A Reliability Analysis Method for a Novel Inspection Robot of the Rail Conveyor

Abstract

Belt conveyors are widely used in bulk material conveying. The rail conveyor is a new type of conveyors, which combines the advantages of belt conveyor and railroad transportation, and is more energy-saving and efficient than belt conveyors. To ensure the stable operation of the rail conveyor, inspection of the sections along its route is required. It is difficult to apply the inspection robot of belt conveyors to the rail conveyor due to the novel structure and extra inspection targets. In this paper, we propose an inspection robot for the rail conveyor. The robot is designed based on support carriages on the rail conveyor, which uses the conveyor rail as its own running rail, uses the conveyor running power as its own moving power, and carries detection devices for the track and the belt to realize the inspection along the rail conveyor. Since the proposed inspection robot is larger and heavier than support carriages, it may affect the normal operation of the conveyor when installed. In this paper, a reliability analysis method for the inspection robot is proposed, including the carry side, return side and the turnaround wheel. The inspection robot is fully adapted to the working conditions and inspection requirements of the rail conveyor, and the proposed reliability analysis method can guide the optimal design of the inspection robot.