US007526944B2

( 1 2) Unlted States Patent ( 1 0) Patent N 0. 2 US 7, 526, 944 B2

Sabata et a] . 45 Date o f Patent: Ma 5 2009
a
( 54) REMOTE MON ITORIN G OF PIPELIN ES 6, 957, 1 57 B2 * 1 0/2005 Lander . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 705/56
USIN G WIRELESS SEN SOR N ETWORK 2003/0204371 A1 * 1 0/2003 Sciamanna . . . . . . . . . . . . 702/1 83
2004/0233043 A1 * 1 1 /2004 Yazawa et a1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 340/1 03
( 76) Inv ento rs: Asho k Sabata, 1 1 84 Ocean Av e. , D- 4,
Sea Brig ht, N J ( US) 07760; Sean
Bro ssia, 21 527 Rio C o lo rado , San
Anto nio TX ( Us) 78259 OTHER PUBLIC ATION S
( * ) N o tice Su bj ect to any disclaimer the term o f this De? nitio n: Mesh N etwo rk; searchnetwo rking . techtarg etco m, Sep .
' . . 1 9, 2001 *
p atent 1 s extended o r adj u sted u nder 35
U- S~ C ~ 1 54( 1 ) ) by 0 day s- * cited by examiner
( 21 ) Ap p l. N o . : 1 0/905, 488 Primary ExamineriDaniel S Larkin
( 22) Filed: Jan. 6, 2005 ( 57) ABSTRAC T
( 65) Prio r Pu blicatio n Data
Us 2005/01 4501 8 A1 Ju l 7 2005 Awireless senso r netwo rk is installed inside p ip elines u sing
' senso rs and wireless transceiv ers that are small, lo w- co st, and
Related US Ap p licatio n Data ru g g ed. The o bj ectiv e is mo nito ring the p ip eline and reco m
_ _ _ _ mending maintenance and rep air at sp eci? c lo catio ns in the
( 60) PrOV lslOnal aPPhC aUOn N O- 60/481 , 868, ? led 01 1 Jan p ip eline. Maintenance inclu des detectio n o f internal co rro
7, 2004- sio n u sing senso rs that can resu lt in leaks. Fu rthermo re detec
tio n o f leaks f o r p rev entio n o f catastro p hic f ailu res as a resu lt
( 51 ) Int C 1 o f damag e, su ch as third p arty mechanical damag e. Af ter
GOIM 3/28 ( 2006- 01 ) establishing the wireless senso r netwo rk, the netwo rk is acti
G01 N 1 7/00 ( 2006- 01 ) v ated so the senso rs can make measu rements p erio dically o r
( 52) U- s- C l- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - ~ 73/491 ; 73/405 R; 73/86; co ntinu o u sly u sing instru ctio ns transmitted v ia abase statio n.
73/8659; 702/1 1 3 The senso r data f ro m the v ario u s senso rs are transmitted
( 58) Field o f C lassi? catio n Search . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73/49. 1 , inside the p ip e and extracted to access p o ints in the p ip eline to
73/40. 5 R, 40. 5 A, 865. 9, 86; 702/1 1 3 a remo te co mp u ter that sto res the data within the co mp u ter.
See ap p licatio n ? le f o r co mp lete search histo ry . The sensed inf o rmatio n can be u sed f o r mo nito ring as well as
( 56) Ref erences C ited analy s1 s u s1 ng a reco mmendatlo n eng 1 ne to p ro v 1 de ma1 nte
nance and rep a1 r alerts.
U. S. PATEN T DOC UMEN TS
4, 066, 095 A* l/l978 Massa . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 37/486 1 2 C laims, 2 Drawing Sheets
p ip e
Base Statio n Links the
mo tes inside the p ip e with
the C o mp u ters o u tside the
Radio C o mmu nicatio ns
inside Pip e between
mo tes
*
07777777770
Wireless and Senso r
mo tes
Mo tes being dep lo y ed by a ro tting the sp herical senso r p ackag e inside the p ip eline
US. Patent May 5, 2009 Sheet 1 o f 2 US 7, 526, 944 B2
Base Statio n Links the
mo tes inside the p ip e with
the C o mp u ters o u tside the
p ip e
Radio C o mmu nicatio ns 1
inside Pi e between
mm
I? > Wireless and Senso r
#07777) "ms
Mo tes being dep lo y ed by a ro lling the sp herical senso r p ackag e inside the p ip eline
FIG. 1
C u to f f Freq u ency ( MHz)
0 | I I I I I I I I I * i
3 6 9 1 2 1 5 1 8 21 24 27 30 33 36
Diameter ( inches)
FIG. 2
US. Patent May 5, 2009
Radio C o mmu nicatio ns
inside Pip e between
mo tes
Ro lling
Ball
Sheet 2 0f 2
US 7, 526, 944 B2
Au to no mo u s
Flo bo t
Mo tes being dep lo y ed by a ro lling the sp herical senso r p ackag e inside the p ip eline
FIG. 3
MOTE
( Wireless
Transceiv er)
Battery Battery
FIG. 4
US 7, 526, 944 B2
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REMOTE MON ITORIN G OF PIPELIN ES
USIN G WIRELESS SEN SOR N ETWORK
BAC KGROUN D OF THE IN V EN TION
C o nsiderable exp ense and ef f o rt is cu rrently emp lo y ed in
the energ y and chemical p ro cessing secto rs to co ndu ct nec
essary insp ectio ns o f p ip elines and o ther p ip ing sy stems ( e. g . ,
co o ling Water and p ro cess stream p ip ing ) . Of ten, these
insp ectio ns req u ire sy stem shu t do Wn and in so me cases
excav atio n resu lting in the hig h exp enses enco u ntered. As a
co nseq u ence, su ch insp ectio ns are co ndu cted at p erio dic
interv als rather than co ntinu o u sly . Dep ending o n the siZ e o f
the interv al, ho Wev er, sig ni? cant deg radatio n can o ccu r
betWeen insp ectio ns that can in tu rn resu lt in u nanticip ated
f ailu res. Aco mmo n metho d f o r insp ectio n o f g as transmis
sio n p ip elines is the u se o f in- line insp ectio n to o ls ( p ig s) . A
key p ro blem With u sing p ig s is that aro u nd 30% o f natu ral g as
transmissio n p ip elines in United States are no t p ig g able du e
to v ario u s co nstraints, su ch as sharp bends, diameter chang es,
and v alv ing sy stems.
In- line insp ectio ns o f g as transmissio n p ip elines are p ri
marily carried o u t to measu re p ip eline Wall thickness chang es
resu lting f ro m co rro sio n and dents resu lting f ro m third p arty
damag e. Acco rding to the US Dep artment o f Transp o rtatio n
O? ice o f Pip eline Saf ety ( OPS) , internal co rro sio n cau sed
abo u t 1 5 p ercent o f all g as transmissio n p ip eline rep o rtable
incidents o v er the last tWo y ears, leading to an av erag e o f $3
millio n in annu al p ro p erty damag e. Fu rthermo re, f atalities
hav e o ccu rred at p ip eline f ailu res asso ciated With internal
co rro sio n. Ef f o rts hav e theref o re been made at dev elo p ing
metho ds to p redict the lo catio n o f co rro sio n Within p ip elines
that then redu ce the nu mber o f sites that req u ire actu al p hy si
cal insp ectio n ( either u sing p ig s o r thro u g h excav atio n) . This
metho d has been termed internal co rro sio n direct assessment
( IC DA) .
Tho u g h IC DAdo es p rio ritize the lo catio ns f o r f u rther p ip e
line insp ectio ns and p o ssible excav atio n, it do es no t p ro v ide a
direct measu re if Water is actu ally p resent at tho se lo catio ns
no r do es it determine if co rro sio n is o ccu rring . Pip elines still
mu st be insp ected and if the p ip e seg ment is u np ig g able, then
the p ip e needs to be excav ated to detect and mo nito r co rro
s1 o n.
Ano ther co mmo n maintenance p ro blem enco u ntered in
g as p ip elines, esp ecially in g as distribu tio n sy stems, is leak
detectio n. Leaks are o f ten du e to third p arty damag e, Which
o ccu rs When co nstru ctio n o r excav atio n creWs inadv ertently
strike u nderg ro u nd u tility lines. N atu ral g as distribu tio n sy s
tems are co nstru cted u sing p ip es made o f either steel o r p las
tic. The u tility co mp anies Will u se manu al insp ectio n metho ds
to lo o k f o r leaks in sectio ns o f p ip e line. Existing metho ds are
labo r intensiv e and the leak inf o rmatio n no t timely .
Thu s, there is a need f o r a metho d and a sy stem f o r detec
tio n o f internal co rro sio n inside metal p ip elines that Will
co mp lement the IC DAmetho d. Fu rthermo re there is a need
f o r remo te and real- time mo nito ring o f any ty p e o f g as p ip e
lines. Once su ch a sy stem is in p lace then g as p ip elines can be
mo nito red f o r co rro sio n, hu midity , g as mixtu re, g as ? o Wrates
and p res su re.
Wireless transmissio n o f electro mag netic radiatio n co m
mu nicatio n sig nals has beco me a p o p u lar metho d o f trans
mitting RF sig nals, su ch as co rdless, Wireless, and cellu lar
telep ho ne sig nals, p ag er sig nals, tWo - Way radio sig nals, etc.
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There is, ho Wev er, no sy stem in p lace to transmit inf o rmatio n
u sing Wireless inside g as p ip elines.
BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE IN V EN TION
An embo diment o f the p resent inv entio n p ro v ides a metho d
and sy stem f o r in- situ insp ectio n o f p ip elines With a lo W
p o Wer Wireless senso r netWo rk that are small, lo Wco st, and
ru g g ed. The sy stem inclu des a dev ice f o r intro du cing electro
mag netic radiatio n into the p ip eline su ch that the p ip e acts as
a Wav e- g u ide f o r the electro mag netic radiatio n. The sy stem
inclu des a netWo rk o f no des to transmit and receiv e data
betWeen access p o ints in the p ip eline. The sy stem f u rther
inclu des a dev ice f o r enabling the electro mag netic radiatio n
to p ro p ag ate bey o nd the p ip eline to a co mp u ter o r to the
Internet. The sy stem may be co n? g u red to co nsu me so little
p o Wer that it can o p erate f ro m a small internal battery f o r
y ears. The lo Wco st and ease o f installatio n p ro v ides a v iable
so lu tio n f o r manag ing p ip elines.
The p resent inv entio n also inclu des the metho d and sy stem
f o r establishing a senso r netWo rk in existing p ip elines and
neWp ip elines, then extracting the senso r data u sing a Wireless
sy stem f o llo Wed by a reco mmendatio n o f maintenance and
rep air o f the p ip eline based o n the senso r data, histo rical data
and o ther theo retical p redictiv e mo dels. This inv entio n also
inclu des the metho d f o r deliv ery o f senso rs inside the p ip e
line.
The p resent inv entio n also inclu des co rro sio n senso rs to
detect internal co rro sio n inside metal p ip es and a mu ltitu de o f
senso rs f o r detectio n o f leaks.
The p resent inv entio n rep resents a su bstantial adv ance o v er
p rio r sy stems and metho ds f o r mo nito ring p ip elines. Becau se
the p resent inv entio n u tiliZ es lo Wco st Wireless dev ices called
mo tes, the p resent inv entio n has the adv antag e that it is rela
tiv ely inexp ensiv e. The p resent inv entio n also has the adv an
tag e that it do es no t req u ire the extensiv e u se o f Wires o r
cables to transmit the co mmu nicatio n sig nals. These adv an
tag es, and o ther adv antag es and bene? ts o f the p resent inv en
tio n, Will beco me ap p arent f ro m the Detailed Descrip tio n o f
the Inv entio n herein belo W.
BRIEF DESC RIPTION OF THE DRAWIN GS
Fo r the p resent inv entio n to be clearly u ndersto o d and
readily p ractised, the p resent inv entio n Will be described in
co nj u nctio n With the f o llo Wing ? g u res, Wherein:
FIG. 1 is a diag ram illu strating a g as p ip eline With the
Wireless senso r netWo rk;
FIG. 2 is p lo t o f the cu to f f f req u encies v ersu s the radiu s o f
the p ip e;
FIG. 3 is a diag ram o f the sp herical senso r mo te p ackag e
being dep lo y ed inside the p ip elines and
FIG. 4 is a diag ram o f the integ rated Wireless transceiv er
and senso r inside self co ntained env iro nmentally sealed
sp herical p ackag e;
DETAILED DESC RIPTION OF THE IN V EN TION
While the p resent inv entio n Will be described mo re f u lly it
is to be u ndersto o d at the o u tset o f the descrip tio n Which
f o llo Ws that p erso ns o f skill in the ap p ro p riate arts may
mo dif y the inv entio n herein described While still achiev ing
the f av o rable resu lts o f this inv entio n. Acco rding ly , the
descrip tio n Which f o llo Ws is to be u ndersto o d as being a
bro ad, teaching disclo su re directed to p erso ns o f skill in the
ap p ro p riate arts, and no t as limiting u p o n the p resent inv en
tio n.
US 7, 526, 944 B2
3
First brie? y in o v erv iew, the p resent inv entio n inv o lv es the
establishing o f a senso r netWo rk in existing g as p ip elines
( bo th transmissio n and distribu tio n) and neWp ip elines, then
co llecting the senso r data f ro m mu ltip le sites f o r inp u t into a
reco mmendatio n eng ine that p ro v ides maintenance alerts f o r
rep air o f the p ip eline. The sy stem may be mo re easily u nder
sto o d by its u se in g as p ip elines With the u nderstanding that
the f o reg o ing is also bro adly ap p licable in o ther do mains.
There are so me 800, 000 miles o f g as transmissio n p ip elines
in co ntinental US that req u ire maintenance and as the inf ra
stru ctu re ag es the need f o r co nstant mo nito ring o f the p ip e
lines Will increase. Maintenance inclu des detectio n o f leaks
and p rev entio n o f catastro p hic f ailu res as a resu lt o f internal
co rro sio n. In- line insp ectio n to o ls p ro v ide a direct detectio n
o f internal co rro sio n ho Wev er, du e to v ario u s co nstraints su ch
as sharp bends, diameter chang es, and v alv ing sy stems a
sig ni? cant p o rtio n o f g as p ip elines canno t be insp ected u sing
su ch techniq u es.
FIG. 1 illu strates a p o rtio n o f a g as p ip eline and a Wireless
senso r netWo rk. C o mmu nicatio n sig nals and g as are transmit
ted thro u g h the p ip eline, Which acts as a Wav eg u ide f o r the
co mmu nicatio n sig nals. The p ip eline exhibits tho se p ro p er
ties that are co mmo n to Wav eg u ides. The p ro p erties are
detailed in R. C o llin, FieldTheo ry o f Gu ided Wav es , 2d ed. ,
IEEE, Press, N . Y. 1 991 , Which is inco rp o rated herein by
ref erence. The Wireless senso r netWo rk can u tiliZ e any ty p e o f
metal o r an electrically o p aq u e material, su ch as, f o r examp le,
steel o r cast iro n.
The cu rrent inv entio n p ro p o ses u sing a lo Wp o Wer Wireless
senso r netWo rk that u se mo tes, Which are Wireless transceiv
ers With Well de? ned I/O and standard antenna co nnecto rs,
integ rated With micro senso rs. Mo tes co mmu nicate With each
o ther to p ass the senso r data to an access p o int in the p ip eline.
FIG. 2 dep icts the minimu m f req u ency req u ired f o r Wireless
transmissio n in p ip es at v ario u s p ip e diameters. The p ip e
behav es as a mu ltimo de Wav eg u ide at Indu strial, Scienti? c,
and Medical ( ISM) band f req u encies ( 902- 928 MHZ , 2. 4
2. 4835 GHZ , 5. 1 5- 5. 35 GHZ , and 5725- 5825 GHZ ) .
In g eneral, the antenna u sed o n the mo te may be any
transdu cer cap able o f co nv erting electrical into Wireless
bro adcast sig nals. Examp les o f transdu cers inclu de antennas,
su ch as tho se ty p ically u sed in Wireless radio f req u ency ( RF)
co mmu nicatio ns; electrical- o p tical co nv erters, su ch as lig ht
emitting dio des, lasers, p ho to dio des; and aco u stic dev ices,
su ch as p ieZ o electric transdu cers. In a p ref erred embo diment,
the antenna is an electrical antenna, desig ned f o r o p eratio n in
the f req u ency rang e betWeen 30 MHZ and 3, 000 MHZ , g en
erally kno Wn as the u ltrahig h f req u ency ( UHF) band. The
UHF f req u ency band is p articu larly Well su ited to the p ip eline
ap p licatio n becau se UHF circu its and co mp o nents are rela
tiv ely small in siZ e and co nsu me relativ ely lo Wp o Wer. Fo r
examp le, p hy sical limitatio ns in antenna co nstru ctio n ty p i
cally resu lt in antennas being scaled to ap p ro ximately o ne
half the Wav eleng th o f o p eratio n. The half - Wav eleng th rang es
f ro m 5 meters to 5 cm in the UHF band.
In a p articu larly p ref erred embo diment, the antenna is a
micro strip p atch antenna o p erating Within the f req u ency
rang e o f 2. 4- 2. 4835 GHZ . Micro strip p atch antennas are rela
tiv ely small co mp ared With o ther reso nant antennas, su ch as
dip o le antennas, o p erating o v er the same f req u ency rang e.
Micro strip p atch antennas are also ru g g ed, easily desig ned
and f abricated and relativ ely inexp ensiv e. Altho u g h it may be
desirable to o p erate at ev en hig her f req u encies, o ther co nsid
eratio ns, su ch as g o v ernment reg u latio n, may stand in the
Way . Fo r examp le, transmitting RF sig nals Within certain
f req u ency bands may be p ro hibited alto g ether, While u se o f
o ther f req u ency bands may be restricted to sp ecial u sers, su ch
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as airlines o r the military . Op eratio n Within the 2. 4 GHZ to
2. 4835 GHZ f req u ency band is larg ely av ailable f o r indu strial,
science and medical ap p licatio ns.
FIG. 3 dep icts the sp herical p ackag e co ntaining the Wire
less transceiv er and the senso rs deliv ered to the p o int o f
insp ectio n either thro u g h the g as stream o r by ro lling it alo ng
the p ip eline Walls o r u sing ro bo ts. The Wireless netWo rk is
then established and co n? g u red u sing a mesh netWo rk co n
sisting o f a mesh o f interco nnected Wireless dev ices. N o des
o n mesh netWo rks mu st hav e at least tWo v iable ro u tes at all
times, and be able to su p p o rt mu ltip le ho p s betWeen so u rce
and destinatio n. Redu ndant ro u tes ensu re resiliency in case o f
o ? lline no des o r bro ken links, and mu lti- ho p p ing p ermits
g ranu lar ro u te o p timiZ atio n and simp li? ed installatio n.
Mu lti- ho p ro u ting also redu ces the p o Wer req u ired to transmit
a p acket betWeen so u rce and destinatio n. Using a mu lti- ho p
netWo rk sav es battery p o Wer by handing o f f data f ro m mo te to
mo te rather than blasting o u t a hig her- p o Wer RF sig nal. The
netWo rk co nsists o f a base statio n o r a netWo rk manag er that
p ro v ides manag ement and q u ality o f serv ice f u nctio ns f o r a
netWo rk o f mo tes. The manag er co o rdinates ro u ting , ag g re
g ates mo te p ackets, and also co llects statistics o f the mo te
netWo rk. Amesh netWo rk can be created by the mo te hard
Ware and so f tWare av ailable f ro m sev eral v endo rs su ch as
su p p lied by Du st N etWo rks in Berkeley , C alif . o r by C ro ss
bo WTechno lo g ies in San Jo se, C alif .
The ty p e o f senso r Will dep end o n the p arameter being
measu red. To detect leaks u ltraso nic ? o Wsenso rs and p res
su re senso rs are u sed and to measu re internal co rro sio n a
v ariety o f co rro sio n sensing dev ices can be dep lo y ed. These
inclu de f o r examp le mu lti- electro de array senso rs, g alv anic
co u p le senso rs, and electrical resistance p ro bes. In additio n,
hu midity , p H, and temp eratu re senso rs can also be mo nito red.
These can be u sed indiv idu ally o r in co mbinatio n o n o ne chip
( so metimes also called Lab- o n- C hip ) . The senso rs can be
u sed in co mbinatio n to detect leaks o r co rro sio n. The senso r
inf o rmatio n is ty p ically av ailable as baseband electrical sig
nals, su ch as v o ltag e o r cu rrent lev els, o r seq u ences o f binary
dig its, o r bits, o f inf o rmatio n.
In mo re detail, ref erring to FIG. 4, o ne embo diment o f a
mo te- senso r sy stem inclu des the Wireless transceiv er With the
senso r in a sp herical p ackag e. The senso rs and the mo te are
also co nnected to a p o Wer so u rce. The p ackag ing can be o f
o ther shap es, su ch as an eg g shap e With a ? at bo tto m to ensu re
that the antenna is alWay s f acing to Wards the axis o f the p ip e
o r a do me shap e. The sensing p ro be o f the co rro sio n senso r
sho u ld be f acing the p ip e Walls. Small mag nets can be u sed to
attach the mo te senso r sy stem to the p ip e Walls.
In this ap p licatio n, it is adv antag eo u s f o r each o f the sen
so rs to p ro v ide so me f o rm o f identi? catio n allo Wing the base
statio n ( o r manag er) to disting u ish Which senso r is rep o rting .
Identi? catio n means may inclu de bro adcasting a u niq u e
address to ne, o r bit seq u ence, bro adcasting in a p re- assig ned
time slo t, o r bro adcasting o n an allo cated f req u ency .
The senso r inf o rmatio n and p ro cessed senso r inf o rmatio n
may be made av ailable o n the Internet thro u g h a Web serv er
ap p licatio n. In o ne embo diment, a Web ap p licatio n may be
p ro v ided o f f ering access to inf o rmatio n f o r mo nito ring p u r
p o ses. The ap p licatio n may resp o nd to Web client req u ests f o r
temp eratu re, hu midity , co rro sio n, and Ho w rate inf o rmatio n.
Alternativ ely , alerts can be p ro v ided based o n p rede? ned set
o f ru les su ch as o n detectio n o f leaks o r o n detectio n o f
sig ni? cant co rro sio n. The data co llected f ro m the senso r can
be u sed directly f o r determining maintenance and rep air. A
reco mmendatio n eng ine can f u rther aid in the mo nito ring by
u sing data f ro m histo rical maintenance and rep air reco rds,
theo retical and p redictiv e mo dels f o r damag e p ro p ag atio n,
US 7, 526, 944 B2
5
and senso r data f ro m the Wireless senso r netwo rk. The rec
o mmendatio n eng ine can be based o n statistical mo dels o r
bay esian netwo rks o r similar techniq u es that p ro v ide intelli
g ence.
Ano ther embo diment o f the inv entio n is determining the
lo catio n o f the senso r f o r rep air and maintenance. Standard
GPS techniq u es canno t be u sed to determine lo catio n, as the
radio sig nals u sed in this inv entio n canno t p enetrate metal
p ip e Walls. Using a co mbinatio n o f u ltraso u nd and RF sig nals
the lo catio n can be determined to the accu racy o f co u p le o f
centimeters. C ro ssbo WTechno lo g y f ro m San Jo se, C alif .
o f f ers this C ricket Mo te a lo catio n- aWare mo te mo du le.
Alternativ ely , if ro bo ts are u sed f o r dep lo y ment o f the senso r
netwo rk, then inertial senso rs can be u sed to accu rately map
the p ip eline as it trav erses, inclu ding no ting the lo catio n
Where the mo tes and senso rs are dro p p ed. The ro bo t eq u ip p ed
With o p tical enco ders measu res distance trav eled as the
v ehicle p asses thro u g h the p ip e. By p lacing enco ders o n sev
eral Wheels o n dif f erent lo co mo tio n u nits, the ef f ect o f slip
and lo ss o f tractio n in j o ints can be minimiZ ed. The eq u ip p ed
With an inclino meter mo du le to p ro v ide p recisio n tilt With
rang e u p to . + . 50. deg ree. With 0. 3. deg ree. reso lu tio n. The
o u tp u t p ro v ides the tilt ang les relativ e to Earth s g rav ity ,
kno Wn as the p itch and ro ll ang le. The inclino meter p ro v ides
a so lid- state so lu tio n to tilt co mp ensatio n, eliminating all
mechanical imp ediments to p erf o rmance. Arear- f acing sen
so r o n the ro bo t Will accu rately measu re distance to the
dep lo y ed co mmu nicatio n/nav ig atio n no des to co nstantly
u p date the v ehicle s internal o do metry .
The inv entio n claimed is:
1 . Ametho d f o r mo nito ring f o r maintenance and rep air o f
g as p ip elines made o f metal f o r detectio n o f internal co rro sio n
that can resu lt in leaks cau sing catastro p hic f ailu res, the
metho d co mp rising : p ro v iding co rro sio n senso rs f o r detec
tio n o f internal co rro sio n; p ro v iding a Wireless senso r net
Wo rk, co mp rising sev eral Wireless transceiv ers, that co llect
the senso r data f ro m mu ltip le sites and p ro v ides maintenance
alerts f o r rep air o f the p ip elines; establishing the Wireless
senso r netWo rk inside the p ip elines u sing a metho d f o r deliv
ery o f the senso rs to the site; activ ating the senso rs to make
measu rements p erio dically o r co ntinu o u sly ; extracting the
co rro sio n senso r data f ro m the senso rs u sing a the Wireless
20
25
30
35
40
6
netWo rk to access p o ints in the p ip elines and analy Z ing senso r
data u sing a reco mmendatio n eng ine.
2. The metho d o f claim 1 Wherein the Wireless senso r
netWo rk u ses Wireless transceiv ers With Well de? ned I/O and
standard antenna co nnecto rs cap able o f f o rming a mesh net
Wo rk o r a star netWo rk.
3. The metho d o f claim 1 Wherein the Wireless netWo rk
o p erates inside p ip es su ch that the g as p ip elines ( made o f
metal act as a Wav eg u ide f o r the electro mag netic radiatio n.
4. The metho d o f claim 1 Wherein senso rs f o r detectio n o f
internal co rro sio n inclu ding a mu lti- electro de array senso r, a
g alv anic senso r, interdig itated co rro sio n senso rs o r an elec
trical resistance p ro be.
5. The metho d o f claim 1 Wherein co rro sio n senso rs and
said Wireless transceiv ers are sealed in a p ackag e f o r o p era
tio n inside said g as p ip elines.
6. The metho d o f claim 1 Wherein the senso rs are p ro
g rammed, co n? g u red and co ntro lled at a remo te serv er co m
p u ter thro u g h a base statio n.
7. The metho d o f claim 1 Wherein analy Z ing senso r data
u sing said reco mmendatio n eng ine inclu des the u se o f statis
tical mo dels o r Bay esian netWo rks.
8. Ametho d f o r dep lo y ing a Wireless senso r netWo rk inside
g as p ip elines co mp rising the step s o f : identif y ing lo catio ns
f o r insp ectio n u sing a sealed p ackag e co ntaining a senso r o r
senso rs and Wireless transceiv ers; transp o rting the p ackag e
co ntaining the Wireless transceiv er and senso rs to the identi
? ed sites; determining a p hy sical co - o rdinates o f Where the
insp ectio n takes p lace u sing a Wireless sig nal; and activ ating
the Wireless senso r netWo rk thro u g h a base statio n.
9. The metho d o f claim 8 Wherein the sealed p ackag e is
transp o rted to the insp ectio n site u sing an au to no mo u s ro bo t.
1 0. The metho d o f claim 8 Wherein the sealed p ackag e is
transp o rted to the insp ectio n site by ro lling it inside the p ip e
line.
1 1 . The metho d o f claim 8 Wherein the lo catio n o f the
insp ectio n sites is determined u sing sig nal streng th and time
dif f erence o f arriv al o f the Wireless sig nal.
1 2. The metho d o f claim 8 Wherein the lo catio n o f the
insp ectio n sites is determined by an au to no mo u s ro bo t
eq u ip p ed With an inertial senso r.
* * * * *