United Technologies Corporation

Harry I Ringermacher

William A Veronesi

Robert W Reed

Andrew P Weise

Raymond J Archacki, Jr

Richard S Williams

The present invention relates to transient depth thermography; a nondestructive testing technique and system for locating flaws within an object. The system, which comprises a heater for heating the surface of the object; a recorder for recording pixel intensity for each pixel on the heated surface; a means for determining pixel contrast from the pixel intensity; and a means for determining the size and location of flaws within the object based upon the pixel contrast; monitors each pixels' contrast for successive thermal images and utilizes those pixel contrasts determining the location of a flaw within the object. The object surface and the respective underlying flaws can then be depicted on a color spectrum image print which correlates the flaw depth with a particular color.

Nondestructive testing: transient depth thermography

An arrangement for detecting metallic particles carried by a fluid includes a metallic probe member which surrounds an elongated passage through which the fluid flows and which is constituted by a split tube having two marginal portions delimiting a gap which extends along said passage and completely separates the marginal portions from one another. Capacitors are arranged at the gap and alternating electric current is caused to flow in the probe member around the passage so that the probe member and the capacitors form a tank circuit having resonance characteristics that are influenced by any inclusion then present in the passage in a manner dependent on the electromagnetic properties of the inclusion. The character of any metallic particle then present in the passage is determined from variations in the alternating electric current that reflect the influence of such metallic particle on the resonance characteristics.

In-line metallic debris particle detection probe and resonant evaluation

In-line metallic debris particle detection system

An acoustic transducer (10) with a pointed piezoelectric element (11) mounted on an electrically conductive damping mass (12), having a conductive tip (33), the damping mass (12) and conductive tip (33) being electrically connected to opposite terminals in a coaxial line (14). The conductive tip (33) has a convex wear member (35) for contact with a surface to be measured. In one version, the tip (33) is in contact with a flexible conductive sheet (17') for environmental protection.

Growing community of inventors

West Hartford, CT, United States of America

Harry I Ringermacher