Material erosion monitoring system and method
First Claim
1. A system for evaluating a status of a material, comprising:
- a. an electromagnetic wave launcher having a first feeding end and a second launching end, wherein said first feeding end includes a feeding mechanism to excite an electromagnetic wave able to propagate through said electromagnetic wave launcher, wherein said second launching end is physically structured to reduce a plurality of reflections and probe ringing of said electromagnetic wave propagating through said launching end, by a sufficient extent so as to enable detection of an electromagnetic wave of interest reflected from a remote discontinuity of said material, wherein said electromagnetic wave launcher is provided a physical configuration to have an impedance at said second launching end that substantially matches an impedance of a near surface of said material, wherein said electromagnetic wave launcher is adapted to delay receipt of said electromagnetic wave of interest reflected from said remote discontinuity of said material by a time period sufficient to distinguish between said reflected electromagnetic wave of interest and reflected spurious signals from said near surface of said material, and wherein said launching end is adapted to be conformal to an area of said near surface of said material; and
b. a computer-based processor having an executable computer code configured to;
measure said reflected electromagnetic wave of interest to produce frequency domain data;
transform said frequency domain data to time domain data;
calibrate said time domain data to distance domain data;
identify a peak in said distance domain profile associated with said electromagnetic wave of interest reflected from said material; and
determine a distance traveled by said electromagnetic wave of interest reflected from said material.
1 Assignment
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Accused Products
Abstract
Disclosed is an improved system and method to evaluate the status of a material. The system and method are operative to identify flaws and measure the erosion profile and thickness of different materials, including refractory materials, using electromagnetic waves. The system is designed to reduce a plurality of reflections, associated with the propagation of electromagnetic waves launched into the material under evaluation, by a sufficient extent so as to enable detection of electromagnetic waves of interest reflected from remote discontinuities of the material. Furthermore, the system and method utilize a configuration and signal processing techniques that reduce clutter and enable the isolation of electromagnetic waves of interest. Moreover, the launcher is impedance matched to the material under evaluation, and the feeding mechanism is designed to mitigate multiple reflection effects to further suppress clutter.
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Citations
26 Claims
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1. A system for evaluating a status of a material, comprising:
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a. an electromagnetic wave launcher having a first feeding end and a second launching end, wherein said first feeding end includes a feeding mechanism to excite an electromagnetic wave able to propagate through said electromagnetic wave launcher, wherein said second launching end is physically structured to reduce a plurality of reflections and probe ringing of said electromagnetic wave propagating through said launching end, by a sufficient extent so as to enable detection of an electromagnetic wave of interest reflected from a remote discontinuity of said material, wherein said electromagnetic wave launcher is provided a physical configuration to have an impedance at said second launching end that substantially matches an impedance of a near surface of said material, wherein said electromagnetic wave launcher is adapted to delay receipt of said electromagnetic wave of interest reflected from said remote discontinuity of said material by a time period sufficient to distinguish between said reflected electromagnetic wave of interest and reflected spurious signals from said near surface of said material, and wherein said launching end is adapted to be conformal to an area of said near surface of said material; and b. a computer-based processor having an executable computer code configured to;
measure said reflected electromagnetic wave of interest to produce frequency domain data;
transform said frequency domain data to time domain data;
calibrate said time domain data to distance domain data;
identify a peak in said distance domain profile associated with said electromagnetic wave of interest reflected from said material; and
determine a distance traveled by said electromagnetic wave of interest reflected from said material. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13)
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14. A system for evaluating a status of a material, comprising:
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a. an electromagnetic wave launcher having an elongated section, wherein said elongated section has a first feeding end and a second launching end, wherein said first feeding end includes a feeding mechanism to excite an electromagnetic wave able to propagate through said electromagnetic wave launcher, wherein said elongated section is physically structured to reduce a plurality of reflections of said electromagnetic wave propagating through said launching end, by a sufficient extent so as to enable detection of an electromagnetic wave of interest reflected from a remote discontinuity of said material, wherein said electromagnetic wave launcher is provided a physical configuration to have an impedance at said second launching end that substantially matches an impedance of a near surface of said material, wherein said electromagnetic wave launcher is adapted to delay receipt of said electromagnetic wave of interest reflected from said remote discontinuity of said material by a time period sufficient to distinguish between said reflected electromagnetic wave of interest and reflected spurious signals from said near surface of said material, and wherein said launching end is adapted to be conformal to an area of said near surface of said material; and b. a computer-based processor having an executable computer code configured to;
measure said reflected electromagnetic wave of interest to produce frequency domain data;
transform said frequency domain data to time domain data;
calibrate said time domain data to distance domain data;
identify a peak in said distance domain profile associated with said electromagnetic wave of interest reflected from said material; and
determine a distance traveled by said electromagnetic wave of interest reflected from said material.
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15. A system for evaluating a status of a material, comprising:
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a. an electromagnetic wave launcher having a feeding end that includes a feeding mechanism to excite an electromagnetic wave, wherein said electromagnetic wave launcher launches said electromagnetic wave into a near surface of said material, wherein said electromagnetic wave launcher is physically structured to reduce a plurality of reflections of said launched electromagnetic wave, by a sufficient extent so as to enable detection of an electromagnetic wave of interest reflected from a remote discontinuity of said material, wherein said electromagnetic wave launcher is adapted to be conformal to an area of said near surface of said material and is provided a physical configuration to have an impedance that substantially matches an impedance of said near surface of said material, wherein said electromagnetic wave launcher is adapted to delay receipt of said electromagnetic wave of interest reflected from said remote discontinuity of said material by a time period sufficient to distinguish between said reflected electromagnetic wave of interest and reflected spurious signals from said material; and b. a computer-based processor having an executable computer code configured to;
measure said reflected electromagnetic wave of interest to produce frequency domain data;
transform said frequency domain data to time domain data;
calibrate said time domain data to distance domain data;
identify a peak in said distance domain profile associated with said electromagnetic wave of interest reflected from said material; and
determine a distance traveled by said electromagnetic wave of interest reflected from said material.
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16. A method for evaluating a status of a material, comprising:
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a. providing an electromagnetic wave launcher having a first feeding end and a second launching end, wherein said first feeding end includes a feeding mechanism to excite an electromagnetic wave able to propagate through said electromagnetic wave launcher, wherein said second launching end is physically structured to reduce a plurality of reflections of said electromagnetic wave propagating through said launching end, by a sufficient extent so as to enable detection of an electromagnetic wave of interest reflected from a remote discontinuity of said material, wherein said electromagnetic wave launcher is provided a physical configuration to have an impedance at said second launching end that substantially matches an impedance of a near surface of said material, wherein said electromagnetic wave launcher is adapted to delay receipt of said electromagnetic wave of interest reflected from said remote discontinuity of said material by a time period sufficient to distinguish between said reflected electromagnetic wave of interest and reflected spurious signals from said near surface of said material, and wherein said launching end is adapted to be conformal to an area of said near surface of said material; b. placing said launching end of said electromagnetic wave launcher conformally contiguous to said area of said near surface of said material to be evaluated; c. launching a plurality of electromagnetic waves, propagating within a predetermined frequency range, onto said area to be evaluated of said near surface of said material; d. detecting said electromagnetic wave of interest within said predetermined frequency range; and e. determining said status of said material based upon a determined distance traveled by said electromagnetic wave of interest reflected from said remote discontinuity of said material. - View Dependent Claims (17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26)
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Specification