Design and Numerical Simulation of an Odometer Wheel Used in an Ultrasonic In-Line Inspection Tool

An odometer wheel is used to measure forward distance for a piezoelectric ultrasonic device, and it plays a key role in locating defections. Buckling and skidding are its main problems in applications. Based on a self-developed in-line inspection tool, an odometer wheel was designed according to mechanical design principles. A finite element model on scale of 1 : 1 was built to simulate mechanical performance of the odometer wheel. Results show that the maximum Mises stress under the worst condition is far less than the elastic limit of chosen stainless steel, and deformations of swing arms are slight. Acting forces under different conditions also meet requirements of antiskid. It indicates that the designed object has good performance in terms of structure stability and skid prevention.