KR-20260063802-A - SELF-DRIVING ROBOT FOR AIRCRAFT FUSELAGE EXTERIOR AND ENGINE INSPECTION

KR20260063802AKR 20260063802 AKR20260063802 AKR 20260063802AKR-20260063802-A

Abstract

The present invention relates to an autonomous robot for automated external inspection of aircraft fuselages and engines of various aircraft sizes and dimensions (narrow body, wide body, private jet, etc.). An autonomous robot for automated external inspection of an aircraft fuselage exterior and engine according to the present invention comprises a robot body, a robot motion device for moving or rotating the robot body, a width expansion device fixed to the robot body to expand the width of the robot body, a robot arm supported by the robot body or the width expansion device and moving in the width direction of the width expansion device, a shooting device installed on the robot arm for capturing images for external inspection of the aircraft fuselage and engine, and a control unit for controlling the robot motion device, the robot arm, and the shooting device.

Inventors

이철희
구태회
김인수

Assignees

주식회사 딥인스펙션

Dates

Publication Date: 20260507
Application Date: 20241031

Claims (7)

Robot body; A robot motion device for moving or rotating the above robot body; A width expansion device fixed to the robot body to expand the width of the robot body; A robot arm supported by the robot body or the width expansion device and moving in the width direction of the width expansion device; A shooting device installed on the above-mentioned robot arm for capturing images for external inspection of aircraft fuselages and engines of various sizes and dimensions (Narrow Body, Wide Body, Private Jet); and A control unit that controls the above-mentioned robot motion device, robot arm, and imaging device An autonomous robot for automated visual inspection of aircraft fuselages and engines, including
In paragraph 1, The above width expansion device has a plate structure and extends by protruding from the upper edge of the robot body in a direction away from the center of the robot body. Autonomous robot for automated visual inspection of aircraft fuselages and engines.
In paragraph 1, The above width expansion device has an integrated plate structure, has a width greater than the width of the robot body, and is positioned to be seated on the robot body. Autonomous robot for automated visual inspection of aircraft fuselages and engines.
In paragraph 1, The above-mentioned robot motion device further includes an obstacle detection sensor that detects whether there is an obstacle on the path of movement, and The control unit controls the robot motion device to move along a path capable of avoiding obstacles when the obstacle detection sensor detects an obstacle, and controls the movement of the robot arm such that the shooting range of the aircraft fuselage and engine to be photographed by the camera device is the same as the shooting range of the aircraft fuselage and engine to be photographed by the camera device while moving along a virtual path where the robot motion device is scheduled to move when there are no obstacles. Autonomous robot for automated visual inspection of aircraft fuselages and engines.
In paragraph 1, The above robot body is stacked in a structure in which a plurality of frames having a rectangular shape are assembled so as to be detachable, thereby adjusting the shooting range when the shooting device photographs the aircraft fuselage and engine. Autonomous robot for automated visual inspection of aircraft fuselages and engines.
In paragraph 5, The robot body includes a robot body rail on the upper part of the robot body so that the robot arm slides along the upper part of the robot body in the width direction of the robot body. Autonomous robot for automated visual inspection of aircraft fuselages and engines.
In paragraph 1, The robot body includes a dedicated internal hangar positioning system comprising encoders attached to wheels for robot positioning within the hangar, a 2-axis laser rangefinder, a 3D LiDAR, a vision camera for obstacle recognition, and a multi-modal map-based system. Autonomous robot for automated visual inspection of aircraft fuselages and engines.

Description

Self-driving robot for automated exterior inspection of aircraft fuselages and engines The present invention relates to an autonomous robot for automated external inspection of an aircraft fuselage and engine. In the visual inspection of aircraft fuselages and engines, conventional technology involves visual inspection by aircraft mechanics and manual recording of the inspection, which results in a high dependency on human resources. In particular, when inspecting objects at high positions, additional resources such as the deployment of lift equipment or mobile scaffolding must be utilized, leading to a problem where a significant amount of time and effort is required to perform the task. To address these issues, an autonomous robot based on artificial intelligence and image sensors is being developed to automate human-based visual inspection tasks. Individual images acquired by autonomous robots are integrated into a single image, and a method is mainly used to automatically detect defects using artificial intelligence deep learning technology based on the integrated image. However, there is a problem where it is difficult to photograph the entire surface to be inspected (i.e., an environment where the movement path cannot be followed), and as a solution to this, it is common to select an autonomous driving method that bypasses obstacles on the hangar floor by adding an avoidance driving function. However, when the avoidance driving path of an autonomous robot exceeds the shooting range of the image sensor, it becomes difficult to secure complete image data of the inspection target surface; therefore, there is a need to develop a separate device to collect image data of the inspection target surface even during avoidance driving. FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram showing an autonomous driving robot for automated external inspection of an aircraft fuselage exterior and engine according to one embodiment of the present invention. Figure 2 is a schematic diagram showing a comparison of the effective shooting width of the aircraft fuselage exterior and engine using an autonomous robot for automated external inspection of the aircraft fuselage exterior and engine according to Figure 1, and the effective shooting width of the aircraft fuselage exterior and engine when using a conventional device. FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram showing a comparison between the shooting range of the aircraft fuselage exterior and engine when there is an obstacle on the hangar floor in the movement path of the autonomous robot for automated external inspection of the aircraft fuselage exterior and engine according to FIG. 1, and the shooting range of the aircraft fuselage exterior and engine when there is an obstacle in the movement path of the existing device. Figure 4 is a schematic diagram showing the width expansion device separated from the autonomous driving robot for automated external inspection of the aircraft fuselage exterior and engine according to Figure 1. FIG. 5 is a block diagram showing each configuration centered on a control device that controls the operation of an autonomous driving robot for automated external inspection of an aircraft fuselage exterior and engine according to FIG. 1. FIG. 6 is a schematic diagram showing a width expansion device separated from an autonomous driving robot for automated external inspection of an aircraft fuselage exterior and engine according to another embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 7 is a schematic diagram showing a width expansion device separated from an autonomous driving robot for automated external inspection of an aircraft fuselage exterior and engine according to another embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 8 is a schematic diagram showing a width expansion device separated from an autonomous driving robot for automated external inspection of an aircraft fuselage exterior and engine according to another embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 9 is a schematic diagram showing the process of determining whether there are cracks in the aircraft fuselage exterior and engine photographed by a camera using the first search unit and the second search unit of the control device among the autonomous driving robots for automated exterior inspection of the aircraft fuselage exterior and engine according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 10 illustrates a positioning system dedicated to the interior of a hangar, comprising an encoder attached to a wheel, a 2-axis laser rangefinder, a 3D LiDAR, a vision camera for obstacle recognition, and a multi-modal map-based artificial intelligence algorithm for positioning of a robot according to an embodiment of the present invention. The aforementioned objectives of the present invention, as well as other objectives, advantages, and features, and the methods for achieving them, will become clear from the embodiments described in detail below together with the accompanying drawings. However, the present invention is