Method and system for concrete quality control based on the concrete's maturity

• US 20070179653A1
• Filed: 03/06/2007
• Published: 08/02/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 09/15/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: FLIR Commercial Systems Incorporated (Teledyne Technologies Incorporated)
• Original Assignee: Michael T. Fox, Steven Trost
• Inventors: Fox, Michael, Trost, Steven
• Granted Patent: US 7,398,131 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 700/109
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 33/383 Concrete, cement

Abstract

A method and system for controlling and monitoring the quality of concrete based on the concrete'"'"'s maturity (which is a function of its time-temperature profile, or temperature history). Five different applications or embodiments of the present invention are discussed, namely, Enhanced Maturity, Moisture-Loss Maturity, Improved Maturity, SPC Maturity, Loggers, Readers, and Software. Enhanced Maturity involves a maturity calibration method to account for the water-to-cementitious-materials ratio, air content, and gross unit weight of the concrete. Moisture-Loss Maturity is a method for determining the appropriate time to terminate moisture-loss protection of concrete and concrete structures. Improved Maturity is a method and system for determining the strength of curing concrete using improved maturity calculations. SPC Maturity is a method that beneficially couples maturity measurements and calculations with Statistical Process Control (SPC) methods to enable rapid recognition of changes to the concrete mix and/or incompatibilities between the various components of the concrete mix. Loggers, Readers, and Software represent the preferred embodiment for automating and simplifying the implementations of Enhanced Maturity, Moisture-Loss Maturity, Improved Maturity, and SPC Maturity.

Claims

1. A logger capable of being positioned on or within a concrete mass, comprising:

one or more sensors to measure physical properties of the concrete mass and to generate sensor data associated with the physical properties; and

a microprocessor receiving the sensor data and calculating maturity data and mechanical strength data based on maturity data, water-to-cementitious-materials ratio, and air content of the concrete mass.