机器人督察抵御洪水
购买60美元,000 mobile video robot to inspect stormwater pipes didn’t fit into Horsham Township’s budget. 因此，官员们转向白兰地酒工程专业的学生, 是谁把暴风机器人准时送到的, 远远低于预算.
宾州州立大学白兰地酒 engineering students solve real problems for real clients. They hone their technical skills, interact with users and manage field trials before they graduate.
Charged with maintaining critical infrastructure in Horsham Township, Public Works Director Dennis Haggerty needed a cost-effective and flexible option to examine stormwater pipes, 哪些有助于防止洪水和侵蚀.
“We hired outside contractors in the past, but it’s expensive,” he said. “我们借了一台相机，但效果不理想.”
Realizing that a custom video inspection robot wouldn’t just wash up in his office, Haggerty turned to students in 宾州州立大学白兰地酒 and Penn State Abington’s 四年制工程专业 来帮助建造霍舍姆镇需要的机器人.
Brandywine senior Donald Fay works through calculations to improve the Stormbot's electrical usage.
来源:Michael McDade
“我认为这对每个人都有好处，”他说. “We form a partnership with Penn State students who get to test their skills in real-life situations, 我们得到了视频机器人.”
“It was exciting for the students to see concepts from classes come together.——鲍勃Avanzato，工程学副教授
鲍勃Avanzato, 工程副教授, explained that Stormbot was perfect for his senior robot design course and noted the importance of hands-on learning.
“It was exciting for the students to see concepts from classes come together,” Avanzato said.
Haggerty provided them with data, videos, images and samples of piping material. The students kept in close contact with their client as they developed a robot to meet the township’s needs.
哈格蒂的要求包括:
- The robot's camera must pan and tilt, returning HD video and still images;
- A console allows the user to operate the robot and maneuver the camera from above ground;
- Workers must be able to review the video transmission live as they search for compromises and obstructions in pipes;
- 应急电缆，以防需要用手拆卸.
After months of hard work, it was finally time to test their design in the field. Haggerty and township workers released the robot into two residential storm pipes while Avanzato and senior Charles Liggett guided them, 准备好进行故障排除.
Horsham Public Works employees and Penn State Abington senior Charles Liggett (right) prepare to deploy Stormbot into residential storm pipes.
来源:bck体育官网
正如预期的, Stormbot steered clear of debris and maneuvered around obstacles including bricks and a toy rocket. The LED lighting supported the video quality and highlighted areas workers wanted to explore further.
“结果非常积极, 霍舍姆人对结果非常满意,埃文扎托说. “我们遇到了一些小问题, 但在每种情况下, 机器人在管道内移动了100到150英尺.”
“It’s a working prototype and will be brought up to industry-ready conditions,” Liggett said.
“bck体育官网的学生们建造了一些令人惊叹的东西.——Dennis Haggerty, Horsham Township
几周后, Avanzato and his students sat in the audience while Haggerty presented the near-final version of the robot to the Horsham Township Council.
“The quality is high for post-processing the video and analyzing snapshots,哈格蒂对安理会成员说, who supported the results and the partnership with Penn State.
A photo from Stormbot's camera shows debris in a Horsham Township stormwater pipe.
来源:bck体育官网
最后, Haggerty said he was glad he didn’t follow his first impulse — attaching a GoPro to his son’s remote control car and letting it loose in the pipes.
“The Penn State students built something amazing,” Haggerty said. “The results are valuable and useful and so is the relationship."
