THG: A Multifunctional Wall-climbing Robot for the Large Penstock

Abstract

THG is a multifunctional wall-climbing robot used for the inspection and maintenance of the large penstock. It can avoid casualties and reduce economic losses during the maintenance process. And it is a four-track driven skid-steering heavy-duty robot. It can perform multi-functional operations through the equipped 6R robotic arm and other auxiliary platforms. The passive free joints of the chassis and drive unit can ensure the surface adaptability of THG. THG’s control framework is master-slave control. Meanwhile, we proposed a control algorithm to adjust the target speed of the four drive units by introducing torque feedback. The control algorithm improves the driving performance of THG when working on large-scale curved surfaces.