General Electric Company

Thadd Clark Patton

Robert John Filkins

Kristina H Hedengren

James Paul Fulton

John D Young

John David Young

An exemplary inspection apparatus for inspecting an article comprises a flexible sensor for sensing a characteristic of the article, which sensor conforms to a surface of the article, a finger cover which fits over a finger of a user, and an attachment device for removably attaching the sensor to the finger cover. The apparatus allows the user to traverse the sensor over a large range of smoothly varying concave or convex inspection surfaces, for example, while providing the user with direct control of the sensor.

Finger controlled inspection apparatus

The present invention discloses a probe and method for inspecting a complex shaped object having an irregular surface. In this invention, a flexible film of piezoelectric elements is combined with a flexible film of eddy current elements into a single probe. The probe simultaneously inspects the volume and the surface of the object by using the flexible ultrasonic transducer and the flexible eddy current sensor, respectively.

Probe and method for inspecting an object

An eddy current probe which can be moved by hand to a surface to be tested. A toroidal-shaped first resilient member contacts the bottom face of a support member. An elastic membrane extends over the bore of the first resilient member, contacts the bottom lateral surface of the first resilient member, and is unattached to the radially-inward-facing surface of the first resilient member. A more elastic, second resilient member is placed in the bore, is unattached to the first resilient member, and contacts the bottom surface of the elastic membrane. A flexible, surface-conformable, eddy current sensing coil overlies a portion of the bottom side of the second resilient member.

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Cincinnati, OH, United States of America

Thadd Clark Patton