A system includes an inspection robot having an input sensor comprising a laser profiler and a plurality of wheels structured to engage a curved portion of an inspection surface, wherein the laser profiler is configured to provide laser profiler data of the inspection surface; a controller, comprising: a profiler data circuit structured to interpret the laser profiler data; determine a feature of interest is present at a location of the inspection surface in response to the laser profiler data; and wherein the feature of interest comprises a shape description of the inspection surface at the location of the feature of interest.

Disclosed is a phased array ultrasound total focusing method in which the ultrasound energy is transmitted as plane waves and the response signals are processed as plane waves. The processing is adaptively corrected to account for geometric variations in the probes and the part being inspected. Methods are disclosed for measuring the geometric variations of the probes and the part.

A method of detecting inconsistencies in a structure is presented. A pulsed laser beam is directed towards the structure. A plurality of types of ultrasonic signals is formed in the structure when radiation of the pulsed laser beam is absorbed by the structure. The plurality of types of ultrasonic signals is detected to form data.

A system includes an inspection robot for performing an inspection on an inspection surface with an inspection robot, the apparatus comprising a position definition circuit structured to determine an inspection robot position on the inspection surface; a data positioning circuit structured to interpret inspection data, and to correlate the inspection data to the inspection robot position on the inspection surface; and wherein the data positioning circuit is further structured to determine position informed inspection data in response to the correlating of the inspection data with the inspection robot position, wherein the position informed inspection data comprises absolute position data.

A system for evaluating a bond includes a first electrode and a second electrode that are spaced apart from one another. The system also includes a sacrificial material layer positioned proximate to a surface of a bonded structure that includes the bond. The system also includes a power source configured to cause the first and second electrodes to generate an electrical arc that at least partially ablates the sacrificial material layer as part of a non-destructive inspection of the bond.

A method for non-destructive inspection of at least one test object on a workpiece includes the steps of: obtaining a theoretical position of each test object in relation to a testing robot; capturing an image of each test object to obtain image data; determining a real position of each test object in relation to the testing robot on the basis of the image data; and bringing a sensor carried by the testing robot in contact with each test object to obtain a respective test measurement. For the certain type of inspection where the test instrument needs to be brought in physical contact with the test object to be inspected, it is crucial to know the exact position of the test object. As soon as the approximate position of the test object is known an image of the test object can be captured, and the exact position of the test object can be extracted from the respective image data.

Disclosed is an inspection probe of an inspection system that includes an ultrasonic probe that is freely movable on a test object and irradiates the test object with an ultrasonic wave to detect a reflected wave, and a calculation unit that executes arithmetic processing according to a detection result according to the ultrasonic probe to acquire a flaw detection result of the test object. The inspection probe includes a chassis that is freely movable on a sheet material where a two-dimensional pattern disposed on the test object and indicating a position on the test object is drawn. The ultrasonic probe is fixed to the chassis so that an incident point of an ultrasonic wave that is incident onto an opposing surface of the test object from the ultrasonic probe is within an angle of view of the reader which reads the two-dimensional pattern.

An ultrasonic non-destructive testing method and device for rail applications uses a plurality of phased array transducers to inspect aluminothermit weld defects located in a head portion, a web portion, an ankle portion, and a toe portion of a weld of a rail section. The method includes: scanning the head portion of the weld including: a first phased array transducer positioned above the weld and a second phased array transducer positioned a distance from the first phased array transducer to provide inclined access to the weld; and scanning the toe portion of the weld including: positioning pairs of third, fourth, and fifth phased array transducers on a surface of the toe portion, such that the pairs of third, fourth and fifth phased array transducers are disposed symmetrically with one of the pair on each side of the toe portion.

An additive manufacturing apparatus according to one embodiment includes a manufacturing unit, an elastic wave generation unit, an elastic wave detection unit, and an inspection unit. The manufacturing unit sequentially stacks a layer formed by emitting a first energy beam to a material and solidifying the material. The elastic wave generation unit emits a second energy beam to a manufactured object including the layer and generates an elastic wave propagating in the manufactured object. The elastic wave detection unit detects the elastic wave. The inspection unit inspects the manufactured object on the basis of a detection result from the elastic wave detection unit.

A method includes the following: an incidence step in which ultrasonic waves from an insertion side and the side opposite thereto of a tool are caused to be incident on a joint part when a workpiece is joined by the tool that has a probe and a shoulder which supports the probe and that is for friction stir welding; an image acquisition step for obtaining an ultrasonic wave transmission image of the joint part using the ultrasonic waves; and a determination step for determining that the joint part has been joined if width-dimensions of the joint part obtained from the ultrasonic wave transmission image are equivalent to at least the outer diameter d of the probe and if no defect of a prescribed size or greater is found in a range equivalent to the outer diameter D of the shoulder or less in the ultrasonic wave transmission image.