iPST

For maintenance purposes pipelines have to be checked on a regular basis with the help of inspection tools searching for damage such as deformation, corrosion or leaks. During this inspection it is especially important to determine the exact location of the inspection tools in the pipeline, as this can significantly reduce the scope of necessary repairs. Im precise location of the damage can make it necessary to clear a large area of the pipe line, resulting in much greater repair costs.

With the help of Inertial Navigation Technology the position of a pipeline inspection tool in a pipeline can be exactly de­termined. To achieve this, the inspection tool is coupled with a in er tial Pipeline Surveying Tool (iPST) con sisting of three gyro­scopes, three accelerometers, odometers and an electronic device for signal processing. The gyroscopes are used to de­termine atti tude and heading of the iPST. The accelerometers and the odometers are used to deter mine the translational mo­tions. All data are processed using a filter which also permits additionally available external aiding in for mation for data proc­essing.

The iPST-FMS contains fiber optical gyros of class 1 deg/hr. The di ameter and length depends on the envi ronmental condi­tions. The accel er ometers used have 5 g range and 10 µg resolution.