Internal pipe inspection system

A pipe inspection/repair head comprising:

• an elongate, central body;
• and
• at least three radially outwardly biased members extending from said body, said members being substantially symmetrically arranged about said body and sized such that when the head is positioned within a pipe said members approximately position said body concentric with a central longitudinal axis of the pipe each of said members comprising at least two bi-directional torsion spring legs, each of said two legs being collapsible towards said body when said legs encounter a pipe obstruction and for facilitating the head's insertion into and removal from the pipe through an opening having a diameter smaller than an internal diameter of the pipe.

Pipe inspection apparatus insertable into a four inch six pipeline through a standard lateral service opening, said apparatus comprising:

• (i) a compact pipe inspection head having a collapsed configuration and an extended configuration, said compact head being sized when in said collapsed configuration to pass through the standard lateral service opening, said opening being substantially less in size than an internal diameter of the pipeline, said compact head also including a viewing assembly for imaging the interior of the pipeline while in said extended configuration;
• and
• (ii) a flexible snake connected to said head for manually moving the head within the pipeline once the head is positioned therein in said extended configuration, said snake being sufficiently rigid so as to permit selective propelling or rotating of the head within the pipe to facilitate movement of the head therein and viewing of the interior of the pipe.

An in-line pipe inspection/repair head comprising:

• a central, elongate body;
• and
• at least three outwardly biased members extending from said elongate body, said members being substantially symmetrically arranged about said body and sized such that when the head is positioned within a pipe said members approximately radially center said body about a central longitudinal axis of said pipe, each of said members including two bi-directional torsion spring legs pivotably secured to said body, each of said two bi-directional torsion spring legs being located adjacent opposite ends of said body, radially outer ends of said two legs being hingedly secured to a skid such that said two legs extend and collapse together, each of said members being independently collapsible towards said body when said member encounters a pipe obstruction and for facilitating the heads insertion into and removal from the pipe through a lateral opening of diameter smaller than an internal diameter of the pipe.