Claim
38 words
The vehicle as claimed in claim 3, wherein said drive means comprises an electrically actuated motor, an eccentric rotatably driven by said motor and a drive arm coupled to said eccentric for opening and closing said drive frame.
Claim 11
Dependent Claim
46 words
The vehicle as claimed in claim 9, wherein said drive arm includes a driven end and said motor is mounted on said first leg and said driven end of said drive arm is coupled to said second leg, whereby said drive frame is opened and closed.
Claim 12
Dependent Claim
35 words
The vehicle as claimed in claim 10, wherein said first attachment means comprises a first magnet affixed to said first leg and said second attachment means comprises a second magnet affixed to said second leg.
Claim 13
Dependent Claim
43 words
The vehicle as claimed.in claim 10, wherein said motor rotates said eccentric and drives said drive arm in a rectilinear fashion between an extended position and a retracted position, and said control means comprises means for sensing the position of said drive arm.
Claim 14
Dependent Claim
47 words
The vehicle as claimed in claim 12, wherein said sensing means comprises a disk rotatably coupled to said eccentric and having first and second openings therein, an optical sensing means responsive to the rotation of said each of said openings therepast for providing a signal indicative thereof.
Claim 15
Dependent Claim
49 words
The vehicle as claimed in claim 13, wherein said disk is mounted relative to said drive arm and said eccentric to provide position signals in the course of a single revolution of said disk at predetermined points with respect to the opening and closing of said drive frame, respectively.
Claim 16
Dependent Claim
106 words
The vehicle as claimed in claim 14, wherein said sensing means further comprises logic means including first and second, third and fourth relays and evaluation means responsive to said position signals for setting on said first relay when said drive frame is opening and a position signal is present, setting on said second relay in the absence of a position signal and said drive frame is closing, for setting on said third relay in the presence of a position signal and said drive frame is closing and for setting on said fourth relay in the absence of a position signal and said drive frame is opening.
Claim 17
Dependent Claim
74 words
The vehicle as claimed in claim 15, wherein said control means comprises means responsive to said first and fourth control relays being set on and said second and third control relays being set off for energizing one of said first and second attachment means, and responsive to said first and fourth relays being set off and second and third relays being set on to energize the other of said first and second attachment means.
Claim 18
Dependent Claim
192 words
A vehicle which can be controllably moved to crawl along a surface, said vehicle comprising: a) a drive frame having first and second opposing legs, and third and fourth opposing legs, each of said first and fourth legs being pivotably secured at its ends to corresponding ends of said first and second legs to form said drive frame, characterized by b) drive means coupled between said first and second legs for repetitively driving said first and second legs in a first direction toward each other and in a second direction away from each other; c) first and second electromagnet means mounted respectively on said first and second legs, and each being actuable to be attached to the surface and deactuable to be released from the surface; and d) control means responsive to the movement of said first and second legs in the first direction for actuating one of said first and second electromagnet means and deactuating the other of said first and second magnet means, and responsive to the movement of said first and second legs in said second direction for actuating said other magnet means and deactuating said one magnet means.
Claim 19
Dependent Claim
192 words
A vehicle which can be controllably moved to crawl along a surface, said vehicle comprising: a) a drive frame having first and second opposing legs, and third and fourth opposing legs, each of said first and fourth legs being pivotably secured at its ends to corresponding ends of said first and second legs to form said drive frame, characterized by b) drive means coupled between said first and second legs for repetitively driving said first and second legs in a first direction toward each other and in a second direction away from each other; c) first and second electromagnet means mounted respectively on said first and second legs, and each being actuable to be attached to the surface and deactuable to be released from the surface; and d) control means responsive to the movement of said first and second legs in the first direction for actuating one of said first and second electromagnet means and deactuating the other of said first and second magnet means, and responsive to the movement of said first and second legs in said second direction for actuating said other magnet means and deactuating said one magnet means.
References Cited (Backward Citations)
No citation records indexed.
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