access icon free Robotic scanning technology for laser pulse-echo inspection

© The Institution of Engineering and Technology
Received 14/05/2020, Published 10/07/2020

The full-field pulse-echo ultrasonic propagation imaging (PE UPI) system using a two-axis linear stage has been successfully used to perform a non-destructive evaluation of flat specimens. This study used a six-axis robot arm to develop a robotic scanning algorithm that can be applied to the laser pulse-echo inspection of non-flat objects. The robotic PE UPI system was constructed and verified for both flat and curved specimens. The internal structures and defects of a honeycomb sandwich plate and a glass-fibre-reinforced polymer specimen were visualised by the robotic PE UPI system. The quality of the evaluation of the flat specimen was equivalent to that of a two-axis linear system, and the result of the curved specimen showed improvement compared to that of the linear system. The ability of the robotic scanning technique to evaluate the structural health performance of arbitrarily shaped surfaces was validated.

Inspec keywords: glass fibre reinforced plastics; mobile robots; honeycomb structures; sandwich structures; structural engineering; nondestructive testing; plates (structures); condition monitoring; inspection; ultrasonic materials testing; polymers; ultrasonic propagation

Other keywords: nonflat objects; flat specimens; two-axis linear stage; robotic scanning technology; six-axis robot arm; nondestructive evaluation; curved specimens; curved specimen; flat specimen; glass-fibre-reinforced polymer specimen; robotic PE UPI system; robotic scanning technique; full-field pulse-echo ultrasonic propagation imaging system; laser pulse-echo inspection; robotic scanning algorithm; two-axis linear system

Subjects: Inspection and quality control; Acoustic properties (mechanical engineering); Inspection and quality control; Construction industry; Mechanical components; Robotics; Engineering materials; General shapes and structures; Materials testing; Sonic and ultrasonic applications; Testing; Control applications in building and civil engineering; Mobile robots; Maintenance and reliability

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      • 4. Ahmed, H., Hong, S.-C., Lee, J.-R.: ‘Development of pulse-echo ultrasonic propagation imaging system capable of customizable area inspection’. 9th European Workshop on Structural Health Monitoring, Manchester, UK, July 2018, pp. 1–6.
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http://iet.metastore.ingenta.com/content/journals/10.1049/el.2020.1444
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