Above-ground storage tank inspection using the ‘Robot Inspector’

Abstract

Above-ground storage tanks are used to store bulk fluids, such as oil, foodstuffs, pesticides and fertilisers. If one of these tanks were to leak, the potential damage to the environment would be catastrophic. To prevent such a disaster, the tanks are regularly inspected to ensure that the steel plates have not corroded, which could cause a failure of the tank. Robot Inspector is a semi-autonomous robotic inspection system, for the inspection of above-ground storage tank floors. It is the product of the Robot Inspector Consortium, a group of European companies and research organisations, part funded under the CRAFT co-operative research program.