Devices and methods for repairing pipes

1. A pipe repair device for repairing a leak in a pipe comprising:

a body;

a sensor attached to the body for detecting the leak in the pipe;

a transport mechanism attached to the body for transporting the pipe repair device along the pipe;

a repair mechanism comprising a stent reconfigurable between a compressed orientation and an expanded orientation, the stent comprising a spring and a seal, the seal comprising a repair material for repairing the leak, the spring biasing the stent to the expanded orientation; and

a power supply and a motor, a tether connecting the power supply to the motor, the power supply supplying power to the motor.

2. The pipe repair device of claim 1 , wherein the transport mechanism comprises at least one of a continuous track and a wheel.

3. The pipe repair device of claim 1 , wherein the transport mechanism comprises a continuous track, the continuous track biased outward from the body by a hydraulic cylinder.

4. The pipe repair device of claim 1 , wherein the sensor is selected from one of an image sensor and an acoustic microphone.

5. The pipe repair device of claim 1 , further comprising a resurfacing mechanism for resurfacing an inner surface of the pipe.

6. The pipe repair device of claim 1 , wherein the repair material comprises one of metal, liquid-phase epoxy, epoxy putty, cyanoacrylate, concrete, cement, resin, natural rubber, synthetic rubber, foam, and silicone.

7. The pipe repair device of claim 1 , wherein the repair material is a NSF/ANSI 61 certified material.

8. The pipe repair device of claim 1 , further comprising a control module for providing control instructions to the pipe repair device.

9. A method for repairing a pipeline comprising:

inserting a pipe repair device into the pipeline, the pipe repair device comprising a stent, the stent comprising a spring and a sealing layer wrapped around a circumference of the spring;

detecting a leak at a leak region in the pipeline;

transporting the pipe repair device through the pipeline to the leak region;

expanding the stent from a compressed configuration to an expanded configuration; and

biasing the spring against the sealing layer to press the sealing layer against the leak.

10. The method of claim 9 , wherein the steps of detecting a leak at a leak region in the pipeline and transporting the pipe repair device through the pipeline to the leak region are performed concurrently.

11. The method of claim 9 , wherein transporting the pipe repair device through the pipeline to the leak region comprises supplying power to a motor of the pipe repair device and driving a transport mechanism of the pipe repair device with the motor.

12. The method of claim 9 , further comprising the step of preparing the leak region.

13. The method of claim 9 , further comprising the step of evaluating the repaired leak.

14. A method for repairing a pipe comprising:

isolating a controlled volume around a leak region of the pipe, wherein isolating the controlled volume around the leak region of the pipe comprises pressing a flexible cap against an inner surface of the pipe;

creating a fluid impermeable seal around the controlled volume; and

inserting repair material into the controlled volume.

15. The method of claim 14 , wherein inserting repair material into the controlled volume comprises pumping epoxy reagents into the controlled volume through an orifice in the flexible cap.

16. The method of claim 9 , wherein the spring comprises a metal wire.

17. The method of claim 16 , wherein the metal wire defines a wave pattern.