2010 1st International Conference on Applied Robotics for the Power Industry
Delta Centre-Ville
Montréal, Canada, October 5-7, 2010
Robotic systems for cleaning and inspection of
large concrete pipes
José Saenz, Project Manager, Fraunhofer IFF, Norbert Elkmann, Business Unit Director, Fraunhofer
IFF, Thomas Stuerze, Project Manager, Fraunhofer IFF, Sven Kutzner, Project Manager,
Fraunhofer IFF and Heiko Althoff, Group Manager, Emschergenossenschaft
 space in the pipe to the surface, where he/she monitors and
Abstract-- Concrete pipes are used in a variety of areas for
conducting media underground (e.g. wastewater, cooling water,
etc.) or for transportation purposes. Regular cleaning and
inspection is required to ensure the static integrity of the pipe
and to insure against the problems associated with failure of the
pipe.
In this paper, the SVM-RS system for cleaning and inspecting
large concrete pipes will be presented. Various aspects of the
robot including its kinematics, the cleaning system, the sensor
system, the media supply, communications, as well as the control
system and operator interface will be discussed in detail. The use
of robust robotics for accurate positioning of high-pressure water
nozzles in combination with non-destructive sensing techniques
for navigation and inspection during normal pipe operation
allows for a new standard in high-quality pipe cleaning and
inspection. The latest cleaning and inspection results from tests in
real sewers will be presented.
Index Terms-- Hazardous areas, Image processing, Inspection,
Mobile robots, Object recognition, Occupational health and
safety, Position measurement, Robots, Surface cleaning
I. INTRODUCTION
C oncrete pipes are used in a variety of areas for conducting
media underground (e.g. wastewater, etc.) or for
transportation purposes (e.g. tunnels). Regular cleaning
and inspection cycles are typically required by local
regulations in order to ensure the static integrity of the pipe
and to insure against the problems associated with failure of
the pipe. The Fraunhofer IFF in Magdeburg, Germany has
recently developed the damage measuring and cleaning
system (SVM-RS) on behalf of the Emschergenossenschaft
for the inspection and cleaning of large concrete pipes
carrying wastewater. The use of robust robotics for accurate
positioning of high-pressure water nozzles in combination
with a variety of non-destructive sensing techniques for
navigation and inspection during normal pipe operation allows
for a new standard in high-quality pipe cleaning and
inspection.
Both tasks of cleaning and inspection are monotonous,
dirty, and in many cases, dangerous, and as such the tasks are
well-suited for service robots. The inspector’s workplace is
transferred from the dangerous environment of the enclosed
This work was supported in full by the Emschergenossenschaft.
J. Saenz, N. Elkmann, T. Stuerze, and S. Kutzner are with Fraunhofer IFF,
39106 Magdeburg, Germany (e-mail: jose.saenz@iff.fraunfer.de).
H. Althoff is with the Emschergenossenschaft, Essen, Germany (e-mail:
heiko.althoff@eglv.de).
978-1-4244-6635-1/10/$26.00 ©2010 IEEE
controls the robot’s actions. The robot can clean and inspect
the pipe during normal operation, in partially or completely-
filled conditions. Furthermore, with a properly designed
inspection system, condition monitoring of the pipe is
possible, whereby damage can be detected at an early stage
and the development of the damage over time can be tracked
before immediate repairs are necessary. Recent advances in
image processing and learning algorithms allow for a
computer-supported inspection. This in turn reduces the time
demands on the inspector and delivers a higher level of
objectivity to the inspection.
Prototypical systems for cleaning and inspection have been
developed especially for the large diameter pipes (between
Ø1600 mm and Ø2600 mm) of the Emscher Sewer System.
With planned depths between 5 and 40 m underground, a
maximum distance of 1200 m between pipe entrances, and a
complete length of approximately 51 km, the pipeline places
heavy demands on the means for supplying energy, water and
ensuring communication between the robot and the operator.
The prototypical system for cleaning and inspecting large
concrete pipes will be presented in this paper. Various aspects
of the robotic system, including its kinematics for motion in
the pipe, the cleaning system, the sensor system for quality
control and condition monitoring, the means of supplying
energy, water and communications, as well as the control
system and operator interface will be discussed in detail.
Special emphasis will be given to the patented sensor systems
for detecting infiltration and cracks underwater and to the
specially developed software for automatic evaluation of the
inspection data. The latest cleaning and inspection results
from tests in real sewers will also be presented and discussed.
II. RELEVANCE FOR THE POWER INDUSTRY
In today’s environment, power plants managers face
constant challenges including increasing plant efficiency,
lowering emissions, and lowering operating costs. In plants
with continuous cooling, biological fouling in the cooling
pipes is often an issue. Special water treatment is often
prohibitively expensive due to the large water volumes or not
possible due to environmental regulations. Manual cleaning of
cooling pipes requires for them to be completely emptied,
whereby large volumes of biological matter need to be
disposed of. Furthermore, new issues of worker safety arise
during the manual cleaning process when the biological matter
begins to decompose and release toxic and explosive gases.
New methods for pipe cleaning and inspection are needed for
ensuring high flow levels and for curtailing biological growth
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in order to reach the goals of increased plant efficiency, lower system operates largely autonomously once the operator has
emissions and lower operating costs. Technologies tested for defined certain high-level goals such as the length of the
similar situations can be adapted and applied to the new section to be inspected, or the position where the cleaning
challenges at hand. should begin. Afterwards, the operator oversees the progress
of the cleaning and/or the inspection results.
III. STATE OF THE ART
A. Carrier system
Currently sewer pipes are inspected either manually, or
with a pipe crawler equipped with a video camera for a tv- The inspection and cleaning system has all-wheel drive to
quality inspection. Newer systems incorporate two axially- increase redundancy and to better overcome obstacles. The
oriented cameras with fisheye lenses to take images of the system weight, at approximately 2 tons, is very high in order
entire pipe. These camera images are then later stitched to give it sufficient stability and traction despite high flow
together using software to create a 360° panorama image of volumes and low friction coefficient between the wheels and
the pipe. Sometimes a combination of these cameras with a the pipe wall. The prototypical construction consisted of a
projected laser line, ring or other structure is used to obtain wheeled-chassis, upon which either the sensor unit or the
more information about the pipe’s geometry. Generally, pipe cleaning unit could be installed. This modular set-up proved
crawler systems are for smaller pipes with diameters under 1.2 helpful during the prototypical testing phase. Currently the
m. two modules for cleaning and inspection are being fused with
The goal of sewer pipe cleaning is to remove obstacles and each other and with the carrier module into one system.
sediments to allow for inspection and maintenance tasks. The
most economical and common cleaning method for sewer
pipes is high pressure cleaning. A skid with various nozzles is
attached to the end of a high pressure hose and the water
pressure is used both to clean and mobilize any sediments and
to ensure that the skid moves forward along the pipe. There
are a number of specialized cleaning systems on the market
that are especially limited in their cleaning quality and range
of use (not for large diameter pipes or for long pipe lengths)
due to their poor positioning and guidance characteristics.

IV. SYSTEM DESCRIPTION

The Emscher sewer system is made of reinforced concrete,
and is uncoated and unlined. Even in dry weather conditions it
will be partially-filled, making conventional methods for pipe
inspection and cleaning not feasible. The SVM-RS was
therefore designed to effectively replace the need for walk-
through sewer inspections. Prototypical systems have been
built and tested, and the initial feasibility of all sensor and
cleaning systems has been proven.
As part of the project, the following main components were
designed and tested for their feasibility and fulfillment of the
requirements:
- Carrier system (motion kinematics, robot) for positioning
within the sewer
- Cleaning tool for cleaning the walls above water and for Image 1 - Wheel-driven inspection system
remobilizing sediments underwater
- Sensor system for complete inspection above and below B. Cleaning tool
the water The cleaning tool consists of an arm with three degrees of
- Media supply and communications freedom. The arm can pivot around a main axis and has two
- Control system and operator interface independent, telescopic arms. A nozzle bank is located on the
upper end of the telescopic arm, and an ejector nozzle is built
A large test station with different sized concrete pipes was on the lower end.
set up at the Fraunhofer IFF in Magdeburg for initial system
testing. The pipes were treated to simulate normal types of
damage (e.g. cracks or spalling).
Once the system has been successfully inserted into the
pipe, it moves in the direction of the flow. It is connected to
an umbilical cable and to a high-pressure water hose. The

Image 2 - Cleaning tool
The special construction of the telescopic arms ensures that
the water pressure for cleaning is not affected by the
telescopic movements and that a fail-safe position can be
achieved by any type of system or power failure. The nozzle
bank and ejector nozzle are both controlled to move at a
constant distance from the pipe wall during cleaning and
collision sensors ensure that the arms do not come in contact
with the pipe wall.
Image 3 - Cleaning tool in action
The combination of a carrier system which can move in a
robust manner through the wastewater flow with a powerful,
servo-controlled telescopic arm opens up a new range of
possibilities for the cleaning process. The water pressure at the
nozzle necessary to achieve a satisfactory cleaning result can
be reduced when employing such a system. Furthermore,
3
since cleaning parameters such as distance to wall and
cleaning speed can be varied, it is possible to suit the cleaning
parameters to the specific pipe conditions. A common risk
when cleaning with high pressure water is the possible
damage to the concrete surface from overly applied pressure.
This risk can be minimized with such a cleaning system where
the cleaning parameters can be carefully controlled and
monitored.
C. Sensor system
The inspection system is equipped with the following
sensors:
- Multiple-camera system for crack detection,
identification of pipe corrosion above water, and
measurement of pipe joints
- Ultrasonic scanner for detecting mechanical wear and
sediments under water
- Video cameras for detecting infiltrating water
- Position measuring sensors including inclinometer
- Combination sensor for detailed under water inspection
including patented infiltration sensor, underwater
camera system and crack detection system
The camera system employs 9 cameras that overlap and
take high resolution images of the entire pipe surface above
water. In addition there are 7 light section sensors which use
laser lines for measuring joint widths and deviations in the
position of the pipes relative to a neighboring pipe.
Sediments, obstacles and mechanical wear can be reliably
detected with an ultrasonic pipe scanner. This information is
important for the inspection and as a quality control measure
when cleaning the underwater area of the pipe.
The position of the entire system relative to the pipe is
measured and the information is used to help create an
accurate depiction of the pipe. The position is measured
redundantly with a number of different sensors, including the
light section sensors and an inclinometer. The use of accurate
positioning information is necessary to generate the high
resolution inspection results.
The patented infiltration sensor system makes use of the
temperature difference between infiltrating ground water and
the warmer wastewater. Due to the depth of the Emscher
sewer system, the pipe is in the area where ground water is
present. Therefore any leakage would manifest itself through
ground water entering the pipe. Infiltrating flows of as little as
0.1 l/s can be reliably detected with the sensor system. The
sensor system is guided over joints between adjoining pipes.
To ensure a good measurement, the sensor is guided with a
constant distance from the pipe wall with a kinematics similar
to that of the cleaning tool.
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pipe surface.
E. Control system and operator-interface
During the inspection, the operator is in the control station
in the truck. From there the operator can monitor the progress
of the inspection and/or cleaning task and the operator can
manually override the automatic system at all times. The
system operates largely autonomously and software modules
for automatically detecting damage guide the operator to areas
where possible damage has occurred. The operator then has
the task of verifying the damage.
The complexity and high accuracy of the sensor systems
presented a unique challenge in developing the software to
fuse and visually present the inspection results. Normally a
sewer inspection is either viewed live or recorded and view
later by a trained inspector. This delivers acceptable results
when looking for large damage in small diameter pipes.
However, when viewing pipes with a diameter of 2600 mm, it
becomes difficult for the operator to reliably detect cracks
with a width between 0.1 mm and 0.5 mm, as is necessary in
the case of the Emscher sewer system. New strategies for
processing and representing the inspection data have been
developed, including software modules for automatically
detecting damage.

Image 4 - Multi-camera system with light-section sensors

In addition to the reliable detection of different types of

damage, the inspection system helps to monitor the quality of
the cleaning process.
D. Media supply, communications
A particular challenge for the operation of the inspection
and cleaning systems is supplying it with energy and water
over the long distances. The system is tethered and the cable
serves both for safety and recovery purposes as well as for
providing energy and communications. The customized cable
is buoyant and contains the necessary fiber optics and
electrical wires for communication and supplying energy. In
addition the cable is reinforced to be able to pull the entire
system out of the sewer in case of a malfunction.
The water for cleaning the pipe is supplied by a high
Image 5 - Screenshot of operator interface with 3D view of
pressure vehicle at the surface near the pipe entrance. These
pipe
vehicles provide a pressure of approximately 170 bar at flows
of approximately 200 l/min. Analytical calculations and tests Image 5 shows the results of the pipe inspection. The
have shown that it is possible to provide a pressure of at least individual data from the cameras and the ultrasonic scanner
100 bar at the nozzle bank with a DN 32 hose that is 1200 m are merged to create a 3D representation of the pipe. This is
long. The pressure losses due to the long hose length are an intuitive perspective for the operator to check the progress
relatively high. However, we have seen in our experiments of the inspection and for assessing the general condition of the
that pressures of around 100 bar are sufficient for cleaning as pipe. In addition, further detailed 2D representations (Image 6
long as the nozzles can be accurately positioned relative to the and 7) of the pipe surface, joints, and underwater profile are
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generated and presented to the operator. Augmented reality

icons in both the 2D and 3D representations are automatically
generated and serve as bookmarks for damaged or otherwise
interesting locations.

Image 6 - 2D representation of ultrasonic scan underwater

Image 8 – Roughly structured pipe surface after cleaning

In Image 9 the nozzles were further apart and the cleaning

speed was too fast. This resulted in stripes. Cleaning results
such as these negatively influence the inspection, especially
the automatic detection of damage.

Image 7 - 2D representation of pipe surface with

automatically generated icon indicating water drops

V. EXPERIMENTAL RESULTS
Cleaning tests were carried out with the cleaning system in
a real sewer in Bottrop, Germany, which has a diameter of 2.3
m. The following images demonstrate the cleaning results.
The goal of the surface cleaning was to remove any
biological matter to allow for an optical assessment of the pipe
surface. Features such as cracks and corrosion can then be
optically detected and automatically characterized. Parameters
such as the type of nozzle, the distance between cleaning tool
and pipe wall, the cleaning speed, the water pressure and
volume flow were all varied during the testing phase. As the
reader can imagine, a large number of tests were necessary to
fully understand the relationship each of the individual
variables have upon the final cleaning results. Furthermore,
other factors such as initial pipe condition played a large role Image 9 – Formation of stripes after cleaning
and needed to be compensated for during the tests.
Images 8 and 9 both show sub-optimal cleaning results for The cleaning results as shown in Image 10 were quite
differing reasons. In Image 8 the combination of high positive. The pressure at the nozzle was approximately 100
pressure, small distance to pipe wall and cleaning speed were bar and the distance between cleaning tool and the pipe wall
sufficient to remove the dark microbiological surface film was held constant at approximately 20 cm. Multiple passes
from the pipe wall. However the surface of the pipe was also were necessary to achieve the desired cleaning quality without
mildly damaged, as seen in the visible structure of the filling risk of damage to the pipe surface.
material.

Image 10 - optimal cleaning results
VI. SUMMARY AND OUTLOOK
A prototype system for cleaning and inspection of large
sewer pipes, the SVM-RS has been built and tested. The
system has been tested in a test station and in real sewers
during normal sewer operation. The cleaning and inspection
system is unique in that it can clean and then carry out a high
resolution, complete 3D inspection of large sewers while the
sewer is partially filled and in operation. The high resolution
of the sensor systems allows for the implementation of
software modules for the automatic detection and
classification of damage.
The cleaning system is able to work efficiently and with
relatively low pressures at the nozzle through accurate
positioning relative to the pipe wall. The cleaning parameters
can be adjusted online, taking the cleaning results into account
while in operation.
Current efforts are in further development of the
prototypical systems to series production. This includes
optimizing the The Emscher sewer system will begin
operation in 2017 and the SVM-RS is planned to be
completed
VII. REFERENCES
Technical Reports:
[1] C.S. Wibel and M. Caris, Mechanische Unterwasserschiffsreinigung –
Projektphase Machbarkeitsstudie, Project number A9816 for the Freie
Hansestadt Bremen, 1999.
Papers from Conference Proceedings (Published):
[2] H.-B Kuntze and H. Haffner, Experiences with the Development of a
Robot for Smart Multisensoric Pipe Inspection, ICRA 1998, pp. 1773-
1778.
[3] E. Rome, J. Hertzberg, F. Kirchner, U. Licht, S. Streich and Th.
Christaller, Towards Autonomous Sewer Robots: the MAKRO Project,
Urban Water 1, 1999, pp. 57-40.
[4] J. Hertzberg, Th. Christaller, F. Kirchner, U. Licht, E. Rome, "Sewer
Robotics", in Proc. From Animals to Animats 5, 5th Intl. Conf. On
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Simulation of Adaptive Behavior (SAB-98), R. Pfeifer, B. Blumberg, J.-
A. Meyer and S.W. Wilson (eds), MIT Press, 1998, pp. 427-436.
[5] R. Kirkham, P. Kearney, K. Rogers and J. Mashford, “PIRAT - A
System for Quantitative Sewer Pipe Assessment”, International Journal
of Robotics Research, Vol. 19, No. 11, November 2000.
[6] N. Elkmann, H. Althoff, J. Saenz., T. Böhme, “Kinematics Systems for
Inspection and Cleaning of Sewer Canals”, 6th International Conference
on Climbing and Walking Robots CLAWAR, Catania, 2003.
[7] N. Elkmann, H. Althoff, T. Böhme, T. Felsch, S. Kutzner, J. Saenz, T.
Stürze, “Entwicklung von Robotersystemen für die Inspektion und
Reinigung von Abwasserkanälen“, Robotik 2004, München, 17 - 18 June
2004.
[8] Walter, C. ; Schulenburg, E. ; Beier, D. ; Elkmann, N.: Data Acquisition
and Processing using a Service Oriented Architecture for an Automated
Inspection System. In: IEEE Fourth International Workshop on Data
Acquisition and Advanced Computing Systems. (Dortmund 06. - 08.
September 2007) – Tagungsband, ISBN 1-4244-1348-6
[9] Elkmann, N. ; Althoff, H. ; Kutzner, S. ; Stürze, T. ; Saenz, J. ; Reimann,
B.: Development of Fully Automatic Inspection Systems for Large
Underground Concrete Pipes Partially Filled with Wastewater. In: 2007
IEEE International Conference on Robotics and Automation (ICRA
2007). (Rom, Italien 10. - 14. April 2007) - Tagungsband, ISBN 1-4244-
0601-3
[10] Walter, C.; Schulenburg, E.; Saenz, J.; Elkmann, N.: Enabling the
automated inspection of large sewers by using visual odometry. In: VDI
(Hrsg.): AUTOMATION 2009 - Der Automatisierungskongress in
Deutschland. (Baden-Baden 16. - 17. Juni 2009) - Tagungsband
Patents:
[11] N. Elkmann, B. Reimann, F. Schultke, "Ground water infiltration
detecting method for e.g. wastewater pipe, involves determining
temperature difference between temperature sensors and comparing
difference with predetermined threshold value" German Patent
DE102005024926 , Nov. 30, 2006.
[12] S. Kutzner, N. Elkmann, T. Stuerze, "Water-conducting channels
inspection method and device” European Patent EP 1749944, February
07, 2007.
VIII. BIOGRAPHIES
José Saenz was born in Austin, TX in 1976. He
graduated from Phillips Academy in Andover, MA,
and studied Mechanical Engineering at Stanford
University in Palo Alto, CA. He earned a Master’s of
Science in Mechatronics in 2004 at the Otto-von-
Guericke Universität in Magdeburg, Germany.
He has been employed by the Fraunhofer IFF in
Magdeburg, Germany since 2000 and has worked as
a research engineer and later as project manager. He
has worked on various private and publicly-funded
projects for inspection and cleaning service robots, laboratory automation and
sensor development, contributing his expertise in mechanical design,
simulation, control system analysis and plc programming.
Dr. Norbert Elkmann received his Diplom degree in
mechanical engineering from the University of
Bochum in 1993 and his doctorate in mechanical
engineering from the Technical University of Vienna
in 1999.
He has headed the Robotic Systems Business Unit
at the Fraunhofer IFF since 1998 and manages a staff
of 25 researchers. His research interests include
mobile robots, inspection robots and safe physical
human-robot interaction. He is currently lead
managing several industrial and publicly funded applied and basic research
projects. He has published more than 60 papers and is a coauthor in the
Springer Handbook of Automation.
 7

Sven Kutzner has been a research engineer at am

Fraunhofer IFF since 2003. He has a degree in
Automotive Engineering from the University of
Applied Sciences in Berlin. In the Robotic Systems
Business Unit he has developed robotic and
automated solutions for numerous applications for
both publicly and privately funded projects. His
experience lies in the development and detailing of
complex constructions as well as managing large
scale development projects, in particular his
management for the world’s most advanced inspection system for large
sewers. Through his background in automotive engineering, Mr. Kutzner is
specialized in the development and construction of kinematics and drive
systems for robots. Mr. Kutzner has co-authored a number of publications for
scientific journals and conferences.

Thomas Stürze was born in 1979 in Halle (Saale),

Germany. He studied mechatronics at the Mechanical
Engineering Department of the University of Applied
Sciences Merseburg and earned his degree in 2003.
Since then he has been a research engineer at the
Robotic Systems Business Unit of the Fraunhofer
Institute for Factory Operation and Automation in
Magdeburg. He has been responsible for project
management in the areas of design, construction, and
manufacturing of several development projects
regarding service robots and automation technology.

Heiko Althoff was born in Oberhausen in Germany,

on May 21st, 1973. He studied Civil Engineering at
the University of Duisburg-Essen.
His employment experience included the
Institute of Environmental Engineering at the
University of Essen and both the
Planning&Construction and operational department
of Emschergenossenschaft/Lippeverband in Essen.
His special fields of interest included drainage
systems, wastewater and stormwater treatment and
complex measurement systems.
Althoff received the “Golden Manhole Price” in 2009 for managing the
development of automated inspection and cleaning devices for the new
Emscher sewer.