Systems and methods are provided for selectively utilizing ultrasound data to quantify a part being scanned. One embodiment is a system that includes an ultrasonic wave generator configured to induce ultrasonic waves at locations along a part being scanned, and a controller. The controller is configured to operate the ultrasonic wave generator to collect data points that each indicate amplitude data and time-of-flight data of an ultrasonic wave at the part, to calculate a standard deviation of the time-of-flight data of the data points (σ.sub.tof), to utilize the amplitude data to quantify the part if σ.sub.tof is less than a threshold value, and to flag the data points in memory as including noise if σ.sub.tof is greater than the threshold value.

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.

This defect inspection apparatus (100) is provided with: an excitation unit (1), a laser illumination unit (2), an interference unit (3) for causing laser light to interfere; an imaging unit (35) for imaging the interfered reflected light; and a control unit (4). The control unit (4) is configured to measure a spatial distribution of periodically varying physical properties caused by propagation of vibration of an inspection target, based on the interfered reflected light imaged by an imaging unit and extract a vibration discontinuous portion based on the spatial distribution of the physical quantities. The control unit is configured to perform control of displaying the extracted vibration discontinuous portion so as to be emphasized and superimposed on a still image of the inspection target captured by the imaging unit.

A method for the ultrasound check of a test object involves moving a test probe along a test probe surface and sending ultrasound impulses into the test object by the test probe. Respective echo signals corresponding with the emitted ultrasound impulses are received by the test probe. An image of a predetermined test region of the test object is prepared on the basis of an overlapping and averaging of amplitude values of the received echo signals by a data processing unit. The respective position of the test probe when sending the ultrasound signals and/or when receiving the corresponding echo signals is captured by a capturing unit. The respectively captured positions of the test probe are considered when creating the image of the test region of the test object.

In an artificial defect material 10 of an FRP structure, a heat-resistant high-linear-expansion material 20 arranged between the layers thermally expands in case of high-temperature shaping of the FRP structure, so that a predetermined shape is shaped between a plurality of layers of the fiber reinforcing base material 14 and the material 20 thermally shrinks at the room temperature after the shaping, so that a space is formed due to the shrinkage difference from the fiber reinforcing base materials 14. The material 20 has a linear expansion coefficient larger than that of the FRP structure by a predetermined value or more, and has the shape keeping property and the heat resistance to endure the shaping temperature.

Provided is a structural health monitoring system of a rotating object such as a turbine blade, which gives easy and intuitive information to field managers on the damage location and the damage size of the rotating object by computing and visualizing correlations between damage and propagating ultrasonic wave. The structural health monitoring system for a rotating object comprises an ultrasonic generation system which generates an ultrasonic signal by irradiating a pulse laser beam to a point of the rotating object, a pulse laser control system which adjusts the irradiating time of the pulse laser beam, an ultrasonic measurement system which measures a generated ultrasonic signal at a point of the rotating object away from the point irradiated by the pulse laser beam and a damage detection system which provides information of damage existence, damage location and damage severity by visualization of monitored ultrasonic signals.

Improved imaging is provided for structures under test that have propagation direction dependent ultrasound propagation speed or position dependent ultrasound propagation speed due to fibrous, coarse grain or single crystalline material. A set reflection points is selected in the structure under test and ultrasound propagation time delays between the reflection point or points on one hand and the plurality of positions on the other hand that fit an observed time delay of the detected reflections are computed. This may be done by means of an iterative method. In the iterative method a synthetically focused ultrasound beam is realized by summing measurements after compensation for propagation time delay from different transmitting transducers to the reflection points. Time delays to receiving transducers are measured from the arrival time of reflections of this synthetically focused ultrasound beam, and the propagation time delay from different transmitting transducers is iteratively adapted until it matches time delays corresponding to the measured arrival times. Time delays to other points in the structure under test are interpolated between the selected reflection points and used in the computation of an image of reflections within the structure under test.

According to one embodiment, a structure evaluation system according to an embodiment includes a plurality of sensors, a position locator, and an evaluator. The plurality of sensors detect elastic waves. The position locator locates positions of elastic wave sources by using the elastic waves among the plurality of elastic waves respectively detected by the plurality of sensors having an amplitude exceeding a threshold value determined according to positions of the sources of the plurality of elastic waves and the positions of the plurality of disposed sensors. The evaluator evaluates a deteriorated state of the structure on the basis of results of the position locating of the elastic wave sources which is performed by the position locator.

The invention relates to a method for providing a structural condition of a structure, comprising providing an excitation wave generator; providing an excitation wave sensor; injecting an excitation burst wave into the structure using the excitation wave generator; obtaining a measured propagated excitation burst wave using the excitation wave sensor; correlating the measured propagated excitation burst wave with one of a plurality of theoretical dispersed versions of the excitation burst wave; and providing an indication of the structural condition of the structure corresponding to the correlated measured propagated excitation burst wave. The method may offer a better localization of the reflection points and thus of the potential defects present in a structure under inspection, when compared with a group velocity-based or time-of-flight (ToF) approach. The method may be particularly useful for structural health monitoring (SHM) and Non-Destructive Testing (NDT). The method may also enable determination of the mechanical properties of the structure.

A cost of a testing device is reduced. A structure of a testing device is simplified. A testing device capable of testing with higher accuracy is provided. A testing device (10) has a structure including a sending unit (13), a receiving unit (14), a control unit (11), and a display (15). The control unit includes a memory portion (21) and an arithmetic portion (22). The sending unit has a function of generating a pulse signal for a probe (40) to generate an ultrasonic wave (51). The receiving unit has a function of generating a first signal including a first analog data (D1) on the basis of the input single input from the probe. The memory portion has a function of storing the first analog data. The arithmetic portion has a function of generating an image signal (S0) output to the display on the basis of the first analog data stored in the memory portion. The display has a function of displaying an image based on the image signal.