A Rust Removal and Painting Robot for Offshore Wind Turbine Towers

Abstract

In response to the significant risks and low efficiency associated with traditional manual operations on offshore wind turbine towers, a robotic rust removal and painting system tailored for offshore wind turbine tower cylinders is proposed. This robotic system is designed to replace human involvement in routine inspections, rust removal, cleaning, and anti-corrosion painting tasks on offshore wind turbine tower cylinders. The robot primarily comprises three key components: a chain-driven permanent magnet adhesion walking mechanism, a rust removal unit, and a high-pressure spraying mechanism. It adopts a tracked walking mode, with multiple adhesion units evenly distributed on each track. The rust removal mechanism is mounted at the front of the robot, and three high-pressure spray guns are located at the rear, each equipped with windproof covers. Through the establishment of mathematical models for the robot, static and dynamic analyses are conducted to explore critical values for three scenarios: climbing, sliding, flipping, and forward movement. Based on these critical values, physical models are designed, and performance tests involving climbing, rust removal, and painting are conducted to determine the robot's performance parameters. The robot's overall structure is straightforward, with characteristics such as ease of operation, convenient maintenance, and a high degree of automation. It is not only suitable for rust removal, cleaning, and anti-corrosion painting tasks on offshore wind power equipment but also applicable for routine fault inspections of offshore wind power equipment.