An in-line, contactless and non-destructive method for detecting and identifying defects in a moving cardboard structure is provided, as well as the associated system. The cardboard structure is of the type made of layered paper plies, such as cardboard tubes for example. The method includes the steps of emitting acoustic waves with predetermined frequencies toward the moving cardboard structure. The acoustic waves are converted into mechanical waves propagating through the moving cardboard structure. The method also includes a step of capturing the acoustic waves propagated, wherein said captured acoustic waves result from a conversion of the propagated mechanical waves through the moving cardboard structure. The method also provides steps of analyzing the captured acoustic waves; and detecting and identifying defects in the moving laminated cardboard structure based on predetermined propagation properties measured from the captured acoustic waves.

A membrane defect inspection method is for a membrane module set including a plurality of membrane modules connected in parallel under a straight pipe portion of gas detection piping extending in a horizontal direction and communicating with primary spaces in the plurality of membrane modules to which raw water is supplied or secondary spaces. The method includes a gas injection process where gas is injected into spaces opposite to the primary spaces or the secondary spaces communicating with the gas detection piping while the gas detection piping is filled with water, and an echo detection process where an ultrasonic sensor is brought into contact with an end portion of the straight pipe portion of the gas detection piping, and a reflected wave of an ultrasonic wave transmitted from the ultrasonic sensor is detected.

The present disclosure enables apparatus and methods for tracking medications and/or product units via smart-packaging concepts. Embodiments include sensors that monitor the state of a blister-card package having an unpatterned lidding film by measuring the impedance of each dispensing region of the lidding film that defines a portion of a blister. In some embodiments, the impedance is measured via a plurality of contact points arranged on opposite sides of each dispensing region, where the contact points are resistively or capacitively coupled with the lidding film. In some embodiments, the impedance map of a measurement region on the blister card is derived via electrical impedance tomography or electrical resistance tomography, where the measurement region includes a plurality of dispensing regions.

Disclosed are a method for measuring the adhesive strength of a thin film using surface waves, and a computer-readable recording medium having a program for performing same recorded thereon. The method for measuring the adhesive strength of a thin film measures the adhesive strength between a substrate and a thin film by means of an electronic calculator, using sound waves measured from a thin film structure having a thin film formed on a substrate. The method, which is performed by the electronic calculator, comprises the steps of: receiving, as a first input value, the thickness, density, longitudinal wave velocity, and shear wave velocity of a first thin film and a substrate the adhesive strength between which is to be measured; calculating, from the first input value, the thickness and density of a second thin film virtually configured between the first thin film and substrate, and setting as a second input value; calculating the longitudinal wave velocity and shear wave velocity of the second thin film according to the stiffness constant of the second thin film, while varying the stiffness constant, and setting as a third input value; using the first to third input values to acquire a transfer matrix between the first thin film, second thin film, and substrate; using the transfer matrix to calculate the dispersion characteristics of the speed of surface waves; and substituting, to dispersion curves, the propagation speed of the surface waves measured from the substrate having the first thin film formed thereon, in order to acquire the stiffness constant matching the propagation speed of the measured surface waves and measure the adhesive strength between the substrate and the thin film.

A system includes an inspection robot comprising a plurality of sensor sleds; a plurality of ultra-sonic (UT) sensors; a couplant chamber mounted to each of the plurality of sleds, each couplant chamber comprising: a cone, the cone comprising a cone tip portion at an inspection surface end of the cone; a sensor mounting end opposite the cone tip portion; a couplant entry fluidly coupled to the cone at a position between the cone tip portion and the sensor mounting end; and wherein each of the UT sensors is mounted to the sensor mounting end of one of the couplant chambers.

An ultrasonic detection and tensile calibration test method for bonding strength grade comprising bonding an upper substrate block to bonding groove(s) to form a theoretical bonding area, and applying a downward actual tensile force to a lower substrate block; obtaining an actual bonding area of the theoretical bonding area; calculating a first actual bonding strength by using the actual tensile force and the actual bonding area, and comparing the first actual bonding strength with a second actual bonding strength calculated to verify the correctness of the theoretical bonding area as a calibrated bonding strength; forming a bond strength table in which the theoretical bonding areas, the actual bonding areas and the first actual bonding strengths are in one-to-one correspondence; and using the actual bonding area to find the actual bonding strength corresponding to the actual bonding area from the bonding area bonding strength table.

Systems and methods are provided for contactless determining feature(s) of a layered coating. Such systems may include determiner unit and measurement unit including coating scanner, vibration explorer and optical arrangement. Coating scanner includes ingress-protected transmitter to emit scanning radiation, and ingress-protected receiver to sense interaction radiation caused by interaction of scanning radiation with coating layer(s). Vibration explorer includes ingress-protected emitter to emit exploration radiation, and ingress-protected sensor to sense reflection radiation caused by reflection of exploration radiation on coating to detect a vibration of the coating depending on the reflection radiation. Optical arrangement guides scanning radiation and/or exploration radiation towards common radiation direction, and guides interaction radiation towards ingress-protected receiver and/or reflection radiation towards ingress-protected sensor. Determiner unit determines coating feature(s) depending on interaction radiation sensed by coating scanner and vibration detected by vibration explorer. Methods and computer programs performable in said systems are also provided.

Methods, systems, and apparatuses are disclosed for non-destructively inspecting a substrate by measuring the Doppler effect in sound waves comprising wide bandwidth ultrasound wavelengths generated from a piezoelectric polymer coating material with the sound waves read by a laser in communication with a Doppler velocity meter.

A system includes an inspection robot having a plurality of input sensors, the plurality of input sensors distributed horizontally relative to an inspection surface and configured to provide inspection data of the inspection surface at selected horizontal positions; a controller, comprising: a position definition circuit structured to determine an inspection robot position of the inspection robot on the inspection surface; a data positioning circuit structured to interpret the 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.

Systems, techniques, and computer-implemented processes are provided for acoustic signal based analysis of thin-films, electrode coatings, and other components of batteries. Data analytics on signals obtained by ultrasound excitation of materials is used to analyze electrode coating parameters, analyzing separators, and other battery components. Using the disclosed techniques in battery manufacturing and production can lead to reduction in wastage of damaged/scrapped battery cells and shorten production time.