CN117705835A - X-ray image generating method for detecting defect of object internal member - Google Patents

Abstract

An X-ray image generating method for detecting a defect of an object internal member. Comprising the following steps: a first step of acquiring an image by an image acquisition unit at a distal end portion of an X-ray imaging subject; a second step of discriminating a proximal end portion of the inner member from the acquired image; a third step of determining a second X-ray image capturing position based on the determined end position of the inner member; a fourth step of moving the moving body to the specified position to take an X-ray image and acquiring the image by the image acquisition unit; fifthly, judging the end part of the inner member in the near end part direction in the acquired image; a sixth step of determining a next X-ray photographing position based on the determined end position of the inner member; seventh, moving the moving body to the determined position to shoot an X-ray image and acquiring the image by an image acquisition part; eighth, it is determined whether the near-end portion of the subject is reached, and if the near-end portion of the subject is not reached, the process returns to the fifth step, and a plurality of images captured before the near-end portion of the subject is synthesized.

Description

X-ray image generating method for detecting defect of object internal member

Technical Field

The present invention relates to an X-ray image generation method for detecting a defect of an object internal member, and more particularly to an X-ray image generation method for detecting a defect of a lightning conductor inside a blade for wind power generation.

Background

As one of the environmental energy sources, the number of wind power generation is increasing. In order to generate electricity by wind power, huge blades rotate with wind, and rotational kinetic energy generated based on the rotational force passes through a generator to generate electricity.

The blades rotating in wind power generation are very long and large structures, and thus defects may occur in the structures during continuous rotation with the wind. However, on the ground, it is practically impossible to detect defects of the wind turbine blade located at a high position using a general defect detection method. The disassembly of wind power blades for defect inspection is also an economically very unreasonable method and therefore difficult to apply.

In order to solve such a problem, the applicant of the present application has patented a method of detecting a blade defect by moving an X-ray generating device by a moving body and transmitting X-rays to a wind power generation blade. (Korean patent No. 10-2399718; 2022, 5, 19 days)

In order to prevent lightning strike from damaging wind power generation equipment, lightning conductors are arranged on the wind power generation blades. More specifically, a lightning receiving portion is provided at the tip of a wind power generation blade, and lightning strike current is guided to a wind power generation tower by a lightning conductor extending in the blade to prevent a lightning strike disaster.

The rapid rotation of the blade may cause damage to the lightning conductor, and according to the method of the prior patent, the damage to the lightning conductor is detected during the defect detection process of photographing the entire blade, thus having the disadvantage of consuming a long time.

Disclosure of Invention

(technical problem to be solved)

The present invention provides a method for rapidly detecting breakage of an internal member of a certain shape provided in a structure like a lightning conductor.

(means for solving the problems)

The method of the present invention is an X-ray image generation method for detecting a defect in an object in an environment including an X-ray generating section provided in a moving object, an object having an internal member therein, and an image acquiring section for acquiring an X-ray image of the object, the method including the steps of: a first step of performing X-ray imaging of a distal end portion of an object, the image being acquired by an image acquisition unit; a second step of discriminating an end portion of the inner member in a proximal end portion direction from the image acquired in the first step; a third step of determining a second X-ray image capturing position based on the position of the end portion of the internal member determined in the second step; a fourth step of moving the moving body to the position determined in the third step, capturing an X-ray image and acquiring the image by the image acquisition section; fifth, judging the end of the inner member in the near end direction in the acquired image; a sixth step of determining a next X-ray photographing position based on the position of the end portion of the internal member determined in the fifth step; a seventh step of moving the moving body to the position determined in the sixth step, capturing an X-ray image, and acquiring the image by the image acquisition section; eighth, after the seventh, it is determined whether the near end of the object is reached, and if the near end of the object is not reached, the process returns to the fifth, and if the near end of the object is reached, a plurality of images captured before are synthesized.

The third step may be a step of dividing the X-ray image into a plurality of areas and determining a next X-ray image capturing position based on the divided areas of the end portion provided with the internal member.

The step of determining the next X-ray image capturing position may be a step of determining the next X-ray image capturing position with a proximal end portion including the inner member.

The method of the present invention can be performed by a computer program recorded in a computer-readable recording medium.

(effects of the invention)

The method provided by the invention can be used for rapidly detecting the damage or the injury of the internal components such as the lightning conductor and the like in the form of the metal wire arranged in the structure body.

Drawings

Fig. 1 shows an example of an environment in which the present invention is implemented.

Fig. 2 is a schematic view of a blade providing a lightning conductor.

Fig. 3 is a flowchart of the X-ray image generation method of the present invention.

Fig. 4 is a conceptual diagram for explaining an X-ray image generation method according to the present invention.

Fig. 5 shows an example of an X-ray image generated by the present invention.

Reference numerals

10: object (blade)

20: first moving device

30: second moving device

100: x-ray generating device

200: x-ray detector

Detailed Description

The present invention is described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

Only the minimum components required for the description of the present invention are described in the present specification, and no components irrelevant to the essence of the present invention are mentioned. Moreover, the exclusive meaning of only the elements mentioned should not be interpreted as including also non-exclusive meaning of other elements not mentioned.

The use of the first, second, or similar expressions in this description to distinguish between identical or similar components or between the various steps that make up the invention does not denote a sequence or a plurality.

In this specification, "or" should be defined as including at least a portion of the recited elements.

In this specification, "connected" includes a case where two members are directly connected, and also includes a case where they are connected by other members.

The method of the present invention may be performed by an electronic computing device such as a computer, tablet computer, mobile phone, portable computing device, stationary computing device, or the like. Also, one or more methods or aspects of the present invention are performed by at least one processor. The processor may be provided to a computer, tablet, mobile device, portable computing device, etc. A memory storing computer program commands is installed in such an apparatus, and a processor executes one or more programs described in the present specification by means of the specially programmed program commands. The information, the method, and the like described in the present specification can be executed by a computer, a tablet computer, a mobile device, a portable computing device, or the like including one or more additional components and a program. Also, the control logic may be embodied as a non-volatile computer readable medium containing program commands executable by a processor, a control section/control unit, or the like. Examples of computer readable media include, but are not limited to, ROM, RAM, CD-ROM, magnetic tape, floppy disk, flash memory, smart cards, optical data storage devices, and the like. Also, the computer-readable recording medium is dispersed on a computer connected through a network, and CAN be stored and executed in a dispersed manner, such as through a remote server or CAN (Controller Area Network: controller area network).

The exemplary embodiments described in this specification provide an overall understanding of the principles of the structure, function, manufacture, and use of the devices and methods disclosed in this specification. The figures illustrate more than one such embodiment. Those of ordinary skill in the art will understand that the devices and methods specifically described in the specification and illustrated in the accompanying drawings are non-limiting and exemplary embodiments and that the scope of the present invention is defined in the following patent claims. Features illustrated or described in connection with one exemplary embodiment may be combined with features of other embodiments. Such modifications or variations are intended to be included within the scope of the present invention.

Fig. 1 illustrates a basic environment for implementing the subject photographing position determination method of the present invention.

In the present specification, the case where the inspection object structure is a wind turbine blade is described as an example, but the inspection object structure, that is, the object is not limited to the wind turbine blade, and may be applied to determine whether or not there is a defect/breakage/damage of another member having a certain form or a connection state in the structure. For example, a stay cap (spar cap), shear web (shear web), or bonded state, etc.

The inspection object structure 1 includes a base 2 disposed at a sea level or a ground 400, a tower 3 supported by the base 2, a hub 5 as a center of a blade rotation axis, and blades 10 extending in a radiation direction from the hub 5.

The structure inspection system of the present invention includes: the X-ray generating device 100 is supported and moved by the first moving device 20, and can irradiate X-rays to the structure 1; an X-ray detector 200 (image acquisition unit) supported and moved by the second moving device 30, for detecting X-rays generated by the X-ray generating device 100 and transmitted through the structure 1, more specifically, the blade 10; the integrated system 300 receives information detected by the X-ray detector 200 and determines whether there is a defect.

Preferably, the basic specifications of the X-ray generating device 100 are not general industrial X-ray devices, but specifications of medical X-ray devices are adopted. Industrial X-ray devices are devices that use low power but are used for long-term inspection while transmitting thick objects, and therefore have the disadvantage of being relatively bulky and heavy, and are not suitable for movement by the movement device of the present invention. In contrast, in the medical X-ray apparatus, for the purpose of imaging living tissue, a high tube current is generated, and the volume of the high voltage generator is smaller than that of the industrial X-ray apparatus, which is advantageous for weight reduction.

The first and second moving devices 20 and 30 may employ a drone, or a stationary moving device, i.e., a rail system or a rocker camera (Jimmy Jib), in which the X-ray generating device 100 and the X-ray detector 200 are supported to move. Alternatively, the type of robot may be not limited, and the robot may be a robot that supports the X-ray generator 100 and the X-ray detector 200 and moves along the surface of the blade 10. The first and second moving devices 20 and 30, the X-ray generating device 100, and the X-ray detector 200 may be plural.

The integrated system 300 includes a communication unit 310, a control unit 320, an inspection record storage and image display unit 330, and a defect determination unit 340. The components of the integrated system 300 are functionally differentiated for ease of illustration, but may in fact be software on a single piece of hardware, or another cloud system, the individual components may be physically separate or integral. And, the components of the integrated system 300 shown in fig. 1 may be further subdivided in terms of functionality. For example, the control unit 320 may be subdivided into a mobile device control unit and an X-ray generation device control unit.

The communication unit 310 performs data communication with the first mobile device 20, the second mobile device 30, the X-ray generation device 100, and the detector 200. The data communication is preferably wireless communication, but wired communication may also be employed.

The control unit 320 functions to control the operations of the first moving device 20, the second moving device 30, the X-ray generating device 100, and the detector 200, and performs a plurality of steps of the present invention described below. In addition to the control unit 320, another image analysis unit or the like may be provided to perform image analysis or the like in the method of the present invention.

The examination record storage and image display unit 330 performs a function of storing information received from the X-ray detector 200 by the communication unit 310 and displaying a captured image.

The defect determination unit 340 functions to determine a defect of the structure based on the captured image. Image-based structure defect discrimination may be performed through artificial intelligence learning.

Fig. 2 shows a schematic view of a blade 10 providing a lightning conductor 50. In the present specification, for convenience of explanation, a wind turbine blade and a lightning conductor are described as examples, but the present invention is applicable to an object in which the lightning conductor or an extension member in the structure may be damaged or damaged.

The lightning conductor 50 extends from the distal end to the proximal end of the blade 10. The proximal end portion in the present specification means an end portion connected to the hub 5 in the example of the wind turbine blade 10, and the distal end portion means an opposite blade end portion of the proximal end portion.

Fig. 3 shows a flow chart of the X-ray image generation method of the present invention.

First, in step 31, the first moving device 20 moves the X-ray generating device 100 to the distal end portion of the blade 10 to perform X-ray imaging, and the X-ray detector 200 acquires an imaging image. The first imaging region 40-1 imaged in step 31 is a region including a lightning receiving portion provided at the distal end portion. The first photographing region 40-1 photographs the first lightning conductor 50-1.

In step 32, the image captured in the first imaging region 40-1 is analyzed to determine the proximal end portion of the first lightning conductor 50-1. Referring to fig. 4, the first lightning conductor 50-1 extends from a distal end side, i.e., a right side, to a proximal end side, i.e., a left side, and a proximal end portion of the first lightning conductor 50-1 represents a left end portion.

The X-ray photographing region may be divided into four parts to discriminate the position of the end of the lightning conductor. In the present specification, the division into four parts is described for convenience of explanation, but as long as a position is specified in an X-ray imaging region, a division or coordinate setting method of various methods may be employed. Alternatively, the position of the end of the lightning conductor may be determined without dividing the imaging area.

The next X-ray photographing position is determined with the arrangement area including the proximal end portion of the first lightning conductor 50-1 within the first photographing area 40-1 shown in fig. 4 (step 33). According to an embodiment of the present invention, the second photographing region 40-2 is determined with the proximal end portion of the first lightning conductor 50-1 included below the right side of the second photographing region 40-2, and the first moving device 20 is controlled to move the position of the X-ray generating device 100 to photograph the second photographing region 40-2, and the X-ray photographing is performed on the second photographing region 40-2 (step 34).

In step 35, it is determined whether or not the near-end portion of the subject has been reached. When the near end is not reached, the process returns to step 32, and the near end of the second lightning conductor 50-2 provided in the second imaging region 40-2 is determined. The second lightning conductor 50-2 is extended from the right side to the left side, i.e., the proximal end side, in succession to the first lightning conductor 50-1 in the second photographing region 40-2. The next X-ray photographing position is determined to include the proximal end portion of the second lightning conductor 50-2, and the third photographing region 40-3 is determined to include the proximal end portion of the second lightning conductor 50-2. The first moving device 20 is controlled to move so that the X-ray generating device 100 can image the third imaging region 40-3, X-ray imaging is performed (step 34), the process proceeds to step 35, and the above-described process is repeated until the proximal end portion of the subject is reached. Through this process, an X-ray taken image of a plurality of lightning conductors is acquired along the extension direction of the lightning conductors.

In step 35, when it is determined that the near-end portion of the subject has been reached, the X-ray imaging and the image analysis are completed (step 36), and a plurality of previously imaged X-ray images are synthesized and visualized (step 37). Fig. 5 shows an example of the synthesized lightning image.

From the right side of fig. 5, it can be confirmed that the corresponding portion of the lightning conductor is broken.

The method of the present invention has the effect that the lightning conductor is photographed and synthesized by dividing the photographing region, and whether the lightning conductor is damaged or broken can be judged very quickly without photographing the whole of the subject.

Claims (1)

1. An X-ray image generating method for detecting a defect of an object internal member in an environment including an X-ray generating section provided in a moving body, an object having an internal member therein, and an image acquiring section that acquires an X-ray image of the object, the method comprising the steps of:

a first step of performing X-ray photographing on a distal end portion of a subject;

a second step of discriminating an end portion of the inner member in a proximal end portion direction from the image acquired in the first step;

a third step of determining a next X-ray image capturing position based on the position of the end portion of the internal member determined in the second step;

a fourth step of moving the moving body to the position determined in the third step and capturing an X-ray image;

fifth, after the fourth, it is determined whether the near end of the object is reached.