Insertion tool
AssigneesGeneral Electric Company, Oliver Crispin Robotics Limited
InventorsDeepak Trivedi, Grover Andrew Bennett, Stephen Paul Leclerc, Andrew Crispin Graham
Life of this patent
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Abstract
An insertion tool for performing an operation on equipment, the insertion tool including: a plurality of segments, each segment of the plurality of segments including a body comprising: a first hinge; and a second hinge, the first hinge of a first segment being coupled to the second hinge of a second segment adjacent to the first segment through an interface, wherein the interface comprises a powder gap, a multi-modal interface, a compliance feature, a displace-to-lock configuration, an interference fit, or any combination thereof, wherein the insertion tool is configured to be selectively rigidizable using a strength member interfacing with the plurality of segments.
Claims20
An insertion tool for performing an operation on equipment, the insertion tool comprising:
- a plurality of segments, the plurality of segments comprising a first segment and a second segment;
- wherein the first and second segments each comprise a body extending along a central axis;
- wherein the first and second segments are pivotably coupled to one another at an interface formed by adjacent ends of the first and second segments;
- wherein the interface comprises a first hinge member of one of the first and second segments pivotably coupled to a pair of opposing second hinge members of another of the first and second segments to allow the first and second segments to pivot relative to one another about an axis of rotation extending through the hinge members;
- and
- wherein the first hinge member and the pair of second hinge members are each laterally offset in a radial direction from the central axis of the respective first and second segments such that a gap is formed between the ends of the first and second segments that increases in size when the first and second segments are pivoted away from one another about the axis of rotation.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.