Pipeline inspection

Abstract

The present application provides for examining a pipeline, such as a hydrocarbon pipeline. It finds particular application with the examination of pipelines located in harsh environments. An external facility, such as a remote station and/or a central station, transmits topography data to a data taking head configured to examine the pipeline. Based upon the topography data, one or more data taking heads examine the pipeline and generate pipeline data and/or position data, which may be used to identify one or more characteristics of the pipeline. This data may be transferred to a remote station, such as a truck, which may analyze the data to determine where to perform maintenance on the pipeline, for example. A human operator may observe the data taking heads from the remote station and respond to problems encountered by the data taking head.

1 . An apparatus comprising:
 a data taking head configured to examine a pipeline and generate pipeline data indicative of a characteristic of the pipeline in response thereto; and   a central station configured to receive pipeline data and provide topography data from which one or more operating commands for the data taking head are derived.   
     
     
         2 . The apparatus of  claim 1 , comprising a remote station configured for two way communication with at least one of the data taking head and the central station. 
     
     
         3 . (canceled) 
     
     
         4 . (canceled) 
     
     
         5 . The apparatus of  claim 2 , the remote station comprising a processor configured to analyze the pipeline data from the data taking head and facilitate transmitting the analyzed pipeline data to the central station. 
     
     
         6 . The apparatus of  claim 5 , the remote station configured to receive position data from a position determiner of the data taking head and the processor configured to combine the position data and the pipeline data to generate the analyzed pipeline data. 
     
     
         7 . The apparatus of  claim 2 , the remote station comprising a mechanical interface configured to be selectively coupled to a hazardous element of the data taking head and, once coupled, the mechanical interface configured to place the hazardous element in a storage vault. 
     
     
         8 . (canceled) 
     
     
         9 . (canceled) 
     
     
         10 . (canceled) 
     
     
         11 . (canceled) 
     
     
         12 . The apparatus of  claim 2 , the central station configured to issue an alert if the remote station has not communicated with the central station within a predetermined time interval. 
     
     
         13 . (canceled) 
     
     
         14 . The apparatus of  claim 1 , the pipeline comprising an above-ground hydrocarbon pipeline. 
     
     
         15 . (canceled) 
     
     
         16 . An apparatus for communication with a data taking head, comprising:
 a transceiver for two way communication with at least one data taking head;   an analyzer configured to analyze pipeline data received from the at least one data taking head; and   a controller configured to generate instructions for the at least one data taking head regarding at least one of how to examine a pipeline and how to traverse the pipeline.   
     
     
         17 . (canceled) 
     
     
         18 . The apparatus of  claim 16 , the analyzer configured to combine the pipeline data with position data from the at least one data taking head when analyzing the pipeline data. 
     
     
         19 . (canceled) 
     
     
         20 . The apparatus of  claim 16 , the controller configured to generate instructions for controlling a movement of the at least one data taking head based upon topography data indicative of the pipeline being analyzed. 
     
     
         21 . (canceled) 
     
     
         22 . The apparatus of  claim 16 , the at least one data taking head configured to examine an above-ground hydrocarbon pipeline. 
     
     
         23 . The apparatus of  claim 16 , the controller configured to generate topography data related to the pipeline based upon sensor data obtained by one or more sensors on the data taking head. 
     
     
         24 . A data taking head, comprising:
 a pipeline inspection component configured to inspect a pipeline and generate pipeline data in response thereto;   a position determiner configured to generate position data indicative of a location of the data taking head;   a transceiver configured to transmit at least one of the pipeline data and the position data to an external data handling facility and to receive topography data from the external data handling facility; and   a controller configured to control movement of the data taking head based upon the received topography data.   
     
     
         25 . The data taking head of  claim 24 , the pipeline inspection component comprising a radiation source. 
     
     
         26 . The data taking head of  claim 24 , the received topography data relating to a pipeline architecture of the pipeline that the pipeline inspection component is configured to inspect. 
     
     
         27 . The data taking head of  claim 24 , comprising a mechanical interface configured for selective attachment to a remote station. 
     
     
         28 . (canceled) 
     
     
         29 . A method of collecting data, comprising:
 receiving topography data from a remote station;   examining a pipeline based upon the topography data;   generating pipeline data based upon the examination; and   generating position data identifying a location on the pipeline that is under examination.   
     
     
         30 . The method of  claim 29 , comprising using the topography data to instruct a data taking head, configured to examine the pipeline, how to traverse the pipeline. 
     
     
         31 . (canceled) 
     
     
         32 . The method of  claim 29 , the examination performed using a radiation source. 
     
     
         33 . The method of  claim 29 , comprising correcting the topography data based upon the examination of the pipeline. 
     
     
         34 . (canceled) 
     
     
         35 . (canceled) 
     
     
         36 . (canceled)