Self-Propelled Blade Inspection Climber

What it does

This product inspects offshore wind turbine blades. It ascends on the rope with self-powered rollers, reducing risks at heights and enabling inspections with cameras. This leads to cost reduction and minimized power losses for a reliable electricity supply.

Your inspiration

Operating and maintaining offshore wind power accounts for about 20% of generation costs. One reason is the risks associated with human inspections conducted at great heights, requiring sharp judgment to detect blade abnormalities. Additionally, accessing offshore turbines and halting operations for up to 80 hours per unit during inspections contribute to expenses. To ensure a stable power supply in offshore wind energy, we're developing an efficient, cost-effective inspection system. We aim to attach rope-driven self-propelled climbers to turbine blades for automated inspections without disrupting operations.

How it works

By simply attaching the rope, it can travel and perform inspections, eliminating the need for risky rope work at high altitudes. Equipped with close-range imaging technology, it enables thorough inspections of the blades using image diagnostic techniques. It allows for necessary workforce reduction. With this self-propelled rope climber, human intervention is not required for inspections, reducing the necessary workforce to just a few individuals. Furthermore, it significantly reduces inspection time. With the capability to inspect both sides of the blades simultaneously, it can achieve more than twice the efficiency of traditional inspection methods. The novelty of this work lies in its automatic ascension and descension on a fixed rope. By gripping the rope with rollers and transmitting power from the motor, friction propels the climber vertically. With precise weight and gear ratio adjustments, we achieve stable motion with various velocities.

Design process

We first focused on verifying the design concept of a self-propelled climber. A small concept model (1 kg) was created, with rollers gripping a rope and powered movement, confirming its ability to ascend on the rope. Subsequently, a more robust model (around 5 kg) was developed, capable of lifting payloads (up to 20 kg) and a maximum speed of 30 km/h. We utilized lightweight and high-strength alloys in areas requiring rigidity, and actively employed 3D printing in other areas. To enhance safety, improvements were made as the size increased. Mechatronic upgrades involved non-contact sensors, a rotary encoder for distance control, and a compact self-servo brake for vertical descent. These enhancements ensure safety while maintaining a simplified structure. Efforts have also been made to improve operational usability. Simplification of the rope attachment procedure has been achieved by using lock pins. The battery mounting position has been redesigned to allow easy recharging while the climber remains attached to the rope. Lastly, an interface for mounting a camera was developed. And inspection at any blade position the control operation was facilitated by enhancing to enable precise position control.

How it is different

1. Comparison with drones: Drone inspections involve flying around the turbine to capture real-time images of the blades and tower. While it eliminates the need for high-risk rope work, they face challenges such as wind interference and limited proximity to the blades. In contrast, our product provides controlled movement along the rope, allowing closer blade access while minimizing wind effects through sufficient tension. 2. Comparison with Pulley-type climbers: Pulley-type climbers use a rope attached to a pulley for vertical movement. While effective for stable cargo transportation in fixed locations, these systems are large and time-consuming to install. Some companies utilize pulley-based robots for inspacting land-based wind turbines but face difficulties with offshore installations. In contrast, our self-propelled climber integrates power within itself. Multiple climbers can independently traverse a single rope, significantly reducing inspection time.

Future plans

Currently, the concept is being demonstrated using the model of wind turbine blades, as shown in the video above. In the future, we plan to demonstrate the ability to ascend and descend while using a camera to take pictures and to go up more than 100 meters. By March of next year, we aim to demonstrate the system in onshore wind power generation. The next year’s goal is to implement the image diagnostic technology and conduct demonstration tests on actual offshore wind turbines.

Awards

SPECxROC 2022 in NIIT, Climber Section Award (https://www.jsea.jp/2196) Hardware Contest “GUGEN”, Excellence Award (https://gugen.jp/result/2022.html )