A probe 100 includes exciter units 102 arranged in an array and detector units 104 and 106, also arranged in arrays, with the arrays positioned proximal to and in the shape of the exterior circumference of an individual boiler tube 108. The detector units 104 are “absolute” coil detectors which are used to detect and quantify general wall loss, for example, resulting from steam impingement erosion. The detectors 106 are differential, axial pairs which are used for detecting pits in the boiler tubers. The exciter units and detector units are mounted in a stainless steel housing 110 of the probe. The housing 110 is shaped to closely match the contour of the boiler tube 108. The probe can be moved along the boiler tubes by hand to inspect the flame side of boiler tubes, one at a time. Wheels 112 are provided to roll the probe along the boiler tubes.

A loading device, a monitoring system, and a method thereof can measure stiffness of a structural member (SM) and monitor progress or property thereof over time. The loading device includes two types of displacement sensors, one type being an antenna. As the SM, which is in a magnetic or electromagnetic field and electromagnetically coupled to the antenna without contact, undergoes displacement under known loads, characteristics of the electromagnetic field coupling between the antenna and the SM change over time due to the displacement of the SM. The shift in the characteristics of the electromagnetic field coupling between the antenna and the SM can be used to determine the displacement of the SM. Based on the changes in the displacement over time, diagnosis of the SM being monitored over an evaluation period can be made. The loading device includes at least one movable frame to apply a preload to the SM.

The invention relates to a method of determining a crack at an edge of a metallic material, the edge having a curvature with a radius. The method including: feeding and controlling a current to a transmitter coil for generating a magnetic field in the metallic material, detecting the magnetic field by means of a receiver coil, which detected magnetic field thereby generates a signal) in the receiver coil, determining first, second and third signal values of the signal at a first time, a second time and a third time, respectively, determining a possible presence of a crack and its crack depth based on the first, second and third signal values by means of determining a characteristic relation between the signal values.

A device for detecting a crack in a battery cell, comprising: an inspection unit comprising a first sensor inducing an eddy current and a second sensor sensing a signal of the eddy current induced by the first sensor, and performing an inspection of the battery by using the eddy current while the battery cell is driven; a transfer unit for sequentially transferring a plurality of battery cells from a point where the battery cells are introduced to a point where the battery cells are taken out; and a control unit which is electrically connected to the inspection unit and receives, evaluates, and controls the eddy current signal sensed by the inspection unit.

A defect inspection system includes a storage. The defect inspection system also includes a corrosion enhancing defect manager that obtains a circuit card including a trace that is to be encapsulated by a protective layer adapted to reduce corrosion of the trace; applies a voltage potential to the trace while the circuit card is disposed in a visual indicator bath; obtains an image of the trace while the voltage potential is applied; makes a determination, based on the image, that a visual indicator generated by the visual indicator bath is included in the image; and based on the determination: identifies a portion of the trace corresponding to the visual indicator; and applies encapsulant to the portion of the trace.

A crack detection device includes: a sensor unit that has a three-layer structure of conductor-insulator-conductor and is attached to a structure; a frequency characteristics acquisition unit that sweeps a predetermined frequency range to acquire a plurality of frequencies at which the impedance of the sensor unit is maximum or minimum; a crack presence/absence determination unit that determines the presence or absence of a crack based on a nonuniformity of the plurality of frequencies; a crack position table in which a relationship between crack positions and frequency shift directions is recorded; and a crack position detection unit that, when the crack presence/absence determination unit determines that there is a crack, takes a difference between two frequencies acquired by the frequency characteristics acquisition unit to determine a sign, and then refers to the crack position table in accordance with the sign to detect a crack position.

A detecting device includes a first coil, a third coil, a second coil, and a fourth coil. The first coil generates a first magnetic field on a to-be-measured object. The third coil generates a third magnetic field under the to-be measured object. The second coil generates a second magnetic field. After the fourth coil receives the second magnetic field, a voltage is induced. The induced voltage is amplified by an amplify circuit to drive the third coil. The directions of the currents generated by the first coil and the third coil, respectively, are the same.

A method of determining an amount of imperfection in an additively manufactured material is disclosed herein. The method includes forming a sample piece constructed from the material during a same additive manufacturing cycle as a design piece constructed from the material, introducing a first electrical current to the sample piece while maintaining the sample piece at a reference temperature, and determining the amount of imperfection in the material depending on the measured resistance and the reference temperature of the sample piece.

An aspect includes a vehicle that includes rail inspection sensors configured for capturing transducer data describing the rail, and a processor configured for receiving and processing the transducer data in near-real time to determine whether the captured transducer data identifies a suspected rail flaw. The processing includes inputting the captured transducer data to a machine learning system that has been trained to identify patterns in transducer data that indicate rail flaws. The processing also includes receiving an output from the machine learning system, the output indicating whether the captured transducer data identifies a suspected rail flaw. An alert is transmitted to an operator of the vehicle based at least in part on the output indicating that the captured transducer data identifies a suspected rail flaw. The alert includes a location of the suspected rail flaw and instructs the operator to stop the vehicle and to perform a repair action.

A system for reduced noise during remote field testing (RFT). The system, while moving an RFT probe through a structure: generates, RFT probe, a magnetic field. The system detects, at a detector solenoid on the RFT probe, a measured magnetic field which is the magnetic field modified by the presence of nearby pipe, and wherein the detector solenoid has a non-uniform solenoid response (i.e. a non-uniform turn density and/or cross sectional winding area) along a longitudinal axis extending from a one end of the detector solenoid to the opposite end of the detector solenoid. The system then identifies and measures pipe properties from an analysis of the measured magnetic field, via signal processing in conjunction with modeling.