Method and apparatus for detecting leaks

• US 20040173006A1
• Filed: 03/06/2003
• Published: 09/09/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 03/06/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Cincinnati Test Systems, Inc. (TASI Holdings, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Cincinnati Test Systems, Inc. (TASI Holdings, Inc.)
• Inventors: Borntrager, Ryan R., McCoy, Fred Grant, Fazekas, Jonathan Mark
• Granted Patent: US 6,840,086 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 73/40.7
• CPC Class Codes: G01M 3/225 for welds
• CPC Class Codes: G01M 3/229 removably mounted in a test cell
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 1/26 with provision for intake from several spaces
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 7/10 by allowing diffusion of components through a porous wall and measuring a pressure or volume difference

Abstract

The present invention relates to a sensor apparatus configured to detect the presence of a gas, such as a tracer gas and a leak detection apparatus configured to detect the presence of a tracer gas and indicate the location of a leak. The leak detection apparatus may further be configured to quantify the leak rate at the leak location.

Claims

1. An apparatus for detecting the presence of at least one leak in a first region of a part under test and for localizing the location of the at least one leak, wherein a first side of the first region contains a tracer gas and is at a higher pressure than a second side of the first region such that the tracer gas will emanate through the at least one leak from the first side to the second side, the apparatus comprising:

a plurality of sensors positioned proximate to the first region, each sensor being configured to detect the presence of a tracer gas emanating from a leak and to provide a sensing signal; and

a controller connected to the plurality of sensors and configured to provide a leak detection signal in response to at least a first sensor of the plurality of sensors detecting the presence of the tracer gas, the leak detection signal including leak detection information representative of the location of the leak in the first region based on the sensing signals received from at least the first sensor and a second sensor of the plurality of sensors.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, further comprising an indicator configured to provide a visual indication of the location of the leak.

3. The apparatus of claim 2, wherein the indicator includes a display configured to display a first representation of the part under test and a sensor icon positioned on the first representation, the sensor icon corresponding to a location of a first sensor which is proximate to the location of the leak.

4. The apparatus of claim 3, wherein the sensor icon provides a visual indication of the location of the leak.

5. The apparatus of claim 2, wherein the indicator includes a display configured to display a first representation of the part under test and a leak graphic positioned on the first representation, the position of the leak graphic corresponding to a location of a first sensor which is proximate to the location of the leak.

6. The apparatus of claim 5, wherein the leak graphic is an animated graphic configured to simulate the tracer gas emanating from the leak.

7. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the leak detection signal is provided in response to a determination that a threshold amount of the tracer gas has been detected by at least one sensor of the plurality of sensors.

8. The apparatus of claim 7, wherein the leak detection signal includes an indication of a first sensor, the first sensor being chosen based on a determination that the at least one leak is positioned proximate the first sensor.

9. The apparatus of claim 8, wherein the first sensor corresponds to the sensor that detected the highest concentration of the tracer gas.

10. The apparatus of claim 8, wherein the first sensor corresponds to the sensor which first detected the presence of the tracer gas.

11. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the leak detection signal includes an indication of the leak rate of the at least one leak.

12. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein the plurality of sensors are coupled to a fixture, the fixture being configured to substantially enclose the first region and the leak rate of the at least one leak being determined by finding the slope of the average concentration of tracer gas detected by the plurality of sensors over time.

13. A method of monitoring a part under test to determine whether a first region contains a leak, the method comprising the steps of:

locating a plurality of sensors proximate to the first region, each of the plurality of sensors configured to detect the presence of a tracer gas emanating from the leak and to provide a sensing signal;

monitoring each of the plurality of sensors to determine if the tracer gas is being detected by any of the plurality of sensors; and

providing a leak detection signal in response to at least a first sensor of the plurality of sensors detecting the presence of the tracer gas, the leak detection signal including leak location information representative of the location of the leak in the first region based on the sensing signals received from at least the first sensor and a second sensor of the plurality of sensors.

14. The method of claim 13, further comprising the step of providing a first indication of the location of the leak.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein the first indication includes displaying on a display a first representation of a part under test and a sensor icon positioned on the first representation, the sensor icon corresponding to a location of a first sensor which is proximate to the location of the leak.

16. The method of claim 14, wherein the first indication includes displaying on a display a first representation of a part under test and a leak graphic positioned on the first representation, the position of the leak graphic corresponding to a location of a first sensor which is proximate to the location of the leak.

17. The method of claim 13, wherein the step of locating the plurality of sensors comprises the steps of coupling the plurality of sensors to at least a first fixture and positioning the first fixture adjacent the first region.

18. The method of claim 17, wherein the first fixture is configured to substantially enclose the first region such that tracer gas emanating from the leak is substantially retained by the first fixture.

19. The method of claim 18, further comprising the step of providing a leak rate signal in response to the at least first sensor of the plurality of sensors detecting the presence of the tracer gas, the leak rate signal including leak rate information representative of the leak rate of the leak.

20. The method of claim 18, wherein the step of providing the leak rate signal comprises the steps of:

determining average concentration of the plurality of sensors;

monitoring the change in average concentration of the plurality of sensors over a first time period;

determining the rate of change of the average concentration over time; and

comparing the rate of change of average concentration to known leak rates.

21. The method of claim 13, wherein the leak detection signal includes information representative of the leak rate and the method further comprising the step of providing a second indication of a leak rate in response to the at least first sensor of the plurality of sensors detecting the presence of the tracer gas.

22. A computer readable media for use in a leak testing application to determine which of a plurality of sensors is proximate to a leak in a part under test, the computer readable media comprising:

a software portion configured to load a data file corresponding to the location of the plurality of sensors, to monitor the plurality of sensors to determine if any of the plurality of sensors has detected the presence of a leak, to determine the location of the leak if at least a first sensor of the plurality of the sensors detected the presence of the leak, and to provide a visual indication of the location of the leak if at least the first sensor of the plurality of the sensors detected the presence of the leak.

23. The computer readable media of claim 22, wherein the software portion is further configured to provide a first representation of the part under test and a first sensor representation of the at least first sensor positioned on at least the first representation of the part under test.

24. The computer readable media of claim 23, wherein the visual representation of the at least first sensor is a sensor icon.

25. The computer readable media of claim 23, wherein the first sensor representation is the visual indication of the location of the leak.

26. The computer readable media of claim 22, wherein the software portion is further configured to determine the location of the leak by determining which sensor of the plurality of sensors detected the maximum concentration of a tracer gas emanating from the part under test.

27. The computer readable media of claim 22, wherein the software portion is further configured to determine the location of the leak by determining which sensor of the plurality of sensors first detected the presence of a tracer gas emanating from the part under test.

28. The computer readable media of claim 22, wherein the software portion is further configured to determine the leak rate of the leak in the part under test.

29. The computer readable media of claim 28, wherein the software portion is configured to determine the leak rate of the leak in the part under test by determining an average concentration of a tracer gas detected by the plurality of sensors;

monitoring the change in the average concentration of the tracer gas detected by the plurality of sensors over a first time period;

determining a rate of change of the average concentration of the tracer gas detected by the plurality of sensors over a second time period; and

comparing the rate of change of average concentration of the tracer gas detected by the plurality of sensors to known leak rates.

30. The computer readable media of claim 28, wherein the software portion is further configured to provide a leak graphic positioned on the first representation of the part under test at a location proximate to the location of the leak.