The University of Dayton Research Institute (UDRI), under contract by the U.S. Air Force, has designed and constructed a fully automated ultrasonic inspection system for the detection of embedded defects in rotating gas turbine engine components. This system uses many new approaches to conducting automated ultrasonic inspections to produce engine component accept/reject decisions that can be based on probability of detection (POD) information without human intervention. The ultrasonic inspection system incorporates off-the-shelf, industry standard components typically not found in NDI systems, which have been integrated using a modular-architecture approach, to produce inspections of engine components in an Air Force depot environment. Designed to be rugged and easily maintained, the system consists of a six-axis articulated robotic arm, rotating water tank, phased-array ultrasonic instrument, automated probe changer, 'smart' probes, collision avoidance hardware, PC-based industrial computer, Windows-based operating system, digital vision system, and a specialized water management system to eliminate water bubbles. Use of the phased-array ultrasonic instrument and probes allows for optimization of both the sensitivity and resolution for each inspection through electronic beamforming, scanning, and focusing processes. The system requires an operator to load the part, and then conducts all parts of the inspection automatically, including part recognition, part dimensioning, probe changing, calibration, inspection, and accept/reject decisions. The integrated components mutually support each other resulting in a system that offers more benefits than the sum of the individual components would suggest. Many of the technologies tested and demonstrated in this ultrasonic system can be used in other NDT systems. The wide range of technologies currently available due to advances in the microprocessor, electronics, robotics, and materials industries are ready to be incorporated into NDT systems and can result in large leaps forward in inspection capabilities.
An automated ultrasonic system for inspection of aircraft turbine engine
Ein automatisches Ultraschallsystem zur Untersuchung von Luftfahrt-Turbinenantrieben
2004
7 Seiten, 8 Bilder, 1 Tabelle, 2 Quellen
(Nicht paginiert)
Conference paper
Storage medium
English
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