JP2024500287A - System and method for evaluating defects in materials - Google Patents

Abstract

The present disclosure provides systems and methods for real-time visualization of materials during ultrasonic non-destructive testing. The system includes a graphical user interface (GUI) that can show a three-dimensional (3D) image of a composite laminate constructed from a series of two-dimensional (2D) cross-sections. The GUI can display 3D images as each additional 2D cross-section is scanned by the ultrasonic testing equipment in real-time or near real-time, and the 3D images identify holes, cracks, wrinkles, or foreign objects within the composite material. Contains possible defect areas, including defects such as. Additionally, in one embodiment, the system can highlight defective areas in the 3D image in real time or near real time and provide data about each defective area, such as the depth, size, and/or type of each defect. Including artificial intelligence that can. [Selection diagram] Figure 1

Description

(Related application)
This application is related to and claims priority to the following U.S. patent applications: This application claims priority to U.S. Patent Application No. 17/188,559, filed March 1, 2021. U.S. Patent Application No. 17/188,559 is a continuation in part of U.S. Patent Application No. 17/184,061, filed February 24, 2021. U.S. Patent Application No. 17/184,061 is a continuation-in-part of U.S. Patent Application No. 17/172,723, filed February 10, 2021. U.S. Patent Application No. 17/172,723 is a continuation in part of U.S. Patent Application No. 17/149,320, filed on January 14, 2021. U.S. Patent Application No. 17/149,320 is a continuation in part of U.S. Patent Application No. 17/148,205, filed on January 13, 2021. U.S. Patent Application No. 17/148,205 is a continuation-in-part of U.S. Patent Application No. 17/123,970, filed on December 16, 2020. U.S. Patent Application No. 17/123,970 is a continuation-in-part of U.S. Patent Application No. 17/122,410, filed on December 15, 2020. U.S. Patent Application No. 17/122,410 is a continuation-in-part of U.S. Patent Application No. 17/108,472, filed on December 1, 2020. U.S. Patent Application No. 17/108,472 is a continuation in part of U.S. Patent Application No. 17/091,774, filed on November 6, 2020. U.S. Patent Application No. 17/091,774 claims priority from U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 63/001,608, filed March 30, 2020. Each of the above-mentioned applications is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

(1. Field of invention)
TECHNICAL FIELD This disclosure relates to the field of non-destructive testing and inspection, and more particularly to systems and methods for visualizing defects in structures during non-destructive testing.

(2. Explanation of related technology)
Non-destructive testing (NDT), also known as non-destructive evaluation (NDE) or non-destructive inspection (NDI), generally involves testing because the method does not render the material or component unfit for its intended purpose. , has gained popularity when testing materials and parts for larger machines. Conventional methods of NDT include those based on ultrasound and thermographic techniques, as well as the use of eddy currents, radiation (including gamma rays, x-rays, and microwaves), magnetic particle testing, dye penetrant testing, and the like. Traditionally, NDT has been used to detect surface defects in materials, detect delamination between different layers of a material, or indicate the presence of other defects within a material.

Prior art patent documents include:

Transforming A-scan data samples into a three-dimensional space for facilitating vis by inventor Ratering, filed on January 24, 2013, published on December 8, 2015 U.S. Patent No. 9,207 for qualization of flowers , 639 is directed to visualizing one-dimensional A-scan data samples in three-dimensional space. Each data sample represents an ultrasound signal received from the test material. The data sample is transformed into three-dimensional space as a geometric shape corresponding to the relative amount of ultrasound energy reflected back from the test material. Data samples transformed into three-dimensional space with rendered geometric shapes may be displayed.

Non-destructive testing, in particular for pipes during manufacturing or in the finish, filed on June 25, 2007, published on September 11, 2012, by inventor Bisiaux et al. U.S. Patent No. 8,265 for ed state , 886 is directed to and provides a non-destructive testing device for pipes. The device extracts information about the defect from the signal captured by the ultrasound receiver following selective excitation of the ultrasound transmitter according to a selected time rule. The receiver forms an arrangement with a selected geometry coupled to the pipe with relative rotation/translation in an ultrasonic manner. The device includes a converter that selectively isolates a digital representation of the echo in a specified time window by extracting an image of the defect as a function of movement, and a filter that determines the estimated defect zone and its characteristics. , a combiner for preparing a working digital input from the extraction of an image of a defective zone, a neural circuit for receiving the working input, a digital decision and alarm stage acting on the output of the neural circuit, and a sorting and marking robot.

U.S. Patent No. 9,121,817, filed on July 9, 2012, and issued on September 1, 2015, by inventors Roach et al., for Ultrasonic testing device having an adjustable water column, discloses a variable fluid column. An ultrasonic testing device is disclosed having a height of . The operator can adjust the height of the fluid column in real time during the examination to create optimal ultrasound focus and separate extraneous, unwanted UT signals from signals originating from the region of interest.

No. 10,302,600, filed on January 19, 2016, and issued on May 28, 2019, by inventor Palmer et al. and a transducer disposed in a rear chamber of a housing. The housing has at least one fluid channel defined within the housing and extending along at least a portion of the aft chamber. At least one fluid channel is configured to supply fluid to a forward chamber of the housing proximate the transducer. A related method includes operating a testing device.

Apparatus and method for bondtesting by ultrasonic complex impedance plane analysis by inventor Botsco et al., filed on November 14, 1978, published on August 5, 1980 Patent No. 4,215,583 is A non-destructive bonding test device that utilizes impedance changes represented by both the phase and amplitude of the response of a signal vector of a sonic energy generating and receiving probe applied to a thin layer, honeycomb or fiber composite structure under test. set to target. Typical bonding methods to which this bonding test and method is applicable include adhesive bonding, diffusion bonding, brazing, resistance and impact/friction bonding. The cathode ray tube displays the tip of the vector (as a bright dot) representing the impedance characteristics affected by the structure under test. A null circuit removes the response of a non-defective (or normal) portion of the structure under test so that the defective (or abnormal) portion of the structure produces an impedance change from the null point. is represented in polar coordinate representation by the amplitude and angular position of the vector tip, thereby providing diagnostic information regarding the location and type of bond line condition detected. Detectable bond line conditions/defects include non-bonds, adhesive thickness, adhesive porosity, adhesive degree of cure, bond (cohesive) strength, and adhesive or bond line in use. forms of deterioration.

U.S. Pat. No. 4,184,373, filed May 24, 1978 and issued January 22, 1980, by Evans et al., for Apparatus for evaluating a bond, which Means and methods are directed to evaluating a bond between first and second structures bonded together. Means is provided for transmitting a pulse of ultrasonic energy to the bonded structure, whereby a first reflected pulse may be reflected from a first surface of the first structure. , the second reflected pulse may be reflected from the layer of adhesive, and the third pulse may be reflected from a surface of the second structure adjacent to the adhesive layer. Circuit means is provided for sensing the first, second and third reflected pulses, comparing the amplitudes of the reflected pulses and determining whether the ratio is within a predetermined range. provided to provide an indication of the quality of the bond.

United States patent application filed on May 21, 2010 and published on January 8, 2013 by inventor Questo et al. regarding Sonic resonator system for testing the adhesive bond strength of composite materials Patent No. 8,347,723 is , a sonic resonator system for use in testing adhesive bond strength of composite materials. Also, how to calibrate a sonic resonator system operating at a particular composite material joint and non-destructively test the "pass/fail" bond strength of bonded composite materials based on the required bond strength. A method is disclosed herein.

U.S. Patent Publication No. 2019/0293610, filed on March 22, 2019, and published on September 26, 2019, by inventors Campbell et al., for Detection of kiss bonds within composite components. Systems and methods for detecting kiss bonds are provided. Reflected ultrasound data representative of reflected ultrasound energy from the composite component and predetermined baseline noise amplitude values for expected material noise in the reflected ultrasound energy from the composite component The threshold amplitude value is exceeded using a first threshold amplitude value between 2%-5% higher than the threshold amplitude value and a second threshold amplitude value higher than the first threshold amplitude value. One or more occurrences of reflected ultrasound energy having an amplitude less than the amplitude value are identified. Kiss bonds are detected in the composite component based on the identified one or more occurrences of reflected ultrasound energy amplitudes.

U.S. Pat. No. 7,574,915, filed on December 28, 2006 and issued on August 18, 2009, by inventor Kollgaard et al., for Simplified impedance plane bondtesting inspection, discloses an ultrasonic transducer and a light source. The target is an NDI system including an electronic device having an indicator such as. The electronic device energizes the transducer, receives a sinusoidal signal from the transducer, determines an impedance plane coordinate corresponding to a quadrature separated component of the sinusoidal signal, and activates an indicator if the impedance plane coordinate exceeds a preset threshold. operate automatically. The system may be used in methods of inspecting layered structures such as composite aircraft components and repair patches applied to such structures.

U.S. Patent No. 8,234,924, filed on July 16, 2009, and issued on August 7, 2012, by inventor Saxena et al., for Apparatus and method for damage location and identification in structures. The number is super Apparatus and methods for testing composite material structures are directed and described in which acoustic waves are used to detect non-bonds within the structure. The device includes a flexible structure carrying an acousto-optic transducer, such as a fiber Bragg grating. In use, the device is mechanically and compliantly coupled to the structure under test.

No. 7,017,422, filed on April 2, 2004 and issued on March 28, 2006, by inventors Heyman et al. phaselocker), a transducer, a loading device capable of applying stress loads to the bond, a controller controlling the loading device, a data recording device acquiring data, and a computer analyzing the data to calculate specific bond strength parameters. A bond strength tester and method for determining certain bond strength parameters of bonded components, including devices.

Air coupled ultrasonic contactless method for non-destructive determination of defects by inventor Martin et al., filed on August 9, 2012 and published on August 7, 2014 US Patent Publication No. 2014/2014 on in laminated structure No. 0216158 describes the use of air-coupled ultrasound for non-destructive determination of defects in laminate structures with a multiplicity of thin layers of n layers with a width (W) and an intermediate N-1 joint plant (B). Intended for non-contact methods and equipment, at least one transmitter (T) at a fixed transmitter distance (WTS) emits an ultrasound beam at multiple locations and at least one receiver (R) at a sensor distance (WSR) , the re-radiated ultrasonic beam is received at a plurality of positions with respect to the laminated material structure (S). The method includes, for example, imaging the location and geometry of laminate defects, inspection of laminate structures (S) of arbitrary height (H) and length (L), and inspection of specific bond planes (e.g. B1, B2). , B3), even in situations with limited access to the plane of the sample parallel to the joining plane.

U.S. Patent No. 9,360,418, filed on July 17, 2014 and issued on June 7, 2016, by inventor Georgeson, for Nondestructive inspection using hypersound, describes a method for inspecting an object. and equipment. The apparatus includes a waveform generator and a detection system. The waveform generator is placed remotely from the object. The waveform generator emits ultrasound waves in a direction toward a location on the object such that the ultrasound waves encounter a portion of the object. The detection system is placed on the same side of the object as the waveform generator. The detection system detects a characteristic response of features within a portion of the object to ultrasound waves that encounter the portion of the object.

U.S. Patent Publication No. 2020/0230899, filed on February 1, 2020 and published on July 23, 2020, by inventor Tyson, relates to In-situ monitoring of thermoformable composites. methods and systems for determining the quality and composition of structures constructed from thermoformable materials, such as thermoformable materials, particularly thermoplastic composite tapes, wherein heat is applied to cure the thermoformable material. Applicable. The quality of the structure is monitored during construction of the structure by determining the differential heat flux within the material as it cools from its elevated temperature. The system and method can also determine the location of defects within the structure being constructed so that corrective action can be taken to address the defects or production operations can be stopped. A temporary thermal effect is applied to the structure being monitored, such as a thermoformable material being applied, and can be implemented from applied heating or additional heating of the thermoformable structure application process.

U.S. Patent No. 9,494,562, filed on May 27, 2011 and issued on November 15, 2016, by inventor Lin et al., relates to Method and apparatus for defect detection in composite structures, The subject matter is a method and apparatus for non-destructive testing of composite material structures using ultrasound. In response to the broadband chirp-wave sonic excitation signal transmitted from the probe to the composite material structure, the received probe signal is correlated with a library of predetermined probe signals to generate a graphical representation of the detected defects. Ru. The graphical display provides detailed information regarding the defect type, defect location, and defect shape. and a controller coupled to each of the transducers for providing signals to and receiving signals from the transducer. a controller, wherein the signals provided to the transducers include a signal for configuring each transducer as either a transmitter or a receiver; and a signal for providing an excitation signal from each transducer configured as a transmitter; Probes are contemplated for non-destructive testing of composite material structures including the present invention.

U.S. Patent No. 10,444,195, filed May 5, 2016 and issued October 15, 2019, by inventor Bingham, relates to Detection of near surface inconsistencies in structures. A method for detecting inconsistencies is presented. A pulsed laser beam is directed at the structure. A broadband ultrasound signal is formed in the structure when the radiation of the pulsed laser beam is absorbed by the structure. Broadband ultrasound signals are detected to form data. The data is processed to identify frequencies associated with near-surface mismatches.

Methods for ultrasonic non-structive testing using analytical reverse time migration by inventor Asadollahi et al., filed on December 17, 2018 and published on June 20, 2019 US Patent Publication No. 2019/0187107 regarding ation is , is directed to and describes systems and methods for non-destructive testing using ultrasonic transducers, such as dry point contact ("DPC") transducers or other transducers that emit horizontal shear waves. Ru. Analytic Reverse Time Migration (“RTM”) techniques are implemented to generate images from data acquired using ultrasound transducers.

US patent disclosure for Wrinkle Characterization and Performance Prediction for Composite Structures by inventor Georgeson et al., filed on October 31, 2016 and published on May 3, 2018 Publication No. 2018/0120268 is an automatic structural analysis The present invention is directed to a method for providing wrinkle characterization and performance prediction of wrinkled composite structures using the present invention. According to some embodiments, a method combines the use of B-scan ultrasound data, automated optical measurements of wrinkle and cross-sectional geometry, and finite element analysis of a wrinkled composite structure. Provides the ability to evaluate the actual importance of detected wrinkles relative to intended performance. The disclosed method generates a calibrated ultrasound inspection system by correlating ultrasound B-scan data acquired from reference standards with measurements of optical cross sections (e.g., micrographs) of those reference standards. use.

U.S. Patent No. 10,605,781, filed on March 9, 2018 and issued on March 31, 2020, by inventor Grewel et al., relates to Methods for measuring out-of-plane wrinkles in composite laminates. , a method for measuring out-of-plane wrinkles in composite laminates is described. An exemplary method includes scanning a first side of a composite laminate with an ultrasonic transducer. Additionally, the method includes locating an out-of-plane wrinkle in the composite laminate on a B-scan ultrasound image generated in response to scanning the first side of the composite laminate. Additionally, the method includes associating a first marker with the B-scan ultrasound image, the first marker being determined based on a position of an apex of the out-of-plane wrinkle on the B-scan ultrasound image. Additionally, the method includes associating a second marker with the B-scan ultrasound image, the second marker being determined based on a location of a focus of the out-of-plane wrinkle depression on the B-scan ultrasound image. Further, the method includes determining an amplitude of the out-of-plane wrinkle based on a distance between the first marker and the second marker.

Methods of non-destructive testing and ultrasonic inspection of composite mate by inventor Dehghan-Niri et al., filed on January 11, 2016 and published on December 25, 2018 U.S. Patent No. 10,161,910 for Rials The issue discloses that a method of non-destructive testing places an ultrasonic transducer on a component having a visually inaccessible structure, collects B-scan data from at least one B-scan of the component, and collects B-scan data from at least one B-scan of the component. Collecting C-scan data from a scan. The method also filters the B-scan data and the C-scan data to remove random and coherent noise based on predetermined geometric information about visually inaccessible structures and obtain filtered data. Including. Additionally, the method performs linear and nonlinear signal processing to determine damage indices for a plurality of voxels representing visually inaccessible structures from the filtered B-scan data and the filtered C-scan data, and Including generating images. Also disclosed are methods and ultrasound systems for non-destructive testing of wind turbine blades.

U.S. Pat. No. 7,895,895, filed on July 23, 2007 and issued on March 1, 2011, by inventors Kollgaard et al., for Method and apparatus for quantifying porosity in a component, A computer-implemented method or hardware filter apparatus and computer-usable program code for measuring the porosity of. Ultrasonic signals are applied to the material from a transmitting transducer of an ultrasonic measurement system. A response signal is received from the material at a receiving transducer of the ultrasonic measurement system. The response signal is filtered to pass only frequencies of the response signal within a selected frequency range to form a filtered response signal. The porosity level of the material is determined using the filtered response signal.

U.S. Patent No. 8,522,615, filed on November 30, 2010 and issued on September 3, 2013, by inventors Brady et al. An apparatus for measuring porosity of an ultrasonic transducer device configured to be pressed against a structure, the apparatus further configured to apply ultrasonic pulses to the structure and detect an echo profile. an electronic device having an interface gate, a backside sensing gate, and a backside analysis gate; a pulse generator interfacing with the manager and the ultrasound transducer device; an ultrasound transducer device and the manager; An electronic device including an interfacing data acquisition device and a display having a porosity indicator interfacing with a manager.

U.S. Patent No. 7,010,980, filed June 28, 2004 and issued March 14, 2006, by inventor Meier, for a Method of determining the porosity of a workpiece, specifically , for which the porosity of workpieces made of fiber composite materials is determined. An ultrasonic signal is incident on the workpiece and an ultrasonic echo signal is received from the workpiece. The variation in the amplitude of the ultrasound echo signal with depth is used as a measure of the porosity of the workpiece material at each depth.

No. 6,959,602, filed on March 12, 2003 and issued on November 1, 2005, by inventor Peterson et al. It is intended to be used to determine the presence of defects in porous media, such as. Acoustic waves may be propagated through a porous medium to generate plate waves within the medium. Plate waves generate fast and slow compressional waves in the medium that are related to the material and structural properties of the medium. The fast compression waves provide information about the total porosity of the medium. On the other hand, slow compression waves provide information about the presence of defects within the medium or the type of material forming the medium.

No. 9,297,789, filed on September 20, 2012 and issued on March 29, 2016, by inventors Djordjevic et al., for a Differential ultrasonic waveguide cure monitoring probe, This study covers new methodologies, test system designs and concepts that enable real-time monitoring. Apparatus, systems, and methods for non-destructive, in-situ monitoring of time-dependent curing of advanced materials using one or more differential ultrasonic waveguide curing monitoring probes. Differential ultrasonic waveguide cure monitoring probes are in direct contact with the material being cured, providing in-situ monitoring of the cure process, and calibration independent of signal fluctuations not related to cure (e.g., temperature). In a reaction-responsive manner, the degree of cure or level of cure can be evaluated. A differential ultrasonic waveguide curing monitoring probe includes a transducer coupled to a waveguide and incorporates a correction and calibration methodology to accurately and reproducibly monitor the curing process via ultrasonic reflectance measurements; Allows evaluation of cure level. The amplitude of the corrected interfacial response signal reflected from the probe-resin interface is indicative of the change in the elastic modulus of the material during curing.

U.S. Pat. No. 6,945,111, filed on September 28, 2004 and issued on September 20, 2005, by inventor Georgeson, relates to System and Method for Identifying Incompletely Cured Adhesives, A system for inspecting adhesives within composite material structures, such as properly cured areas, is directed and includes a transducer and a processing element. The transducer transmits an ultrasonic signal such as an ultrasonic signal such that at least a portion of the ultrasonic signal can propagate through the adhesive, reflect at an interface between the adhesive and another material, and propagate back through the adhesive. signals to the adhesive. Upon exiting the adhesive, the transducer may receive the reflected portion of the ultrasound signal. The processing element then identifies defects such as soft or improperly cured areas within the adhesive based on the relationship of the amplitude of the reflected portion of the reflected ultrasound signal to a predefined threshold. can be specified.

U.S. Patent No. 10,697,941, filed on March 20, 2013 and issued on June 30, 2020, by inventor Jack et al., for Method and system of non-destructive testing for composites, is The present invention is directed to methods and systems for characterizing and quantifying material laminate structures. The method and system take a composite laminate of unknown ply stack configuration and sequence and determine various information about the individual plies, such as ply stack, orientation, microstructure, and type. The method and system may distinguish between weaves that may exhibit similar planar stiffness behavior but may result in different failure mechanisms. The individual ply information can then be used to derive laminate bulk properties from externally provided fiber and matrix constituent properties, including tensile stiffness, flexural-tensile coupling stiffness, flexural stiffness, and the like. The laminate bulk properties can then be used to generate a stochastic failure envelope for the composite laminate. This provides the ability to perform non-destructive QA to ensure that individual thin layer laminates are realized according to specifications, and the results demonstrate numerous laminate properties beyond purely structural ones. Can be used to identify.

U.S. Patent No. 10,345,272, filed on July 13, 2015 and issued on July 9, 2019, by Holmes et al., for Automated calibration of non-destructive testing equipment Covers methods for automatically calibrating equipment. According to some embodiments, the method includes: (a) determining a first set of coordinates in a test object coordinate system of a test object, the first coordinates being on a surface of the test object; (b) storing a calibration file in a memory of the non-destructive testing equipment, the calibration file representing a three-dimensional area of the test object in a region including the target position; (c) calibrating non-destructive testing equipment using the calibration data of the calibration file; and (d) calibrating the non-destructive testing equipment. and examining the target location using non-destructive testing equipment.

U.S. patent application filed on July 21, 1993 and published on April 25, 1995, by inventor McKinley et al. on Ultrasonic devices and methods for non-destructive evaluation of polymer composites. Patent No. 5,408,882 is , is directed to an ultrasonic measurement device and method for non-destructive evaluation of polymer composites having discontinuous fibers distributed in the polymer composite. The device has one or more substantially matched transducer pairs arranged in a wedge-shaped focuser and relay, each of the focusers and relays being substantially matched to the impedance of the polymer composite being analyzed. has a high impedance. The device is placed on the surface of the composite material such that the vertices of the focuser and relay are in intimate contact with the surface. The velocity of the substantially longitudinal ultrasound generated by the first transducer and received by the second transducer after passage through the composite material is determined at several orientation angles about the center point, and the ultrasound The measured velocity of is processed through a computer with software to determine the physical attributes of the composite material, such as the weight percent of fibers present within the composite material, Young's modulus of the composite material, modulus of stiffness and Poisson's ratio. do.

U.S. Patent No. 10,761,067, filed on September 8, 2015 and issued on September 1, 2020, by inventor Jack et al., relates to Method and system for non-destructive testing of curved composites. It is directed to characterizing and quantifying composite laminate structures, including structures with surfaces that are curved in two and three dimensions. Embodiments take a composite laminate of unknown ply stack composition and sequence and determine various information about the individual plies, such as ply stack, orientation, microstructure, and type. Embodiments may distinguish weaves that may exhibit similar planar stiffness behavior but may result in different failure mechanisms. The individual ply information can then be used to derive laminate bulk properties from externally provided fiber and matrix constituent properties, including tensile stiffness, flexural-tensile coupling stiffness, flexural stiffness, and the like. The laminate bulk properties can then be used to generate a stochastic failure envelope for the composite laminate. In some embodiments, ply stack type and sequence may also be determined for curved carbon fiber composites using the disclosed embodiments by adding a rotation step.

Structural Health Monitoring of Curved Composite Structures Using Ultrasonic Guided by inventor Jahanbin et al., filed on August 9, 2018 and published on February 13, 2020 US Patent Publication No. 2020/0047425 regarding Waves Systems and methods for non-destructive testing of curved composite laminate structures using interfacial guided waves are directed. In particular, if the curved composite laminate structure has noodles, the noodle regions can be inspected using interfacial guided waves. The systems and methods compare sensed data obtained from an inspected curved composite laminate structure to predicted data derived using a simulated curved composite laminate structure. This provides a repeatable and reliable non-destructive technique for monitoring the structural integrity of the noodle region of adhesively bonded curved composite laminate structures.

U.S. Patent No. 1, filed on June 19, 2007, and issued on July 12, 2011, by inventor Fetzer et al., for Method, apparatus and system for inspecting a workpiece having a curved surface. No. 7,975,549 Provided are non-destructive testing methods, apparatus and systems for testing workpieces having curved surfaces having at least one predefined radius of curvature. A device such as a test probe includes a plurality of transducer elements arranged in an arcuate configuration with a predefined radius of curvature and a curved delay line. The curved delay line has an outer arcuate surface with a predefined radius of curvature that matches a predefined radius of curvature of the transducer element. The curved delay line also has an inner arcuate surface having at least one predefined radius of curvature that matches at least one predefined radius of curvature of the curved surface of the workpiece. In addition to the inspection probe, the system includes an excitation source for triggering the transducer elements and applying signals to the workpiece, and a computing device for receiving return signals.

The present invention relates to systems and methods for non-destructive testing using ultrasonic transducers.

The purpose of the present invention is to provide a system for real-time visualization of defects in materials using ultrasonic non-destructive testing.

In one embodiment, the invention is directed to a system for non-destructive testing of composite materials, an ultrasonic transducer in communication with a processor and a display means, the ultrasonic transducer comprising: for generating scan data; the test object is operable to apply ultrasound waves to the test object and to receive ultrasound waves from the test object, the test object comprising a plurality of a component, the processor is operable to identify and provide a relative position of one or more gap regions within the at least one bonding layer without the use of a calibration block; an ultrasonic transducer that generates and presents a graphical representation of the at least one bonding layer via the ultrasonic transducer.

In another embodiment, the invention is directed to a system for non-destructive testing of composite materials, an ultrasonic transducer in communication with a processor and a display means, the ultrasonic transducer comprising a coupling fluid of a transducer housing assembly. The ultrasound transducer is disposed within the filling chamber and is operable to emit ultrasound waves to the test object and receive ultrasound waves from the test object to generate scan data; , the at least one bonding layer includes a plurality of components disposed between two adjacent components, the processor identifying and providing relative positions of one or more gap regions within the at least one bonding layer. The processor includes an ultrasound transducer operable to generate and present a graphical representation of the at least one bonding layer via the display means.

In yet another embodiment, the invention is directed to a system for non-destructive testing of composite materials, an ultrasonic transducer in communication with a processor and a display means, the ultrasonic transducer for generating scan data. is operable to apply ultrasound to the test object and to receive ultrasound from the test object, the test object having at least one bonding layer disposed between two adjacent components; the processor includes a plurality of components, the processor is operable to identify and provide a relative position of one or more gap regions within the plurality of bonding layers; An ultrasound transducer is included to generate and present a graphical representation of the bonding layer.

The patent or application file contains at least one drawing executed in color. Copies of this patent or patent application publication with color drawing(s) may be provided by the Office upon request and payment of the necessary fee.
FIG. 1 illustrates an orthogonal side view of a transducer housing assembly, according to one embodiment of the invention. FIG. 2 illustrates an orthogonal side view of a transducer housing assembly, according to one embodiment of the invention. 3 illustrates an isometric view of the transducer housing assembly shown in FIG. 1. FIG. FIG. 4 illustrates a top view of the transducer housing assembly shown in FIG. 1. FIG. 5 illustrates an isometric exploded view of a transducer housing assembly according to another embodiment of the invention. FIG. 6 illustrates an orthogonal exploded view of the components of the transducer housing assembly shown in FIG. 5. FIG. 7 illustrates an isometric view of a lens housing, according to one embodiment of the invention. FIG. 8 illustrates an orthogonal front view of the central housing, according to one embodiment of the invention. FIG. 9 illustrates an orthogonal front view of a lens housing, according to one embodiment of the invention. FIG. 10 illustrates an orthogonal front view of a transducer housing assembly including the housing shown in FIG. 8 paired with the lens housing shown in FIG. 9. FIG. 11 illustrates an orthogonal front view of the transducer housing assembly shown in FIG. 10 with a lens housing secured to the housing. FIG. 12 illustrates an orthogonal view of a lens housing, according to one embodiment of the invention. FIG. 13 illustrates an orthogonal side view of a surface offset element, according to an embodiment of the invention. FIG. 14 illustrates an orthogonal side view of a transducer housing assembly attached to a robot arm. FIG. 15 is a schematic diagram of a transducer housing assembly in communication with a processor and display means, according to an embodiment of the invention. FIG. 16 illustrates a configuration of a submerged tank transducer for use in one embodiment of the invention. FIG. 17 illustrates a data entry screen, according to one embodiment of the invention. FIG. 18 illustrates a set of graphical displays of test materials provided by one embodiment of the invention. FIG. 19 illustrates a set of graphical displays of test materials provided by another embodiment of the invention. FIG. 20 illustrates a graphical representation of a foreign object within a test material provided by one embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 21 illustrates an A-scan image produced by one embodiment of the invention. FIG. 22 illustrates the first step of the algorithm used to calculate the depth of the adhesive layer, according to one embodiment of the invention. FIG. 23 illustrates subsequent steps of the algorithm used to calculate the depth of the adhesive layer of FIG. 22. FIG. 24 illustrates top and bottom surfaces of a bonding layer, according to one embodiment of the invention. FIG. 25 illustrates top and bottom surfaces of a bonding layer according to another embodiment of the invention. FIG. 26 illustrates top and bottom surfaces of a bonding layer, according to yet another embodiment of the invention. FIG. 27 illustrates a two-dimensional graphical representation of a bonding layer, according to one embodiment of the invention. FIG. 28 illustrates a graphical representation of damaged areas of material, according to one embodiment of the invention. FIG. 29 illustrates a graphical representation of a damaged area of material according to another embodiment of the invention. FIG. 30 illustrates a meshed representation of damaged areas of material according to one embodiment of the invention. FIG. 31 illustrates a two-dimensional graphical representation of wrinkles within a test material provided by one embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 32 illustrates a two-dimensional graphical display with wrinkles traced and measured according to one embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 33 illustrates a three-dimensional graphical representation of wrinkles within a test material provided by one embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 34 illustrates a three-dimensional graphical representation of wrinkles within a test material provided by another embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 35 illustrates a three-dimensional graphical display featuring an isolated version of the wrinkles of FIG. 34. FIG. 36 illustrates a two-dimensional view of the wrinkles of FIG. 34. FIG. 37 illustrates the use of an ultrasonic transducer to monitor the curing of a test object, according to an embodiment of the invention. FIG. 38 illustrates an unfiltered C-scan of a test material with fibers aligned at 0 degrees, according to an embodiment of the invention. FIG. 39 illustrates an unfiltered C-scan of a test material with fibers aligned at 30 degrees, according to an embodiment of the invention. FIG. 40 illustrates a filtered C-scan of a test material with fibers aligned at 0 degrees, according to an embodiment of the invention. FIG. 41 illustrates a filtered C-scan of a test material with fibers aligned at 30 degrees, according to an embodiment of the invention. FIG. 42 is a schematic diagram of the system of the present invention.

Generally, the present invention is directed to systems and methods for non-destructive testing using ultrasonic transducers.

In one embodiment, the invention is directed to a system for non-destructive testing of composite materials, an ultrasonic transducer in communication with a processor and a display means, the ultrasonic transducer comprising: for generating scan data; the test object is operable to apply ultrasound waves to the test object and to receive ultrasound waves from the test object, the test object comprising a plurality of a component, the processor is operable to identify and provide a relative position of one or more gap regions within the at least one bonding layer without the use of a calibration block; an ultrasonic transducer that generates and presents a graphical representation of the at least one bonding layer via the ultrasonic transducer.

In another embodiment, the invention is directed to a system for non-destructive testing of composite materials, an ultrasonic transducer in communication with a processor and a display means, the ultrasonic transducer comprising a coupling fluid of a transducer housing assembly. The ultrasound transducer is disposed within the filling chamber and is operable to emit ultrasound waves to the test object and receive ultrasound waves from the test object to generate scan data; , the at least one bonding layer includes a plurality of components disposed between two adjacent components, the processor identifying and providing relative positions of one or more gap regions within the at least one bonding layer. The processor includes an ultrasound transducer operable to generate and present a graphical representation of the at least one bonding layer via the display means.

In yet another embodiment, the invention is directed to a system for non-destructive testing of composite materials, an ultrasonic transducer in communication with a processor and a display means, the ultrasonic transducer for generating scan data. is operable to apply ultrasound to the test object and to receive ultrasound from the test object, the test object having at least one bonding layer disposed between two adjacent components; the processor includes a plurality of components, the processor is operable to identify and provide a relative position of one or more gap regions within the plurality of bonding layers within the test object; and an ultrasonic transducer for generating and presenting a graphical representation of the at least one bonding layer.

Ultrasonic testing is one of the most popular methods of non-destructive testing (NDT), also known as non-destructive inspection (NDI) or non-destructive evaluation (NDE). Ultrasonic testing involves the application of ultrasonic waves to a test material by a transducer and subsequent sensing of reflected or transmitted waves by a receiver. In pulse-echo, or reflection, methods, ultrasound energy is introduced in waves to the surface of a test material and transmitted through the surface of the test material. Typically, use of such systems requires an acoustic medium (eg, water, gel) to bridge the gap between the transducer and the test material. As the wave propagates through the thickness of the test material, discontinuities within the test material (due to material changes, cracks, delaminations, foreign objects, etc.) cause reflections of the wave, which are then detected by the transducer, may be displayed or characterized. In contrast, in transmission, or attenuation, methods, a transducer generates high-frequency ultrasound energy that is transmitted through one side of the test material and then received by a corresponding receiver on the opposite side of the test material. . As waves propagate through the thickness of the test material, discontinuities within the test material can slow or completely attenuate the waves in some regions before they reach the receiver. The receiver may then characterize the test material by measuring the degree of attenuation of the ultrasound waves.

When ultrasound waves emitted by an ultrasound transducer contact a material with different properties than the one they initially pass through, some waves will be reflected back according to equation 1 below.

In Equation 1, R is the reflection coefficient, a decimal value representing the proportion of the wave reflected at the interface between two materials. Z ₁ and Z ₂ are the acoustic impedances of the two materials that constitute the material boundary. The acoustic impedance of a material is determined by multiplying the sound velocity of the material by its density. Additionally, the sound velocity of a material is determined by dividing the square root of the material's Young's modulus by the square root of the material's density. Therefore, based on the proportion of reflected waves, the user can calculate the reflection coefficient of the interaction. If the acoustic impedance of one material is known, the identification of the other material can be determined using Equation 1.

When selecting an ultrasound inspection system, the constraints of portability and robustness are often inversely proportional to high resolution and fidelity. When seeking to optimize both portability and robustness, most inspectors currently choose contact transducers. Contact transducers allow the inspector to quickly place a thin gel on the part being inspected and place the transducer in close contact with the part. Data can be collected quickly and at the same time the system can operate on a variety of surfaces and environmental conditions. The main negative aspect of this approach is the resolution of the acquired data. The planar resolution of a transducer is determined by the physical footprint of the transducer. This footprint can be reduced by manufacturing smaller transducers. However, the transducer's through-thickness resolution is determined by the frequency of the transducer and the power that can be emitted. When the planar dimensions of the transducer are reduced, both the power and the frequency that can be delivered for firing the transducer are simultaneously reduced. Therefore, improvement in planar resolution is in direct conflict with improvement in resolution in the thickness direction.

One alternative to contact transducers is spherically focused transducers. These transducers can operate at high frequencies (25-50 MHz) and have planar resolutions as fine as those that can be machined into the transducer housing lens, which can be less than 1/10th of a millimeter. However, spherical focusing transducers can only work when the transducer is fully acoustically coupled to the surface of the component being inspected. Acoustically coupling a transducer to a test material requires immersing the transducer in an acoustic medium while ensuring that the transducer has an effective acoustic path between the transducer and the surface being tested. do. Water is the most widely used acoustic medium for immersion transducers because the difference in acoustic impedance between water and the transducer lens is small.

Currently, the two main techniques for achieving effective acoustic coupling channels are full immersion tank testing or waterjet. Full immersion tanks require parts to be submerged in water, so many larger parts, such as aircraft wings and fuselages, cannot be tested without significant (and often impractical) infrastructure investment. It is prohibited to do so. Waterjet, on the other hand, requires jetting water in all directions, causing water to pool beneath the component being scanned. Therefore, water jets also often require infrastructure investments in the form of grates to collect the injected water, pumps to circulate the water, and frames to protect equipment in areas that could be damaged by the water. do.

One alternative to the use of traditional water jets is a "bubbler." To use a bubbler, a temporary waterproof box is constructed around the area of the component being scanned for inspection. Water is then injected into the column containing the transducer and allowed to slowly leak out the bottom of the box. This approach requires a new box to be installed at every new position for scanning. For the bubbler to function, the membrane is unable to maintain the necessary blow pressure to allow the water to leak out of the bubbler slowly enough and allow the device to be placed offset from the test material. It must be firmly pressed against the object being tested. This not only creates a risk of impact between the bubbler and the test material, which can cause damage, but also greatly reduces the resolution of the device. Bubblers rely on a permeable membrane that allows water to slowly leak out, but when the bubbler is in operation and the membrane is pressed firmly against the test surface, the system creates waves within the membrane and within the test material. waves, making the device less effective, if not completely inoperable. Additionally, bubblers suffer from the same drawbacks as traditional water jets in that they require constant pumping of water and require a means to catch water that escapes. Furthermore, full immersion, conventional water jets, and bubblers all require the test material to be exposed to water, which is undesirable in some situations.

Conventional water jets and bubblers also suffer from similar problems of being unable to scan hard-to-reach areas of the device. Hard-to-reach areas are often semi-contained within the device or component being tested, and therefore the use of conventional water jets is likely to cause water to pool within the device, causing damage or being pumped out. can make it difficult. Additionally, both conventional waterjet systems and bubblers require continuous pumping of water through a water column. However, this need for a water column eliminates the ability of those devices to effectively navigate to hard-to-reach areas of the device or component being tested.

To date, other efforts to fabricate robust, functional ultrasound scanners utilizing water-filled chambers have not been successful. Some existing systems require a chamber that leaks around the rolling ball through a permeable membrane, or otherwise spans the gap between the chamber and the surface being measured. Still, such systems require water flow into the chamber to replenish water losses and maintain acoustic coupling, and require contact between the water and the test material. Other systems abandon the use of spherical focusing transducers and therefore have reduced resolution. Still other systems have a fixed focal length, and other systems have a fixed length of the lens housing and lens that prevents access to portions of the surface for scanning.

Typically, ultrasound testing results in the formation of multiple types of scan data as the transducer directs waves to different sections of the test material, such as A-scans, B-scans, and C-scans. A-scans are formed with respect to individually scanned locations of the test material. Typically, an A-scan shows the signal amplitude as a function of time, with signals that appear later in time being reflected from boundary changes at greater depths in the material, and two or more signals (first into the test material) entry and reflection by the backwall of the test material) indicates the presence of defects within the test material, or internal laminations. Although A-scans can be useful in determining whether a defect or layer boundary exists at a particular location within an object, it lacks specificity regarding the size or type of defect in question and It may only characterize a particular region.

A B-scan is constructed as a combination of individual A-scans as the ultrasonic testing device is swept along the axis of the test material. As the ultrasonic testing device is moved, the B-scan can form a cross-sectional view of the device, and based on the peak of the A-scan at each location along the test material, at what depth defects are found. Show that. This is useful for producing a type of side view of the test material and providing information regarding impact damage and delamination.

The C-scan provides a cross-sectional view of the test material that is orthogonal to the cross-sectional view of the B-scan. A C-scan combines an A-scan of different X and Y coordinates along a plane and provides a cross-sectional view that can provide not only internal defect or layer location data but also an indication of the cross-sectional area of the defect or layer at a given depth. Generate a diagram. A C-scan is formed by selecting a gate start time and a gate end time, and then obtaining intensity information within the gate region each time an A-scan is performed. Some systems use a phased array technique with transducers oriented in different directions so that the system can obtain a wider array of A-scans before the transducers are moved through each location of the test area. Use. However, the C-scan is a two-dimensional image and cannot accurately provide the depth of defects or accurately observe defects that may appear more predominant in a view orthogonal to the cross-section of the C-scan. Can not.

To find irregularities within the test material, most current systems rely on the use of calibration blocks, and the A-scan, B-scan, and C-scan of current systems isolate many imperfections. cannot be detected accurately. Prior to testing, the test device is used on one or more calibration blocks, which typically contain either a representative shape of the material being tested, or a material with known defects. That's it. Conventional ultrasonic inspection systems use this calibration method as a comparison means when determining whether the signal reflected from the test material matches or differs from the signal of the calibration block. However, reliance on calibration blocks weakens the ability to specify important properties of the test material. For example, in a porosity test, conventional systems may recognize calibration blocks with porosity of 0.2, 0.4, and 0.6, but still recognize calibration blocks with porosity of 0.4. The closest aligned test material may have a porosity somewhere between 0.3-0.5, limiting further specificity. Additionally, testing using a calibration block can be hampered by unknown defects in the calibration block or unaccounted for confounding variables that differ between the calibration block and the actual test material. Therefore, you can directly measure material qualities such as ply orientation, porosity, bond line thickness, presence of wrinkles, bond line irregularities, or other important physical properties of the test material without reference to a calibration block. What is needed is a system that can make accurate decisions.

Due to their high strength-to-weight ratio, composite materials are becoming increasingly popular, especially for structural applications in the aerospace, automotive, and defense industries. Composite materials are defined as the combination of two or more materials to form a new material and include, but are not limited to, concrete, straw-reinforced clay brick, carbon fiber laminate, and fiberglass. . Manufacturing defects as well as damage caused during use of composite materials can have a significant impact on the structural performance of laminates and can sometimes lead to structural failure. Damage to composite materials can frequently occur as a result of hail strikes, lightning, bird strikes, component misuse, or general fatigue. Examples of defects that can lead to failure of composite materials during use are foreign objects within the material, poor bonding between layers of the composite material, wrinkles in the layers of the composite material, and interlayers within at least one layer of the composite material. These include delamination, incomplete curing of the composite, and excessively large pores within the composite. Therefore, properties such as bond line thickness, porosity, ply type, and weave of a composite material can have a significant impact on the overall material properties and performance of the composite structure, and they It can even act as a crack initiation point.

Current portable transducer systems are inadequate to adequately characterize composite laminates due to the acoustic impedance and thickness of many composite materials. Typically, composite laminates range in thickness between a few millimeters and approximately three quarters of an inch (19.05 mm), with individual laminae frequently about 1/4 mm thick. Generally, the wavelength of the waves used to detect individual thin layers should be no more than half the thickness of the material, or less material may remain completely unnoticed by the waves. Therefore, due to the combination of small layer sizes within composites and high attenuation of waves within composites, transducers are required to characterize meaningful defects within or between layers of these composites with sufficient resolution. must be able to emit frequencies between 7.5-15 MHz. This is a problem for current portable transducer systems, which are generally only capable of emitting frequencies on the order of about 2-3 MHz. Furthermore, many existing systems only use frequencies up to approximately 5 MHz, as this is understood to be close to the natural frequency of the material being tested. However, limiting the frequency to 5 MHz or less limits the resolution of the scan and causes the system to overlook potentially relevant features and defects. An alternative solution for portable transducers is an immersion system, which typically involves placing the test material completely in a water bath to maintain sufficient acoustic coupling between the transducer and the surface of the test material. It involves immersing or continuously spraying the material with a water jet. However, immersion techniques are typically inconvenient, both in terms of high cost and additional required setup time for testing.

As the frequency of the transducer increases, the quality of the resolution of the transducer increases. However, as the transducer frequency increases, the depth of material visible to the system decreases. In one embodiment, the transducer can operate at a frequency between 0.5MHz-50MHz. In another embodiment, the transducer can operate at a frequency between 1-25 MHz. In yet another embodiment, the transducer can operate at a frequency between 5-15 MHz. In yet another embodiment, the transducer can operate at a frequency between 10-15 MHz. In a preferred embodiment, the transducer operates between 7.5-15 MHz.

Additionally, conventional ultrasonic testing devices utilize calibration blocks. Prior to testing, the test device is used on one or more calibration blocks, which typically contain either a representative shape of the material being tested, or a material with known defects. That's it. Conventional ultrasonic inspection systems use this calibration method as a comparison means when determining whether the signal reflected from the test material matches or differs from the signal of the calibration block. However, reliance on calibration blocks weakens the ability to specify important properties of the test material. For example, in porosity testing, conventional systems often recognize calibration blocks with porosity of 0.2, 0.4, and 0.6, but still recognize calibration blocks with porosity of 0.4. The closest aligned test material may have a porosity somewhere between 0.3-0.5, limiting further specificity. Additionally, testing using a calibration block can be hampered by unknown defects in the calibration block or unaccounted for confounding variables that differ between the calibration block and the actual test material. Therefore, you can directly measure material qualities such as ply orientation, porosity, bond line thickness, presence of wrinkles, bond line irregularities, or other important physical properties of the composite material without reference to a calibration block. What is needed is a system that can make accurate decisions.

In one embodiment, a portable transducer housing assembly includes a transducer used to scan test material. The portable transducer housing assembly includes a central housing having an interior sealed chamber, and a transducer is disposed within the interior sealed chamber. The internal sealed chamber is removably connected to a fluid pump that pumps air from the internal sealed chamber and pumps water or other coupling fluid into the internal sealed chamber. It is operable to do both. The front end of the central housing is a membrane that encloses an internal sealed chamber. The membrane is acoustically transparent or acoustically translucent to the coupling fluid within the internal sealed chamber. In one embodiment, the transducer is movable relative to the central housing of the portable transducer housing assembly, and the user adjusts the focus of the device depending on the size and nature of the transducer and the nature of the test material. make it possible.

In one embodiment, the portable transducer housing assembly used by the system is positioned offset from the test material, and the external couplant is positioned between the membrane of the portable transducer housing assembly and the test material. In one embodiment, the external couplant is an acoustic gel, such as glycerin, couplant D12, couplant H, shearwave couplant, or another suitable acoustic gel. In one embodiment, the at least one offset element ensures that the portable transducer housing assembly is not in harmful contact with the test material and that the portable transducer housing assembly is kept at a minimal fixed offset from the test material. extending longitudinally outward from the central housing toward the test material.

In one embodiment, the distance by which the transducer housing assembly is offset from the test material is determined using a calibration wave. The initial wave is transmitted to the test material via the transducer. Time-of-flight data is collected for ultrasound waves reflecting off the membrane covering the opening in the lens housing, waves reflecting off the front surface of the test material, and waves reflecting off the back surface of the test material. Without the need to input material properties or dimensions of the test material, the transducer housing assembly can be automatically offset a fixed distance from the test material based on the results of the transit time data. In another embodiment, material properties of the test material, such as sound velocity, and dimensional data of the test material, such as thickness, are entered manually and the transducer housing assembly is fixed from the test material without the need for a calibration wave. automatically offset by the specified distance.

In one embodiment, the transducer housing assembly is attached to a robotic arm. The transducer housing assembly includes a mounting bracket having a mounting bore capable of receiving a screw, bolt, pin, or other attachment means attached to the robot arm. The robotic arm allows the transducer housing assembly to reach smaller spaces and allows the device to be held stable for the duration of the test, increasing the accuracy of the test. In another embodiment, the mounting bracket is attached to the translation stage. The translation stage operates to move the transducer housing assembly to different positions along the XY plane. This is particularly advantageous in situations where the operator desires to scan large cross-sections of relatively flat test material.

In one embodiment, the transducer housing assembly is attached to the array element. In another embodiment, the array element includes attachment points for two or more transducer housing assemblies, allowing multiple transducer housing assemblies to be attached to a single array element and function as an array of transducers. do. Thus, the array of transducers scans multiple locations of the test material such that the array of transducers allows scanning components with uneven surfaces or scanning components with multiple different material types. Can be scanned simultaneously and the individual transducer housing assemblies are adjustable.

In another embodiment, the transducer housing assembly is manually operated. By way of example, a transducer housing assembly is placed within the assembly attached to the test material. The operator can then manually slide the transducer housing assembly within the assembly while ensuring that the transducer housing assembly remains a substantially fixed distance from the test material. In yet another embodiment, the transducer housing assembly can be automatically moved to a plurality of different positions on the test object based on preset position data entered into a computer or an attached display.

In another embodiment, the transducer housing assembly lacks a membrane, leaving the internal chamber unsealed. Water is pumped at a high flow rate, allowing the water jet to form a jet on the test material and acoustically coupling the transducer to the test material. In yet another embodiment, the transducer is not placed within a transducer housing assembly, but placed within an immersion tank to ensure acoustic coupling with the test material.

In one embodiment, a transducer housing assembly is attached to the connection receiving end. In another embodiment, the connection receiving end is connected to a computer or another processor and a waveform generator, such as a pulser receiver, via a cable. The computer or processor includes a display means such as a monitor or touch screen. In one embodiment, a single waveform generator can be connected to multiple transducer housing assemblies simultaneously. In one embodiment, the connection receiving end is a UHF connector, a Bayonet Neel-Conselman (BNC) connector, or a Universal Serial Bus (USB) connector. In another embodiment, the connection receiving end is a wireless adapter, allowing the transducer housing assembly 4 to wirelessly connect with the pulser receiver. The pulser receiver is connected to a computer having a processor and memory. Additionally, the computer includes display means for outputting graphical results of ultrasound tests performed using the transducer housing assembly. In yet another embodiment, the computer is also connected to a robotic arm, translational stage, or array element to which the transducer housing assembly 4 is attached, and configured to issue control instructions to the robotic arm, translational stage, or array element. It is operational.

The computer is connected to display means capable of displaying a graphical user interface (GUI) to display the test results after processing by the pulser receiver. In another embodiment, the display is attached directly to the transducer housing assembly, allowing the results to be displayed to a user of the transducer housing assembly without the operator having to leave to view the computer. The GUI includes the operator's name, time, and material properties including the sound velocity of the material being tested, the thickness of the material being tested, the stiffness of the material being tested, and/or the type of material being tested. Various input factors can be accepted before each test. In one embodiment, the GUI can also accept a range of locations and run times, indicating where the robotic arm, array element, or translation stage should position itself for testing.

The system detects the location and depth of foreign objects within the laminate, the ply orientation of the laminate, the location of wrinkles within the laminate, the thickness of the laminate bond line, and the imperfections along the laminate bond line. Information about various factors of the laminate can be displayed, including areas of fine bonding, porosity of the laminate, and location, depth, and size of areas of internal defects and delamination within the laminate. .

(1. Transducer)
FIG. 1 illustrates an orthogonal side view of a transducer housing assembly 4, according to one embodiment of the invention. Transducer housing assembly 4 includes a central housing 6 having a front portion 10 and a rear portion 8. In one embodiment, the front section 10 and the rear section 8 are hollow cylindrical pieces and are integrally formed with each other. Alternatively, the front section 10 and the rear section 8 are not integrally formed, but are formed separately and brought together via any chemical and/or mechanical means known in the art. Joined. In other embodiments, the front section 10 and the rear section 8 are of another shape, such as a cuboid. In one embodiment, the diameter of the front section 10 is larger than the diameter of the rear section 8 and the diameter of the central housing 6 tapers between the front section 10 and the rear section 8 at the intermediate section 9. Central housing 6 is attached to fluid connector 24 . In one embodiment, the fluid connector 24 is attached to the front section 10 of the central housing 6, and in another embodiment, the fluid connector 24 is attached to the middle section 9 or the rear section 8 of the central housing 6. In one embodiment, mounting bracket 26 extends from front portion 10 of central housing 6. In another embodiment, the mounting bracket 26 extends from the middle section 9 or rear portion 8 of the central housing 6.

The front portion 10 of the central housing 6 is connected to a lens housing 20 that extends outwardly from the front end of the central housing 6 . The front end of lens housing 20 includes an opening 22 . In one embodiment, at least one surface offset element 28 extends from the front end of central housing 6. In another embodiment, surface offset element 28 extends directly outwardly from lens housing 20. The transducer is arranged within the central housing 6. In some embodiments, the transducer is attached directly to elongated member 52. Elongate member 52 is attached to central housing 6 by means of coupling element 16. In one embodiment, the position of the elongate member 52, or transducer, may be adjusted relative to the central housing 6 by rotating or otherwise adjusting the coupling element 16.

In one embodiment, elongated member 52 and coupling element 16 include metallic materials such as, but not limited to, steel or aluminum. In another embodiment, elongated member 52 and coupling element 16 are formed of the same metallic material. Forming both the elongate member 52 and the coupling element 16 from the same metallic material allows activation of the galvanic cell within the transducer housing assembly 4, with one of the elements functioning as a cathode or an anode, leading to activation of the device. This is advantageous since it prevents the service life from being shortened. In one embodiment, the central housing 6 is formed from plastic, such as polycarbonate or polyethylene. In another embodiment, the central housing 6 is formed via 3D printing of the device using an ultraviolet (UV) curable polymer and then cured after formation.

In one embodiment, as shown in FIG. 1, the mounting bracket 26 has a first plane 262 extending angularly away from the central housing 6 and a transducer housing assembly from an end of the first plane 262. 4 and a second plane 263 extending in a direction substantially parallel to the central axis of FIG. In another embodiment, as shown in FIG. It is a rectangular piece. As can be seen in FIG. 2, in other embodiments the mounting bracket 26 takes different shapes depending on the device to which it is attached.

FIG. 3 illustrates an isometric view of the transducer housing assembly 4 shown in FIG. 4 illustrates a top view of the transducer housing assembly shown in FIG. 1. FIG. As can be seen in FIGS. 3 and 4, in one embodiment, the transducer housing assembly 4 includes three surface offset elements 28. In one embodiment, mounting bracket 26 includes at least one mounting bore 261.

FIG. 5 illustrates an isometric exploded view of a transducer housing assembly 4 according to another embodiment of the invention. In one embodiment, fluid connector 24 is attached to central housing 6 of transducer housing assembly 4 by connecting to connection port 34 . In one embodiment, the fluid connector 24 connects to the connection port 34 by means of threading located on the outer surface of the fluid connector 24 and the inner surface of the connection port 34.

In one embodiment, coupling element 16 is a hollow cylinder and elongated member 52 extends through coupling element 16. Elongate member 52 and coupling element 16 are held together by frictional contact between the outer surface of search tube 52 and the inner surface of the coupling element. In another embodiment, the elongate member 52 is secured to the coupling element 16 by a securing element 54, as shown in FIG. In one embodiment, fixation element 54 is a screw, bolt, or compressible pin. In one embodiment, elongated member 52 is a hollow cylinder and transducer 50 is frictionally engaged within the forward end of elongated member 52.

In one embodiment, the coupling element 16 is connected to the central housing 6 by means of a threading between a portion of the surface of the coupling element 16 and an inner surface of the first opening 12 in the rear part 8 of the central housing 6. do. In another embodiment, when coupling element 16 is engaged with central housing 6 , coupling element 16 rotates to move coupling element 16 and elongated member 52 longitudinally relative to central housing 6 . can be done. In yet another embodiment, fixation element 54 may be removed, compressed, or otherwise modified such that coupling element 16 and elongated member 52 are moved longitudinally relative to central housing 6. make it possible to By longitudinally moving the elongated member 52 relative to the central housing 6, the position of the transducer 50 can be changed, allowing for adaptation to a range of transducer 50 sizes and greater accuracy of transducer focusing. enable.

In one embodiment, the first opening 12 includes a sealing element that prevents leakage of fluid through the first opening 12. In one embodiment, the sealing element includes an O-ring lining the inner surface of the first opening 12. In another embodiment, the chamber within the central housing 6 is not completely sealed during operation, and either the rear end of the central housing 6 or the interface with the fluidic connector 24 remains unsealed. The option of using the transducer housing assembly 4 without sealing the central housing chamber includes providing flexibility in the parts used to construct the device and allowing for reduced manufacturing costs. However, with respect to the use of the transducer housing assembly 4, which involves placing the transducer housing assembly 4 at an angle, it is prudent to seal the internal chamber and prevent fluid leakage, and fluid leakage may result from the transducer into the test material. can cause decoupling.

The front portion 10 of the central housing 6 further includes a second opening 18 . Lens housing 20 is inserted into second opening 18 to engage lens housing 20 with central housing 6 . In one embodiment, the lens housing 20 and the central housing 6 are engaged by means of threads on the outer surface of the lens housing 20 and on the inner surface of the second opening 18. In another embodiment, the lens housing 20 includes an annular or helical groove 58 into which the sealing element is mounted. When the lens housing 20 is placed in the second opening 18, the sealing element engages the inner surface of the second opening 18 to form a fluid-tight seal. In one embodiment, the sealing element is an O-ring. In yet another embodiment, the second opening 18 includes at least one engagement notch 32 and the lens housing 20 includes at least one engagement protrusion 30, as shown in FIG. As shown in FIGS. 8-11, for the lens housing 20 to be disposed within the second opening 18, at least one engagement protrusion 30 of the lens housing 20 is inserted into the second opening 18. It must be aligned with at least one engagement notch 32. After the lens housing 20 is placed within the second opening 18, the lens housing 20 is rotated such that the at least one engagement protrusion 30 is no longer aligned with the at least one engagement notch 32. In one embodiment, lens housing 20 is easily separated from central housing 6 by twisting lens housing 20 and pulling it out. This is advantageous if the lens housing 20 is damaged and needs to be replaced, or if different sized lens housings 20 are required to inspect different parts of the component.

6 illustrates an orthogonal exploded view of the components of the transducer housing assembly shown in FIG. 5. FIG. Fluid connector 24 can be connected to one end of a conduit 36, such as a hose or pipe. In one embodiment, the other end of conduit 36 is connected to a fluid pump or reservoir from which fluid can be introduced into the sealed chamber via conduit 36 and fluid connector 24. In another embodiment, the transducer housing assembly 4 is not connected to a fluid pump and fluid is added to the central housing 6 by other means, such as manual dispensing.

In one embodiment, fluid connector 24 includes a pressure relief valve that allows fluid to escape when the volume of the fluid exceeds the volume of the sealed chamber. Advantageously, therefore, the pressure relief valve provides an adjustable volume of fluid into the sealed chamber depending on the distance between the transducer 50 and the front end of the central housing 6. In one embodiment, fluid connector 24 can be connected to a pump such that air is pumped out of the sealed chamber before or during filling the chamber with coupling fluid. Pumping air helps ensure that there are no bubbles in the fluid and improves the acoustic coupling path between transducer 50 and the component being tested. Additionally, after the test is completed, an air pump can be used to pump air into the sealed chamber, removing any remaining fluid that could cause damage to the transducer housing assembly, such as corrosion. , to help reduce long-term exposure to coupling fluids.

FIG. 12 illustrates an orthogonal view of lens housing 20, according to one embodiment of the invention. Membrane 38 is disposed on the front end of lens housing 20. Membrane 38 creates a fluid-tight seal on the front end of lens housing 20. When the lens housing 20 with membrane 38 is placed within the central housing 6, a sealed chamber is formed within the central housing 6. The sealed chamber is a fluid-tight chamber and includes an interface between the coupling element 16 and the first opening 12 of the rear part 8 of the central housing 6 and the interface between the lens housing 20 and the front part 10 of the central housing 6. The interface between the second opening 18, the membrane 38, and the fluid connector 24 is sealed. In one embodiment, membrane 38 is secured to lens housing 20 by at least one retainer 40. In one embodiment, at least one retainer 40 includes at least one O-ring that surrounds a portion of lens housing 20 and presses membrane 38 firmly against lens housing 20. Advantageously, if the membrane 38 becomes punctured or otherwise fails to effectively seal the sealed chamber, the retainer 40 is removed, refitted with a new membrane, and then the retainer 40 can be easily replaced by reapplying.

Membrane 38 is acoustically transparent or translucent to the fluid within the sealed chamber. The material used for membrane 38 is selected to have a similar acoustic impedance, and thus similar stiffness and density, to the fluid within the sealed chamber. In one embodiment, the fluid is water or another fluid with a refractive index approximately equal to unity. In another embodiment, the refractive index of membrane 38 is between 0.9-1.2. In yet another embodiment, the membrane is made from aquarene.

As the frequency of transducer 50 increases, the quality of the time resolution of the transducer increases. However, as the frequency of transducer 50 increases, the depth of material visible to the system decreases due to high frequency attenuation. In one embodiment, transducer 50 is operable at frequencies between 1-50 MHz. In a preferred embodiment, transducer 50 operates between 5-15 MHz.

An external couplant may be used to bridge the gap between the transducer housing assembly 4 and the test material. In one embodiment, the external couplant is an acoustic gel, such as glycerin, couplant D12, couplant H, shearwave couplant, or another suitable acoustic gel.

FIG. 13 illustrates an orthogonal side view of a surface offset element, according to an embodiment of the invention. In one embodiment, surface offset element 28 includes a pin 281 attached to biasing member 282. Biasing member 282 allows surface offset element 28 to retract when pressed against the surface of the test material. Furthermore, when the pin 281 is pressed against the test material, the biasing member 282 can absorb some displacement that may otherwise be imparted to the test material via the transducer housing assembly 4 and the transducer housing Preventing potential damage to both the assembly 4 and the test material. In one embodiment, the degree to which surface offset element 28 can be retracted is limited by the stop. When the front of the transducer housing assembly 4 is pressed against the component being tested, the surface offset element 28 first contacts the component, which may be caused by rapid and direct contact between the lens housing 20 and the component. or prevent damage to the transducer housing assembly 4. Additionally, by providing a stop that limits retraction of the surface offset element 28, the lens housing 20 can remain a fixed, known distance from the component, allowing for improved accuracy during the testing process. . In another embodiment, the surface offset element 28 is threadedly connected to the front portion 10 of the central housing 6 and can be manually adjusted before use with different test materials. In one embodiment, the transducer housing assembly 4 operates at an offset distance from the test material approximately equal to one-half the thickness of the test material.

In one embodiment, the distance that transducer housing assembly 4 is offset from the test material is determined using a calibration wave. The initial wave is transmitted to the test material via the transducer. Time-of-flight data is collected for the ultrasound waves reflecting off the membrane covering the aperture 22 of the lens housing 20, the waves reflecting off the front surface of the test material, and the waves reflecting off the back surface of the test material. Without the need to input material properties or dimensions of the test material, the transducer housing assembly 4 can be automatically offset a fixed distance from the test material based on the results of the transit time data. In another embodiment, the material properties of the test material, such as the speed of sound, and the dimensional data of the test material, such as the thickness, are entered manually and the transducer housing assembly 4 is secured from the test material without the need for a calibration wave. Allows automatic offset by distance.

FIG. 14 illustrates an orthogonal side view of a transducer housing assembly attached to a robot arm. Mounting bore 261 can receive screws, bolts, pins, or other attachment means attached to robot arm 48. The robotic arm 48 allows the transducer housing assembly 4 to reach smaller spaces and allows the device to be held stable for the duration of the test, increasing the accuracy of the test. In another embodiment, mounting bracket 26 is attached to a translation stage. The translation stage operates to move the transducer housing assembly 4 to different positions along the XY plane. This is particularly advantageous in situations where the operator desires to scan large cross-sections of relatively flat test material.

In one embodiment, transducer housing assembly 4 is attached to the array element. In another embodiment, the array element includes attachment points for two or more transducer housing assemblies 4, allowing multiple transducer housing assemblies 4 to be attached to a single array element, and an array of transducers. functions as Thus, the array of transducers scans multiple locations of the test material such that the array of transducers allows scanning components with uneven surfaces or scanning components with multiple different material types. Can be scanned simultaneously and the individual transducer housing assemblies are adjustable.

In another embodiment, the transducer housing assembly 4 is manually operated. By way of example, the transducer housing assembly 4 may be placed in an assembly attached to the test material. The operator can then manually slide the transducer housing assembly 4 within the assembly while ensuring that the assembly remains a substantially fixed distance from the test material. In yet another embodiment, the transducer housing assembly 4 can be automatically moved to a plurality of different positions on the test object based on preset position data entered into a computer or an attached display.

FIG. 15 is a schematic diagram of a transducer housing assembly in communication with a processor and display means, according to an embodiment of the invention. Transducer housing assembly 4 is connected to a pulser receiver 35 that generates waveforms from signals generated by transducers within transducer housing assembly 4 . The waveforms are then processed by a processor 42 in communication with the pulser receiver 35 to produce one or more visualizations of the data displayed by display means 45.

FIG. 16 illustrates a configuration of a submerged tank transducer for use in one embodiment of the invention. In one embodiment, the transducer 50 used to generate ultrasound and receive signals from the test material 55 is not within the transducer housing assembly 4 and is acoustically coupled to the test material 55 via an immersion tank 60. be done. Transducer 50 is connected to pulser receiver 35, which generates a waveform from the signal generated by transducer 50. The waveforms are then processed by a processor 42 in communication with the pulser receiver 35 to produce one or more visualizations of the data displayed by display means 45.

(2. Data input and calibration)
FIG. 17 illustrates a data entry screen, according to one embodiment of the invention. As shown in FIG. 17, the GUI allows the user to enter parameters regarding the test material being tested. In one embodiment, a user can select a material from a predetermined material database, and the material database provides quantities such as the sound velocity of the material without more detailed information about the material's lamination. In addition to the more general list, such as "glass" or "carbon fiber," fiber width, fiber wrap, number of composite layers, layer thickness, fiber areal density, sound velocity, stiffness, and/or other Contains a specific list referring to materials and physical properties of materials. In another embodiment, the user manually enters the mechanical and physical properties of the test material, such as the material's sound velocity, stiffness, thickness, and/or other materials and material physical properties. Select. The user may select the option to store manually entered materials in the materials database for easier selection of those materials at a later date. In yet another embodiment, the GUI includes an option to use a calibration wave to collect material parameters, where the material parameters do not need to be entered by the user before testing the device.

In one embodiment, the user can select parameters for the data output, such as the X, Y, and Z resolution of the scan, via the coordinate selection module 31. Furthermore, for situations where the transducer is coupled to a robotic arm, a translation stage, or an array element, the user can, via the coordinate selection module 31, specify the X, Y or Z position at which the scan should begin or the transducer A range of exponent X, Y, and Z positions can be selected. In one embodiment, the range of X, Y, and Z positions is selected by manually entering data points for each coordinate via the coordinate selection module 31. In another embodiment, the GUI features a virtual projection of a plane and allows the user to drag and drop a virtual device to indicate the path the transducer should travel.

In one embodiment, a user can select a z-gate start time and a z-gate end time to define a gate region for the scan via the z-gate selection module 21. Selecting the gate region allows the system to determine between which depths of the test material intensity data is acquired from the A-scan in order to compile a C-scan of the test material. In another embodiment, the gate is moved throughout the A-scan to create multiple C-scans that form a 3D image of the material.

Existing systems utilize a method of gating, where the designated gate region is the only portion of the waveform that is retrieved and processed by the system. Thus, for example, to analyze 50 different gate regions within a material, existing systems may need to scan the material 50 times at different times, once for each designated gate region. The present system improves on existing systems by retrieving the entire waveform for each A-scan of the material. References in this application to Z-gate start time, Z-gate end time, or gate region selection do not refer to hardware limitations on what portions of the waveform are designated to be received, but instead refer to complete refers to which regions of the extracted waveform are to be analyzed for a specific purpose. By analyzing the entire waveform from the material, the present system improves on existing systems both in the amount of time required to scan the material and in the resolution of the images generated for the material.

In one embodiment, before scanning the test object, the calibration block and/or a separate section of the test object is scanned by an ultrasound transducer in a preliminary scan. The preliminary scan is used to generate the characteristic mother wavelet of the ultrasound transducer. In subsequent scans by the ultrasound transducer, the characteristic mother wavelet is used as the basis for wavelet transformation of the ultrasound scan data. Utilizing a wavelet transform based on the characteristic mother wavelet of a particular ultrasound transducer allows the system to more accurately detect deviations from the standard waveform of a particular ultrasound transducer to detect defects within the test object. to enable detection.

(3. Detection of foreign objects)
One common problem in manufacturing composite materials is the persistence of foreign matter, such as parts of gloves, paper, tape, or other objects used during the manufacture of composite materials. The presence of such foreign matter within the composite material promotes the formation of cracks within the composite material, the propagation of which frequently causes component failure. Furthermore, the different material properties of foreign objects contribute to a reduction in the strength of the composite material and also lead to an increased chance of failure. In some cases, the foreign object is not a defect, but instead is an intentionally included insert into a material such as a microarray. Therefore, in such cases, it is useful for manufacturers to be able to confirm whether intentionally included inserts are properly included.

Current ultrasonic testing systems lack adequate resolution size to detect many of the most common sizes of foreign bodies. Foreign objects that can cause problems within the test material often have characteristic lengths as small as 1 mm ^and as small as 1 mm, which means that the test system has a high precision and This means that even reporting the presence of an object requires high precision, let alone accurate data. Mohammadkhani et al., entitled “Improving Depth Resolution of Ultrasonic Phased Array Imaging to Inspect Aerospace Composite Structures” One study, which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety, investigated a series of foreign bodies made of several different materials. were tested, each of which was a square piece with an area of approximately 36 mm ² . The study found that for Teflon strips, automated methods of detecting object size overestimated by 43.8% and manual methods underestimated by 17%. The results for other materials were even more off, with the automated method underestimating the size of the peel ply defect by 66.7% and the manual method underestimating its size by 77%.

In one embodiment, the present invention is directed to a system that can detect foreign objects with sizes as small as 5 mm ² and report the area of the object with an error lower than 10%. In another embodiment, the invention is directed to a system that can detect foreign objects sized 1 ^mm2 or larger and report the area of the object with an error of less than 25%. In yet another embodiment, the invention is directed to a system that can detect objects having a diameter of less than 15 mm and report the diameter of the object with an error of less than half a millimeter. In yet another embodiment, the invention is directed to a system that can detect objects having a diameter of less than 5 mm and report the object diameter with an error of less than 0.1 mm. In one study, Teflon strips of four different sizes (indicated by different letters) were each placed at three different depths (indicated by different numbers) within 12 thin layers of composite material; is between laminae 3 and 4 of composite material, a second depth is between laminae 6 and 7 of composite material, and a third depth is between laminae 6 and 7 of composite material. , between laminae 9 and 10 of the composite material. The results are shown in Tables 1 and 2 below.

FIG. 18 illustrates a set of graphical displays of test materials provided by one embodiment of the invention. As shown in FIG. 18, the GUI displays data from a corresponding A-scan image 102, a B-scan image 104, 106, a C-scan image 108, and a corresponding B-scan image 104, 106 and C-scan image 108. A single view with three-dimensional (3D) layered images 110 constructed by combining can be provided. The A-scan image 102 represents the average amplitude value of the signal returned at a given time. In one embodiment, the A-scan image 102 represents a weighted average amplitude, meaning that the amplitude of the scan at a particular location within the object is greater than the amplitude at other locations in the final A-scan image 102. It means contributing more. Since the values on the A-scan image 102 represent an average, the A-scan image 102 itself cannot be indicative of a foreign object or other defect within the test material, unless the foreign object or other defect persists throughout the cross-section of the material. It is unlikely that you will get it. However, differences in amplitude over time in the A-scan image 102 are useful for characterizing different layers of a laminate or large-scale delamination within the material perpendicular to the surface of the test material. The reference line 112 on the A-scan image 102 indicates the depth within the test material, the same depth at which the C-scan image 108 displays a cross-section of a layer of the test material, and the 3D layer image 110 displays a cross-section of the test material. This is the depth to display.

The B-scan images 104, 106 are arranged to show cross-sections of the test material parallel to the first axis 114 such that the first B-scan image 104 and the second B-scan image 106 display cross-sections that are orthogonal to each other. 1 B-scan image 104 and a second B-scan image 106 showing a cross-section of the test material parallel to a second axis 116. The 3D layer image 110 includes a top surface 118 corresponding to the C-scan image 108, a first side surface 120 corresponding to the first B-scan image 104, and a second side surface 122 corresponding to the second B-scan image 106. including. In another embodiment, the system automatically generates a B-scan image of the foreign object and a corresponding depth from the surface of the test material for the B-scan image.

As the ultrasound testing device performs a scan, the 3D layered images 110 increase in depth until the test is complete. In one embodiment, after the test is completed, the user of the GUI selects a time point and the GUI displays the version of the C-scan image 108 and the 3D layer image 110 that was performed during the test at the selected time point. let In one embodiment, the time point is selectable by dragging the reference line 112 on the A-scan image 102. In another embodiment, the user selects a time point by entering a numerical value associated with the time point.

As shown in FIG. 19, in one embodiment, foreign object 130 is represented as an area of a color that is substantially different from the color of the surrounding area. Foreign object 130 often presents itself as a region on one or more C-scan images 108 of the GUI, but in some instances, depending on where the foreign object is within the material, B-scan image 104 , 106. In another embodiment, the foreign object 130 does not appear as a different color; instead, the 3D layered image 110 is presented as a 3D texture map, and the foreign object 130 is shown as a depression or impression in the surface of the image 110.

FIG. 20 illustrates a graphical representation of a foreign object within a test material provided by one embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 20 provides an A-scan amplitude gradient map for the cross section of the test material. By plotting the slope of the A-scan amplitude for each depth of the material, the user can better visualize areas where there are large shifts in acoustic impedance within the composite material. These regions often correspond to foreign objects since there is a strong acoustic impedance difference between the foreign object and the surrounding composite material. In one embodiment, the GUI includes an editing tool that allows the user to manually trace an enclosed area of the cross-sectional slope map. The system can then provide data regarding the area of the foreign object and the diameter of the material at a particular X or Y coordinate of the cross-sectional slope map. In another embodiment, the system includes artificial intelligence that automatically traces the location of potential foreign objects and provides information regarding the area, characteristic length, and/or center of mass of the object.

Foreign objects are often distinguishable from air pockets or pores, caused by different defects such as cracks or delaminations, in the output data and graphical displays produced by the present invention. Because the difference in acoustic impedance between the air and the composite material is so high, there are typically very few waves or very low amplitude waves that travel beyond the air pocket within the test material to areas within the test material. waves are received and detected. Frequently, therefore, an A-scan of an area with such a defect will show a signal similar to the backwall of the material, i.e. a very sharp spike in amplitude followed by a very sharp spike in amplitude, at the location where the air pocket causing the defect is located. shows a signal of less activity. However, since foreign objects typically have an acoustic impedance that is closer to that of the entire laminate than air, typically such objects will exhibit a small A-scan spike that still exceeds that of the foreign object. Portions of the test material often return a detectable signal. The system is thus able to distinguish between the presence of foreign matter within the material and the presence of air pockets caused by delamination or cracking, as two different defects often affect the overall properties of the tested material. This is useful because it has a markedly different effect on different types. Additionally, in one embodiment, the system includes a materials database that includes a list of materials with acoustic impedance values for each material. If the properties of the material match one of the materials listed in the material database, the GUI may return the matching material, or a list of potentially matching materials, to the user.

In another embodiment, the system includes artificial intelligence. Artificial intelligence can identify defects through analysis of C-scan images 108, B-scan images 104, 106, and/or 3D layer images 110. In one embodiment, the defect identified by the artificial intelligence is a defect 130 visible in the cross-sectional view provided by the C-scan image 108. In another embodiment, the defects are visible only between the layers and may be observed only from the B-scan images 104 and 106. In yet another embodiment, artificial intelligence identifies defects in the test material that are not readily identifiable by a user via A-scan, B-scan, and C-scan data associated with images provided by a GUI. be able to.

(4. Thickness of joining line)
The integrity of the adhesive between two composite laminates, or between a composite laminate and an underlying substrate, is key to maintaining the desired mechanical properties of the composite laminate. When the thickness of the bond line between two or more materials forming together a single combined material is too thin, the failure load is reduced and a so-called kissing bond or complete non-bond can occur. Kissing bonds occur when a small gap forms between the adhesive and one or more materials joined by the adhesive. The gap formed in the kissing bond is too small to be detectable by the current systems available on the market, meaning that on the scan it appears that the adhesive is in contact with the adjacent material. actually means that the materials are not mechanically and/or chemically coupled. Excessive non-bonds between two materials can cause the two materials to completely separate under certain loading conditions, or to change the failure mode of an adhesively joined structure, reducing the strength of the combined materials. This causes weakening and therefore premature failure.

Furthermore, if the thickness of the bond line between two materials is too large, the combined materials will suffer from uneven distribution of bond strength, which will cause the load to be unevenly distributed and, therefore, premature failure of the part. It can lead to Additionally, non-uniform thickness along the bond line can cause problems where the combined materials perform differently when loads are applied to the composite laminate in different areas or at different angles; It reduces the load capacity and makes it more difficult to accurately predict the mechanical performance of the combined materials.

Another common problem with bond lines in composite materials is the presence of gaps, or void regions, in the bond line. These gaps, often in the form of air bubbles, are often formed during manufacturing when the adhesive is improperly applied before gluing the two layers of composite material together. Even when the adhesive is properly applied to the two layers, air pockets also often form when the two layers are joined together. Additionally, gaps also form during use due to component wear and damage when internal stresses build up within the composite material. Existing hardware systems are limited by the size of gaps that existing hardware systems can detect. Outside of the immersion tank, typically when existing systems use phased array transducers or contact transducers, the spatial resolution of the transducers is very limited by the spacing of the transducers within the array. Currently, the transducer spacing in existing systems is between approximately 0.8 mm and approximately 1.5 mm, which means that the theoretical smallest size void area is approximately 1 mm, but in practice, , meaning that the best resolution is between 3 mm wide and 4 mm wide. Existing systems cannot achieve this theoretical resolution because they must utilize multiple ultrasound transducers to generate enough power to perform the test, and the increase in the number of transducers The associated noise increase makes it impossible to detect and characterize defects on the order of 1 mm in width. The system is not limited like existing phased array systems or contact transducer systems and, in one embodiment, has a coupled fluid-filled portable housing that can achieve approximately 10 times the resolution of existing systems. Utilizes a spherical focusing transducer within the assembly. As such, the system is operable to detect void regions having a width of less than 0.5 mm. Utilizing a single spherical focused transducer within a coupling fluid-filled chamber allows the system to generate enough power to utilize only a single transducer during testing, as opposed to banks of transducers. This means that the spatial resolution is increased.

Beyond simply the need to use more than one transducer, phased array systems and flat front contact transducers suffer from other problems as well. Because flat-front transducers do not highly focus waves that illuminate a single location on a test object, flat-front transducers receive reflected returns from multiple different spatial locations in a single waveform. As waves reflect back from different spatial locations with different types, noise is generated, making it difficult or impracticable to determine the specific location or even the presence of smaller defects based on the scan data generated. enable. This is especially true for higher frequencies, which allows the detection of smaller defects, but is likely to render the data generated by flat-front transducers unusable in practice, especially for larger parts. Become. However, the present system can utilize a coupling fluid-filled chamber, and therefore a spherical focusing transducer, while producing less noise and therefore better detection ability than a flat-front transducer. , higher frequencies, such as 15 MHz, can be used during testing. Thus, in one embodiment, the system is capable of detecting void regions that extend through regions having a thickness of less than 0.025 mm within the part.

Additionally, in situations where a portion of the bond line is free of adhesive, but two adjacent layers touch each other at that portion (without adhesive), the system is adapted to detect such portion of the bond line. It is operational. The areas where two adjacent layers are in contact do not necessarily have detectable voids before starting the test, but when ultrasound is applied to the part, the separation is due to a phase shift in the reflected acoustic waves. Frequently the two layers vibrate, as is generated between the layers, causing oscillations, which is observable in the reported scan data. Interestingly, in some situations, this phenomenon allows the present system to achieve through-thickness resolution and detection capabilities that exceed even the limits of current computed tomography (CT) systems.

The system can achieve higher resolution than standard techniques also used in existing immersion-based scanning systems. Existing immersion-based system techniques employ gating to acquire data corresponding to a specific depth range within the material, then calculate the maximum amplitude within that range and determine whether there are gap areas or not. Determine. Although this existing method is capable of detecting larger voids, it is inadequate for detecting smaller voids, and smaller voids are difficult to detect when looking at restricted areas of scan data. Does not show much noticeable difference. However, this system grasps the entire waveform of the ultrasound irradiated to the test object. Features that are less noticeable within a restricted gate region are often more easily visible when viewed in the context of the entire waveform, meaning the system achieves higher sensitivity than standard techniques used in existing immersion systems. It means to do.

The system is operable to calculate the relative position of each of the one or more gap regions within the part. In one embodiment, the relative position includes the depth of each of the one or more gap regions. In another embodiment, the relative position includes the depth of each of the one or more gap regions in addition to the coordinates in a plane orthogonal to the depth direction, and the system allows reporting at least one 3D coordinate corresponding to the position of. In yet another embodiment, the system reports two or more coordinates associated with each of the one or more gap regions. Reporting two or more coordinates associated with each of the one or more gap regions allows the system to provide coordinates corresponding to the outer edges of the gap region, for example, so that the gap region The exact size and shape of can be recorded.

Currently, there is no known method to directly measure spatial variations in bond line thickness using ultrasound techniques. It is common in today's industry to use manufactured calibration wedges with known bond line thicknesses. By comparing the signal received from the test material and the signal received from the calibration wedge, the technician attempts to estimate the thickness of the bond line. However, this technique requires that a calibration wedge be made for each material, and has an accuracy that depends on the number of calibration wedges used and the difference between the thicknesses of the calibration wedges.

FIG. 21 illustrates an A-scan image produced by one embodiment of the invention. In one embodiment, the depth of the top surface of the adhesive layer at the initial location is calculated by taking an A-scan 200 for the initial location and finding the final peak 205 before the sharp drop in amplitude, while The depth of the bottom surface of the adhesive layer is defined as the next maximum intensity peak 210 as shown in FIG.

According to one embodiment of the invention, FIG. 22 illustrates the first step of the algorithm used to calculate the depth of the adhesive layer. In one embodiment, a series of A-scans are performed on the test material at defined intervals along the axes X ₁ and X ₂ . The A-scans are divided into groupings, each grouping consisting of A-scans covering approximately the same area of the test material. A series of B-scans corresponding to different depths within the gate region are generated for the initial grouping 710, and the system calculates a maximum intensity value for each of the series of B-scans for each of the groupings. A series of B-scans are also generated for groupings having the same X ₁ value as the initial grouping 710 up to _{the final X 1 grouping} 712 and for groupings having the same X ₂ value as the initial grouping 710 up to the final X 2 grouping 714. be done. For each of the plurality of groupings having the same _X1 value as the initial grouping 710 and for each of the plurality of groupings having the same _X2 value as the initial grouping 710, the system calculates a maximum intensity value for each of the series of B-scans. do.

As shown in Figure 23, after calculating the maximum intensity value for each of the series of B-scans, the system calculates the Calculate depth. The maximum intensity value of the grouping adjacent to a location serves as an initial guess, or seed, when calculating the depth of the top and bottom surfaces of the adhesive layer at that location. The calculated depth of the top and bottom surfaces of the adhesive layer at each location is calculated as follows: Serves as an initial guess or seed.

As shown in FIG. 24, in one embodiment, the system can generate a visualization 220 that displays both the top 225 and bottom 230 constructed surfaces of the adhesive bond line. FIG. 25 illustrates visualization 228 displaying the constructed surfaces of the top surface 235 and bottom surface 240 of the adhesive bond line, the bottom surface 240 being at an angle with respect to the top surface 235. FIG. 26 illustrates visualization 238 and displays the constructed surfaces of the top surface 245 and bottom surface 250 of adhesive bond lines, the bottom surface 250 having a complex geometry relative to the top surface 245.

In another embodiment, the set of thickness values is generated in the form of an array of numbers for each location along the bond line, where the thickness values for each location are the depth of the top surface 225 and the depth of the bottom surface 230 at that location. Equal to the difference between the depth and depth. As is common in the case of a joining line between two straight component materials of the combined materials, the GUI shows that when both the top surface 225 and the bottom surface 230 are substantially parallel, as in FIG. , presenting a constructed surface of bond lines. In another embodiment, as shown in FIGS. 25 and 26, the top surfaces 235, 245 and bottom surfaces 240, 250 are not substantially parallel. Assessing situations in which the top surfaces 235, 245 and bottom surfaces 240, 250 of the adhesive bond lines are not substantially parallel can be evaluated for combined materials with individual component materials that are curved relative to each other, or if the bond lines are This is important with respect to the evaluation of combined materials that are substantially distorted.

In one embodiment, the visualizations 220 of the top 225 and bottom 230 surfaces are freely interactable by the user. For example, the user can rotate visualization 220 to show the bond line from multiple angles, helping to identify areas of weakness or misalignment that are not visible from a single angle. In another embodiment, the user can click on an individual location on the top surface 225 or the bottom surface 230 and have the system provide information about the bond line at the selected location, the information including the depth of the top surface 225, the depth of the top surface 225, The depth of the lower surface 230 and/or the distance between the upper surface 225 and the lower surface 230 at the selected location may be included to indicate the thickness of the bond line at the selected location. In yet another embodiment, the system automatically calculates the curvature of the bond line and/or the roughness of the interface of the bond line.

In one embodiment, the material used for the test material bond line is matched to at least one material in the material database. Since the amplitude of the A-scan signals corresponding to the top surface 225 and bottom surface 230 of the bond line is based on the degree of acoustic impedance mismatch of the composite and bond line materials, the approximate acoustic impedance of the bond line is determined by the amplitude of the A-scan signal. can be generated based on. In another embodiment, a list of possible materials for the bond line is generated with a probability value assigned to each material. Creating a list is useful because materials often have similar acoustic impedances, meaning that it is feasible for the bond line to be made from several different materials. Additionally, if the bond line is deeper within the test material, the amplitude of the A-scan may have a larger margin of error, making it impossible to accurately determine what material the bond line is made from. Providing the user with several different possibilities regarding the content of the joining line is therefore useful and may warrant further investigation in some situations.

As shown in FIG. 27, in one embodiment, the system can provide a 2D view of the adhesive bond line, with color or hue gradients indicating areas of greater or lesser thickness. This view is particularly useful for detecting areas at the ends of the bond line where the thickness is reduced or too thick, but also for internal areas of the adhesive bond line, where air pockets are It can be discovered due to manufacturing defects or due to fatigue. In another embodiment, the system clearly identifies areas of unbonds, also referred to as incomplete bond lines, where there is a discontinuity between the adhesive layer and adjacent component material with a 2D view of other adhesive bond lines. displayed as white or another color in contrast to In yet another embodiment, the 2D view utilizes means other than color, such as the use of contour lines, to display areas of greater or lesser thickness along the adhesive bond line. Discontinuities are clearly visible in the waveforms produced for composite materials. Typically, the bond line is marked by a distinct peak in the amplitude of one or more A-scans, corresponding to an acoustic mismatch between the bond line and adjacent layers of the test material, indicating a complete defect within the part. Continuity appears as a stronger signal due to a more substantial acoustic mismatch between the air and the surrounding composite material. In fact, this discrepancy is often so large that although no signal is generated for positions beyond the discontinuity, the system can still receive ultrasound and therefore areas of the material beyond the start of the bond line. Signal data can be generated with respect to.

In another embodiment, the GUI provides a simplified view of the strength of the bond line. First, the GUI takes input of the desired bond line thickness for a given area of material. The GUI then presents an image of the surface of the test material, where areas of the surface of the test material are associated with multiple colors, each different color representing how close the bond line is to the desired bond line thickness. represent. For example, in one embodiment, a portion of the surface of the test material is colored green to indicate that the bond line is close to the desired thickness, and a portion of the surface of the test material is colored yellow to indicate that the bond line is close to the desired thickness. The portion of the surface is red, indicating that the thickness of the bond line is close to or just outside the desired bond line thickness tolerance range. indicates that the thickness is substantially different from the thickness of the In one embodiment, the user enters a tolerance range for each of the plurality of colors, indicating at which bond line thicknesses each color may appear. In another embodiment, the user enters only the desired bond line thickness with acceptable tolerances and the system automatically calculates the criteria for each of the other colors. In one embodiment, the plurality of colors includes only two colors for situations where binary decisions are useful or necessary. In another embodiment, the plurality of colors includes two or more colors, and the user can select how many different colors appear.

(5. Barely visible impact damage)
One frequent problem with composite laminates occurs when the composite material is subjected to high or low velocity impacts during manufacturing or operation. Such impacts often cause cracking, delamination, fiber breakage, or penetration of the composite material. In many cases, impact damage causes only visible, small and sometimes imperceptible surface defects on the material, but internal damage can be much larger.

Existing systems have not been able to fully characterize defects caused by such impact damage. Impact damage, along with undesirable reflections, wave interactions, refraction, and diffraction, make regions near the surface of composites imaging "dead zones" and current ultrasound imaging of such regions becomes very unreliable at low resolutions, thus raising a particular problem. A recent study by Zhang et al. used an ultrasonic pitch catch method to try to find barely visible impact damage in composite materials. However, although this method was able to detect the presence of damage, it was unable to quantify the size, shape, or location of the damage, greatly limiting the usefulness of the results in the field.

Other existing techniques, such as 3D microscopy, tend to substantially underestimate the size of damage, especially for areas of the test material close to the surface. Additionally, 3D microscopy cannot be used to accurately measure internal damage within the test material without damaging parts of the test material. In fact, the difference between the area of surface damage and the cross-sectional area of the largest area of damage within the material can often be considerable. Table 3 shows the area of surface damage in a material as found by 3D microscopy and the maximum cross-sectional area of damage in the same material found using a handheld ultrasound transducer according to an embodiment of the present invention. Shows the percentage difference between.

Characterizing the actual size and shape of the damaged area caused by the impact is important in being able to assess the impact of the damaged area on the overall mechanical properties of the material. In one study, a finite element analysis (FEA) simulation involving a part where the damage was assumed to be perfectly cylindrical with the same radius as the impact hole simulated the actual damage area caused by the impact. The results showed that the increase in von Mises stress within the material was significantly underestimated compared to previous simulations. Table 4 below shows the percentage increase in maximum von Mises stress calculated by the FEA model for three different sample materials, both for the simulation assuming a perfectly cylindrical damage and for the simulation considering the actual damage area. shows.

In one embodiment, an initial thermographic scan is performed on the test material using a thermographic test device. An initial thermographic scan is used to identify areas of potential damage in the test material. Performing an initial thermographic scan is important because performing an ultrasound scan of the entire wing is often very expensive and time consuming, especially when only a limited area of the component is exposed to damage. Particularly useful with larger parts such as wings. Additionally, identifying areas with impact damage that are barely visible to the naked eye is difficult because the surface defects present in those areas are barely visible by their nature and may even be microscopic and invisible to the naked eye. Because this system does not rely on the presence of surface damage to quantify internal damage, the system can determine damaged areas even in the absence of any surface damage.

In another embodiment, a phased array ultrasonic testing device is used to scan areas of potential damage after the initial thermographic scan is performed. A phased array ultrasound scan is used to identify possible areas of damage to be further investigated. Performing subsequent sweeps with a phased array ultrasonic test device is often not specific enough or This is useful because it lacks precision.

In yet another embodiment, an initial thermographic scan is not performed on the test material and only a phased array ultrasonic test device and individual scan transducers are used to scan the test material. In yet another embodiment, neither an initial thermographic scan nor a phased array ultrasonic test device is used, and only individual scan transducers are used to scan the test material.

In one embodiment, the system includes scanning an area surrounding the surface impact. The transducer emits ultrasound and generates an A-scan of the area, after which a gate is selected for the A-scan and a defined gate start time and gate end time are defined, with a series of gate times between them. Define the points. The first gating time point corresponds to the cross section of the test material closest to the surface of the test material, and the final gating time point corresponds to the cross section of the test material furthest from the surface of the test material. In one embodiment, the gate is selected based on the average thickness of a single thin layer of test material. In another embodiment, the average thickness of a single lamina of the test material is A, which indicates the number of laminas of the test material and the total propagation time between the first and last lamina of the material. Automatically determined by the test based on scan data.

The maximum value of every A-scan in the region for each gated time point is then plotted, and at each location in the region, the maximum value of the absolute value of the gated A-scan (or C-scan for MGA) for each gated time point is plotted. Generate a series of C-scans. In one embodiment, a Fourier transform is performed on the gated data utilizing a 15 Mhz low-pass filter using numerical integration of the magnitude of the generated spectrum. This filtered data is then plotted to produce a series of frequency spectral intensity (FSI) C-scans. The damaged area is then determined for each of the MGA C-scan and FSI C-scan. In one embodiment, the damaged area is determined manually by an operator. In another embodiment, the damaged area is automatically determined by the processor. Each C-scan of the series of MGA C-scans and FSI C-scans is then compared by the system. The system creates a series of aligned C-scans, where each C-scan in the series of aligned C-scans is the same as a C-scan in either the series of MGA C-scans or the series of FSI C-scans. , it depends on which has the largest damage area for a given gate time point. Using both MGA and FSI C-scans is useful because MGA C-scans tend, on average, to estimate larger damage areas than shown in FSI C-scans, and therefore Overall, it's a more conservative approach. However, FSI C-scans are often able to better resolve small damage areas and are therefore useful in obtaining a clearer image of the overall change in properties of the test material.

In one embodiment, as shown in FIG. 28, the system visualizes 310 the damaged area of each C-scan in a series of MGA C-scans and visualizes 320 the damaged area of each C-scan in a series of FSI C-scans. and is operable to create. A damaged region 332 corresponding to the first gated time point is at the top of each visualization 310, 320, and a damaged region 334 corresponding to the last gated time point is at the bottom of each visualization 310, 320. The system is operable to create a 3D damage profile of a region consisting of the damaged area of each C-scan in a series of vertically stacked aligned C-scans, with the damage corresponding to the first gate time point. Region 332 is at the top and damaged region 334, corresponding to the final gate time point, is at the bottom. In one embodiment, the centroid of each damaged area is automatically aligned vertically by the system. In one embodiment, as shown in FIG. 29, the system provides visualization 340 of the damaged area in each C-scan in a series of MGA C-scans and in a series of FSI C-scans for a test material with no visible surface damage. A visualization 350 of the damaged area of each C-scan is created. A damaged area 352 corresponding to the first gating time point is at the top of each visualization 340, 350, and a damaged area 354 corresponding to the last gating time point is at the bottom of each visualization 340, 350.

In one embodiment, as shown in FIG. 30, the system uses FEA to create a von Mises stress profile and graphically display it for all or a portion of the test material. The von Mises stress profile assists in correlating the damage area associated with an impact with a quantitative reduction in the performance of the part.

(6. Wrinkle detection)
Another defect that can affect the mechanical properties of composite laminates is wrinkles or waviness between the layers of the composite material. Wrinkling between layers of composite materials frequently occurs when the composite material is not fully fixed during manufacturing and is more amorphous, especially for parts with complex curvature. For thin parts or parts with significant wrinkles, these anomalies are often detected early through simple visual analysis of the part's surface. However, especially for thicker composite materials where the wrinkles are small relative to the thickness of the part and where the wrinkles are in layers distant from the surface of the part, visual analysis may show that the part may appear smooth on its surface. , may not reveal the problem.

When a wrinkled composite material is placed in tension, the wrinkled layer is frequently not as taut as each of the other layers, i.e., does not engage in tension, and the overall structure of the composite laminate This means that it does not contribute to the strength. Furthermore, when the composite material is placed in compression, the wrinkles can distort instead of engaging the load, leading to a significant reduction in the compressive strength of the composite material. Frequently, this causes premature failure of the composite material. In order to be able to detect the majority of wrinkles large enough to significantly affect the performance of the composite material, the ultrasonic testing system should detect at least wrinkles with an amplitude of 0.4 mm or more. You need to be able to. Current ultrasound systems are unable to achieve this resolution and are therefore likely to miss important defects within composite materials. In addition to the size of a wrinkle, important in assessing the potential danger of a wrinkle is its aspect ratio. The wrinkle aspect ratio is defined as the wrinkle amplitude divided by half the wavelength. Wrinkles with low aspect ratios are more difficult to detect because the wrinkles often appear flat with respect to adjacent layers at longer length scales. Therefore, a system that can detect wrinkles with low aspect ratio is often just as important as being able to detect wrinkles with low amplitude.

The system is operable to detect and characterize wrinkles in both unidirectional and woven composites. Additionally, the present invention can characterize wrinkles in a variety of materials including, but not limited to, carbon fiber composites, fiberglass composites, and glass-carbon composites. The system is capable of resolving images of wrinkles with amplitudes of approximately 0.05 mm or greater in unidirectional composite materials. In textile composites, due to the larger size of the plies themselves, the system is able to resolve images of wrinkles with amplitudes of approximately 0.2 mm or more. In one embodiment, the system is capable of detecting wrinkles that have an aspect ratio of 0.1 or greater.

In one embodiment, the system can find mercer wrinkles that propagate in a plane perpendicular to the test surface of the test object. In most situations, wrinkles are present between the lamina of the test object and are identified when one lamina is pushed up onto another and vice versa. However, in some situations, such as when an aircraft wing contacts an aircraft fuselage, wrinkles propagate not only between laminae, but rather within individual laminae.

As shown in FIG. 31, in one embodiment, the system creates a series of B-scans 140 of the test material showing a series of cross-sections of the test material spanning the entire width of the fabric. In another embodiment, the user can select the start and end gate times to generate only a series of B-scans of the test material for a limited range of depth in the test material. Additionally, the user selects a start distance, which represents how far the first B-scan is from the surface of the test object, and an end distance, which represents how far the last B-scan is from the surface of the test object. You can choose the distance. By showing a series of B-scans 140 through the thickness of the test material, the operator can see areas where the relative positions of the two layers of material differ across the width of the test material; indicates the presence of wrinkles 142 within the test material. In one embodiment, an artificial intelligence system automatically detects areas of wrinkles from a series of B-scans and highlights problem areas to the user. In another embodiment, the system determines how deep from the surface of the test material the amplitude of the wrinkles 142 exceeds a predetermined threshold for each layer of the composite material, and the predetermined threshold for each layer of the composite material. automatically determines how far from the surface of the test material the test material is below the threshold value. Detecting where a wrinkle ends within each layer within a composite material provides the complex geometry of the wrinkle, rather than simply its height at a given cross-section. As shown in FIG. 32, in one embodiment, the system provides a two-dimensional view of the test material with the area of wrinkles traced. Additionally, in one embodiment, the system may provide graphics that indicate information related to wrinkles, such as wrinkle height, wrinkle depth, wrinkle length, and/or wrinkle aspect ratio. .

33 and 34 illustrate a three-dimensional graphical representation 144 of wrinkles 142, 146 within a test material provided by one embodiment of the present invention. In addition to providing a cross-section of the test material, the system can further generate a three-dimensional graphical representation 144 of the individual layers of the test material, showing curvature of the layers or wrinkles 142, 146 within the layers. Includes variations in layer depth. After the system compiles A-scan data for a series of cross-sections of the test material and generates a series of C-scans, the system constructs a series of X, Y, and Z coordinates corresponding to the interface between the two layers. Additionally, slope analysis can be performed on a series of C-scans. The system can then plot these coordinates on a three-dimensional graphical display 144, showing the width, length, and depth dimensions of the test material. In one embodiment, the system further assigns coloring to sections of the three-dimensional graphical display 144, with different colors corresponding to different depths of the layer. In another embodiment, the system includes a graphical editing module that allows a user to manually map an interface or a portion of an interface and then create a series of X, Y, and Z plots. Create coordinates.

As shown in FIG. 35, in one embodiment, the system can automatically separate wrinkles 146 from the surrounding test material. In one embodiment, wrinkles are separated by determining the local curvature at each location along the lamina and finding locations along the surface where the curvature of the surface extends a predetermined threshold. In another embodiment, a portion of the surface of the lamina can be manually selected and cropped as shown independently of unselected portions of the lamina. As shown in FIG. 36, in another embodiment, the system can display a 2D top view of the wrinkle 146. In one embodiment, the 2D top view of the wrinkle uses coloring to indicate the relative depth and/or height of different sections of the displayed lamina.

(7. Determination of porosity)
The porosity of a material has a substantial effect on its mechanical properties. Pores are small holes within a material that are generally filled with air. An increased number of pore sizes within the material frequently causes the material to exhibit reduced strength, sometimes leading to premature failure.

To assess the porosity of a material, current ultrasound systems utilize a calibration block of material with known porosity, which is first measured in transmission mode by the device. When evaluating the amplitude and timing of ultrasound signals captured by the receiver on the opposite side of the calibration block relative to the transducer, the current system can develop baseline measurements to compare test materials. . However, current systems face several significant problems. Calibration blocks often need to be uniquely formed for each test material, depending on the material being tested and the geometry of the material being tested. When people try to measure the porosity of many different objects, calibration blocks are often expensive and time-consuming to manufacture. Furthermore, relying on the use of calibration blocks means that the system can only determine the calibration block with which the test material most closely matches, making accuracy dependent on the smallest difference in porosity between the calibration blocks. This limits the accuracy of the system.

Furthermore, frequently these systems rely on a transparent mode to operate. However, transmission ultrasound testing often cannot be performed because the user does not have access to the second side of the test material or the test material is too thick for transmission techniques to work reliably. However, for situations where only a single surface of the test material is available, current ultrasound systems lack sufficient resolution to assess sample porosity in pulse-echo mode.

In one embodiment, the system determines the porosity of the test material. The system can directly and quantitatively measure the overall average porosity of the test material without the need for comparison to a calibration block. In another embodiment, the system provides statistical information regarding average pore size, such as standard deviation and variance of pore size. In one embodiment, the system can determine the overall average porosity of the test material while in pulse-echo mode. In one embodiment, the system can determine the overall void fraction of the test material, including carbon fiber and/or fiberglass, as low as 2%.

In addition to determining the overall average porosity of the test material, reporting only the overall average porosity is potentially misleading if the average value is significantly affected by large voids within the material. It is also important to indicate the size and location of abnormal pores. Frequently, these abnormal pores serve as starting points for crack formation or help promote the propagation of existing cracks within the test material. However, existing systems lack sufficient spatial resolution to detect and report many potentially unqualified pores, especially in deeper regions of multilayer composites where spatial resolution decreases. Therefore, in addition to conveying the overall average porosity of the material, the system detects and identifies individual pores with a size of 1.5 mm or more within any layer of a composite material with up to a total of 18 layers. can do.

In one embodiment, the system displays B-scans, C-scans and/or three-dimensional images of the test material containing abnormal pores. The system indicates the pores using visible outlines, shading, or any other visual display method. The system can automatically provide the effective diameter, area, and depth of the pores. In one embodiment, the system automatically fits an ellipse around the pore to model the pore and scales the major and minor axes of the ellipse to provide better information about its shape. Report.

(8. Evaluation of degree of hardening)
Another frequent defect within test materials is improper curing of the test object and/or improper curing of the adhesive used to bond the individual layers of the test object. Composite laminates are often formed by first providing a series of prepreg sheets of a woven substrate, such as carbon fiber or fiberglass. Prepreg sheets are impregnated with resins such as epoxy, polyester, polyurethane, vinyl ester resins, or other plastics in a controlled thermal environment (e.g., a furnace) until the resin within the prepreg is cured, forming a single Form solid plastic parts. In other examples, parts can be manufactured using a dry infusion process and without the use of prepreg sheets. Additionally, in some instances, parts are manufactured and cured in an "open air" environment without the use of a controlled thermal environment. Unlike controlled thermal environments, in open air environments temperature and pressure are often not easily changeable. Therefore, controlling the amount of time a part is allowed to cure in an open air environment is important to properly cure the part.

Determining the temperature, pressure, and/or time of the curing process is often essential to obtaining a suitable part. Altering the temperature or cure time at which a polymer is cured affects the degree to which chain growth polymerization can occur and the crosslink density within the polymer. Producing a polymer with a very high degree of crosslinking contributes to a higher ultimate stress of the polymer and also makes the polymer more brittle. On the other hand, allowing more chain growth polymerization to occur while producing less crosslinking contributes to increased malleability, but may reduce the ultimate strength of the polymer. Therefore, adjusting the conditions under which polymers form is important for adjusting the properties of the polymers.

Although methods exist to evaluate the degree of hardening of a part after the curing process is complete (eg, thermographic analysis), there is currently no method to non-destructively analyze the curing process in situ during manufacturing. Furthermore, thermographic analysis cannot be used for thin parts because the heat of the ambient elements around the part is captured by the infrared camera, often leading to misleading characterization of the part's state of cure. Therefore, real-time ultrasonic monitoring and/or scanning of parts allows the curing process to be adjusted in real time, eliminating timely and often wasteful "guess and check" type feedback loops. This is advantageous because it eliminates the need for this.

Some parts are not exposed to a controlled heat and/or pressure environment and therefore their cure time is most important in determining whether the part is suitable. For manufacturing processes outside of a controllable environment, temperature, humidity, and pressure often vary significantly over the course of a day, let alone over longer periods of time. So one part may be properly cured after, say, 7 hours, and the same part may be properly cured after 8 hours, depending on temperature and pressure variations during manufacturing. . For now, manufacturers choose a common amount of time for each part and accept less precision in the curing process, but allowing the parts to be analyzed in real time means that each part is near-optimal. may be allowed to be cooled. For other processes, providing an initiated feedback control loop to adjust the heat and pressure loads can help achieve the desired cure state. Additionally, some curing processes occur over very short time scales (eg, less than 10 minutes). To ensure proper curing, many of these processes use highly controlled environments and test multiple parts to determine optimal curing parameters. With this system, the curing process can be optimized in real time, meaning that fewer parts are wasted to improve the curing process.

Depending on the manufacturing method used to produce the part, key parameters for determining whether the part will be properly cured are the temperature and temperature at which the part is held during and/or after manufacturing. , the pressure at which the part is held during and/or after manufacture, and the time required to perform the curing process. For example, exposing the part to higher temperatures causes the material to become harder and therefore harder and more brittle, which may or may not be desirable, depending on the part. On the other hand, for example, exposing a part to lower temperatures will cause the material to harden less and be less strong than a more hardened material, which may or may not be desirable, depending on the part. Sometimes. Therefore, there is a need for a system that can assess whether a test object is both properly cured or improperly cured.

In one embodiment, the ultrasonic emitter probe is inserted into a controlled thermal environment during the curing process. The ultrasonic emitter probe irradiates the test object with ultrasonic waves during heating. Waves reflected by the material are captured by an ultrasonic receiver probe and processed by the system to generate data regarding the degree of cure over the time of the cure process. The degree of stiffness is evaluated by the degree of attenuation of the data received by the ultrasound receiver probe combined with the signal centroid, and the stiffness is also evaluated using the signal centroid and energy analysis. By determining both the degree of hardening of the material and the stiffness of the material, the strength of the material can also be determined for a given polymer system. In one embodiment, the ultrasound emitter probe and ultrasound receiver probe are the same device. In one embodiment, the system is in communication with a control unit for a controlled thermal environment, and the heat and/or timing of the controlled thermal environment used for the curing process is controlled while the curing process is in progress. Automatically adjusted based on generated data. In another embodiment, the system is connected to a control unit for the curing tool, and the heat and/or timing of the curing tool used for the curing process is controlled by the data generated while the curing process is in progress. automatically adjusted based on the

In another embodiment, the ultrasound emitter probe is placed outside the controlled thermal environment and irradiates the test object with ultrasound immediately after the curing process is completed. The system generates data regarding the degree of cure of the test material based on the reflected ultrasound waves. In one embodiment, the system is connected to a thermal control unit for a controlled thermal environment, and the data is used to automatically adjust temperature, pressure, and/or time for subsequent curing iterations. . In another embodiment, a user manually updates a thermal control unit for a controlled thermal environment based on data generated by the system.

The present invention can inspect a part during the curing process using both continuous scanning and monitoring at specific locations on the part. In one embodiment, as shown in FIG. 37, the part 405 being cured is placed on a tool 410. The tool 410 has at least one acoustic window 415, which is typically made of a material that more closely matches the material properties of the resin being tested, rather than the aluminum or other metal from which the tool 410 is constructed. This is a section of the tool 410 made with. Utilizing acoustic window 415 helps to separate tool 410 from component 405 during analysis as acoustic window 415 may propagate waves slower than the metal substrate. Transducer 420 is positioned adjacent to at least one acoustic window 415 to continuously monitor component 405 at that location. In one embodiment, part 405 is covered with bagging material 425. In one embodiment, transducer 420 is connected to a pulser receiver via cable 430. In one embodiment, transducer 420 is a contact transducer coupled to acoustic window 415 via acoustic gel 435. In another embodiment, the transducer is part of a portable transducer housing having an internal coupling fluid (eg, water) chamber. For larger parts, utilizing more than one acoustic window and more than one transducer is advantageous because the larger surface area reduces the likelihood that the degree of cure will be the same at all locations within the part. It is.

In one embodiment of scanning, one or more transducers are used to continuously scan a substantial portion or all of the part. Rather than monitoring at one or more specific locations on the part, scanning embodiments inspect the entire part in real time. By scanning virtually all of the part, there is no reliance on the principle that large parts of the part can have approximately the same degree of hardening, meaning that decisions regarding the hardening process can be fine-tuned more precisely. means.

In one embodiment, when ultrasound is transmitted to the test object, some waves reflect at the interface between the adhesive layer and the adjacent solid layer, and other waves propagate through the test object. Reflective with surrounding bagging material. Based on the returned average A-scan amplitude collected from the test object, the test can determine whether each adhesive layer is properly cured. This is in direct conflict with other existing methods of assessing adhesive curing, such as those found in U.S. Patent No. 6,945,111, which require that the probe In order to obtain a sufficiently clear amplitude to distinguish between proper and improperly cured states of the adhesive, the I need. Also, unlike methods such as those described in No. 6,945,111, the present system does not depend on the cured state of the resin within the layers of the composite material and/or the cured state of the adhesive between adjacent layers of the composite material. Note that we do not determine the cure state of the adhesive within the honeycomb pattern within the composite material. Indeed, existing methods are limited by the highly specialized setups required to evaluate the curing of composite materials, meaning that the test equipment used for such manufacturing systems is generally not compatible with other devices. means that it cannot be adapted to

Additionally, the system of the present invention can evaluate the degree of cure of composite materials using liquid-coupled transducers, specifically the portable transducer housing systems described herein. Existing systems are difficult to evaluate the degree of curing of the test object because when the liquid couplant is placed in direct contact with the test object during the manufacturing process, it will evaporate more easily or damage the curing process. , avoid using liquid couplant. For this reason, existing systems typically use all-solid couplings, air couplings, or contact transducers that may use small amounts of acoustic gel between the transducer and the test object. However, each of these methods is very limited in its resolution compared to, for example, water-coupled spherical focusing transducers. Additionally, using a spherical focusing transducer allows for higher frequency, higher energy images, providing higher quality data about the part. Thus, the present system allows for higher frequencies which provide improved accuracy when testing for degree of cure of a test object, particularly when testing for degree of cure of multiple layers of a test object simultaneously.

In one embodiment, the system is operable to generate a 3D graphical image of the test object after the scan is completed. In one embodiment, the 3D graphical image includes color coding to indicate less highly cured areas as e.g. blue, more highly cured areas as e.g. red, and moderately cured areas as e.g. Shown as green. Note that any coloring scheme can be used for the 3D graphical image, and other indications of degree of cure can also be used, such as differential shading.

In one embodiment, differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) is used on individual polymer resin samples to determine the correlation between ultrasonic A-scan results and degree of cure of the material. By performing DSC on a given material, the system can align this data with data obtained from the transducer to provide a real-time assessment of the degree of hardening of the material. In one embodiment, the system includes a database of polymers, each having their own DSC determined cure profile.

(9. Layer orientation)
As discussed in U.S. Pat. No. 10,697,941, incorporated herein by reference, test materials such as composite laminates are often comprised of individual layers with directionally dependent material properties. . For example, based on whether the fibers are unidirectional or 2D woven within an individual lamina, and based on the orientation of the fiber tows within that lamina, materials often have different orientations within the lamina. may have different properties along the lines (e.g., tensile strength, compressive strength, thermal conductivity, electrical conductivity).

Currently, most ultrasonic testing systems and processes are unable to determine the ply orientation of each thin layer of test material. Alternatively, some studies have suggested the use of computed tomography (CT) images to determine ply orientation. However, CT scanning requires high initial investment costs and is impractical to be used for large parts.

In one embodiment, the system can determine the relative orientation of fiber tows within individual layers of the composite material. A series of A-scans are generated over the area of the test material. For each series of A-scans, multiple gates are selected. The plurality of gates are selected to be smaller than the individual thin layers of test material, often as small as one-tenth the thickness of the thin layer of test material. For each of the plurality of gates, a C-scan is generated from amplitude data of each of the A-scans at the given gate. A user can view smoothed C-scan data, such as the C-scans shown in FIGS. 38 and 39. In one embodiment, a two-dimensional (2D) Fast Fourier Transform (FFT) is applied to the C-scan data to produce a clearer C-scan display, such as those shown in FIGS. 40 and 41. As illustrated in FIG. 40, fibers 402 having a zero degree orientation relative to the reference line are clearly discernible. As illustrated in FIG. 41, fibers 404 having a non-zero degree orientation relative to the reference line are also clearly distinguishable. In another embodiment, the system then uses Radon transform, wavelet transform, Hough transform, eigenvalue analysis, and/or other data transformations to determine the predominant fiber directions utilizing the C-scan. Conversion of C-scan data involves the user determining the orientation of the fiber tows in each generated C-scan relative to adjacent C-scan data, as well as determining the thickness of each ply of each layer of material individually. make it possible to judge. In one embodiment, the average ply thickness and orientation values for the fiber tows in each generated C-scan are automatically generated. In one embodiment, obtaining the thickness of each layer of the composite material includes a first calibration step in which the sound velocity of the material is obtained. In another embodiment, the first calibration step is not required if the total thickness of the test object is known. When the speed of sound is known or the total thickness of the material is known, an average A-scan 102, such as the one shown in FIG. 19, provides sufficient information to obtain the number of layer thicknesses. provide. In particular, the method of the present invention is able to find fiber orientation in composite materials with 2D woven lamina, which existing methods cannot provide.

The use of 2D FFT on C-scan data can provide demonstrable advantages over the use of other transforms, such as the Radon transform. For example, other transformations often exhibit peaks from several different adjacent laminae of the composite, meaning that the fiber orientations of the individual layers are often mixed up. Additionally, using a 2D FFT is computationally simpler than many other transforms, reducing the time and memory required by the computer to complete the process. Unexpectedly, 2D FFT also allows for greater precision regarding the angle of individual laminas due to its greater sensitivity to subtle changes in fiber orientation.

In another embodiment, the system may also determine other characteristics regarding the composite material stack, including the number of layers in the sample, the thickness of each layer, the weave of the fibers in each layer, and/or the total thickness. can.

(10. Curved parts)
One common problem encountered in non-destructive testing is when the test object does not have a flat surface. Some test objects have positive or negative curvature in one direction, but zero curvature in a second direction (eg, a cylindrical barrel). Other test objects have positive or negative curvature in more than one direction (eg, a sphere). Curved parts pose some challenges to ultrasound scanning. First, curved parts often have different thicknesses and/or other properties at different locations on the part. Therefore, simply testing the part at discrete locations using contact transducers does not fully and adequately characterize the part. Frequently, the thickness of a curved part changes along the length of the part as one or more plies drop from one area of the part to the next. Outside of the dip tank, current ultrasonic testing systems lack the necessary accuracy to detect this ply drop along the length of the part.

Additionally, the most commonly used system to scan across an area of a part is a phased array system. However, phased array systems require that the array have transducers oriented perpendicular to the surface of the part in order to properly acquire data. In particular, this requires phased array devices to be specifically designed to follow the curvature of the part, which can often be prohibitively expensive and time consuming, since parts that curve in more than one direction poses a problem regarding. Additionally, even if a phased array device is designed to match the curvature of a part at a particular location, parts with more complex curvatures (e.g., curvatures that vary along the length of the part) still Will not be scannable by phased array systems.

The system is capable of scanning curved parts inside or outside the dip tank with high accuracy. Since only a single transducer is needed for the system, there is no problem of having to redesign a new phased array system for each component. Additionally, while phased array systems require high precision to match the curvature of the part, our system has higher tolerances and allows the transducer to be perpendicular to the surface of the part or at 7 degrees from vertical. allows the transducer to efficiently scan the part. In one embodiment, the main transducer used to scan parts with non-planar surfaces is paired with an offset transducer. Offset transducers emit and receive ultrasound waves to determine how far the main transducer is oriented at a particular location relative to an axis perpendicular to the surface of the part. The system then adjusts the angle at which the primary transducer scans the next location along the part based on the data received from the offset transducer. In another embodiment, tap testing is used to determine the relative orientation of the surfaces of the parts at a given location to adjust the positioning of the primary transducer. In yet another embodiment, flash thermography is used to determine the relative orientation of a surface of a part at a given location in order to adjust the positioning of the primary transducer.

The main transducers used in the system are capable of operating at high frequencies, between 5 MHz and 15 MHz, allowing a degree of precision not possible with current contact transducer systems. Therefore, unlike current contact transducers, the present system can scan the entire part with high enough accuracy to detect ply drops along the length of the part. In one embodiment, the system is operable to generate a set of values corresponding to the depth and thickness of a particular layer (eg, an adhesive bond layer) of a part having a non-planar surface. In one embodiment, the system is operable to provide the number of plies at each location of the part. In one embodiment, the system is operable to generate a 3D graphic of the part and determine thickness values for the entire part and/or one or more individual layers of the part at each location along the part. Including providing. In one embodiment, the thickness of the part along each location is indicated by color coding of the surface of the part at that location.

FIG. 42 is a schematic diagram of one embodiment of the present invention, a computer system, generally described as 800, having a network 810, a plurality of computing devices 820, 830, 840, a server 850, and a database 870. Illustrated.

Server 850 is constructed, configured, and coupled to enable communication with multiple computing devices 820 , 830 , 840 via network 810 . Server 850 includes a processing unit 851 with an operating system 852. Operating system 852 enables server 850 to communicate with remotely distributed user devices over network 810. Database 870 is operable to house an operating system 872, memory 874, and programs 876.

In one embodiment of the invention, system 800 includes network 810 for distributed communication via wireless communication antenna 812 and processing by at least one mobile communication computing device 830. Alternatively, wireless and wired communications and connectivity between the devices and components described herein may include WI-FI, WORLDWIDE INTEROPERABILITY FOR MICROWAVE ACCESS (WIMAX), RF Identification (RFID), NEAR FIELD COMMUNICATION Radio frequency (RF) communications such as (NFC), wireless network communications such as BLUETOOTH (registered trademark), ZIGBEE (registered trademark), including BLUETOOTH LOW ENERGY (BLE); infrared (IR) communications; cellular communications; satellite communications; universal Ethernet communications; communications via fiber optic cables, coaxial cables, twisted pair cables; and/or any other type of wireless or wired communications. In another embodiment of the invention, the system 800 includes virtualization that allows any or all aspects of the software and/or application components presented herein to be executed on the computing devices 820, 830, 840. It is a computing system. In certain aspects, computer system 800 is implemented using hardware, either in a dedicated computing device, integrated into another entity, or distributed across multiple entities or computing devices; It is operable to be implemented using a combination of software and hardware.

By way of example and not limitation, computing devices 820, 830, 840 may include servers, blade servers, mainframes, mobile phones, personal digital assistants (PDAs), smartphones, desktop computers, netbook computers, tablet computers, workstations, laptops, etc. is intended to represent various types of electronic devices including at least one processor and one memory, such as tops, and other similar computing devices. The components, their connections and relationships, and their functionality depicted herein are intended to be illustrative only and to limit the implementations of the invention described and/or claimed herein. not intended to be.

In one embodiment, computing device 820 includes a processor 860 , a system memory 862 having random access memory (RAM) 864 and read-only memory (ROM) 866 , a system bus 868 that couples memory 862 to processor 860 , and the like. Contains components. In another embodiment, computing device 830 includes components such as an operating system 892 and a storage device 890 for storing one or more application programs 894, a network interface unit 896, and/or an input/output controller 898. is operable to additionally include. Each of the components is operable to be coupled to each other via at least one bus 868. The input/output controller 898 receives input from a number of other devices 899 including, but not limited to, an alphanumeric input device, a mouse, an electronic stylus, a display unit, a touch screen, a signal generating device (e.g., a speaker), or a printer. 899 is operable to receive and process or provide output to a number of other devices 899 .

By way of example and not limitation, processor 860 may include a general purpose microprocessor (e.g., central processing unit (CPU)), graphics processing unit (GPU), microcontroller, digital signal processor (DSP), application specific integrated circuit (ASIC). , field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), programmable logic devices (PLDs), controllers, state machines, gate or transistor logic, discrete hardware components, or other operations on calculations, processing instructions for execution, and/or information. Any other suitable entity, or combination thereof, capable of performing.

In another implementation, shown as 840 in FIG. , one or more microprocessors in conjunction with a DSP core).

Also, multiple computing devices are operable to be connected, each device providing a portion of the required operation (eg, a server bank, a group of blade servers, or a multiprocessor system). Alternatively, some steps or methods are operable to be performed by circuitry specialized for a given function.

According to various embodiments, computer system 800 is operable to operate in a networked environment using logical connections to local and/or remote computing devices 820, 830, 840 via network 810. It is. Computing device 830 is operable to connect to network 810 via network interface unit 896 connected to bus 868 . The computing device may communicate a communication medium through an antenna 897 that communicates with a network antenna 812 and a network interface unit 896 via a wired network, a direct wire connection, or wirelessly, such as acoustic, RF, or infrared. and, if necessary, to include digital signal processing circuitry. Network interface unit 896 is operable to provide communications under various modes or protocols.

In one or more example aspects, the instructions are operable to be implemented in hardware, software, firmware, or any combination thereof. The computer-readable medium may contain one or more instructions, such as an operating system, data structures, program modules, applications, or other data embodying any one or more methodologies or functions described herein. It is operable to provide volatile or non-volatile storage for sets. The computer-readable medium is operable to include memory 862, processor 860, and/or storage medium 890, and can store one or more sets of instructions 900 on a single medium or multiple media (e.g., or a distributed computer system). Non-transitory computer-readable media includes all computer-readable media with the sole exception of propagating signals that are themselves transitory. Further, instructions 900 are operable to be transmitted or received over network 810 via network interface unit 896 as a communication medium, and are operable to include a modulated data signal such as a carrier wave or other transport mechanism. possible and includes any delivery media. The term "modulated data signal" means a signal that has one or more of its characteristics changed or set in such a manner as to encode information in the signal.

Storage devices 890 and memory 862 include volatile and nonvolatile media such as cache, RAM, ROM, EPROM, EEPROM, FLASH memory, or other solid-state memory technologies; disks (e.g., digital versatile disks (DVDs), HD-DVD, BLU-RAY®, compact disk (CD), or CD-ROM) or other optical storage; magnetic cassette, magnetic tape, magnetic disk storage, floppy disk, or other magnetic storage device; or 800 includes, but is not limited to, any other medium that can be used to store computer-readable instructions and that can be accessed by computer system 800.

In one embodiment, computer system 800 is in a cloud-based network. In one embodiment, server 850 is the designated physical server of distributed computing devices 820, 830, and 840. In one embodiment, server 850 is a cloud-based server platform. In one embodiment, a cloud-based server platform hosts the serverless functionality of distributed computing devices 820, 830, and 840.

In another embodiment, computer system 800 is in an edge computing network. Server 850 is an edge server and database 870 is an edge database. Edge server 850 and edge database 870 are part of an edge computing platform. In one embodiment, edge server 850 and edge database 870 are designated on distributed computing devices 820, 830, and 840. In one embodiment, edge server 850 and edge database 870 are not designated for distributed computing devices 820, 830, and 840. Distributed computing devices 820, 830, and 840 connect to edge servers in an edge computing network based on proximity, availability, latency, bandwidth, and/or other factors.

It is also possible that computer system 800 is operable not to include all of the components shown in FIG. 42, or to include other components not explicitly shown in FIG. It is contemplated that the present invention may be operable to utilize an entirely different architecture than that shown in FIG. The various example logical blocks, modules, elements, circuits, and algorithms described in connection with the embodiments disclosed herein may be implemented as electronic hardware, computer software, or a combination of both. It is possible to operate. To clearly illustrate this compatibility of hardware and software, various example components, blocks, modules, circuits, and steps have been described above generally in terms of their functionality. Whether such functionality is implemented as hardware or software depends on the particular application and design constraints imposed on the overall system. Although skilled artisans may implement the described functionality in a variety of ways for each particular application (e.g., arranged in a different order or partitioned in a different manner), such implementation The determination should not be construed as causing a departure from the scope of the invention.

Other and further embodiments utilizing one or more aspects of the invention described above may be devised without departing from the spirit of Applicant's invention. For example, various seals and seal configurations can seal the component and form a chamber within the transducer housing assembly, and various transducer devices can be used to move the transducer housing assembly along the component surface within the space. Various quick disconnect configurations can be used to attach the lens housing, and various ultrasound signal generation and reception devices (combined or separate) can be used to connect the signal from the transducer. The same can be used to form the transducer housing assembly and other system equipment, along with other modifications, as described in the patent. may occur to remain within the scope of the claims.

Composite materials include two or more materials combined to form one single material. Composite materials include two or more separate materials joined without an adhesive, as well as two or more separate materials joined by an adhesive bonding layer. For example, a composite material can be a material produced by joining two or more isotropic materials, a material produced by joining two or more anisotropic materials, or an anisotropic material produced by joining two or more anisotropic materials. This includes materials produced by bonding with synthetic materials. By way of example and not limitation, composite materials include reinforced plastic materials, such as fiberglass, carbon fiber, or other fiber reinforced polymers. Further, by way of example and not limitation, composite materials also include composite wood, reinforced concrete, and metal on metal composites. For example, composite materials include materials that include two or more layers of aluminum.

It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that the examples described above are provided for the purpose of clarifying aspects of the invention and do not serve to limit the scope of the invention. By nature, the present invention is highly tunable, customizable, and adaptable. The embodiments described above are just some of the many configurations that the mentioned components can take. All changes and improvements have been deleted herein for the sake of brevity and readability, but are properly within the scope of the invention.

Claims (20)

A system for non-destructive testing of composite materials, the system comprising:
an ultrasound transducer in communication with a processor and a display means, the ultrasound transducer comprising:
the ultrasound transducer is operable to emit ultrasound to and receive ultrasound from the test object to generate scan data;
The test object includes a plurality of layers, with at least one bonding layer disposed between two adjacent layers;
the processor is operable to identify and provide a relative position of one or more gap regions within the at least one bonding layer;
the processor generates and presents, via the display means, a graphical representation of the at least one bonding layer including the one or more gap regions;
Providing the relative position of the one or more gap regions provides at least one three-dimensional (3D) coordinate corresponding to the position of each of the one or more gap regions within the test object. the ultrasonic transducer,
system. The system of claim 1, wherein the ultrasound transducer operates at a frequency higher than 5 MHz. Based on the ultrasound received by the ultrasound transducer, the processor is configured to detect the at least one bond at each point along the length and width of the one or more gap regions of the at least one bond layer. The system of claim 1, generating a plurality of values corresponding to the depth of the one or more gap regions of a layer. The system of claim 1, wherein the processor is operable to identify gap regions having a width of less than 3 mm. The system of claim 1, wherein the processor is operable to identify gap regions having a thickness of less than 0.5 mm. 2. The system of claim 1, wherein the processor is operable to identify a gap region, and wherein two layers adjacent the bonding layer are in direct contact. The system of claim 1, wherein the ultrasound transducer is a spherical focused ultrasound transducer. The system of claim 1, wherein the ultrasound transducer is located within a coupling fluid-filled chamber of a transducer housing assembly. A system for non-destructive testing of composite materials, the system comprising:
an ultrasound transducer in communication with a processor and a display means, the ultrasound transducer comprising:
the ultrasound transducer is operable to emit ultrasound to and receive ultrasound from the test object to generate scan data;
The scan data includes the entire waveform of the irradiated ultrasound,
The test object includes a plurality of components, with at least one bonding layer disposed between two adjacent components;
The processor is operative to generate a plurality of values corresponding to a thickness of the at least one bonding layer at each point along the length and width of the at least one bonding layer based on the scan data. It is possible and
the processor generates and presents a graphical representation of the at least one bonding layer via the display means;
Providing the relative position of the one or more gap regions provides at least one three-dimensional (3D) coordinate corresponding to the position of each of the one or more gap regions within the test object. the ultrasonic transducer,
system. 10. The system of claim 9, wherein the processor communicates with a materials database that includes information about a plurality of materials, and wherein the processor matches a material of the at least one bonding layer to at least one of the plurality of materials. 10. The system of claim 9, wherein a top surface of the at least one bonding layer and a bottom surface of the at least one bonding layer are not substantially parallel. 10. The system of claim 9, wherein the processor generates the plurality of values corresponding to the thickness of the at least one bonding layer without the use of a calibration block. 10. The system of claim 9, wherein the processor is operable to identify a gap region within the at least one bonding layer, and wherein two layers adjacent the bonding layer are in direct contact. The graphical representation of the at least one bonding layer includes a top view separated from a bottom view, and the graphical representation of the at least one bonding layer is dynamically rotatable and/or resizable. 10. The system of claim 9, wherein: 10. The system of claim 9, wherein the processor is operable to identify and graphically display a foreign object within the at least one bonding layer. 10. The system of claim 9, wherein the scan data includes the entire waveform of each of the applied ultrasound waves. A system for non-destructive testing of composite materials, the system comprising:
an ultrasound transducer in communication with a processor and a display means, the ultrasound transducer comprising:
the ultrasound transducer is operable to emit ultrasound to and receive ultrasound from the test object to generate scan data;
The test object includes a plurality of components, with at least one bonding layer disposed between two adjacent components;
the processor is operable to identify and provide a relative position of at least one feature of interest within the test object;
the at least one feature of interest includes at least one gap in the bonding layer, at least one foreign object, and/or at least one regional delamination;
the processor generates and presents a graphical representation of the test object that includes a relative position of each of the at least one target feature within the test object;
The scan data includes a plurality of A-scans generated for a plurality of depths within the test object, and a boundary of the at least one feature of interest is defined by a boundary of the plurality of A-scans at each of the plurality of depths. the ultrasonic transducer, determined by mapping the slope of the amplitude;
system. 18. The system of claim 17, wherein the at least one feature of interest has a characteristic length of less than 6 mm. the processor is operable to receive a selection of a plurality of gating regions, each representing a different depth range within the test object; the processor generates a C-scan for each of the plurality of C-scans of the test object, the processor determines a damage area for each of the plurality of C-scans of the test object; 18. The system of claim 17, generating an area of a damaged region. 18. The system of claim 17, wherein the at least one feature of interest further includes at least one kissing bond.

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