RooBO Regular Conference, December 2008
(Expanded to accommodate greater attendance)

The International Next-Generation Robot Fair ICRT JAPAN 2008 was held over the three-day period of November 26-28. RooBO had a joint exhibit booth at the event, and also held a full regular conference at the ICRT venue on the 27th. The following is a digest version of the conference proceedings.

How can Robot Technology (RT) be applied at petroleum industry complexes?

This conference featured lectures on issues related to RT applications in industrial complexes, as well as RooBO member company presentations.

The first lecture was by Tomiro Konno of the Technology, Environment, and Safety Division of the Petroleum Association of Japan, who talked about automation initiatives for Japan’s petroleum industry. He discussed the concept of development and background of laser-guided automated robot systems developed to help prevent petroleum storage tank leaks. The next lecture was by Toshishige Deushi (Technology Division, Japan Industrial Testing Co., Ltd.), who described specific case studies involving inspection robots used in Petroleum Association of Japan initiatives. He also talked about actual flaw inspection conducted by the robots, robot attributes, and an overview of the equipment.

Later, Kazumi Nagai (Secretary-General, Japan Association of Maintenance and Service Contractors) talked about both maintenance and automation issues at industrial complexes. At present, robot systems are still under development for applications such as inspection and cleaning technologies for pipes and equipment, labor and manpower-saving technologies for dangerous tasks, monitoring irregularities/incorrect operations, and detecting leaks. Such applications are therefore the subject of discussion.

In light of the points mentioned above, the two RooBO member companies Chinougijutsu Co., Ltd. and Enzan Koubou Co., Ltd. made recommendations on resolving these issues to facilitate further application of robot technologies at petroleum industrial complexes.

Robot Technology Applications in Plant Equipment
(Enzan Koubou Co., Ltd.)

Mr. Otsu of the Chinougijutsu Co., Ltd. talked about RT application for plants from multiple perspectives, as follows:

■Equipment and image processing systems capable of taking images from the outside of the pipe

Using thermography, heat distribution of the inside of the pipe is assessed to identify areas that need to be inspected by robots. Later, a robot wraps around the pipe. The data obtained in this manner is processed to identify which pipe sections require precision inspection.

 
■Sensing by unmanned mobile vehicle

An automated monitoring vehicle is loaded with various types of sensors. In addition to visually monitoring the area in question, it also detects abnormal smells or sounds, changes in temperature, and more. This robot is designed for constant monitoring of sites.

■Monorail Camera

The monorail camera set up beforehand in the facility runs along a rail. The camera conducts regular monitoring of the target and also measures changes over time. This type of permanent monitoring cuts the manpower and cost involved in putting up the scaffolding required for regular inspection.

The company also offers additional proposals on fully automated image processing tools, and systems to measure any shaking or ground deformation using GPS systems. With regard to image processing in particular, this technology enables automation of processing previously done by hand, which means it harbors great potential for further development of labor-saving and automation applications. Says Mr. Otsu, “Sometimes customer needs are vague, and sometimes they’ve got specific problems. Using special technologies, the field of RT offers specific solutions to both. As a group of RT companies providing advanced technologies, our mission is to deliver solutions that answer to a range of plant facility issues.”

Wide-area system integration using next-generation high-speed communications
(Enzan Koubou Co., Ltd.)

Enzan Koubou is working to achieve economies of scale by focusing on multiple industrial park sites around Japan instead of just a single park. Enzan representatives described their ALADIN system, an automated high-speed wireless network linking multiple facilities over a broad geographical area. The purpose of the network is to boost efficiency of management and operations.

■ALADIN automates and links systems located over a broad geographical area such that they can be manipulated as a single system. This yields better efficiency for the system as a whole.

The following merits are realized by linking industrial complexes with the ALADIN system:

■Feedback via advanced analysis
Previously, advanced analyses were difficult to perform on-site. This problem is solved, however, by running the sophisticated calculations required for inspection on a network server.

■Optimizing maintenance planning

Based on the massive volume of inspection data collected, maintenance planning can be developed objectively and appropriately. The system reduces cost and labor by eliminating wasteful inspection and management processes.

■Data sharing

Linking all industrial complex databases enables the streamlining of resources by sharing information and computing equipment. It also distributes risk and smoothly facilitates the creation of a database.

Enzan Koubou representatives also talked about the potential impact of the ALADIN system. Examples include river disaster prevention systems and recommendations/crime prevention services. In addition to enabling automation of complex inspections with minimal manpower, ALADIN also facilitates integrated data management across facilities. Thanks to these many advantages, ALADIN is expected to play a significant role in problem resolution in plant operations and management.