Inner detecting device for subsea oil and gas pipeline

• US 10,030,804 B2
• Filed: 09/16/2014
• Issued: 07/24/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 11/23/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Tsinghua University
• Original Assignee: Tsinghua University
• Inventors: Huang, Songling, Zhao, Wei, Wang, Shen, Yu, Xinjie, Chen, Junjie, Wei, Zheng
• Primary Examiner(s): Gibson, Randy
• Assistant Examiner(s): Kidanu, Gedeon M
• Application Number:
  US14/759,300
• Publication Number:
  US 20150346154A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,407 Days
• CPC Class Codes: F16L 2101/30 Inspecting, measuring or testing
• CPC Class Codes: F16L 55/38 driven by fluid pressure
• CPC Class Codes: G01M 3/40 by using electric means, e.g. by observing electric discharges
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 27/82 for investigating the presence of flaws

Abstract

An inner detecting device for subsea oil and gas pipeline includes a support shaft defining a sealed chamber therein; a packer cup coupled to the support shaft; a hinge assembly coupled to the support shaft, swinging with respect to the support shaft in a radial direction and sliding with respect to the support shaft in an axial direction; a magnetic detector connected to the hinge assembly to move with respect to the support shaft in the radial and axial directions, and the magnetic detector tending to move away from the support shaft in the radial direction; a battery pack; an electric recorder electrically connected to the battery pack; and a mileage recorder recording a travel distance of the inner detecting device within the pipeline.

Claims

1. An inner detecting device for subsea oil and gas pipeline, comprising:

a support shaft defining a sealed chamber therein;

a packer cup coupled to the support shaft along a circumferential direction of the support shaft

a hinge assembly coupled to the support shaft, swinging with respect to the support shaft in a radial direction of the support shaft and sliding with respect to the support shaft in an axial direction of the support shaft;

a magnetic detector connected to the hinge assembly to move with respect to the support shaft in the radial and axial directions of the support shaft, and the magnetic detector tending to move away from the support shaft in the radial direction of the support shaft;

a battery pack disposed within the sealed chamber;

an electric recorder disposed within the sealed chamber and electrically connected to the battery pack; and

a mileage recorder disposed on the support shaft to record a travel distance of the inner detecting device within the pipeline,

wherein the hinge assembly comprises;

a first hinge arm having a first end pivotally and movably coupled to the support shaft and a second end pivotally connected to the magnetic detector; and

a second hinge arm having a first end pivotally coupled to the support shaft and a second end pivotally connected to the first hinge arm,

wherein the magnetic detector comprises;

a magnetic conductor;

a hinge mount disposed at a front end of the magnetic conductor and pivotally connected to the second end of the first hinge arm via a connecting shaft;

a plurality of magnets disposed above the magnetic conductor to form a closed magnetic flux loop;

a finger-shaped detector disposed on the magnetic conductor and located in a center of the closed magnetic flux loop;

a guide element disposed at rear end of the magnetic conductor and coupled to the support shaft, and the guide element being moved with respect to the support shaft in the radial and axial directions of the support shaft; and

a first elastic element disposed between the magnetic conductor and support shaft to normally push the magnetic conductor move away from the support shaft in the radial direction of the support shaft.

2. The inner detecting device of claim 1, wherein the first elastic element is a spring, the magnetic conductor has a mounting hole and a guide post within the mounting hole, the spring is fitted over the guide post, a first end of the spring is disposed within the mounting hole and a second end of the spring is contacted with the support shaft.

3. The inner detecting device of claim 1, wherein a number of the magnetic detector is equal to that of the hinge assembly and is at least 2.

4. The inner detecting device of claim 1, wherein the mileage recorder comprises:

a pivot seat fixed to the support shaft;

a swing arm having a first end pivotally connected to the pivot seat via a pivot shaft and a second end;

an odometer wheel connected to the second end of the swing arm to contact with an inner wall of the subsea oil and gas pipeline and defining an axis hole;

a rotary encoder disposed in the axis hole of the odometer wheel to record a travel distance of the odometer wheel; and

a second elastic element connected between the swing arm and the pivot seat to normally drive the swing arm to rotate away from the support shaft.

5. The inner detecting device of claim 1, wherein the hinge assembly further comprises a mounting seat fixed to the support shaft and defining a mounting groove therein, the first end of the first hinge arm has a pivot shaft rotatably and movably fitted into the mounting groove, and the first end of the second hinge arm is pivotally connected to the mounting seat.

6. The inner detecting device of claim 1, wherein the support shaft define a guide groove formed in a rear end of the support shaft and extended in the radial direction of the support shaft, the guide element is fitted into the guide groove and is movable in the radial and axial directions of the support shaft within the guide groove.

7. The inner detecting device of claim 6, wherein one end of the guide groove is extended to an outer surface of the support shaft in the radial direction of the support shaft, and a stop ring is fitted over the outer surface of the support shaft to prevent the guide element getting from moving out of the guide groove in the radial direction of the support shaft.

8. The inner detecting device of claim 1, wherein the packer cup comprises front and rear packer cups, and a ratio of a distance between the front and rear packer cups to an inner radius of the pipeline is 1:

1 to 1;

1.5.

9. The inner detecting device of claim 8, wherein front and rear mounting flanges are formed at front and rear portions of the support shaft respectively, and the front and rear packer cups are mounted to the front and rear mounting flanges respectively via stainless press plates.

10. An inner detecting device for subsea oil and gas pipeline, comprising:

a support shaft defining a sealed chamber therein;

a packer cup coupled to the support shaft along a circumferential direction of the support shaft

a hinge assembly coupled to the support shaft, swinging with respect to the support shaft in a radial direction of the support shaft and sliding with respect to the support shaft in an axial direction of the support shaft;

a magnetic detector connected to the hinge assembly to move with respect to the support shaft in the radial and axial directions of the support shaft, and the magnetic detector tending to move away from the support shaft in the radial direction of the support shaft;

a battery pack disposed within the sealed chamber;

an electric recorder disposed within the sealed chamber and electrically connected to the battery pack; and

a mileage recorder disposed on the support shaft to record a travel distance of the inner detecting device within the pipeline,

wherein the packer cup comprises front and rear packer cups, and a ratio of a distance between the front and rear packer cups to an inner radius of the pipeline is 1;

1 to 1;

1.5,

wherein front and rear mounting flanges are formed at front and rear portions of the support shaft respectively, and the front and rear packer cups are mounted to the front and rear mounting flanges respectively via stainless press plates,

wherein the magnetic detector further comprises a concentrator disposed below the finger-shaped detector, the rear mounting flange defines a through-hole therein, a plurality of wires of the finger-shaped detector are concentrated to be a wire harness via the concentrator, so that a plug of the wire harness is connected to a socket of the finger-shaped detector through the through hole, the plug and the socket are made of nitrile-butadiene rubber and capable of bearing pressure of 0-20 MPa.

11. An inner detecting device for subsea oil and gas pipeline, comprising:

a support shaft defining a sealed chamber therein;

a packer cup coupled to the support shaft along a circumferential direction of the support shaft;

a hinge assembly coupled to the support shaft, swinging with respect to the support shaft in a radial direction of the support shaft and sliding with respect to the support shaft in an axial direction of the support shaft;

a magnetic detector connected to the hinge assembly to move with respect to the support shaft in the radial and axial directions of the support shaft, and the magnetic detector tending to move away from the support shaft in the radial direction of the support shaft;

a battery pack disposed within the sealed chamber;

an electric recorder disposed within the sealed chamber and electrically connected to the battery pack; and

a mileage recorder disposed on the support shaft to record a travel distance of the inner detecting device within the pipeline,

wherein the battery pack comprises;

a first radial seal disposed between the battery pack and an inner wall of the sealed chamber in the radial direction of the support shaft,

a first axial seal disposed between the battery pack and the inner wall of the sealed chamber in the axial direction of the support shaft; and

a first damping element disposed on an outer surface of the battery pack and made of polytetrafluoroethylene.

12. The inner detecting device of claim 11, wherein the electric recorder comprises:

a second radial seal disposed between the electric recorder and an inner wall of the sealed chamber in the radial direction of the support shaft,

a second axial seal disposed between the electric recorder and the inner wall of the sealed chamber in the axial direction of the support shaft; and

a second damping element disposed on an outer surface of the electric recorder and made of polytetrafluoroethylene.

13. The inner detecting device of claim 11, wherein the battery pack and the electric recorder are coaxially disposed and a rear end of the battery pack is connected to a front end of the electric recorder.