CCTV News: Chongtai Yangtze River Tunnel is a key control project for the newly built Shanghai-Nanjing section of the high-speed railway from Shanghai to Nanjing to Hefei. This tunnel is not only the world's first tunnel to achieve "no slowing down" in the high-speed rail crossing, but also the deepest tunnel excavated in the construction and under construction projects in the Yangtze River Basin. Behind the continuous record setting is the innovative research and development of intelligent excavators in my country. Next, let’s go to the scene to see how this “national heavy weapon” breaks through the many records of the deepest underwater, the longest single-headed excavation, and the most dangerous geology in China.

The "Pilot" consists of a cutter wheel, a main machine, a equipment bridge and a five-section trailer. The entire machine is about 135 meters long and the cutter wheel diameter reaches 15.4 meters, which is equivalent to the height of a five-story building. It is currently the world's largest diameter high-speed rail shield machine.

This is the command center of the "Pilot" shield machine - the shield cab, and above the cab is the Yangtze River, which is more than 60 meters deep. The various data that are jumping on the screen at this moment are feedbacking the current equipment excavation status in real time.

Not only has high construction requirements, but also high construction difficulty. Experts say that underwater digging is more like punching holes in a piece of tofu in mud, and it is necessary to ensure that the tofu does not dissipate. To this end, the staff specially designed this "Pilot" shield machine for Chongtai Yangtze River Tunnel. "Pilot" has a "smart brain", which integrates advanced technologies such as digital twins and simulation, integrated induction and control intelligent construction, and cloud computing. When this 5-story guy is excavating underwater, the system can summarize various data in real time and conduct big data computing power analysis to help the shield machine excavate complex and changeable strata underwater.

Intunnel intelligent construction technology drives China's infrastructure to a new height

With the "smart brain", the "Pilot" has the ability to analyze intelligently and make independent judgments. Therefore, in a tunnel that is as long as 14.25 kilometers, it can complete single-head excavation without any "help" and it is also the high-speed rail tunnel with the longest single-head excavation distance in the world. While breaking through geological problems, the "Pilot" also achieves millimeter-level excavation accuracy under manned and unmanned operation.

With the "smart brain", the "Pilot" not only has the excavation function of traditional shield machines, but also can synchronize the rear construction links. Through the intelligent control system installed, data from each link of construction is transmitted to the processor of the shield machine in real time, and then the rear equipment is directed to work together to form an interlocking intelligent construction chain.

The reporter saw at the construction site of Chongtai Yangtze River Tunnel that the intelligent system sent instructions to the pipe section lifting robot, realizing unmanned operation of the entire process from capture to transportation, and the lifting efficiency was 30% higher than traditional manual labor, completely getting rid of the dependence on manual experience. At the same time, the intelligent system also directs unmanned vehicles to carry out independent material transportation, forming a full-chain intelligent operation scenario of "front excavation, central assembly, and rear transportation", and achieving double breakthroughs in tunnel construction efficiency and safety.

After the tunnel is completed at the end of 2029, the high-speed railway will be "not slowed down without slowing down"

As the continuous excavation of the "Pilot" forward, the key control project of the Shanghai-Nanjing section of the high-speed railway from Shanghai to Nanjing to Hefei is steadily advancing. It is expected that after completion by the end of 2029, Chongming will only take 17 minutes to go to Shanghai Baoshan Station via Taicang, ending the history of Chongming Island without a high-speed rail.