Modeling, Simulation and Control of a Pipe Inspection Mobile Robot with an Active Adaptation System

Abstract In this paper, a tracked inspection mobile robot with an active adaptation system is presented. It can be used for visual inspection of various pipelines. Mathematical modeling of pedipulator mechanisms that allow adaptation of the robot to different shapes and sizes of pipes is described with focus on forward and inverse kinematics methods, implemented in MATLAB software. Application of a custom trajectory planning algorithm for the pedipulators is shown with numerical and graphical validation. Co-simulations of the robot motion, prepared in V-REP and MATLAB software are performed for horizontal and rough surfaces and horizontal pipe segments with connections and reducers. A prototype of the robot with a model-based control system is tested and laboratory experiments are compared to the simulation results. Different motion scenarios of the robot are shown with focus on adaptation capabilities of the motion unit to work environment.