Abstract

Recent offshore drilling activities have dramatically bloomed oil and gas production. Due to extreme weather, such as hurricanes and tsunamis, offshore oil platforms may need to be constantly monitored in case of unexpected dangers. Using robots to monitor and prevent these dangerous situations is a cost-effective and safer solution compared to any human involvement. However, one major drawback for robotic intervention is the ability of the robot to operate water tight ship doors designed for marina facilities. Current studies have been focused on robots manipulating normal doors in people's daily life. However their presented methodology may not be suitable for opening heavy watertight ship doors since they have a special locking structure which needs much larger torque to open. This study explores the possibility of opening heavy watertight ship doors with an ordinary mobile robot under remote control. Given the watertight ship door’s unique structure, a door opening tool with a pawl mechanism is designed for a mobile robot, which consists of a robotic arm and a wheeled platform, to complete the task. Experimental results have shown that the mobile robot can operate the tool to open the door and transition through the door.

Full Text

Published Version

Talk to us

Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have

Schedule a call

Disclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.