Ultrasonic flaw detection apparatus and ultrasonic flaw detection program

• US 8,100,014 B2
• Filed: 05/23/2007
• Issued: 01/24/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 05/23/2006
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Central Research Institute of Electric Power Industry
• Original Assignee: Central Research Institute of Electric Power Industry
• Inventors: Fukutomi, Hiroyuki, Lin, Shan
• Primary Examiner(s): SAINT SURIN, JACQUES M
• Application Number:
  US12/300,417
• Publication Number:
  US 20090308163A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,707 Days
• Field of Search: 735/98, 736/00, 736/02, 736/22, 736/27
• US Class Current: 73/598
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 2291/02854 Length, thickness
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 29/0609 Display arrangements, e.g. colour displays indicating or recording in connection with measuring in general G01D
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 29/069 Defect imaging, localisation and sizing using, e.g. time of flight diffraction [TOFD], synthetic aperture focusing technique [SAFT], Amplituden-Laufzeit-Ortskurven [ALOK] technique

Abstract

A plurality of ultrasonic flaw detection methods can be switched and executed by a simple operation. An ultrasonic flaw detection apparatus includes a switching circuit 3 for permitting an angle probe 1 and a normal probe 2 to be arbitrarily switched to a transmission unit T and a reception unit R of a flaw detector. The switching circuit 3 can select an angle flaw detection mode for transmitting and receiving an ultrasonic beam only by the angle probe, an SPOD mode for transmitting the ultrasonic beam by the angle probe and receiving a diffracted wave by the normal probe and a flaw detection mode executed by a combination of angle flaw detection mode.

Claims

1. An ultrasonic flaw detection apparatus comprising:

an angle probe, a normal probe, and a switching circuit for permitting connection of the angle probe and the normal probe to a transmission unit and a reception unit of a flaw detector to be switched, wherein the switching circuit selects an angle flaw detection mode for transmitting and receiving an ultrasonic beam only by the angle probe, an SPOD mode for transmitting the ultrasonic beam by the angle probe and receiving a diffracted wave propagating on a flaw detection surface above a flaw by the normal probe, a mode for simultaneously executing the angle flaw detection mode and the SPOD mode for transmitting the ultrasonic beam by the angle probe and receiving a reflected wave by the angle probe as well as receiving the diffracted wave propagating on the flaw detection surface above the flaw by the normal probe, and a normal flaw detection mode for transmitting and receiving the ultrasonic beam only by the normal probe.

4. The ultrasonic flaw detection apparatus according to claim 1, comprising a peak time estimation means for estimating the time of appearance of the peak of an echo from parameters of a specimen previously set according to a flaw detection mode selected by the switching circuit, and a guide display means for displaying the position of appearance of the peak of the echo estimated by the peak time estimation means to the time-axis of a display unit for displaying a detected peak of echo by a cursor.

5. The ultrasonic flaw detection apparatus according to claim 4, comprising an enlarged waveform display means for displaying the region of a previously designated range to the display unit in enlargement with the displayed position of the cursor located at the center of the region.

6. The ultrasonic flaw detection apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the guide display means changes the background color of a waveform of the display unit depending on which of the flaw detection modes is selected.

7. The ultrasonic flaw detection apparatus according to claim 4, which causes the display unit to simultaneously display the waveforms formed by the plurality of ultrasonic flaw detection methods when an ultrasonic flaw detection test is executed to the specimens by the plurality of ultrasonic flaw detection methods.

2. An ultrasonic flaw detection apparatus comprising:

a first angle probe, a second angle probe disposed by facing the first angle probe, and a switching circuit for permitting connection of the respective angle probes to a transmission unit and a reception unit of a flaw detector to be switched, wherein the switching circuit selects an angle flaw detection mode for transmitting and receiving an ultrasonic beam only by the first angle probe, a TOFD mode for transmitting the ultrasonic beam by the first angle probe and receiving a surface wave and a diffracted wave by the second angle probe, a mode for simultaneously executing the angle flaw detection mode and the TOFD mode for transmitting the ultrasonic beam by the first angle probe and receiving a reflected wave by the first angle probe as well as receiving the surface wave and the diffracted wave by the second angle probe, and an angle flaw detection mode for transmitting and receiving the ultrasonic beam only by the second angle probe.

3. An ultrasonic flaw detection apparatus comprising:

a first angle probe, a normal probe, a second angle probe disposed by facing the first angle probe across the normal probe, and a switching circuit for permitting connection of the respective angle probes to a transmission unit and a reception unit of a flaw detector to be optionally switched, wherein the switching circuit selects an angle flaw detection mode for transmitting and receiving an ultrasonic beam only by the first angle probe, an SPOD mode for transmitting the ultrasonic beam by the first angle probe and receiving a diffracted wave propagating on a flaw detection surface above a flaw by the normal prove, a mode for simultaneously executing the angle flaw detection mode and the SPOD mode for transmitting the ultrasonic beam by the first angle probe and receiving a reflected wave by the first normal probe as well as receiving the diffracted wave by the normal probe, a normal flaw detection mode for transmitting and receiving the ultrasonic beam only by the normal probe, a TOFD mode for transmitting the ultrasonic beam by the first angle probe and receiving a surface wave and the diffracted wave by the second angle probe, a mode for simultaneously executing the angle flaw detection mode and the TOFD mode for transmitting the ultrasonic beam by the first angle probe and receiving the reflected wave by the first angle probe as well as receiving the surface wave and the diffracted wave by the second angle probe, and an angle flaw detection mode for transmitting and receiving an ultrasonic beam only by the second angle probe.

8. An ultrasonic flaw detection program operating on a computer, the ultrasonic flaw detection program causing the computer, which controls a switching circuit for arbitrarily switching connection of an angle probe and a normal probe to a transmission unit and a reception unit of a pulse receiver, to execute a circuit selection process for controlling switching of the switching circuit according to a flaw detection mode selected, by an input unit, from an angle flaw detection mode for transmitting and receiving an ultrasonic beam only by the angle probe, an SPOD mode for transmitting the ultrasonic beam by the angle probe and receiving a diffracted wave propagating on a flaw detection surface above a flaw by the normal probe, a mode for simultaneously executing the angle flaw detection method and the SPOD method for transmitting the ultrasonic beam by the angle probe and receiving a reflected wave by the angle probe as well as receiving the diffracted wave propagating on the flaw detection surface above the flaw by the normal probe, and a normal flaw detection mode for transmitting and receiving the ultrasonic beam only by the normal probe.

11. The ultrasonic flaw detection program according to claim 8, wherein a memory unit previously stores parameters of respective selected flaw detection modes, which are necessary to estimate the time of appearance of the peak of an echo detected in a selected flaw detection mode, and a computer is caused to execute a peak time estimation process for causing an arithmetic operation unit to calculate the time of appearance of the peak of an echo using the parameters from the memory unit as input values and a guide display process for displaying a cursor, which shows the position of appearance of the peak of the echo estimated by the peak time estimation process, to the time-axis of the detected echo displayed on a display unit.

9. An ultrasonic flaw detection program operating on a computer, the ultrasonic flaw detection program causing the computer, which controls a switching circuit for arbitrarily switching connection of a first angle probe and a second angle probe disposed by facing the first angle probe to a transmission unit and a reception unit of a pulse receiver, to execute a circuit selection process for controlling switching of the switching circuit according to a flaw detection mode selected, by an input unit, from an angle flaw detection mode for transmitting and receiving an ultrasonic beam only by the first angle probe, a TOFD mode for transmitting the ultrasonic beam by the first angle probe and receiving a surface wave and the diffracted wave by the second angle probe, a mode for simultaneously executing the angle flaw detection method and the TOFD method for transmitting the ultrasonic beam by the first angle probe and receiving a reflected wave by the first angle probe as well as receiving the surface wave and the diffracted wave by the second angle probe, and an angle flaw detection mode for transmitting and receiving the ultrasonic beam only by the second angle probe.

10. An ultrasonic flaw detection program operating on a computer, the ultrasonic flaw detection program causing the computer, which controls a switching circuit for arbitrarily switching connection of a first angle probe, a normal probe, and a second angle probe disposed by facing the first angle probe to a transmission unit and a reception unit of a pulse receiver, to execute a circuit selection process for controlling switching of the switching circuit according to a flaw detection mode selected, by an input unit, from an angle flaw detection mode for transmitting and receiving an ultrasonic beam only by the angle probe, an SPOD mode for transmitting the ultrasonic beam by the first angle probe and receiving a diffracted wave propagating on a flaw detection surface above a flaw by the normal probe, a mode for simultaneously executing the angle flaw detection method and the SPOD method for transmitting the ultrasonic beam by the first angle probe and receiving a reflected wave by the first angle probe as well as receiving the diffracted wave by the angle probe, a normal flaw detection mode for transmitting and receiving the ultrasonic beam only by the normal probe, a TOFD mode for transmitting the ultrasonic beam by the first angle probe and receiving a surface wave and the diffracted wave by the second angle probe, a mode for simultaneously executing the angle flaw detection method and the TOFD method for transmitting the ultrasonic beam by the first angle probe and receiving the reflected wave by the first angle probe as well as receiving the surface wave and the diffracted wave by the second angle probe, and an angle flaw detection mode for transmitting and receiving the ultrasonic beam only by the second angle probe.