Romain – Development of a robotic maintenance system for wind turbine blades

风力涡轮机的设计使用寿命为20-25年。一旦安装完毕，O&M（操作和维护）是实现风电资产经济效益和环境效益最大化的关键。该项目旨在开发一套完整的解决方案，用于陆上和海上风力涡轮机叶片（WTBs）的现场机器人检测和维修。首先，我们将开发先进的激光加热光学技术，以便获得wtb内亚表面缺陷的定量信息。（目前的技术，包括无人机技术，仅限于表面缺陷）。其次，将开发一个紧凑、高效的机器人部署系统，该系统将容纳检查单元和机器人修理臂。机器人系统将由在地面（用于陆上风力涡轮机）或船上（用于海上风力涡轮机）工作的工程师操作，大大降低了他们的风险。当检测到缺陷并认为可以修复时，整个系统的修复臂将被激活，在空中完成工作。将对风塔进行现场试验以验证该系统。

Wind turbines are designed to operate for a life time of 20-25 years. Once they are installed, the O&M (operation and maintenance) are the key to maximise the economic and environmental benefits of wind assets. This project aims to develop a complete solution for robot based inspection and repair of wind turbine blades (WTBs) in-situ, both onshore and offshore. Firstly, we will develop advanced optical techniques with laser heating, so that quantitative information of subsurface defects within WTBs can be obtained. (Current techniques including drone-based are limited to surface defects only). Secondly, a compact and efficient robotic deployment system will be developed which will hold the inspection unit and a robotic repair arm. The robotic system will be operated by engineers working on ground (for onshore wind turbines) or on a vessel (for offshore wind turbines), greatly reducing their risk exposure. When defects are detected and deemed reparable, the repair arm of the whole system will be activated to do the job in the sky. Field trials on wind towers will be conducted to validate the system.