Development of cable-climbing robot with inspection function

Abstract The primary purpose of this study is to research and develop a crawler-type cable climbing robot to meet the demand of Sinotech Engineering Consultants, Ltd, using excellent structural design to meet the current practical requirements of the application of cable diameter varies greatly and simplify the operation process, improve the efficiency of the safety inspection of bridge cables and reduce the related risks, and through numerical analysis and the finite element method to optimize the design. The design is mainly divided into three parts: vibration measurement mechanism, robot control system, and cable climbing mechanism. The vibration measurement mechanism adopts the micro-vibration measurement method, in which a 3-axis piezoelectric accelerometer is tightly attached to the cable to measure the resonance frequency of the cable and detect the cable force. The robot control system adopts the fourth-generation Raspberry Pi as the central controller, with a ground remote control system and a backup system to prevent the robot from losing control due to the failure of the central system. The drive unit adopts a stepping motor with a planetary gearbox to drive the crawler. The cable-climbing mechanism uses a compression device to keep the robot’s track close to the cable to achieve a maximum speed of 0.04 m/s and to cross an obstacle limit of 9 mm over a 60-200 mm vertical or horizontal cable. The tracked cable-climbing robot is tested to be installed and operated by a single person and is adaptable to different cable environments with rapid deployment and operation.