SBIR-STTR Award

Suppressing Utility Problems - Protection via Robotic Engineering to the Sub-Surface
Award last edited on: 9/3/2020

Sponsored Program
SBIR
Awarding Agency
DOT
Total Award Amount
$2,143,906
Award Phase
2
Solicitation Topic Code
141FH3
Principal Investigator
Devendra Tolani

Company Information

Intelligent Automation Inc (AKA: IAI)

15400 Calhoun Drive Suite 190
Rockville, MD 20855
   (301) 294-5200
   contact@i-a-i.com
   www.i-a-i.com
Location: Single
Congr. District: 06
County: Montgomery

Phase I

Contract Number: DTRT57-14-C-10037
Start Date: 00/00/00    Completed: 00/00/00
Phase I year
2014
Phase I Amount
$150,000
There is a need to develop new technologies that will robotically relocate existing overhead utilities to the subsurface within crowded rights-of-way in an accurate and safe manner, at an acceptable cost to the project?s owner, using construction methods such as Horizontal Directional Drilling (HDD). Intelligent Automation, Inc. (IAI), in collaboration with The Louisiana Tech Trenchless Technology Center (TTC) and IDS North America (IDSNA) propose to develop the Robotic Utility Mapping and Installation System (RUMI). RUMI is a comprehensive solution that involves autonomous sensing, mapping, and robotically installing utilities with real time feedback. The key innovation of this proposed work will be a versatile robotic sensor platform that (1) maps existing utilities and (2) locates the drill head more accurately compared to a conventional walk-over system. We will leverage multimodal geophysical sensors, a robotic platform, and an innovative HDD drill head positioning system with look-ahead sensor to rapidly, safely, and accurately relocate overhead utilities to the subsurface in cluttered environments. The proposed system will be compatible with thousands of mini and midi size HDD rigs already in the market place, ensuring the rapid dissemination and positive impact of the proposed technology on the utility/construction industry.

Phase II

Contract Number: DTRT5716C10011
Start Date: 00/00/00    Completed: 00/00/00
Phase II year
2016
(last award dollars: 2019)
Phase II Amount
$1,993,906

Relocating overhead utilities to the subsurface can effectively reduce safety hazards on national highways and other aboveground living spaces. A typical underground space is, however, congested with buried utilities especially in an urban environment. The recordings of those underground utilities are, furthermore, often inaccurate, incomplete, out of date, or even entirely missing as a result of insufficient surveying methodologies and inadequate as-built recording practices. Consequently, the utility construction industry is plagued by aggravating accidents caused by mechanical damages to buried utilities during horizontal directional drilling (HDD) and other construction related activities. In order to address these technical challenges, we have been developing the Robotic Utility Mapping and Installation System (RUMI), a comprehensive robotic solution that improves the safety and productivity of the underground utility construction. The overarching objective of the Phase II effort is to develop RUMI-2, the second robot prototype that realizes the innovative technologies conceptualized in Phase I, and demonstrate its capabilities in a relevant environment. The expected contribution of RUMI-2 to the utility industry is: 1) Accurate robotic 3D utility mapping and digitalization; 2) Precise robotic drill-head tracking with multiple magnetic dipole transceivers; and 3) Effective robotic HDD cross-bore/obstacle avoidance. ---------- Today, urban underground spaces are shared by multiple utility companies for laying power lines, gas lines, water supply/sewage pipes, fiber-optic cables, etc. The recordings of such buried utilities are often erroneous, inadequate, or outdated (if they ever exist) due to insufficient surveying methodologies and as-built recording practices. Ability to accurately locate and provide awareness of buried utility structure is therefore urgently needed by not only those utility companies but also other stakeholders of the underground spaces such as city planners, construction companies, asset management/maintenance authorities, archaeologists, etc. To address this problem, IAI has developed the Robotic Utility Mapping and Inspection System (RUMI) whose demonstrated capabilities include: 1) Autonomous area inspection; 2) Integrated subsurface and aboveground data collection and 3D visualization; 3) Augmented reality projection; and 4) Dynamic asset information retrieval. In this effort, IAI will develop the next generation of the RUMI system—specifically being enhanced for practical use in operational environments. Some of the notable enhancements include: 1) Improvement of the situational awareness; 2) Extension of the asset management subsystem to the Building Information Modeling (BIM) framework; 3) Improvement of the autonomous mapping methods; and 4) Ruggedization of the robotic system.