A method of battery state monitoring includes: (1) providing a battery cell and at least one ultrasonic actuator and at least one ultrasonic sensor mounted to the battery cell; (2) using the ultrasonic actuator, generating a guided wave that propagates in-plane of the battery cell; (3) using the ultrasonic sensor, receiving an arriving wave corresponding to the guided wave; and (4) determining a state of the battery cell based on the arriving wave.

A sensor probe for analysis of a fluid includes a base, and a pair of electrodes and a pair of shield members protruding from the base for insertion into the fluid. The electrodes have electrical oscillations generated therein for measurement of electromagnetic properties of the fluid, such as permittivity. The shield members are disposed outside the electrodes and have a dual purpose of electromagnetically shielding the electrodes and having vibrations generated therein for measurement of physical parameters of the fluid, such as density or viscosity. Thus, the single sensor probe can provide measurements of both electromagnetic properties and physical properties of the fluid.

An ultrasonic measuring device for the measurement of a flow of a fluid, includes a measuring tube, a first chamber and a second chamber. The measuring tube has a central axis, which defines a flow direction for the fluid; The first chamber has a first ultrasonic transducer arranged therein. The second chamber has a second ultrasonic transducer arranged therein. The measuring tube includes an inlet and an outlet for the fluid. The first ultrasonic transducer and the second ultrasonic transducer bound a rectilinear measuring section for the fluid, the first chamber and the second chamber being configured and arranged such that the fluid is capable of flowing around each of them. The first ultrasonic transducer and the second ultrasonic transducer are arranged such that the measuring section extends in the flow direction.

A fluid sensing apparatus and a method for detecting pressure and a presence of bubbles within a fluid tube. The fluid sensing apparatus comprises a housing configured to receive a portion of the tube and to house a pressure sensor and an ultrasonic transmitter. The pressure sensor is positioned adjacent the tube and is configured to receive a pressure sensor signal, which correlates to a detected pressure differential within the tube. A controller transmits a drive signal to the ultrasonic transmitter, which emits ultrasonic waves through the portion of the tube and to the pressure sensor. The pressure sensor receives both the ultrasonic waves and the pressure sensor signal, and subsequently transmits an output signal to the controller. In a presence of a pressure differential or a bubble within the tube, the output signal will exhibit a DC shift or a distortion of signal characteristics of the output signal, respectively.

A method of automatically inspecting a weld bead deposited in a plurality of passes in a chamfer formed between two parts by performing the following steps: positioning at least one emission electromagnetic acoustic sensor on one side of the chamfer and at least one reception electromagnetic acoustic sensor on an opposite side of the chamfer, the ultrasound wave emission sensor being configured to emit Rayleigh surface waves; while depositing a pass, automatically moving the sensors to follow the movement of welding electrodes along the chamfer; activating the sensors while they are moving to enable the emission sensor to generate and emit Rayleigh waves towards the pass of the weld bead that is being deposited, the reception sensor receiving the ultrasound signals transmitted and/or reflected in said pass; and reiterating the operation for the entire pass of the weld bead.

A non-destructive process of inspecting an object can include positioning a first and second ultrasonic element relative to the body of the object and offsetting the first and second ultrasonic elements in a direction orthogonal to a longitudinal axis of the body. A further process of inspecting an object can include creating a map of the body of the object including at least one anomaly and providing a quality value associated with the body based on evaluation of one or more criteria selected from the group consisting of the type, number, size, shape, position, orientation, edge sharpness, and any combination thereof of the at least one anomaly. An ultrasonic system can include a first and second ultrasonic element and a processing element. The process element can be configured to create a map of the body including at least one anomaly and provide a quality value associated with the body based on evaluation of one or more criteria selected from the group consisting of the type, number, size, shape, position, orientation, edge sharpness, and any combination thereof of the at least one anomaly.

A multi-path acoustic signal apparatus, system, and apparatus for use in material detection are provided. The apparatus has a plurality of acoustic sensors positioned along a first portion of a fluid container. At least one acoustic signal is transmitted into the fluid container by each of the plurality of acoustic sensors. At least one additional acoustic sensor is positioned along a second portion of the fluid container, wherein the second portion is substantially opposite the first portion. The at least one additional acoustic sensor receives at least a portion of the acoustic signals from the plurality of acoustic sensors. A reflected acoustic signal is generated from an impedance barrier between the fluid container and a fluid therein. A characteristic of a material of the fluid container and/or the fluid therein are determined.

Various liquid cells for use in surface acoustic wave-based sensors are disclosed. The sensor can include a substrate, at least one sensor element, and at least one pair of electrical components. The electrical components can be located on opposite ends of the sensor element. The liquid cell can include a top layer that is configured to cover at least a portion of the pair of electrical components. The liquid cell can also include a fluidic channel. The fluidic channel can be configured to receive a liquid media and is arranged not intersect with any of the pair of electrical components. The liquid cell can also include a plurality of peripheral walls that are configured to form a plurality of air pockets. Each of the plurality of air pockets are configured to form virtual non-physical walls to prevent the liquid media from contacting the at least one sensor element.

An ultrasound device, including a profile generator, an encoder configured to receive a profile signal from the profile generator, and an attenuator configured to receive a signal representing an output of an ultrasound sensor and coupled to the encoder to receive a control signal from the encoder, the attenuator including a plurality of attenuator stages, the attenuator configured to produce an output signal that is an attenuated version of the input signal.

A fluidic device includes at least one bulk acoustic wave (BAW) resonator structure with a functionalized active region, and at least one first (inlet) port defined through a cover structure arranged over a fluidic passage containing the active region. At least a portion of the at least one inlet port is registered with the active region, permitting fluid to be introduced in a direction orthogonal to a surface of the active region bearing functionalization material. Such arrangement promotes mixing proximate to a BAW resonator structure surface, thereby reducing analyte stratification, increasing analyte binding rate, and reducing measurement time.