CCRobot-III: a Split-type Wire-driven Cable Climbing Robot for Cable-stayed Bridge Inspection*

Ning Ding, Zhenliang Zheng, Junlin Song, Zhenglong Sun, Tin Lun Lam, Huihuan Qian

Abstract: This paper presents a novel Cable Climbing Robot CCRobot-III, which is the third version designed for bridge cable inspection tasks, aiming at surpassing previous versions in terms of climbing speed and payload capacity. Benefiting from Split-type Wire-driven design, CCRobot-III can climb along a 90-110mm diameter bridge cable in inchworm-like gait at a speed of up to 12m/min, and carrying more than 40kg payload at the same time. CCRobot-III consists of a climbing precursor and a main-body frame. The two parts are connected and driven by steel wires. The climbing precursor, acting as a mobile anchor, moves quickly on a bridge cable. The mainbody frame, acting as a mobile winch, carries payload and pulls itself to a certain position with steel wires. Both parts have one or two pairs of palm-based gripper, which is the key component for providing strong adhesion to support the robot climbing. Experimental results have shown that CCRobotIII possesses outstanding climbing performance, high payload capacity, and good adaptability to complex conditions of cable surface. Moreover, it has potential engineering applications on the cable-stayed bridge for fieldwork.