Adaptive ultrasonic inspection for volumetric flaws

Abstract

Acoustic evaluation of a target can be performed using an array of electro-acoustic transducers. For example, a technique for such evaluation can include generating acoustic transmission events using different transmitting apertures, the apertures defined by corresponding zones along the array, the zones including multiple electro-acoustic transducer elements. In response to the respective acoustic transmission events. respective acoustic echo signals are received. Representations of the respective received acoustic echo signals are coherently summed. The coherently summing includes applying determined nominal element delay factors to the respective representations to approximate a virtual probe normal to a nominal shape of a surface of a structure being inspected. A pixel or voxel value is corresponding to a specified spatial location within the structure being inspected is generated using the coherently summed representations.