Panametrics, Inc.

Kenneth A Fowler

Dana R Patch

Lawrence C Lynnworth

Frederick H Hotchkiss

An ultrasonic transducer assembly for monitoring the quality of spot welds employs a transducer element joined to a support element and fitted within a conventional welding electrode assembly. The transducer assembly is biased against the interior surface of the welding electrode tip by a biasing element, preferably a compression spring. A sleeve, preferably composed of brass, surrounds the transducer element and is joined to the support element. A coaxial cable in communication with external instrumentation has a ground lead attached to the sleeve, and a signal lead attached to the transducer element.

Ultrasonic transducer assembly

An ultrasonic transducer assembly for making measurements within a fluid, the assembly including a transducer, a backing member and a matching member all supported within a cylindrical metal housing with the transmitting face of the housing being sealed with a thin sealing element formed of a non-resilient relatively high impedance material encasing a matching layer having an acoustic impedance intermediate between that of the transducer element and the fluid. The thickness of the sealing element is between 1/10 and 1/1000th of a wavelength at the center frequency of the wave emitted by the transducer.

Sealed, matched piezoelectric transducer

A transducer for an ultrasonic thickness gauge of the pitch and catch type has transmitting and receiving transducer elements on adjoining blocks of delay material separated by an acoustic barrier is calibrated by operating the receiving transducer element in pulse-echo mode. The lengths of the two delay blocks differ by an amount calculated to make the pulse-echo travel time in the longer delay block greater than pitch and catch travel time by an amount at least equal to the geometric delay of the transducer to provide an unambiguous readout during pulse-echo operation when the gauge is adjusted to the proper zero point calibration for the transducer.

Growing community of inventors

Medfield, MA, United States of America

Kenneth A Fowler