Development of Contraction Force Control System of Peristaltic Crawling Robot for Sewer Pipe Inspection

Currently, serious accidents caused by aging sewer pipes occur frequently. Therefore, we have developed an inspection peristaltic crawling robot that replicates an earthworm's locomotion. This robot can drive more than 100 m and perform maintenance on the inside of a sewer pipe (100A pipe). Pumping pipes generally have complex pipelines. This robot has high traction force, but this is not enough for long distance driving. We introduced feedback to control the load on the robot. We confirmed that higher traction force is output by adjusting the operation timing.