A pioneering robot developed by a Shenzhen-based institute recently conducted intelligent inspections of a bridge spanning the Yangtze River in Chongqing. This marks the first time in the world that a robot has climbed to the top of a cable tower along the main cable, as reported by Shenzhen Economic Daily.

“Climber,” the robot developed by the Shenzhen Institute of Artificial Intelligence and Robotics for Society (AIRS), uses the handrails of suspension bridges as its climbing medium. It alternates two groups of grippers to move forward. This latest iteration boasts enhanced performance and features a track-changing function with adjustable gripper spacing, allowing it to adapt to various suspension bridge cable systems. Its bionic crawling technology ensures safety, with grippers always securely holding the handrail to prevent falls.

Equipped with an array of visual sensors distributed in a ring pattern and an automatic distance adjustment feature, “Climber” can capture high-definition images of the main cable. During the bridge inspection, the robot identified defects such as loose or missing bolts and dents and successfully reached the top of the cable tower.

In addition to “Climber,” AIRS has developed the CCRobot-C for cable-stayed bridge inspections. The CCRobot-C excels in speed, load capacity, and obstacle-crossing performance, carrying various inspection instruments for multi-dimensional inspections of cables and hangers.