Pipe navigation apparatus with bypass fluid channel

A system for use in navigating a pipe having a sidewall defining an interior cavity, said system comprising:

• a navigation apparatus comprising:
• a body assembly comprising a plurality of body sections configured to interact with the sidewall of the pipe and move said body assembly through the pipe, said plurality of body sections comprising a first body section having an outer surface and a plurality of protrusions arranged on said outer surface and extending in a radial direction outward therefrom, said body section configured to selectively expand and contract said outer surface in the radial direction between a first configuration, in which said plurality of protrusions interact with the sidewall of the pipe, and a second configuration, in which said plurality of protrusions are spaced from the sidewall of the pipe;
• and
• a channel defining a fluid passageway, wherein said channel is configured for fluid from the interior cavity of the pipe to flow through the fluid passageway and bypass said body assembly as said body assembly moves through the interior cavity of the pipe, the fluid passageway extending between said plurality of protrusions when said body section is in the first configuration;
• and
• a controller communicatively coupled to said navigation apparatus and configured to send instructions to said navigation apparatus to cause said body assembly to move through the interior cavity of the pipe.

A method for moving a navigation apparatus through a pipe having a sidewall defining an interior cavity, said method comprising:

• moving a body assembly of the navigation apparatus through the interior cavity of the pipe, the body assembly having a first end, a second end, and a body section positioned between the first end and the second end, the body section having an outer surface and a plurality of protrusions arranged on the outer surface and extending in a radial direction outward therefrom, the navigation apparatus including a channel defining a fluid passageway extending at least partly between the first end and the second end of the body assembly;
• expanding the outer surface in the radial direction to a first configuration, in which the plurality of protrusions interact with the sidewall of the pipe, from a second configuration, in which the plurality of protrusions are spaced from the sidewall of the pipe;
• and
• directing fluid from the interior cavity of the pipe to flow through the fluid passageway, between the plurality of protrusions, and from the first end of the body assembly to the second end of the body assembly as the body assembly moves through the interior cavity of the pipe.