Ultrasonic coupler assembly

• US 8,635,913 B2
• Filed: 04/21/2011
• Issued: 01/28/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 04/21/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Baker Hughes Holdings LLC (Baker Hughes Company)
• Original Assignee: General Electric Company
• Inventors: Ao, Xiaolei Shirley, Khrakovsky, Oleg Alexander, Frail, Christopher Alan, Ma, Amber Yue
• Primary Examiner(s): SAINT SURIN, JACQUES M
• Application Number:
  US13/091,464
• Publication Number:
  US 20120266679A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,013 Days
• Field of Search: 736/44, 738/612.5, 738/612.8
• US Class Current: 73/644
• CPC Class Codes: G01F 1/662 Constructional details
• CPC Class Codes: G01F 1/668 Compensating or correcting for variations in velocity of sound

Abstract

An ultrasonic coupler assembly for coupling an ultrasonic transducer to a pipe wall is disclosed, wherein the ultrasonic coupler is configured using three quadrilateral sections to reduce the temperature extreme to which the ultrasonic transducer is exposed and to improve the quality of the ultrasonic signal passing through the ultrasonic coupler.

Claims

1. An ultrasonic coupler assembly for coupling an ultrasonic transducer to a pipe wall comprising:

a first quadrilateral section configured to receive an ultrasonic signal from the ultrasonic transducer;

a second quadrilateral section configured to be coupled to an exterior surface of the pipe wall; and

a rhomboid section between and connecting the first quadrilateral section and the second quadrilateral section, wherein a first side of the rhomboid section is adjacent to the first quadrilateral section and a second side of the rhomboid section is adjacent to the second quadrilateral section.

3. The ultrasonic coupler assembly of claim 1, wherein the first quadrilateral section is a trapezoid.

4. The ultrasonic coupler assembly of claim 3, wherein the first quadrilateral section comprises a top side extending from the right end of the top side of the rhomboid section, a bottom side extending from the left end of the bottom side of the rhomboid section, a right side adjacent to the left side of the rhomboid section, and a left side, wherein the top side is parallel to the bottom side, the right side forms right angles with the top side and the bottom side, and the left side forms an acute angle with the top side and an obtuse angle with the bottom side.

5. The ultrasonic coupler assembly of claim 1, wherein the second quadrilateral section is a trapezoid.

6. The ultrasonic coupler assembly of claim 5, wherein the second quadrilateral section comprises a top side extending from the right end of the top side of the rhomboid section, a bottom side extending from the right end of the bottom side of the rhomboid section, a left side adjacent to the right side of the rhomboid section, and a right side, wherein the top side is parallel to the bottom side, the left side forms right angles with the top side and the bottom side, and the right side forms an obtuse angle with the top side and an acute angle with the bottom side.

7. The ultrasonic coupler assembly of claim 1, wherein the first quadrilateral section is an orthogonal parallelogram.

8. The ultrasonic coupler assembly of claim 7, wherein the first quadrilateral section comprises a top side extending from the left end of the top side of the rhomboid section, a bottom side extending from the left end of the bottom side of the rhomboid section, a right side adjacent to the left side of the rhomboid section, and a left side, wherein the top side is parallel to the bottom side, the right side is parallel to the left side, the right side forms right angles with the top side and the bottom side, and the left side forms right angles with the top side and the bottom side.

9. The ultrasonic coupler assembly of claim 1, wherein the second quadrilateral section is an orthogonal parallelogram.

10. The ultrasonic coupler assembly of claim 9, wherein the second quadrilateral section comprises a top side extending from the right end of the top side of the rhomboid section, a bottom side extending from the right end of the bottom side of the rhomboid section, a left side adjacent to the right side of the rhomboid section, and a right side, wherein the top side is parallel to the bottom side, the right side is parallel to the left side, the left side forms right angles with the top side and the bottom side, and the right side forms right angles with the top side and the bottom side.

11. The ultrasonic coupler assembly of claim 1, further comprising a wedge proximate the top side of the first quadrilateral section.

12. The ultrasonic coupler assembly of claim 1, further comprising a wedge proximate the bottom side of the second quadrilateral section.

13. The ultrasonic coupler assembly of claim 6, wherein the acute angle between the right side of the second quadrilateral section and the bottom side of the second quadrilateral section is configured such that the portion of a main ultrasonic signal that is reflected at an interface point between the bottom side of the second quadrilateral section and the pipe wall is reflected along a reflected ultrasonic path that is normal to the right side of the second quadrilateral section.

14. The ultrasonic coupler assembly of claim 1, wherein the first quadrilateral section, the second quadrilateral section, and the rhomboid section are manufactured as a single piece.

2. An ultrasonic coupler assembly for coupling an ultrasonic transducer to a pipe wall comprising:

a first quadrilateral section;

a second quadrilateral section; and

a rhomboid section between and connecting the first quadrilateral section and the second quadrilateral section,

wherein the rhomboid section comprises a top side extending from the right end of the top side of the first quadrilateral section to the left end of the top side of the second quadrilateral section, a bottom side extending from the right end of the bottom side of the first quadrilateral section to the left end of the bottom side of the second quadrilateral section, a left side adjacent to the right side of the first quadrilateral section, and a right side adjacent to the left side of the second quadrilateral section, wherein the top side is parallel to the bottom side, the left side is parallel to the right side, the left side forms an acute angle with the top side and an obtuse angle with the bottom side, and the right side forms an obtuse angle with the top side and an acute angle with the bottom side.

15. An ultrasonic coupler assembly for coupling an ultrasonic transducer to a pipe wall comprising:

a first trapezoid section;

a second trapezoid section; and

a rhomboid section between and connecting the first trapezoid section and the second trapezoid section,

wherein the rhomboid section comprises a top side extending from the right end of the top side of the first trapezoid section to the left end of the top side of the second trapezoid section, a bottom side extending from the right end of the bottom side of the first trapezoid section to the left end of the bottom side of the second trapezoid section, a left side adjacent to the right side of the first trapezoid section, and a right side adjacent to the left side of the second trapezoid section, wherein the top side is parallel to the bottom side, the left side is parallel to the right side, the left side forms an acute angle with the top side and an obtuse angle with the bottom side, and the right side forms an obtuse angle with the top side and an acute angle with the bottom side,

wherein the first trapezoid section comprises a top side extending from the right end of the top side of the rhomboid section, a bottom side extending from the left end of the bottom side of the rhomboid section, a right side adjacent to the left side of the rhomboid section, and a left side, wherein the top side is parallel to the bottom side, the right side forms right angles with the top side and the bottom side, and the left side forms an acute angle with the top side and an obtuse angle with the bottom side, and

wherein the second trapezoid section comprises a top side extending from the right end of the top side of the rhomboid section, a bottom side extending from the right end of the bottom side of the rhomboid section, a left side adjacent to the right side of the rhomboid section, and a right side, wherein the top side is parallel to the bottom side, the left side forms right angles with the top side and the bottom side, and the right side forms an obtuse angle with the top side and an acute angle with the bottom side.

16. The ultrasonic coupler assembly of claim 15, further comprising a wedge proximate the top side of the first trapezoid section.

17. The ultrasonic coupler assembly of claim 15, further comprising a wedge proximate the bottom side of the second trapezoid section.

18. An ultrasonic coupler assembly for coupling an ultrasonic transducer to a pipe wall comprising:

a first orthogonal parallelogram section;

a second orthogonal parallelogram section; and

a rhomboid section between and connecting the first orthogonal parallelogram section and the second orthogonal parallelogram section,

wherein the rhomboid section comprises a top side extending from the right end of the top side of the first orthogonal parallelogram section to the left end of the top side of the second orthogonal parallelogram section, a bottom side extending from the right end of the bottom side of the first orthogonal parallelogram section to the left end of the bottom side of the second orthogonal parallelogram section, a left side adjacent to the right side of the first orthogonal parallelogram section, and a right side adjacent to the left side of the second orthogonal parallelogram section, wherein the top side is parallel to the bottom side, the left side is parallel to the right side, the left side forms an acute angle with the top side and an obtuse angle with the bottom side, and the right side forms an obtuse angle with the top side and an acute angle with the bottom side,

wherein the first orthogonal parallelogram section comprises a top side extending from the left end of the top side of the rhomboid section, a bottom side extending from the left end of the bottom side of the rhomboid section, a right side adjacent to the left side of the rhomboid section, and a left side, wherein the top side is parallel to the bottom side, the right side is parallel to the left side, the right side forms right angles with the top side and the bottom side, and the left side forms right angles with the top side and the bottom side, and

wherein the second orthogonal parallelogram section comprises a top side extending from the right end of the top side of the rhomboid section, a bottom side extending from the right end of the bottom side of the rhomboid section, a left side adjacent to the right side of the rhomboid section, and a right side, wherein the top side is parallel to the bottom side, the right side is parallel to the left side, the left side forms right angles with the top side and the bottom side, and the right side forms right angles with the top side and the bottom side.

19. The ultrasonic coupler assembly of claim 18, further comprising a wedge proximate the top side of the first orthogonal parallelogram section.

20. The ultrasonic coupler assembly of claim 18, further comprising a wedge proximate the bottom side of the second orthogonal parallelogram section.