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Glossary of Terms

360° Scanner - an inspection system that uses two fish-eyed cameras that work together to produce a 360° field of view.

ADC - Analog to Digital Converter

Analog - is any continuous signal l for which the time varying feature (variable) of the signal is a representation of some other time varying quantity, i.e analogous to another time varying signal like an electrical current.. It differs from a digital signal in that small fluctuations in the signal are meaningful. Analog is usually thought of in an electrical context.  In inspections, CCTV cameras transmit data back to the technician via a coax cable and a UHF signal. 

Automatic Tilt Control - (ATC)/anti-tilt control: a feature on IBAK inspection crawlers where the dual motors are connected to a level, enabling the crawler to automatically adjust its position in the pipe, preventing the crawler from capsizing. 

Asset Management - managing infrastructure capital assets to minimize the total cost of owning and operation, while delivering adequate customer service levels.. It is practiced in large and small cities and sewer collection systems.

Broken Pipe - according to NASSCO, broken pipe refers to pipe where pieces are noteably displaced and have moved from their original position. 

Borehole - A borehole is a general term for any narrow shaft drilled into the ground, either vertically or horizontally. A borehole may be constructed for extraction of water or other liquid matter like petroleum or for natural gas, or as part of geotechnical investigations or environmental site assessment for mineral explorationor for installing piers or underground utilities.

Borescope - A general term for a small diameter optical tool used to inspect areas with very small access points such as turbines, tubing, pipes and engines. Borescopes allow inspections without disassembling or damaging the item being inspected. Borescopes includes rigid borescopes, fiberscopes which are also called flexible borescopes, and videoscopes. This terms is also used to describe a "rigid borescope": a small diameter inspection tool with a rigid insertion tube and an eye piece on one end.  Rigid borescopes are low cost, simple to use and portable. See introductory video on rigid borescopes.

Bulb - the glass, quartz, or sapphire envelope surrounding the filament of a lamp.

Cable - a flexible connection between (usually) a tractor and the tractor controlunit on the surface.  It is used to carry electrical power and camera signals.  It consists of a central bunch of conductors surrounded by a jacket of black polyurethane.  Special precautions are taken to prevent kinking.  Some cables have waterlocking.  Some have internal protective sheaths made of Kevlar or steel mesh.  Some have external armoring.

Camera Hose Connector - the flexible union between the rod or cable and the camera assembly.  It consists of a strong rubber hose protected by an external spring through which wires carrying electric power and camera signals are passed.  The end which connects to the rod uses a slipring.  The which connects to the camera uses pogos.

CCD - Charge-Coupled Device -  A type of micro chip.  It is used in the camera for converting light into electrical signals.  In other words it’s the device which produces the image you see on the monitor. 

CCTV - an acronym for Closed Circuit TeleVision where signals are distributed over cables rather than broadcast by radio.

CCTV Truck/Camera Truck -a truck or large vehicle (Sprinter, Grumman-Olsen, or E350) with a generator that contains a mounted cable reel, a rear work area for an operator, and a mobile office.  From the CCTV truck, large-scale pipe inspection projects can be completed with pipe reports and camera operation conducted in real-time.

Coiler - Device used to store and dispense rod, such as on a push camera.

Color Bars - A test picture for television systems consisting of vertical bars of particular colors.

 

CMOM - Capacity, Management, Operations, and Maintenance, CMOM is a set of EPA standards and guidelines designed to help collections system management personnel conform to EPA mandates.

Collections System - the series of sewer laterals, gravity mainline pipes, manholes, lift stations, and interceptor pipes that transmit wastewater to a treatment facility.  

Combined Sewer - A sewer that conveys both wastewater and storm water through the same pipes

Combined Sewer Overflow (CSO) - (see also: Sanitary Sewer Overflow), a condition whereby untreated sewage is discharged into the environment prior to reaching treatment facilities thereby escaping watewater treatment. When it occurs during times of heavy precipitation it is also known as wet weather overflow. 

Combo Unit -commonly called a “cleaner” truck, this is a vehicle that can jet high pressure water into a pipe.  It also has a large vacuum used for removing debris from the pipe

Corona Discharge - an electrical discharge which causes ionization of the nearby air and results in the conduction of electricity. Corona Cameras are used to inspect for this phenomenon so that repairs can be done before high voltage electrical components degrade, become damaged, and/or unplanned outages occur.

Crack -  structural defect in a pipe where there’s a visible line that could potentially become worse.  However, according to NASSCO a crack does not contain a visible opening and all pieces of the pipe are still in place.

Crawler - see Tractor

CRT - Abbreviation for Cathode Ray Tube, sometimes just called “tube.”  The device in the CCU which displays television pictures.  In some applications is being replaced by the LCD

Deflection of a Pipe -when a pipe changes direction at a joint connection, the amount and angle of deviation is called “deflection.” 

Digital - uses discrete and discontinuous values (usually Binary Code) to represent information for input, processing, transmission, and storage. 

 

Drainage - A natural or human-induced removal of surface and subsurface water or wastewater from an area, usually towards a specific location such as a waterway outfall or a water treatment facility.

Drum - Device used to store and dispense cable

DVD - also known as "Digital Versatile Disc" or "Digital Video Disc," is an optical disc storage format for media such as video, computer programs, pictures, and/or music.

EPA Consent Decree -is a judicial decree expressing a voluntary agreement between parties to a suit , usually an agreement by a defendant to stop activities alleged by the government to be illegal in return for an end to the charges .  For example, the EPAEPAEPA might want an entity to clean up a site containing hazardous materials, and may have difficulty obtaining cooperation from the entity, without a suit.

Equalization - The process of correcting the television signal from the camera to compensate for the losses introduced by the rod or cable.

Feedwater Heater -is a power plant component used to pre-heat water delivered to a steam generating boiler  Preheating the feedwater improves the thermodynamic efficiency tof the system.  In inspection, the chill rings or joints inside the feedwater heater are of interest as they can corrode over time. 

Fiberscope - A fiberscope, also called a flexible borescope, is a small diameter optical tool with a flexible insertion tube used to inspect areas that would other wise be inaccessible without disassembling or causing some destruction to the item being inspected. Fiberscopes are a low cost, simple to use and portable option for remote visual inspection.

Fish-Eyed Lens -a special camera lens that protrudes outward with a very large field of view (usually 185° or more). 

Flameproof -   the place where corresponding surfaces of two parts of an enclosure come together and prevent the transmission of an internal explosion to the explosive atmosphere surrounding the enclosure.

Fracture - according to NASSCO, a fracture is a crack in a pipe that has become visibly open although the sections of the pipe wall are still in place and not able to move. 

GIS - A geographic information system (GIS), or geographical information system, captures, stores, analyzes, manages, and presents data that is linked to location on a map.

GPS - Global Positioning System.  In pipe inspection it can be a valuable tool for determining the exact location of assets such as pipes and manholes.

Grouting - a construction material used in pipe rehabilitation for filling voids, sealing joints and fractures.  The grout is a mixture similar to mortar which is applied as a thick liquid and then hardens over time.

Halogen Illumination -is an incandescent lamp in which a tungsten filament is sealed into a compact transparent envelope filled with an inert gas.  Halogen lights are sometimes still used on inspection cameras.  They do produce a lot of heat and have generally been replaced by LED lights. 

Inclinometer - an instrument for measuring angles of slope(or tilt), elevation or inclination of an object with respect to gravity.  An inclinometers measure both inclines (positive slopes, as seen by an observer looking upwards) and declines (negative slopes, as seen by an observer looking downward). In inspection it can be useful for determining grade of a pipe and for analyzing the potential for hydraulic problems. 

Infiltration and Inflow - the occurrence of groundwater and storm water entering the sewer system. Often abbreviated as I/I.

Infrared Camera - An infrared camera is a type of inspection camera that uses electromagnetic energy from the infrared light spectrum to create an image from the the variations in temperature coming from the object being inspected. See Infrared Camera Video Tutorial

Infrared Inspection Window - A type of hardware installed and used as an inspection point which allows infrared inspections of energized electrical components to be conducted without putting thermography inspectors at increased risk for arc flash.

Interceptor Pipe - see “trunk sewer.”

Internal Pressure Sensor - a feature on high quality pipe inspections systems that are designed to be submersible, an internal pressure sensor will alert the operator if positive internal pressure (usually between 0.4 and 1 bar) has been lost and the electronics are at risk of being damaged by water ingress.

Jetter Unit - a jetter uses high pressure water shot from a nozzle at the end of a hose to clean pipes. 

Kevlar - a light, strong synthetic fiber. The fiber is used in woven rope and in cable, where the fibers are kept parallel within a polyethylene sleeve.  Kevlar is also widely used as a protective outer sheath for optical fiber cable, as its strength protects the cable from damage and kinking. In robotic pipe inspection, Kevlar is used by some manufacturers to construct cables with break strength up to 2,000 PSI. 

Lamp - Device for converting electrical energy into light.  Not a bulb.

LADAR - also called LIDAR (Light Detection and Ranging) is an optical remote sensing technology which measures properties of scattered light to find a range and/or other geometric information of a distant target. The prevalent method to determine distance to an object or surface is to use laser pulses. The acronym LADAR (Laser Detection and Ranging) is often used in military contexts

Laser Profiling - through the use of a projected light ring (laser) in front of a CCTV camera, a detailed profile of the pipe can be generated, for analysis of shape, ovality, corrosion loss, and liner thickness.

Lateral Launch - the act of deploying a secondary inspection camera into a lateral pipe connection from a self-propelled transporter from inside a mainline pipe.  Lateral launch is conducted when access to the lateral pipe from above ground is either impossible or cost prohibitive. 

LCD -   Acronym for Liquid Crystal Display.  Used as an alternative to CRT for displaying television pictures.  LCD displays are smaller, lighter, more rugged and consume less power than CRT.  However, they don’t have as good of resolution and are more expensive.

LED Illumination - LED stands for “light emitting diode.”  LEDs present many advantages over traditional light sources such as Halogen, including lower energy consumption, longer lifetime, improved robustness, smaller size and faster switching.

Lift Station - Also known as a pump station, a lift station contains pumps that raise wastewater to a higher location where it can then flow towards the treatment plant via gravity force.  Lift stations are useful for transmitting wastewater across long distances and accommodating topographical changes. 

Lighthead - an assembly used to provide lighting for the camera.  The camera may be mounted coaxially inside the lighthead or the lighthead may be mounted onto a tractor.  Some special purpose cameras have lightheads actually built into the camera.

Link cable - a short length of cable used to connect the CCU to the coiler or drum.

Locator - a portable radio receiver used for receiving and tracking transmissions from a sonde.  Used for tracing utility lines and for locating particular spots in a pipe from above ground, for more accurate and effective excavation. 

Mainline Sewer - the sewer line, usually under the street, that conveys wastewater from houses and businesses to the treatment plant.  Manholes are located at each mainline sewer connection, direction change, and significant grade changes.  Most mainline sewers convey wastewater through gravity force, but many cities also have special “trunk” or “interceptor” pipes which pressurize wastewater for conveyance over long distances and/or large grade changes.

Manhole - the top opening to an underground utility vault which is used as an access point for making connections or performing maintenance and inspection on underground and buried public utilities including wastewater, telecommunication, electricity, strom drains and gas.

MPEG Compression - A video compression scheme originally conceived as the "moving video" equivalent of the still image compression scheme called JPEG.  MPEG compression allows for storage and viewing of movie files that would otherwise have to be stored as VHS tapes and/or film, and is currently the most efficient way to store movie files on a computer.  When a video file is compressed into MPEG format, some of its resolution and image quality is lost in order for it to be efficiently stored.

Multi-Sensor Inspection - data collection for pipe surveys that goes beyond CCTV visual inspection and often includes sonar sediment and debris observation, H2S gas detection, inclination, GPS mapping, and laser profiling.

NFPA 70E - Is a standard for electrical safety and addresses installation, maintenance, inspection, and repair of electrical systems. NFPA 70E has developed guidelines to guard against injury and death from the hazards of working with energized electrical equipment, particularly arc flash, and includes directives for the levels of protective clothing to be worn.

NASSCO - National Association of Sewer Service Companies.

NTSC - Acronym for National Television System Committee.  A standard for the transmission of color television signals, used principally in North America.

“O” Ring - a seamless plastic or rubber ring used to seal joints against the ingress of liquids.

Off-set Joint: according to NASSCO, joint offset describes a pipe where the spigot is not concentric with the socket or bell of the adjacent pipe section. 

Ovality of a Pipe -   ovality of a pipe relates to the analysis of the shape of a pipe and whether it conforms to or deviates from its original design

PACP - Pipeline Assessment Certification Program; a system of accurately and consistently reporting on and rating the condition of a surveyed pipe.

PAL - Acronym for Phase Alteration by Line.  A standard for the transmission of color television signals.  Used mainly in Europe (excluding France).

Pan and Tilt Camera – This is a camera that has motors enabling a remote user to change the direction that the camera points while it is inside a pipeline or a vessel. The tilt feature allows the camera to turn and “look” side to side while “pan” allows the camera to spin 360 degrees. This allows users to see the entire insides of the object they are inspecting.

Pan, Tilt and Zoom Camera – also known as a PTZ camera. This camera provides the same functionality of the pan and tilt cameras with the addition of zoom capability. Also some cameras offer a measurement capability by providing two lasers which project in to space to give a know separation in the image so that a user can make relative measurements.

Penstock: a sluice or gateor intake structure that controls water flow, or an enclosed pipe that delivers water to hydraulic turbines an sewerage systems. It is a term that has been inherited from the technology of wooden watermills.

Pipe Camera – also known as a push camera, this type of system typically uses a camera head in the 1”-3” outside diameter with LED illumination. These systems are forward looking and are inserted by a semi rigid push rod. Push rods can vary in stiffness and size depending on the needs of the user. These cameras are relatively low in cost and good for rugged applications like sewer line, water lines, HVAC, etc.

Pipe Line Robotic Camera – also known as a pipe line crawler or pipe crawler. These systems are either track or wheel driven and typically have a straight view, pan and tilt, or pan, tilt and zoom camera for visually inspecting the insides of pipe lines. These systems include a control cable which enable the remote steering, camera control, and for the video signal to come back to the user. See video tutorial: Video Pipe Inspection Crawler Tutorial

Pipe Relining: This is a method of repairing failing or damaged pipes with minimal open-cut excavation.  Typically in pipe relining, a soft liner is installed (by dragging or air pressure) throughout the damaged section of pipe (sitting inside the old pipe) and then cured until it hardens. There are various methods and types of materials for pipe relining, as well for curing the pipe. 

Pogo - a spring-loaded electrical contact.  Used to conduct electricity through removable or rotating assemblies.

Pole Mounted Camera - a remote visual camera, usually with pan, tilt, and zoom capabilities that is attached to a rigid pole. Pole mounted cameras usually come with extension capabilities that enable inspection of manholes and larger vessels such as storage tanks or maintenance vaults.

Potable Water - water that has been treated to the point where it is fit for human consumption.   

Pressure- is the force per unit area applied in a direction perpendicular to the surface of an object.  In regards to inspection equipment, it is usually described in Pounds Per Square Inch (PSI), bar, or atmospheres (atm). 

Pressure - is the force per unit area applied in a direction perpendicular to the surface of an object.  In regards to inspection equipment, it is usually described in Pounds Per Square Inch (PSI), bar, or atmospheres (atm). 

Proactive Inspections - this describes when an inspection is conducted for the purpose of gaining knowledge of the condition of an asset before problems emerge.  Proactive inspections are for predicting when maintenance will be necessary

Process Pipe -   In an industrial facility, the function of a process pipe is to convey the materials used for the manufacturing processes.

Pump Station - see “lift station.”

Push Camera – also known as a pipe camera, this type of system typically uses a camera head in the 1”-3” outside diameter with LED illumination. These systems forward looking and are inserted by a semi rigid push rod. Push rods can vary in stiffness and size depending on the needs of the user. These cameras are relatively low in cost and good for rugged applications like sewer line, water lines, HVAC, etc. See video tutorial What is a Push Camera

Quartz-Iodine (QI) -   used to describe a type of lame.  It has a tungsten filament just like a tungsten lamp but the introduction of a small amount of iodine inside the bulb allows the filament to operate at a higher temperature than would otherwise be possible.  The efficiency is thereby greatly increased.  Because of the increased temperature of operation the bulb is made from quartz glass as ordinary glass would melt.

Reactive Inspections - when a problem or emergency has occurred and the owner of the asset wants to determine the cause of the problem through remote visual inspection. 

Re-termination – Pipe cameras and push cameras mount on the end of a semi rigid push rod. This push rod typically has multiple wires internally that power the system and brings the video signals back to a base unit. Commonly a push camera can be roughly pushed or slammed through a line. In some cases there will be enough resistance from objects in the pipeline to kink the push rod and damage one of the wired connections. This typically happens near where the camera head “terminates” to the push rod. This is a simple repair where the push rod is cut below the damaged portion and the camera head is “re-terminated” to the push rod. See retermination repair

Robotic tractor - also called a “crawler” or “transporter,” it propels the camera down the pipe and is connected to the command module or truck via a tether which transmits pictures from the camera and powers the tractor. 

Rod - also called “push rod” is used to connect the camera t the CCU and to push/pull the camera in a  pipe.  It is semi-rigid and can therefore go around corners.  It is strong enough to allow over 100’ to be pushed into a pipe.  Usually the rod consists of a central bunch of conductors (for carrying electrical power and video) inside a fiberglass tube.  The tube is covered by an outer layer of polypropylene or polyurethane.

RS-232 - A standard for transmission of serial digital data.

Sanitary Sewer Overflow (SSO) - a condition whereby untreated sewage is discharged into the environment prior to reaching treatment facilities thereby escaping watewater treatment. When caused by rainfall it is also known as wet weather overflow.

Scatterplot Profile - the representation of geometric data on a vertical shaft generated through the use of optical triangulation (by analyzing contrast variance on photographed objects), represented by a dot in a 3D space.  A scatterplot profile consists of thousands of these dots and is used by the Panoramo SI 3D OptoScanner.

Sewer Inspection Camera - A sewer inspection camera is a push camera or robotic pipe crawler used to inspect manholes and sewer lines.

Shaft Inspection - the act of inspecting a vertical apparatus, hole, or structure such as a borehole, manhole, well, mine shaft etc.

Side Sewer -also called a “lateral,” this pipe conveys wastewater from a residential or commercial building into the mainline sewer underneath the street.  In most US cities, the property owner is responsible for most or all of the side sewer, and the City is responsible for the mainline sewer and the side sewer connection. See also Seattle Side Sewer Inspections 

Side-wall Scanner - a type of inspection system that uses a fish-eyed lens to capture a much larger field of view than a regular pan & tilt camera, which enables the user to look at an unfolded, flat view of the pipe.

Skids - Used primarily to protect cameras and lightheads when they are being pushed or pulled along a pipe.  They are also used to position the camera on, or close to, the center line of the pipe.  Skids can be made from a variety of materials.  Brushes can be used as skids.   

Slipring - a device used for connecting electrical signals to a rotating component.  Pearpoint sliprings use a set of concentric metal rings on the rotating part which are in contact with a set of pogos on a fixed part.

Sonar - Sonar (originally an acronym for sound navigation and ranging) is a technique that uses sound waves (usually underwater) to naviate, communicate with or detect other vessels or objects. There are two kinds of sonar: active and passive. Sonar may be used as a means of acoustic location and of measurement of the echo characteristics of "targets" in the water.  In pipe inspection, Sonar is used to determine the shape of a pipe with heavy flow, debris levels, and can find major defects, such as broken pipe or large voids.  For pipes with heavy or capacity-level flow, Sonar is one of the only methods of data collection currently available.    

Sonde -   A radio transmitter used for radio location purposes.  It must be used in conjunction with a locator.  Many locators can determine signal depth in addition to location. 

Spot Repair/Point Repair - when only a small section of a pipe is damaged, it can be more cost effective to repair just that spot as opposed to replacing the pipe or relining the entire section.  Typically the point repair material used is an inflatable packer that seals off voids and points of infiltration. 

Storm water - rain and storm runoff from streets and buildings.

Strain-relief - a support design where the cabling meets the connector or plug that allows flexibility in the cable without putting stress on that vulnerable point in the cord.  Often overlooked is the fact that where the strain relief attaches to the cable is in itself a vulnerable point, concentrating force and movement on a single point on the cable, necessitating constant repair and re-termination. 

Tow Bond - a multi-stranged flexible steel cable, used for pulling cameras mounted on metal skids through pipes.  Also used to make cable straing releifs. 

Tractor - also called a crawler.  A motorized vehicle used to carry a lighthead and camera into a pipe with variable speed motors and can be driven backwards and forwards.  More advanced crawlers use dual motors for zero-radius skid turns, remote operated scissor lifts for adjusting camera height while in the pipe, and Automatic Tilt Control (ATC) for preventing the tractor from flipping by automatically adjusting position while moving in the pipe.

Trenchless Technology - subsurface construction works where minimal open-cut excavation is required. It is a rapidly growing field in the construction and civil engineering industries.

Videoscope - Videoscopes are small diameter optical devices that enable users to visually inspect remote areas that would otherwise not be accessible without machine disassembly or destruction.  Videoscopes are flexible and typically have distal tip articulation.  Videoscopes utilize a video chip display for viewing and image capture.  A typical system will include a high intensity light source, videoscope, optical tip adapters, high resolution monitor and image capture. See video tutorial: What is a videoscope.

Wastewater Treatment - the act of taking wastewater and removing harmful bacteria before releasing into a waterway. 

Waterblocking -   a method used to prevent water ingress into cables if the outer jacket is accidentally penetrated.  Ingress of water must be prevented because the water travels down the inside of the cable and enters the equipment.  Silicon rubber is often used to fill the spaces between the individual conductors.  The trade off is that the cable is heavier and more expensive than non waterblocked cable. 

Xenon Illumination - Xenon flash lamps are commonly used in flash photography and strobe lighting, because it produces a short and intense burst of light ideal for still photographs.  Xenon lights are used on the Panoramo Optical Scanner.

XRF Analyzer - XRF (x-ray fluorescence) analyzers provide positive identification of samples at their elemental level and are used for test and identification of mining samples, consumer goods, soil and environmental sampling and analysis, and to identify the make up of many metals and alloys. Learn more about XRF Analyzers. See video tutorial: Niton XL3T XRF Analyzer Tutorial.

Zero-radius skid turn - a method of steering through braking or engaging tracks or wheels on one side of a vehicle. Pivot steering another term related to this and it describes when a vehicle changes direction while staying in the same place without going through any distance in forward or reverse direction, such as a Bobcat or “Skid Loader.”  In inspection, this can be a very useful way for a robotic crawler to navigate through pipe bends or around obstacles.