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A PROJECT REPORT ON PIPE CRAWLER

A Synopsis

Submitted in Partial fulfillment of Minor Project for the award of

Bachelor of Engineering Degree in Mechanical Engineering

Submitted to

RAJIV GANDHI PROUDYOGIKI VISHWAVIDYALAYA

BHOPAL (M.P.)

MINOR PROJECT SYNOPSIS SUBMITTED BY

1. Shailesh sarodey (0133ME121078)

2. Ramji Patel (0133ME121077)3. Ratnesh Ratnam (0133ME121094)

4. Rohit Sahu (0133ME121082)

5. Sanjay Patel (0133me121089)

Guide Head of the DepartmentMr. N K Sagar Mr. P K Jain

Professor Professor

DEPARTMENT OF MECHANICAL ENGINEERING

SAGAR INSTITUTE OF RESEARCH & TECHNOLOGY

BHOPAL (M.P.)

SESSION-2015-16



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ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

We would like to express our deepest gratitude and sincerely thanks to the faculty members of the

college for giving us an opportunity to undergo minor project.

We are also thankful to Mr. N.K.Sagar (Prof.) for their knowledge and immense guidance.

At last we would like to convey our thanks to all the members of the mechanical department whose

valuable guidance and suggestion helped us in accomplishing this report.



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Table of contents

1.

Introduction……………………………………………….5-6

a. Statement of problem

2.

Modification in Mechanism and its Implementation………7 3. Components of inspection robot…………………………..8-10

4. Inspection interpretation………………………………….11

5. Utility and application……………………………………12-16

a. Implementation

b. Application

6. Conclusion…………………………………………………17

7.

Reference…………………………………………………..17



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ABSTRACT

The project involves the basic concept of designing and fabrication of robot using kinematic

linkage that is modification over old PIPE CRAWLER.

The design consists of a helical compression spring which is responsible for the force that the

robot mechanism exercises on the pipe wall. The helical spring disposed on central axis assures

the repositioning of the structure, in the cause of the pipe diameter’s variation. The central axis

consists of stainless steel pipe of small diameter. Another pipe of larger diameter and smaller

length, attached to the compression spring is mounted in the inner pipe, which is free to slide on

it and thus enables spring to compress freely and accommodate the changes in pipe diameter and

ovality and the advantage of our crawler over the old crawler is, it can be used for different-

different diameters and allows the robot to move within pipes with horizontal, vertical, and

elbow-typed portions.



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INTRODUCTION

The project involves the basic concept of designing and fabrication of robot using kinematic

linkage. The design consists of a helical compression spring which is responsible for the force that

the robot mechanism exercises on the pipe wall. The helical spring disposed on central axis assures

the repositioning of the structure, in the cause of the pipe diameter’s variation. The central axis

consists of stainless steel pipe of small diameter. Another pipe of larger diameter and smaller

length, attached to the compression spring is mounted in the inner pipe, which is free to slide on it

and thus enables spring to compress freely and accommodate the changes in pipe diameter and

ovality .connecting members are welded to the central axis to connect the linkages using bolted

joints. The three wheels at the back are driven by three DC motors (60 r.p.m. 12 V), through

reduction transmission. The rest of the three front wheels are driven by the linkages .Here,

Modified pantograph linkage is used which is a four bar linkage mechanism, where the four

links from a parallelogram. This ensures that the front wheels trace the motion as traced by the

rare wheel, and hence the wheels are properly aligned within the pipe. The motor are connectedand control using a wired remote control (comprising of a DPDT switch and multicolor wires)

powered by 12V to 18V DC supply. Aluminum linkages are used due to its lightness and optimum

required strength to weight ratio. In the present demo model cell phone Bluetooth connectivity is

used to transmit the video on the laptop or PC using mobiola software. Led’s are used as light

source which are mounted near the cell phone for proper camera operation.



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LITRATURE

Kinematics- It is branch of classical machines that describes the motion of body (object) and

systems (group of object) without consideration of forces that causes the motion. Thus it is the

study from a geometric point of view, to know the displacement and acceleration of a part of

mechanism.

Mechanism-If a no of bodies are connected in such a way that the motion of one causes the

constrained predictable motion of the other, it is known as mechanism.

Machine-It is a mechanism or combination of mechanism which apart from imparting definite

motion to the part, also transmits the available mechanical energy into some kind of desired work.

Kinematic links – Each resistant body in a machine which moves relative to another resistant

body is called kinematic link or element. A resistant body is which do not go under deformation

while transmitting the force.

Kinematic links can be divided into three types:-

1. Rigid link-In this type of links there is no deformation while transmitting the motion. Motion

between the piston and crank can be considered as a rigid link .

2. Flexible link- In this type of link there is partial deformation while transmitting the motion.

Belt drive is an example of this type of link.

3. Fluid link- In this type of link the motion is transmitted with the help of fluid pressure. A

hydraulic brake is the example of fluid link.

Kinetic Pair- When the two kinematic links are joined to have relative motion between them

is known as kinematic pair.

The kinematic pairs are classified as follows:-

According to the nature of contact:-

1. Lower pair-When the two links have surface contact between them,it is known as lower pair.

2. Higher pair- When the two links have line or point contact between them,it is known ashigher pair.



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According to nature of relative motion:-

1. Sliding pair- When one link slides relative to another link,it is known as sliding pair.

2. Turning pair- When one link turns or revolve relative to another link, it is known as turning

pair.

3. Rolling pair- When one link rolls over the other link, it is known as rolling pair.

4. screw pair- If two pair have turning as well as rolling motion between them, it is known as

screw pair.

5. Spherical pair- When a spherical link turns inside a fixed link, it is known as spherical pair.

Degree of freedom:- Degree of freedom are the set of independent displacements and/or

rotation that specify completely the displaced or deformed position and orientation of the body or

system.

Linkages:-A mechanical linkage is a series of rigid links connected with joints to form a closed

chain, or a series of closed chain. Each link has two or more joints, and the joints have various

degrees of freedom to allow motion between the links. A linkage is called a mechanism, if two or

more links are movable with respect to a fixed link. Mechanical linkages are usually designed to

take an input and produce different output, altering the motion, velocity, acceleration, and applying

mechanical advantage.

Types of linkage:-

Four bar linkages are the simplest closed loop kinetic linkage. They perform a wide variety of

motion with a few simple parts. They were also popular in the past due to the ease of calculations, prior to computers, compared to more complicated mechanism.



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Types of four bar linkage:-

Pantograph (four-bar, two DOF)

Crank-slider,(four bar, one DOF)

Grashof, (four bar, one DOF) at least one link can rotate 360°

Four bar linkage often have meshing gears for two of the links, creating a one DOF linkage. They

can provide greater power transmission with more design flexibility then four bar linkage.

Six bars, single DOF offer grater design flexibility then four bar linkage but require more parts

&are more difficult to design:

Watt kinematic chain

Watt I, II

Stephenson kinematic chain

Stephenson I, II, III

Klann linkage which function as a walking mechanism creating nearly straight line output from a

rotary input, six bar, one DOF.

PANTOGRAPH MECHANISM

A pantograph is a mechanical linkage connected in a special manner based on parallelograms so

that the movement of one pen, in tracing an image, produces identical movement in a second

pen. If a line drawing is traced by the first point,

an identical, enlarge or miniaturized copy will be drawn by a pen fixed to other. Because of their

effectiveness translating motion in a controlled fashion, pantographs have come to be used as a



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type of motion guide for object large and small. A common example of the use of a pantograph

assembly as mechanical guide frame is the extension arm of an adjustable wall-mounted mirror.

Uses:-

Perhaps the pantograph that is most familiar to the general public is the extension arm of an

adjustable wall-mounted mirror. In another application similar to drafting, the pantograph isincorporated into a pantograph engraving machine with a revolving cutter instead of a pen and a

tray at the pointer into fix precut lettered plates (referred to as ‘copy’), which the pointer follows

and thus the cutter, via the pantograph, reproduces the copy at a ratio which the pantograph armshave been set. The typical range of ratio is maximum 1:1 minimum 50:1 (reduction) In this way

machinists can neatly and accurately engrave numbers and latter on to the part.

The device which maintains electrical contact with the contact wire and transfers power from the

wire to the traction unit, used in electric locomotive and trains, is also called a ‘’Pantograph’’.

Certain types of trains on the New York city subway use end pantograph gates (which, to avoidinterference, compress under spring pressure around curves while the train is en-route) to prevent

passenger on station platforms from falling into the gaps between the cars.

Herman Hollerith’s “keyboard punch” used for the 1890 US Census was a pantograph design and

sometimes referred as ”The pantograph punch”.

An early 19th century device employing this mechanism is the polygraph, which produces a

duplicate of a letter as the original is written.

Longarm quilting machine operators may trace a pantograph, paper pattern with a laser pointer to

stitch a custom pattern on to the quilt.

Linn Boyd Benton invented a pantographic engraving machine for type design, which was capablenot only of scaling a single font design pattern to a variety of sizes , but could also condense,

extend and slant the design.

Pantograph are also used as guide frames in heavy duty application including scissor lifts material

handling equipment stage lift and specialty hinges (such as for panel doors on boats and airplane)



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STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM

Plumbing networks, like any other structure, are vulnerable to damage from various sources:

thermal cycling (especially when ground freezes around the pipe), mechanical impacts or

vibrations, corrosion, etc. Pipes can fill or clog with debris, sediments, and living organisms.

Smaller fluid systems, such as those serving residences, may be repaired with easy, low-costmethods; in many cases it may be best to simply replace the pipes. Operators of larger, complex

systems, however, frequently need some better way of dealing with plumbing failures. Forinstance, it is not cheap to replace large diameter pipes; it is even worse if hundreds of meters of

pipeline must be unearthed to determine which section is responsible for a drop in pressure.

Preventative inspection can be another difficult requirement of industrial users: critical systems orthose serving sensitive machinery may have to be inspected periodically, to ensure the safety of

human users or to prevent damage to expensive systems.

It is possible to detect cracks or corrosion thinning in plumbing with various methods of

non-destructive testing, such as eddy-current or ultrasonic sensors, but these require access to theoutside of the pipes; difficult and costly in many situations, such as long, buried lengths.

Furthermore, this does not address the problem of clogging or fouling. In many such applications,an internal inspection solution may be preferable.

If a robot were designed to travel the length of the pipe and conduct such inspections,

it might have other uses as well. For instance, it could carry a cleaning mechanism or manipulators

to remove foreign objects. It could pull electrical or communications cables through conduits. Such

a machine has potential as a life-saving tool also: when buildings collapse, due to earthquakes or

other disasters, the internal pipe network may still be navigable for a pipe-crawling robot, which

could carry video cameras or microphones to locate signs of humans trapped below.



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Modification in Mechanism and its Implementation

The mechanism used in for the robot is the Modi f ied pantograph mechani sm. The reason for the

same are listed below:

1. Simplicity of this mechanism compared to other straight line mechanisms.

2. The front wheels are driven with the help of links of pantograph mechanisms.

3. It ensures that the front wheels trace the same motion as traced by the rear wheels, and hence

the wheels are properly aligned within the pipe.

4. This mechanisms allows the movement of the wheels along the radial direction. This aspect is

very important, because distortion forces no longer appear, as the robot passes over the obstacles.

5. It can assure the adaptability of robots to different pipe diameters.

This is the old model of pipe crawler which can be used in horizontal pipes and for a certaindiameter of pipe but our modification can work on different-different diameters and allows the

robot to move within pipes with horizontal, vertical, and elbow-typed portions.



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COMPONENTS OF INSPECTION ROBOT

1 1

8

2

7 3

4.1

6 5 4.2

1. Compression Helical spring

With the use of the spring, force is generated on the pipe wall and hence it assures the

repositioning of the structure in the case of the pipe diameter variation occur. Since the spring is

connected to the link using a sliding member it readjust the positions of the link to accommodate

the diameter changes. We have used spring of patented cold drawn, steel wire, grade 1.

2. Sliding pipe

This is bigger diameter and smaller length pipe which is in contact with the spring and slidesfreely on the central pipe thus enabling the spring to compress freely and accommodate diameter

changes.

3. Actuator support

Actuator actuate the wheels and we need to fix it on a proper position so it can transmit

motion to the wheels.



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4. Connecting members (4.1worm wheel and 4.2worm gear)

Worm wheel provide motion from worm gear to wheels and worm gear provide motion from

motor to worm wheel. After all the motion is transferred from motor to wheels.

5. Actuator

To actuate the wheels. Tree rear wheels are actuated by DC geared motors (60r.p.m) and the

other three forward wheels are driven through linkages. The motor contents the gear assembly totransmit the vertical motion of input shaft to the horizontal motion. The operating voltages limited

to 12V only.

6. Central Pipe:

It is the men component on which the complete structure of the robot is mounted. It acts

as the chassis of the robot. Different members such as helical spring, sliding member, linkconnecting member all the links are attached on to this pipe. Here we have used HSS(high speed

steel) pipe which is suitable according to the requirement market availability and cost.

7. Links

The links are used to form a four bar linkage mechanism, the modified pantograph

mechanisms which drive the front wheels with the help of rear wheels. These linkages areconstructed using aluminum ribs of 25mm and are connected to each other and the connecting

members using bolted joints.

8. Wheels

Formability of robot inside circular pipe, a 120° arrangement of linkages is formed in which

wheels are attached at end point of the upper links hence providing contact with the inner surface.Wheels are having rubber lining to improve contact friction between the walls and the wheels and

to increase grip of the wheels hence improving the stability of the robot.

9. Light source

For inspection of low light conditions it is necessary to provide an extra light source near the

camera so as to visualize properly in darker condition. for this purpose, LEDs are being mounted

near the camera lens. It is important to have correct light intensity so as to gate clear view hence

arrangement is made in such a manner that light properly falls on the surface of the pipe also.

10. Video Camera

For visual assessment there are many kinds of wireless or wired webcam available in the market

which have there specified range of operation. They also have a specified resolution capacity and

frame capturing capacity under motion or capturing of moving object so selection is based uponthe RPM at which the robot is working and the single sending power of the wireless webcam since

proper transmission is also a factor which effects the visual inspection while operation .



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11. Battery

The supply of power to the robot can be done through AC supply connected to a 12V

transformer and a capacitor circuit for converting it in to12V DC supply or using a 12V DC

,rechargeable or non-rechargeable available in the market to actuate the DC motor attached in the

rear wheels for the movement of the robot in the pipe.

11. Remote control

To control the robot the remote control can be wired or wireless. For wireless arrangement a

transmitter receiver (RF/IR) is required for the wire control, DPDT switches and wires can be used.

Here we have used DPDT switches and multi-cored wires for the operation of the robot. Themotors are connected in series and a single switch is used to operate the three motors

simultaneously.



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DESIGN AND FABRICATION

After performing various design calculation of the linkages, spring, etc. the next step was to

prepare a prototype for analysis. wooden ribs of xmm and ymm thickness were taken and linksof length h1,h3 and two links of length h2 were cut from it and hence the modified pantograph

mechanisms is constructed. The motion and hence the diameter variation that the robot can provide was studied. By using wooden link mechanisms, we iterated the various link length of

the final mechanisms.

We also modeled it using the software pro engineering in which the exact dimension of the robot

were taken to view the final form of the robot. The images are given below

After making a single unit of a modified pantograph mechanisms unit symmetrically arranged at

120º phase angle, and six wheels mounted on the links and the spring, we initiated the fabrication

of the robot.

We first took an aluminum rib and cut various links according to the design links length using a

cutter. Then we drilled holes of amm and bmm on those links using amm and bmm drill bits bymounting it on the drill machine of the work shop.

Then the link connecting member work cut from the cast iron ribs of the dimension p*qmm 2 of

the thickness lmm and bmm holes were drilled and the members were welded on the central pipe

of diameter smm and length tmm using electric arc welding.

Now the sliding member was prepared using pipe of diameter kmm and a washer of inner

diameter of k+1mm, was welded on the end of kmm pipe. Now, this was assembled with the pipe of diameter jmm with a some filing or grinding of the inner surface for free sliding of the

outer pipe on the inner pipe. Next, a spring was connected whose one end is fixed on the plate

attached with the jmm diameter pipe and hence the grinding helps in free compression of the

spring for accommodating pipe diameter variation and ovality.

Now the links are connected to reach other by bolted joints forming modified pantographmechanisms and three motors were connected in series and wheels were mounted on the

assembly then the wiring was done with the remote control having a single deck switch.

The complete model will be demonstrated in major project.



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Inspection interpretation or discussion

As aim of the project is expected to perform the visual inspection of the internal pipe surface

of different pipe of different-different material and diameters using pipe inspection robot, the

expected interpretation which are drown by the operating robot inside the pipe are listed below.

1.

The pipe may very rugged throughout its length having many irregularities on the surface.2. The pipe may have severe cracks and improper surface texture at various sections of the

pipe.

3. The images will show the surface conditioning of the internal pipe surface.4. The cracks can be seen with the help of the robot camera and we can cure it before any

serious problem may occur. because the enlargement can cause linkage problems in the pipe

and can even cause failure of the pipe from those points due to high stress concentration

Water hammer and pressure transient are common problem in the pipe lines of any hydraulic

machine installation, due to this irregularities and improper surface finis , it will and in hence the

problem and might cause busting of pipe.



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UTILITY AND APPLICATIONS OF PROJECT

IMPLEMENTATION OF PROJECT IN INDUSTRIES:

Plumbing networks , like any other structure ,are vulnerable to damage from various sources :

thermal cycling (especially when ground freezes around the pipe), mechanical impacts orvibration, corrosion etc. pipe can fill or clog with debris ,sediments, or as with the zebra mussel

infestation in the northeast US ,living organisms .smaller fluid system, such as those serving

residences ,may be repaired with easy, low cost method: in many cases it may be best to simplyreplace the pipe .operators of larger ,complex system ,however frequently need some better way

of dealing with plumbing failures. For instance, it is not cheap to replace large diameter pipe; it is

even worse if 100m of pipe line must be un earthed to determine which section is responsible for

a drop in pressure. Preventative inspection can be another difficult requirement of industrial users:critical system or those surveying sensitive machinery may have to be inspected periodically, to

ensure the safety of human users are to prevent damage to expensive system.

It is possible to detect cracks or corrosion thinning in plumbing with various methods of non

destructive testing , such as eddy-current or ultra sonic sensor, but these required access to the out-side of the pipes ;difficult and costly in many situation ,such as long, buried lengths. Further- morethis does not address the problem of clogging of fouling. in many such application ,an internal

inspection solution may be preferable .

ROVVER operation

Robotics is one of the fastest growing engineering field of today .robots are design to or move the

human factor form labor intensive or dangerous work and also to act in inaccessible environment.the use of robot is more common today then- ever before and it is no longer exclusively used by

the heavy production industries. The inspection of the pipe may be relevant for improving security

and efficiency in industrial plant. These specific operation as inspection, maintenance cleaning etc are 3 expensive, thus the application of the robots appears to be one of the most attractive solution.



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ROVVER inspector crawler

The robots with a flexible structure may boast adaptability to the environment, especially to the pipe diameter; with enhance dexterity, maneuverability capability to operate under hostile

condition. The wheeled robots are the simplest, most energy efficient, and have the best potential

for long range. Loading the wheels with spring, robots also offer some advantages inmaneuverability with ability to adapt to in pipe unevenness , move vertical in pipe and stay stable

without slipping in pipes .This types of robots also have the advantages of easier miniaturization

several pipe inspection robots have been constructed experimentally, some are even commercially

available products.

The simplest of these (and consequently the most numerous in the market) are a platform restingon wheels or tractors treads underneath. Such robots suffer from an inability to negotiate vertical

section of pipe . In addition many have limited steering ability and may be too long to pass througheven horizontal elbows. Envirosight LLC offers a series of such robots in there line of ROVVERinspection crawlers these are tethered four or six wheeled vehicle which carry a range of video

cameras and are available in size as small as 4 inches.

More advanced pipe inspectors are capable of travelling through vertical pipes. One of these,

developed by Rob Probe Technologies Inc., is capable of traveling through complex pipe networks

from 8 to 12 in internal diameter. Three rubber track unit pressed against the walls in equilateralconfiguration propel this device. It is not articulated, but is short enough to negotiate most turns.

Numerous other robots, mostly research projects, have been constructed of this type, using either

tracks or wheels.



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Yet more complex are vehicles that use serpentine motions or “inch-worm” mechanisms for

propulsion. These have shown promise but remain experimental. A project by North Carolina StateUniversity uses pneumatic mechanisms at either end of the robot to grip the walls of the pipe,

while an expanding center section produces motion in stages. A “robot snake” by the Institute for

Autonomous Intelligent Systems uses a sinusoidal motion and a large number of wheels along its

length to propel itself in an extremely flexible way.



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APPLICATION

Accessing unpiggable pipelines

Pipeline cleaningo Brush

o

Jettingo Chemical

ILI inspectiono MFL

o UT

o Eddy current

o EMAT

o EMIT

Stuck pig removal

Flange testing

Plug setting

Hydro testing Visual inspection

o Camera

Pipeline gauging, mapping and data collection

o Laser

o Sonar

o Inertial navigation

o Temperature profiling

o Pressure profiling

o Dynamic motion

Pipeline repair system



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CONCLUSION

The goals of design of the pipe inspection robots are to inspect internal conditioning of pipes of

different diameter and different material. This project will be a basic model which can be tested ina pipe and the internal defects can be captured and it will be helpful to conclude the design. We

can conclude about success benefits of pipe to implement on a large scale in industries forinspection and other purposes. Conclusion are listed below-

1. Wireless operation- the wired robot can converted into a wireless robot by using a wireless

remote control using RF/IR module type controller and PCB circuited with the transmitterand receiver to actuate the motors wirelessly.

2. Webcam- This can be done by using various wireless video cameras. The cameras of

various sizes and resolution are available in market which can be used.

3. Sensors- The robot can be equipped with various types of sensors which can measuredistances and hence locate the regions where defects are present. It can also act as life

savers, in case of fires, earth quakes and other disasters by mounting sensors that can detect

voice and hence locate the trapped people so that they can be rescued.4.

Ultrasonic, eddy current, or other sensors could be mounted on the robot for non-

destructive testing of pipes integrity.

5. Another useful feature would be two-axis control over the video camera, allowing theoperator to examine the sides of the pipe closely, even better would be the inclusion of

such a camera in the rear section as well, fascinating backwards travel and providing a

view, possibly of the robot itself so that mechanical difficulties or other issues can be

diagnosed.6. Finally it might be possible to enhance the mobility of the pipe crawler so that tees and

other fitting can be successfully negotiated – such improvements might consist of servo-

motors that can direct the head tail sections in order to initiate turns actively.

REFERENCE

1. from Wikipedia 2. http://www.iaarc.org/publications

3. http://ieeexplore.ieee.org/

4.

http://cdn.intechweb.org/

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