The Boeing Company

Jyani S Vaddi

Gary E Georgeson

Morteza Safai

Scott Wesley Lea

Tyler M Holmes

Christopher A Greer

Thomas A Maeder

William D Meade

Ben Rennison

Jonathan A Cox

Systems and methods inspect a fastener installed at least partially through a hole in a part, by measuring fastener concentricity, measuring fastener flushness with a surface, and/or detecting foreign object debris near the fastener. Systems include an x-ray imaging system, a first camera device, a second camera device, a first support structure, and at least one processing unit. The first camera device produces a first image of the fastener from a first vantage point, and the second camera device produces a second image of the fastener from a second vantage point, such that a 3D image of the fastener can be created from the first image and the second image. The system inspects the fastener based on the x-ray image and/or the 3D image, to determine concentricity and/or flushness of the fastener. Systems may be automated and mounted on robot arms to be positioned relative to the fasteners being inspected.

Methods and apparatus for measuring fastener concentricity

A system for measuring a flushness of a fastener in a surface includes a plurality of lights configured to illuminate the fastener and the surface. The system also includes a camera configured to capture a plurality of images of the fastener and the surface while the lights sequentially illuminate the fastener and the surface. The system also includes a computing system configured to determine a normal map of the fastener and the surface based at least partially upon the images, determine a depth map of the fastener and the surface based at least partially upon the normal map, and determine the flushness of the fastener with respect to the surface based at least partially upon the depth map.

System and method for determining a flushness of a fastener

An example system for inspecting railcar axles includes a flash source, an infrared camera, and a trigger sensor. The flash source is configured to apply a thermal pulse toward a surface of a railcar axle of a railcar wheelset, while the railcar wheelset is on a track. The infrared camera is configured to capture infrared data indicative of a thermal response of the surface of the railcar axle to the thermal pulse. The trigger sensor is configured to trigger the flash source to apply the thermal pulse based on a position of the railcar wheelset on the track. The example system can also include a processor configured to determine whether the captured infrared data is indicative of a crack on the surface of the railcar axle, and a vision camera configured to capture an image of the surface of the railcar axle.

In-motion high-speed non-destructive evaluation for railcar axles

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Karnataka, India

Jyani S Vaddi