Internal Pipe Crawlers

The AIS RoboPipe internal crawler features two innovations not normally found on current AUT pipe crawlers.

1.  True Centering Device - The expansion and contraction of the front wheels are directly linked to the back wheels and vice-versa.   Doing so keeps  the transducer assembly as centered as reasonably possible allowing for better and more uniform contact of the transducers around the inside circumference.  Most commercially available scanners have independent front and back wheel assemblies allowing the scanner and transducers to sag at the twelve o'clock position.  This in turn can result in non-uniform contact and in some cases the transducers may even lift off at the twelve o'clock position.

2.  All Wheel Drive - The AIS RoboPipe tool features a DC servo controlled all wheel axial drive system.  There a 8 Axial wheels, four on front and four on the back.  Doing so allows the operator precise control of the scanner speed, direction, and location in the pipe.  By contrast, most conventional internal pipe crawlers require operator assistance to manually drive the scanner using a more cumbersome pulley and rope system.