FLEXIBLE MAGNETIC WHEEL TYPE INTELLIGENT WELDING ROBOT FOR SPHERICAL TANK

An intelligent welding robot for spherical tank's all-position multi-layerwelds is developed. Based on the dynamics analyzing and simulation testing, a flexible magneticwheel mechanism is created as the robot's walking carriage. It makes the robot directly attracted tothe surface of the spherical tank so as to realize the all-position walking and welding withoutrail. At the same time, a CCD real-time tracing system is developed for the robot to repeatedlytrace the all-position and multi-layer seams. The welding tests show that the welding robot can makethe all-position and multi-layer welds with high tracing accuracy, excellent quality and reliablebehavior, and it can be applied for practical production.

Study on full automatic arc welding machine for spherical tank

A full automatic welding machine for spherical tanks' all position multi layer welds has been developed. This machine is mainly composed of a two dimension seam tracking system based on microcomputer's memory and a welding tractor as well as rail. The main features of the machine are: while welding the first layer of a seam, its microcomputer system can analyze and store the tracing information from a two dimension sensor, and control the welding head device to realize two dimension real time tracing; while welding the second layer up to the top layer of the seam, it can realize two dimension tracing based on the memorial data, automatically determine the layer number and continually sway the welding head. The welding test shows that the machine has good tracing and welding behavior, and is suitable for spherical tank's all position multi layer welds.

Support and Positioning Mechanism of a Detection Robot inside a Spherical Tank

Large pressure equipment needs to be tested regularly to ensure safe operation;wall-climbing robots can carry the necessary tools to inspect spherical tanks,such as cameras and non-destructive testing equipment.However,a wall-climbing robot inside a spherical tank cannot be accurately positioned owing to the particularity of the spherical tank structure.This paper proposes a passive support and positioning mechanism fixed in a spherical tank to improve the adsorption capacity and positioning accuracy of the inspection robot.The main body of the mechanism was designed as a truss composed of carbon fiber telescopic rods and can work in spherical tanks with diameters of 4.6-15.7 m.The structural strength,stiffness,and stability of the mechanism are analyzed via force and deformation simulations.By constructing a mathematical model of the support and positioning mechanism,the influence of structural deformation on the supporting capacity is analyzed and calculated.The robot positioning method based on the support and positioning mechanism can effectively locate the robot inside a spherical tank.Experiments verified the support performance and robot positioning accuracy of the mechanism.This research proposes an auxiliary support and positioning mechanism for a detection robot inside a spherical tank,which can effectively improve the positioning accuracy of the robot and meet the robotic inspection requirements.

Key Technology of Cutting and Moving Large Spherical Tank

This paper mainly introduces the scientific cutting and hoisting construction technology before the large spherical tank(hereinafter referred to as spherical tank)moving and loading,so as to better ensure the construction quality of field assembly and welding in the process of spherical tank moving and loading.

Nonlinear roll damping of a barge with and without liquid cargo in spherical tanks

Damping plays a significant role on the maximum amplitude of a vessel’s roll motion,in particular near the resonant frequency.It is a common practice to predict roll damping using a linear radiation-diffraction code and add that to a linearized viscous damping component,which can be obtained through empirical,semi-empirical equations or free decay tests in calm water.However,it is evident that the viscous roll damping is nonlinear with roll velocity and amplitude.Nonlinear liquid cargo motions inside cargo tanks also contribute to roll damping,which when ignored impedes the accurate prediction of maximum roll motions.In this study,a series of free decay model tests is conducted on a barge-like vessel with two spherical tanks,which allows a better understanding of the nonlinear roll damping components considering the effects of the liquid cargo motion.To examine the effects of the cargo motion on the damping levels,a nonlinear model is adopted to calculate the damping coefficients.The liquid cargo motion is observed to affect both the linear and the quadratic components of the roll damping.The flow memory effect on the roll damping is also studied.The nonlinear damping coefficients of the vessel with liquid cargo motions in spherical tanks are obtained,which are expected to contribute in configurations involving spherical tanks.

Coupling dynamic analysis of a liquid-filled spherical container subject to arbitrary excitation

Using spherical coordinates, the coupling nonlinear dynamic system of a liquid-filled spherical tank, which can be excited discretionarily, is deduced by the H-O varia- tional principle, and the viscous damping is introduced via the liquid dissipation function. The kinetic equations of the coupling system are deduced by the relationship between the velocity of liquid particles and the disturbed liquid surface equation. Normal differential equations are obtained through the Galerkin method. An equivalent mechanical model is developed for liquid sloshing in a spherical tank subject to arbitrary excitation. The fixed and slosh masses, as well as the spring and damping constants, are determined in such a way as to satisfy the principle of equivalence. Numerical simulations illustrate the theoretical results in this paper as well.