A method for monitoring a service state of a switch rail based on feature fusion includes: mounting an ultrasonic guided wave monitoring apparatus on the switch rail to perform online defect identification and simulation of the switch rail, and establishing a baseline signal library, where the ultrasonic guided wave monitoring apparatus generates a guided wave signal propagating along the switch rail and receives an echo signal of the guided wave signal; performing feature extraction; extracting a healthy feature vector, and nondimensionalizing; selecting a defect-sensitive feature, and acquiring, by a BPSO algorithm, a best feature subset; training an LS-SVM through the best feature subset by a cross-validation method to acquire an automatic online defect identification model of the switch rail based on the LS-SVM; and monitoring the switch rail by the automatic online defect identification model of the switch rail based on the LS-SVM.

Systems and methods for inspecting a hole in a laminated structure. An exemplary system includes a transducer assembly configured to direct sound waves substantially parallel to a surface of the hole. The system further includes a controller that collects A-scan data for multiple rotational positions of the transducer assembly as the transducer assembly is rotated within the hole. The controller processes the A-scan data for the multiple rotational positions of the transducer assembly to generate B-scan data, and displays the B-scan data.

Provided is a method for inspecting at least a portion of a downhole conveyance device. The method, in one embodiment, includes providing a downhole conveyance device, and providing an ultrasonic defect inspection system adjacent the downhole conveyance device. The method, in this embodiment, further includes detecting defects in the downhole conveyance device using the ultrasonic defect inspection system, wherein the detecting includes transmitting ultrasonic waves from the ultrasonic defect inspection system toward the downhole conveyance device, and obtaining defect data by sensing disruptions in the reflected ultrasonic waves caused by defects in the downhole conveyance device.

An arrangement for non-destructive testing of a component part, which may include a first end surface and a second opposite end surface. The arrangement may include a plurality of discrete piezoelectric transduction elements arranged in a circular array on the first end surface, and an electric wave signal transmitting and receiving unit electrically coupled to the piezoelectric transduction elements. The electric wave signal transmitting and receiving unit may be able to generate an electric excitation wave signal and to receive an electric response wave signal. The piezoelectric transduction elements may deform, upon an application of the electric excitation wave signal, in an in-phase shearing motion parallel to the first end surface and in respective tangential direction with respect to the circular array so as to generate a corresponding structure-borne wave in the component part at the first end surface such that said structure-borne wave can propagate in the component part.

A system for the non-destructive inspection of a structure includes a probe including a hollow cylindrical waveguide having a first region and a second region. The first region has a first diameter and the second region has a second diameter. The second diameter is greater than the first diameter. The first diameter is sized and configured for insertion into a structure. The system further includes at least one of sensor element capable of generating and detecting longitudinal and/or torsional ultrasonic guided waves in the waveguide. The at least one sensor element is configured to generate a guided wave pulse in the waveguide when a time-varying current is provided to the at least one sensor element. The at least one sensor element is configured to deflect reflected guided wave energy from one or more anomalies in the structure.

Systems and methods for evaluating an anisotropic composite material are provided. In one example implementation, a system includes a guided wave source configured to provide one or more guided waves to the anisotropic composite material. The system includes at least one sensor configured to measure a property of the one or more guided waves in the anisotropic composite material. The system includes one or more processors configured to receive output signals from the at least one sensor. The one or more processors are configured to construct a phased array of a plurality of output signals associated with different locations on the anisotropic composite material. The one or more processors are configured to generate a directional output beam associated with phased array based at least in part on a direction dependent guided wave parameter.

A transmission probe for transmitting guided waves propagating in the longitudinal direction of a long member and a reception probe for receiving guided waves derived from the guided waves reflected from a predetermined portion of the long member are set on the long member. The guided waves received by the reception probe include a guided wave serving as a second signal that is noise of a desired first signal. The guided wave serving as the second signal having nodes in a circumferential direction distribution of displacement in a specific direction in the circumferential surface of the long member, and the guided waves transmitted by the transmission probe are formed such that the displacement of the guided wave serving as the second signal in the specific direction becomes zero at a specific circumferential surface position of the long member. A probe setting method comprising the steps of: setting the transmission probe for transmitting the guided waves on the circumferential surface of the long member; and setting the reception probe at a position at which the displacement of the guided wave serving as the second signal in the specific direction becomes zero on the circumferential surface of the long member.

Network wavefield imaging methods are able to image significantly complex discontinuities or shapes in plate-like structures for superior ultrasonic structural health monitoring (SHM)/nondestructive evaluation (NDE). The imaging provides high-resolution location, shape and/or size images of a structure, and for discontinuities with more complicated profiles. Guided wave (GW) network wavefield imaging methods combine tomography and wavefield/wavenumber imaging algorithms. Metallic plate damage detection uses guided ultrasonic waves and non-contact laser vibrometry. Guided waves are generated by piezoelectric transducers (PZT). A non-contact scanning laser Doppler vibrometer (SLDV) measures the full velocity plate guided wave wavefields. Developed network wavefield imaging algorithms account for multiple-actuator excitations from different angles enclosing the discontinuity, with algorithms using intrinsic wave characteristics such as wavefield, wavenumber, or reconstructed wave energy. Determined locations, sizes and shapes of highlighted areas in wavefield, wavenumber and/or filter reconstructed energy-based images correlate with location, size and shape of damage in metallic plates.

A method is provided for non-invasively determining properties of a multiphase flow which flows through an electrically conductive object. Using a single set-up having a plurality of EMAT transducers, at least one property of the multiphase flow is determined by means of at least one of a plurality of measurement methods. A device is also provided for non-invasively determining properties of a multiphase flow which flows through an electrically conductive object. At least four EMAT transducers are positionable upstream along a first object cross-section at or near the object wall and at least four EMAT transducers are positionable downstream along a second object cross-section at or near the object wall.

A method for imaging a structure composed of at least one wave guide connected to a junction, the structure supporting elastic wave guided propagation modes, the method includes the following steps: for at least one operating frequency, acquiring a plurality of measurements of signals propagating in the structure by means of a plurality of pairs of non-colocalized elastic wave sensors, determining a plurality of propagation modes guided by the structure, correcting the measurements on the basis of ultrasound signals measured or simulated for the same structure in the absence of any defect, converting the measurement matrix M into a wave field scattering matrix U, determining, at each point of a sampling grid, a test vector F characteristic of the structure without any defect, applying a numerical inversion method to determine a vector H of modal components such that U.H=F at each point of a sampling grid, determining an image of the structure on the basis of the vector H.