New concept of a robot for transmission lines inspection

Abstract

This paper claims to show a new concept of a robot, that uses joints of accessories, helping its displacement along transmission lines, also presenting low cost maintenance and easy operation. There were developed some series of accessories, which turn the robot into a simple engine, capable of moving along transmission lines, moving over suspension and anchoring devices, throughout the ground wire. With the use of those accessories it was possible to achieve a lot of mechanical simplicity and relatively greater weight capacity for batteries, compared to a robot that also uses devices with servo mechanism and arms for obstacle transposition. The robot is expected to inspect long transmission lines, throughout some adverse conditions, such as: severe climate, difficult topography, lack of access roads etc. So, it is shown in this paper the prototype of this robot, its field tests and the analysis of its potential use for transmission lines inspection.