Development of a snake robot moving in a pipe with helical rolling motion

Abstract

We are developing a snake robot for using it in a real plant to inspect pipes in the plant. The snake robot is constructed by connecting pitch axis and yaw axis alternately. The snake robot can move the inside and outside of a pipe with helical rolling motion. We integrated the snake robot with tactile pressure sensors and a sound-based localization sensor to make it high functional system for pipe inspection. The integrated snake robot was demonstrated in a test field with straight pipes and bending pipes to show the ability of mobility of the snake robot and the functions of sensors.