| Title: |
Robot for Internal Strengthening of Pipes with Carbon Laminates |
| Category: |
Industry |
| Intellectual Property: |
Student team assigns intellectual property control to company |
| Year: |
2009 |
| Semester: |
Fall |
| Sponsor Name: |
QuakeWrap, Inc. |
| Sponsoring advisors: |
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| Sponsor URL: |
http://www.QuakeWrap.com and www.PipeMedic.com |
| Sponsor Information: |
QuakeWrap, Inc. specializes in repair and strengthening of structures with Fiber Reinforced Polymer (FRP) products. Please visit (www.QuakeWrap.com) and type “pipe” in the search box to become more familiar with the type of projects we do. Repair of large-diameter pipes is a multibillion dollar business; I recommend you read the following articles:
http://www.reinforcedplastics.com/view/3020/spring-loaded-pipe-lining-system/
and
http://www.pipemedic.com/Costa%20Rica%20Trenchless%20Pipe%20Project%20Description.pdf
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| ITAR Restriction: |
No |
| Scope of work: |
After winning a national award of excellence for repairing pipes with application of a carbon fiber liner using the wet layup system, we have pushed the limit in this industry up by developing a patent-pending product called PipeMedic (see www.PipeMedic.com). This product is a high-quality plant-manufactured laminate that can reduce the time required to repair a pipe by up to 80%. The installation process involves:
1) Applying a layer of epoxy to the back of the laminates and
2) Pressing the epoxy-coated laminate against the surface of the pipe.
We have two projects listed below for two senior design teams; both of these deal with the development of robots or tools that would increase the speed and efficiency at which PipeMedic is installed in pipes. Please keep in mind that PipeMedic laminates are produced in 4-ft wide bands that are packaged in 300-ft long coils.
Last year a team of AME senior design students designed a robot that dispenses a coil of PipeMedic™ in a spiral configuration inside a pipe. This robot is complete and the full report on its design is available; the team leader is on campus this year as an AME graduate student and he is willing to make you fully familiar with how that robot works.
Your job is to complete this robot by designing & building a component where the epoxy will be troweled or sprayed to the back of PipeMedic, allowing the epoxy-coated laminate to be bonded directly to the surface of the pipe. Because this robot installs PipeMedic in a spiral configuration, it is envisioned that the completed robot will be able to fix a pipe by making a single pass through the pipe.
This is a very real and urgent project; there is for example a 36-inch diameter x a 60,000-feet long pipeline in California that is an ideal candidate for repair with this robot! The robot is the only way the water utility would allow us to fix the pipe because by incorporating one or more such robots, the long pipe can be repaired in a short time. |
| Project summary: |
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| Disciplines: |
Mechanical Engineering (2)
Computer Engineering (1)
Electrical Engineering (2) |
| Skills: |
Mechanical Design
Robotics
Software to Control Robot Movements
Electrical Circuits |
| Additional resources: |
We have a warehouse behind our office (2055 E. 17th St.) that can be made available to you if you need additional space. The robot that was constructed last year is also kept at that location.
In addition, our engineers are available at all times to answer any questions you might have about the requirements of the system. |
| Key Contact Name: |
Prof. M. Ehsani |
| Key Contact Email: |
Mo@QuakeWrap.com |
| Key Contact Phone: |
791-7000 x 122 |
| Project URL: |
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| Mentor Name: |
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| Mentor Email: |
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| Mentor Phone: |
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