An ultrasonic polar scanning device and an ultrasonic polar scanning detection method

Abstract

This invention discloses an ultrasonic polar scanning device, comprising a robotic arm, an ultrasonic flaw detector, and an ultrasonic polar scanning body. The ultrasonic polar scanning body includes: a transmitting probe and a receiving probe; a transmitting posture adjustment mechanism and a receiving posture adjustment mechanism, respectively used to adjust the distance and angle between the probe and the positioning plane of the sample under test; and a mounting assembly. Both the transmitting and receiving posture adjustment mechanisms are connected to the end joints of the robotic arm via the mounting assembly. The end joints of the robotic arm can drive the transmitting and receiving probes to rotate. This invention utilizes the robotic arm to move the ultrasonic polar scanning body to the scanning position, and uses the transmitting and receiving posture adjustment mechanisms to adjust the position and angle of the transmitting and receiving probes respectively. Combined with the robotic arm driving the entire ultrasonic polar scanning body to rotate, fully automatic and high-precision polar scanning detection of the sample under test can be achieved. This invention also discloses an ultrasonic polar scanning detection method.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to the field of ultrasonic testing technology, and more specifically, to an ultrasonic pole scanning device and an ultrasonic pole scanning testing method. Background Technology

[0002] Ultrasonic testing is one of the most widely used methods in the field of nondestructive testing. It studies the reflected, transmitted, and scattered sound waves by the interaction between ultrasonic waves and the test sample. It can nondestructively measure the geometric dimensions, defects, texture, and mechanical property changes of the sample, and thus evaluate the performance of specific applications.

[0003] Ultrasonic polar scanning is a novel ultrasonic nondestructive testing technique that utilizes the amplitude information of reflected ultrasonic waves on a material surface to study the acoustic properties of materials. Ultrasonic polar scanning employs a two-probe (transmitter and receiver) detection mode, maintaining a fixed angle between the transmitter and receiver probes and the normal direction of the scanning plane, as well as a fixed distance from the scanning point. The probes rotate around a specific scanning point on the sample, acquiring echo amplitude data. By continuously changing the angles of the transmitter and receiver probes in spatial coordinates, the echo amplitude information at all angles is recorded. Finally, the scanning data results are displayed in planar polar coordinate image form. Because ultrasonic polar scanning involves scanning a large number of incident angles at a specific scanning point on the sample, the polar coordinate image contains a wealth of material acoustic properties.

[0004] However, ultrasonic polar scanning technology requires that the transmitting and receiving probes maintain symmetrical movement about the normal direction of the sample surface at all times, and that the ultrasonic wave propagation plane remain perpendicular to the sample surface at all times. Furthermore, the incident angle of the transmitting probe and the reflection angle of the receiving probe must be continuously and precisely adjustable within the spatial coordinate system, and the water distance must be adjustable.

[0005] However, the ultrasonic polar scanning technology disclosed in the current technology only involves theoretical research and does not disclose the technology of ultrasonic polar scanning devices.

[0006] Therefore, how to provide an ultrasonic pole scanning device that enables the ultrasonic probe to complete pole scanning motion with high precision has become a technical problem that urgently needs to be solved by those skilled in the art. Summary of the Invention

[0007] In view of this, the object of the present invention is to provide an ultrasonic pole scanning device that enables the ultrasonic probe to complete pole scanning motion with high precision.

[0008] Another object of the present invention is to provide an ultrasonic polar scanning detection method.

[0009] To achieve the above objectives, the present invention provides the following technical solution:

[0010] An ultrasonic polar scanning device includes a robotic arm, an ultrasonic flaw detector, and an ultrasonic polar scanning body, wherein the ultrasonic polar scanning body includes:

[0011] Both the transmitting probe and the receiving probe are communicatively connected to the ultrasonic flaw detector;

[0012] The transmitter pose adjustment mechanism and the receiver pose adjustment mechanism are provided. The transmitter pose adjustment mechanism is used to adjust the distance and angle between the transmitter probe and the positioning plane of the sample under test. The receiver pose adjustment mechanism is used to adjust the distance and angle between the receiver probe and the positioning plane.

[0013] The mounting assembly connects both the transmitting posture adjustment mechanism and the receiving posture adjustment mechanism to the end joint of the manipulator. The end joint of the manipulator can drive the transmitting posture adjustment mechanism and the receiving posture adjustment mechanism to rotate along an axis perpendicular to the positioning plane.

[0014] Optionally, in the above-described ultrasonic polar scanning device, the mounting assembly includes:

[0015] The first connecting plate, the transmitting posture adjustment mechanism and the receiving posture adjustment mechanism are both fixed on the first connecting plate;

[0016] The second connecting plate is connected to the end housing of the robotic arm;

[0017] The drive shaft is rotatably supported on the second connecting plate, with its first end perpendicular to and fixedly connected to the first connecting plate, and its second end being drively connected to the end joint of the robot arm. The installation positions of the transmitting posture adjustment mechanism and the receiving posture adjustment mechanism are symmetrically arranged along the axis of the drive shaft.

[0018] Optionally, the ultrasonic polar scanning device described above also includes a conductive slip ring, which includes a rotating part and a stationary part that are electrically connected. The stationary part is fixed to the second connecting plate, and the rotating part is fitted and fixed to the drive shaft.

[0019] The transmitting probe and the receiving probe are communicatively connected to the ultrasonic flaw detector via the conductive slip ring.

[0020] Optionally, in the above-mentioned ultrasonic polar scanning device, a visual sensor is provided on the second connecting plate, and the visual sensor is used to identify the position of the sample being inspected.

[0021] Optionally, in the above-mentioned ultrasonic polar scanning device, the transmitting posture adjustment mechanism includes a first transmitting joint, a second transmitting joint, a transmitting connecting rod, and a transmitting probe seat, wherein the first transmitting joint is fixed to the first connecting plate;

[0022] The output shaft of the first transmitting joint is parallel to the axis of the output shaft of the second transmitting joint, and the output shaft of the first transmitting joint is connected to the second transmitting joint through the transmitting link. The transmitting probe seat is connected to the output shaft of the second transmitting joint, and the transmitting probe seat is used to install the transmitting probe.

[0023] The receiving posture adjustment mechanism includes a first receiving joint, a second receiving joint, a receiving link, and a receiving probe seat, wherein the first receiving joint is fixed to the first connecting plate;

[0024] The output shaft of the first receiving joint is parallel to the axis of the output shaft of the second receiving joint, and the output shaft of the first receiving joint is connected to the second receiving joint through the receiving linkage. The receiving probe seat is connected to the output shaft of the second receiving joint, and the receiving probe seat is used to install the receiving probe.

[0025] Optionally, in the above-described ultrasonic polar scanning device, the output shaft of the first transmitting joint and the output shaft of the first receiving joint are both perpendicular to the transmission shaft.

[0026] Optionally, in the above-mentioned ultrasonic polar scanning device, the transmitting posture adjustment mechanism and the receiving posture adjustment mechanism are arranged symmetrically along the axis of the transmission shaft.

[0027] Optionally, in the above-mentioned ultrasonic polar scanning device, the first transmitting joint is fixed to the first connecting plate by a transmitting joint bracket, and the transmitting joint bracket is fixed to the first connecting plate by fasteners;

[0028] The first receiving joint is fixed to the first connecting plate by a receiving joint bracket, and the receiving joint bracket is fixed to the first connecting plate by fasteners.

[0029] Optionally, in the above-mentioned ultrasonic polar scanning device, the robotic arm is a multi-axis robotic arm.

[0030] Optionally, the above-mentioned ultrasonic polar scanning device further includes:

[0031] The robotic arm is mounted on the work platform.

[0032] The water tank contains the sample to be tested.

[0033] The ultrasonic polar scanning device provided by this invention can use a robotic arm to move the ultrasonic polar scanning body to the scanning position. At the same time, the position and angle of the transmitting probe and the receiving probe can be adjusted by the transmitting posture adjustment mechanism and the receiving posture adjustment mechanism, respectively. In addition, the robotic arm drives the ultrasonic polar scanning body to rotate as a whole, so as to realize fully automatic and high-precision polar scanning detection of the sample under test.

[0034] An ultrasonic polar scanning detection method, utilizing the ultrasonic polar scanning device as described in any of the preceding claims, includes:

[0035] The probe calibration step involves adjusting the transmitting and receiving probes to be at their minimum and equal distances from the positioning plane.

[0036] The scanning start position adjustment step involves placing the sample to be inspected on the positioning plane. The robotic arm moves the transmitting and receiving probes to the top of the detection point on the sample. The transmitting and receiving posture adjustment mechanisms are adjusted so that the incident angle of the transmitting probe and the receiving angle of the receiving probe are both the set starting angle θ0, and the water distance is the set h. The ultrasonic flaw detector is then adjusted to a one-transmit-one-receive signal mode, and the robotic arm is adjusted so that the plane containing the axes of the transmitting and receiving probes coincides with the set initial scanning plane.

[0037] The ultrasonic polar scanning procedure for the sample under test involves adjusting the incident angle and receiving angle from the initial angle θ0 to the target angle θ0 using the transmitter and receiver attitude adjustment mechanisms, according to the set incident angle and step angle Δθ. 目 The stepping motion, according to the set azimuth step angle Δφ, is controlled by the end joint of the manipulator to rotate the transmitting posture adjustment mechanism and the receiving posture adjustment mechanism, sequentially completing the scanning of all azimuth angles φ at each incident angle, and simultaneously completing the acquisition of the corresponding maximum echo amplitude data, and recording the incident angle θ, azimuth angle φ and maximum echo amplitude data A.

[0038] In the polar scanning image imaging step, the incident angle θ, azimuth angle φ, and maximum echo amplitude data A are plotted on a planar polar coordinate image.

[0039] Optionally, in the above ultrasonic polar scanning detection method, the probe calibration step includes a probe parallelism calibration step and a probe perpendicularity calibration step;

[0040] The probe parallelism calibration step involves adjusting the axes of the transmitting probe and the receiving probe to be on the same straight line.

[0041] The probe verticality calibration step involves adjusting the transmitting probe and the receiving probe to be at the minimum and equal distance from the positioning plane.

[0042] Optionally, in the above ultrasonic polar scanning detection method, the probe parallelism calibration step includes:

[0043] Replace the transmitting probe and receiving probe with transmitting pins and receiving pins, respectively;

[0044] Adjust the transmitter and receiver attitude adjustment mechanisms to make the tips of the transmitter and receiver pins coincide. If the tips of the transmitter and receiver pins cannot coincide, adjust the mounting components until the tips of the transmitter and receiver pins coincide.

[0045] Optionally, in the above ultrasonic polar scanning detection method, the probe perpendicularity calibration step includes:

[0046] Replace the transmitter pin and receiver pin with the transmitter probe and receiver probe respectively, and coarsely adjust the transmitter posture adjustment mechanism and the receiver posture adjustment mechanism so that the transmitter posture adjustment mechanism and the receiver posture adjustment mechanism are in a straight downward position.

[0047] Set the ultrasonic flaw detector to the ultrasonic signal self-transmission and self-reception mode;

[0048] Fine-tune the transmitter and receiver attitude adjustment mechanisms to ensure that the distance d between the transmitter and receiver probes and the flat plate sample on the positioning plane is adjusted. 发射 and d 接收 To be the minimum value, d 发射 d represents the distance between the transmitting probe and the flat sample. 接收 To determine the distance between the receiving probe and the flat sample, if d 发射 and d 接收 Unequal, adjust the robotic arm so that d 发射 and d 接收 If they are equal, then return to the steps of fine-tuning the transmitter pose adjustment mechanism and the receiver pose adjustment mechanism;

[0049] Adjust the robotic arm to maximize the amplitude of the received echoes from both the transmitting and receiving probes.

[0050] The ultrasonic polar scanning detection method provided by the present invention, since it uses the above-mentioned ultrasonic polar scanning device for detection, has all the technical effects of the above-mentioned ultrasonic polar scanning device, which will not be repeated here. Attached Figure Description

[0051] To more clearly illustrate the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present invention or the prior art, the drawings used in the description of the embodiments or the prior art will be briefly introduced below. Obviously, the drawings described below are only some embodiments of the present invention. For those skilled in the art, other drawings can be obtained based on these drawings without creative effort.

[0052] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of the ultrasonic polar scanning device disclosed in an embodiment of the present invention;

[0053] Figure 2 This is a schematic diagram of the ultrasonic polar scanning detection principle disclosed in an embodiment of the present invention;

[0054] Figure 3 This is a schematic diagram of the probe parallelism calibration process disclosed in an embodiment of the present invention;

[0055] Figure 4 This is a schematic diagram of the probe verticality calibration process disclosed in an embodiment of the present invention;

[0056] Figure 5 This is a flowchart of the probe verticality calibration process disclosed in an embodiment of the present invention;

[0057] Figure 6 This is a schematic diagram comparing the polar scan image and the acoustic properties of the material disclosed in an embodiment of the present invention.

[0058] The meanings of the various reference numerals in the figure are as follows:

[0059] 1-Robot arm; 2-Working platform; 3-Ultrasonic flaw detector; 4-Water tank; 5-First connecting plate; 6-Receiver joint bracket; 7-First receiving joint; 8-Receiver link; 9-Second receiving joint; 10-Receiver probe holder; 11-Receiver probe; 12-Sample under inspection; 13-Emitting probe; 14-Second transmitting joint; 15-Emitting probe holder; 16-Emitting link; 17-First transmitting joint; 18-Emitting joint bracket; 19-Drive shaft; 20-Vision sensor; 21-Conductive slip ring; 22-Second connecting plate; 23-Receiver pin; 24-Emitter pin; 25-Plate sample; 26-Initial scanning plane. Detailed Implementation

[0060] The core of this invention is to provide an ultrasonic pole scanning device that enables the ultrasonic probe to complete pole scanning motion with high precision;

[0061] Another core aspect of this invention is to provide an ultrasonic polar scanning detection method.

[0062] Hereinafter, embodiments will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings. Furthermore, the embodiments shown below do not limit the scope of the invention as described in the claims. Additionally, the complete contents of the structures represented in the embodiments below are not limited to those necessary for the solution of the invention as described in the claims. It should be noted that, for ease of description, only the parts relevant to the invention are shown in the drawings. Unless otherwise specified, the embodiments and features described in the present invention can be combined with each other.

[0063] like Figures 1-4 As shown, the ultrasonic polar scanning device disclosed in this embodiment of the invention includes a robotic arm 1, an ultrasonic flaw detector 3, and an ultrasonic polar scanning body. The ultrasonic polar scanning body includes a transmitting probe 13, a receiving probe 11, a transmitting posture adjustment mechanism, a receiving posture adjustment mechanism, and mounting components.

[0064] Both the transmitting probe 13 and the receiving probe 11 are connected to the ultrasonic flaw detector 3. The ultrasonic flaw detector 3 can control the transmitting probe 13 to emit ultrasonic waves and the receiving probe 11 to receive ultrasonic waves (i.e., ultrasonic signal transmission and reception mode) according to its ultrasonic signal acquisition mode. It can also control the transmitting probe 13 to both emit and receive ultrasonic waves, and at the same time control the receiving probe 11 to both emit and receive ultrasonic waves (i.e., ultrasonic signal self-transmission and self-reception mode).

[0065] The transmitting posture adjustment mechanism and the receiving posture adjustment mechanism can have the same structure. Multiple rotary joints can be set as needed to adjust the position and angle of the two probes (transmitting probe 13 and receiving probe 11). For example, the transmitting posture adjustment mechanism is used to adjust the distance and angle between the transmitting probe 13 and the positioning plane of the sample 12 under test, and the receiving posture adjustment mechanism is used to adjust the distance and angle between the receiving probe 11 and the positioning plane.

[0066] Both the transmitting and receiving posture adjustment mechanisms are connected to the end joint of the robotic arm 1 via mounting components. The end joint of the robotic arm 1 can drive the transmitting and receiving posture adjustment mechanisms to rotate along an axis perpendicular to the positioning plane. When scanning the sample 12 under test, the incident angle of the transmitting probe 13 can be adjusted through the transmitting posture adjustment mechanism (it should be noted that the angle of the receiving probe 11 needs to be adjusted simultaneously through the receiving posture adjustment mechanism to make it equal to the incident angle of the transmitting probe 13). The azimuth angles of the transmitting probe 13 and the receiving probe 11 can be adjusted through the end joint of the robotic arm to gradually complete the scanning of the sample 12 under test.

[0067] The robotic arm 1 can be a multi-axis robotic arm, which has multiple rotary joints that rotate along axes in different directions to increase its adjustment range. Since multi-axis robotic arms are a common type of robotic arm in the prior art, the structure of the robotic arm will not be described in detail here.

[0068] The ultrasonic polar scanning device provided by this invention utilizes a robotic arm 1 to move the ultrasonic polar scanning body to the scanning position. Simultaneously, a transmitter posture adjustment mechanism and a receiver posture adjustment mechanism can respectively adjust the position and angle of the transmitter probe 13 and the receiver probe 11. Combined with the robotic arm 1 driving the ultrasonic polar scanning body to rotate as a whole, fully automatic and high-precision polar scanning detection of the sample can be achieved. Furthermore, the ultrasonic polar scanning device provided by this invention can also calibrate the positions of the transmitter probe 13 and the receiver probe 11, adjusting them to have the minimum and equal distance from the positioning plane before performing subsequent scanning actions. This avoids the problem of poor detection accuracy caused by positional deviations of the transmitter probe 13 and the receiver probe 11.

[0069] like Figure 3 and Figure 4As shown, in a specific embodiment of the present invention, the mounting assembly includes a first connecting plate 5, a second connecting plate 22, and a drive shaft 19. Both the transmitting posture adjustment mechanism and the receiving posture adjustment mechanism are fixed to the first connecting plate 5.

[0070] The second connecting plate 22 is connected to the end housing of the robot 1. The drive shaft 19 is rotatably supported on the second connecting plate 22. The first end of the drive shaft 19 is perpendicular to and fixedly connected to the first connecting plate 5, and the second end is connected to the end joint of the robot 1 so that the end joint of the robot 1 can drive the drive shaft 19, the first connecting plate 5, and the transmitting posture adjustment mechanism and the receiving posture adjustment mechanism fixed on the first connecting plate 5 to rotate along the axis of the drive shaft 19.

[0071] The transmitter attitude adjustment mechanism and the receiver attitude adjustment mechanism are installed symmetrically along the axis of the transmission shaft 19, so that the transmission attitude adjustment mechanism, the receiver attitude adjustment mechanism, the transmitter probe 13 and the receiver probe 11 have the same rotation radius.

[0072] The transmitting probe 13 and the receiving probe 11 need to be connected to the ultrasonic flaw detector 3 via a wire harness. Since the ultrasonic flaw detector 3 is stationary, while the transmitting probe 13 and the receiving probe 11 will rotate along the axis of the drive shaft 19 during the scanning process, this will undoubtedly cause the wire harness to become entangled and may be torn.

[0073] Therefore, in this embodiment, the ultrasonic polar scanning device further includes a conductive slip ring 21. The conductive slip ring 21 includes a rotating part and a stationary part that are electrically connected. As those skilled in the art will understand, the rotating part and the stationary part can rotate relative to each other, but can maintain electrical connection to achieve signal transmission. The conductive slip ring 21 is a relatively mature product. Its specific structure will not be described in detail here.

[0074] The stationary part is fixed to the second connecting plate 22, and the rotating part is fitted and fixed to the drive shaft 19, and can rotate synchronously with the drive shaft 19. It should be noted that the rotating part can be a structure with a central hole, and the drive shaft 19 passes through the central hole and achieves synchronous rotation by means of circumferential limiting.

[0075] The transmitting probe 13 and the receiving probe 11 are connected to the ultrasonic flaw detector 3 via a conductive slip ring 21. That is, the wiring harnesses of the transmitting probe 13 and the receiving probe 11 are connected to the corresponding terminals on the rotating part, and the terminals on the stationary part are connected to the ultrasonic flaw detector 3 via the wiring harness, thereby realizing the communication connection between the transmitting probe 13 and the receiving probe 11 and the ultrasonic flaw detector 3.

[0076] To ensure that the robotic arm 1 can move the transmitting probe 13 and the receiving probe 11 to the position of the sample 12 under test, in this embodiment, a vision sensor 20 is also provided on the second connecting plate 22. The vision sensor 20 is used to identify the position of the sample 12 under test and can transmit the position information to the computer to facilitate the computer's control of the robotic arm 1's movements. Through the identification of the position of the sample 12 under test by the vision sensor 20, the robotic arm 1 can move the ultrasonic scanning body to the position of the sample 12 under test and keep the transmitting probe 13 and the receiving probe 11 in their initial positions before scanning, in preparation for subsequent scanning and detection.

[0077] In a specific embodiment of the present invention, the launch posture adjustment mechanism may include a first launch joint 17, a second launch joint 14, a launch link 16, and a launch probe seat 15.

[0078] The first launching joint 17 is fixed on the first connecting plate 5. The output shaft of the first launching joint 17 is connected to the second launching joint 14 through the launching link 16. The axis of the output shaft of the first launching joint 17 is parallel to the axis of the output shaft of the second launching joint 14. The launching probe seat 15 is connected to the output shaft of the second launching joint 14. The launching probe seat 15 is used to install the launching probe 13.

[0079] In this embodiment, the launch posture adjustment mechanism has two parallel launch joints (first launch joint 17 and second launch joint 14). The first launch joint 17 can enable the second launch joint 14 to have a large swing range through the launch link 16, while the second launch joint 14 can drive the launch probe 13 to swing within a relatively small range through the launch probe seat 15. With the cooperation of the two launch joints, the launch probe 13 can be controlled in the YZ plane (… Figure 4 Adjustment is achieved within the coordinate system shown (i.e., the plane perpendicular to the positioning plane of the sample 12 under test). Those skilled in the art will understand that the length of the transmitting link 16 can be selected according to the required swing range in the actual scenario; the longer the transmitting link 16, the greater the swing range it can provide for the transmitting probe 13.

[0080] In a specific embodiment of the present invention, the receiving posture adjustment mechanism includes a first receiving joint 7, a second receiving joint 9, a receiving link 8, and a receiving probe seat 10.

[0081] The first receiving joint 7 is fixed on the first connecting plate 5. The output shaft of the first receiving joint 7 is parallel to the axis of the output shaft of the second receiving joint 9. The output shaft of the first receiving joint 7 is connected to the second receiving joint 9 through the receiving connecting rod 8. The receiving probe seat 10 is connected to the output shaft of the second receiving joint 9. The receiving probe seat 10 is used to install the receiving probe 11.

[0082] In this embodiment, the receiving posture adjustment mechanism is provided with two parallel receiving joints (first receiving joint 7 and second receiving joint 9). The first receiving joint 7, through the receiving link 8, enables the second receiving joint 9 to have a large swing range, while the second receiving joint 9, through the receiving probe seat 10, drives the receiving probe 11 to swing within a relatively small range. With the cooperation of the two receiving joints, the receiving probe 11 can be controlled to swing in the YZ plane (…). Figure 4 Adjustment is achieved within the coordinate system shown (i.e., the plane perpendicular to the positioning plane of the sample 12 under test). Those skilled in the art will understand that the length of the receiving link 8 can be selected according to the required swing range in the actual scenario; the longer the receiving link 8, the greater the swing range it can provide for the receiving probe 11.

[0083] It should be noted that the number of rotary joints in the transmitting and receiving posture adjustment mechanisms can be selected according to actual needs and is not limited to the two schemes mentioned above.

[0084] Furthermore, the output shafts of both the first transmitting joint 17 and the first receiving joint 7 are perpendicular to the drive shaft 19. It should be noted that, depending on the application scenario, the output shafts of the first transmitting joint 17 and the first receiving joint 7 can also be designed to be at other angles to the drive shaft 19.

[0085] Since the robotic arm 1 needs to drive the launch posture adjustment mechanism and the receiver posture adjustment mechanism to rotate along the axis of the drive shaft 19, although the launch posture adjustment mechanism and the receiver posture adjustment mechanism are symmetrically arranged along the drive shaft 19, there is still a problem that the center of gravity deviates from the middle of the launch posture adjustment mechanism and the receiver posture adjustment mechanism during rotation, resulting in excessive centrifugal force.

[0086] Based on this, in this embodiment, the transmitting posture adjustment mechanism and the receiving posture adjustment mechanism are arranged symmetrically along the axis of the transmission shaft 19. Central symmetry means that after rotating 180° along the axis of the transmission shaft 19, the transmitting posture adjustment mechanism can coincide with the receiving posture adjustment mechanism (it should be noted that this coincidence refers to an ideal state, i.e., the transmitting and receiving posture adjustment mechanisms have the same structure, are adjusted to the same angle, and there are no manufacturing errors); correspondingly, after rotating 180° along the axis of the transmission shaft 19, the receiving posture adjustment mechanism can coincide with the transmitting posture adjustment mechanism.

[0087] From the same perspective, if the first transmitting joint 17 of the transmitting posture adjustment mechanism is located behind the transmitting link 16, the second transmitting joint 14 is located in front of the transmitting link 16; correspondingly, the first receiving joint 7 of the receiving posture adjustment mechanism is located in front of the receiving link 8, and the second receiving joint 9 is located behind the receiving link 8. This design allows the center of gravity of the ultrasonic polar scanning body to be closer to the axis of the drive shaft 19 during rotation.

[0088] In a specific embodiment of the present invention, the first launching joint 17 is fixed to the first connecting plate 5 by a launching joint bracket 18, and the launching joint bracket 18 is fixed to the first connecting plate 5 by fasteners. The launching joint bracket 18 can be an L-shaped plate, one surface of which is fixed to the first connecting plate 5 by fasteners, and the first launching joint 17 is fixed to the other surface of the launching joint bracket 18 by fasteners.

[0089] The launch joint bracket 18 and the launch link 16 can be made of titanium alloy, which is lightweight and has excellent rigidity and corrosion resistance. The first launch joint 17 and the second launch joint 14 have a fully sealed structure and can operate fully automatically underwater.

[0090] The first receiving joint 7 is fixed to the first connecting plate 5 via a receiving joint bracket 6, and the receiving joint bracket 6 is fixed to the first connecting plate 5 via fasteners. The receiving joint bracket 6 can be an L-shaped plate, with one surface fixed to the first connecting plate 5 via fasteners, and the first receiving joint 7 fixed to the other surface of the receiving joint bracket 6 via fasteners.

[0091] The receiving joint bracket 6 and the receiving link 8 can be made of titanium alloy, which is lightweight and has excellent rigidity and corrosion resistance. The first receiving joint 7 and the second receiving joint 9 have a fully sealed structure and can operate fully automatically underwater.

[0092] If the transmitter probe 13 and receiver probe 11 cannot be adjusted to a horizontally aligned state by the transmitter posture adjustment mechanism and the receiver posture adjustment mechanism, it indicates that the two plates of at least one of the transmitter joint bracket 18 and receiver joint bracket 6 are not perpendicular and there is an angular error. The influence of the above error can be avoided by adding a feeler gauge between the transmitter joint bracket 18 / receiver joint bracket 6 and the first connecting plate 5.

[0093] like Figure 1 As shown, the ultrasonic polar scanning device disclosed in this embodiment of the invention may further include a working platform 2 and a water tank 4. The robotic arm 1 is mounted on the working platform 2. Since the ultrasonic flaw detector 3 does not involve adjusting the orientation of the transmitting probe 13 and the receiving probe 11, it can be positioned below the working platform 2 to avoid occupying space on the working platform 2.

[0094] Water tank 4 is also set on the working platform 2, and the sample 12 to be tested is positioned inside water tank 4. Pure water can be poured into water tank 4. Pure water acts as a coupling agent for ultrasonic waves, enabling ultrasonic waves to propagate more stably, reducing adverse contact factors, and improving detection accuracy.

[0095] This invention also discloses an ultrasonic polar scanning detection method, which uses the ultrasonic polar scanning device disclosed in the above embodiments for detection, including a probe calibration step, a scanning start position adjustment step, an ultrasonic polar scanning step of the sample under test, and a polar scanning image imaging step.

[0096] The probe calibration steps include: adjusting the transmitting probe 13 and the receiving probe 11 to have the minimum and equal distance from the positioning plane (specifically, a flat sample 25 can be placed inside the water tank 4). This means adjusting the transmitting probe 13 and the receiving probe 11 to their lowest positions, ensuring that the transmitting and receiving posture adjustment mechanisms are fully extended and perpendicular to the positioning plane, thus minimizing the distance between the transmitting probe 13 and the receiving probe 11 and the positioning plane. If the distances between the transmitting probe 13 and the receiving probe 11 and the positioning plane are not equal, this can be corrected by rotating the corresponding joints of the robotic arm 1, for example, by micro-rotation of the corresponding joints (e.g., along...). Figure 4 The X-axis rotation can change the distance between the transmitting probe 13 and the receiving probe 11 and the positioning plane until they are equal.

[0097] Scanning start position adjustment steps: Place the sample 12 to be inspected on a positioning plane, such as in a water tank 4, using the pure water in the water tank 4 as a coupling agent. The robot arm 1 moves the transmitting probe 13 and the receiving probe 11 to the top of the detection point of the sample 12. The robot arm 1 can move the transmitting probe 13 and the receiving probe 11 to the top of the detection point of the sample 12 based on the position identified by the vision sensor 20.

[0098] Adjust the transmitting and receiving posture adjustment mechanisms, specifically the angles of the first receiving joint 7, the second receiving joint 9, the first transmitting joint 17, and the second transmitting joint 14, so that the incident angle of the transmitting probe 13 and the receiving angle of the receiving probe 11 are both set at the initial angle θ0, and the water distance is set to h. This initial angle θ0 is mainly related to the material and should be less than the first critical angle of the ultrasonic wave at the material cross-section of the water and the sample 12 under test. The specific angle can be set according to the acoustic characteristics of the material. The water distance h is related to the type of probe. If an ultrasonic focusing probe is selected for the transmitting probe 13 and the receiving probe 11, the water distance h should be the focal length of the probe. If an ultrasonic flat probe is selected, the water distance h can be set according to requirements.

[0099] Adjust the ultrasonic flaw detector 3 to a one-transmit-one-receive mode, i.e., the transmitting probe 13 emits ultrasonic waves, and the receiving probe 11 receives ultrasonic waves. Adjust the robotic arm 1 so that the plane containing the axes of the transmitting probe 13 and the receiving probe 11 is aligned with the set initial scanning plane 26 (for example, the initial scanning plane 26 can be set to...). Figure 2 The scanning begins at the YZ plane in the coordinate system. The robotic arm 1 drives the rotating ultrasonic scanning body to rotate one revolution from the initial scanning plane 26, thus completing the scanning of the sample 12.

[0100] The ultrasonic polar scanning procedure for the sample under test is as follows: Following the set incident angle and step angle Δθ, the incident angle and receiving angle are adjusted from the initial angle θ0 to the target angle θ0 using the transmitter and receiver attitude adjustment mechanisms. 目 The robot moves according to the set azimuth step angle Δφ, and controls the transmitting posture adjustment mechanism and the receiving posture adjustment mechanism to rotate through the end joint of the robot 1. It sequentially completes the scanning of all azimuth angles φ at each incident angle (e.g., one revolution), and at the same time completes the acquisition of the corresponding maximum echo amplitude data, and records the incident angle θ, azimuth angle φ and maximum echo amplitude data A.

[0101] Polar scanning image imaging steps: Plot the incident angle θ, azimuth angle φ, and maximum echo amplitude data A on a planar polar coordinate image. For example... Figure 6 As shown, taking DD6 single-crystal high-temperature alloy material as an example, the polar radius in the polar scan image is the incident angle θ, the polar angle is the azimuth angle φ, and the gray level represents the relative magnitude of the echo amplitude (after normalization). Figure 6 In the figure, 'a' represents the slowness curve for the same material; a comparison shows that... Figure 6 The polar scan image of b is related to the slowness curve, so the acoustic properties of the material can be evaluated through the polar scan image.

[0102] The probe calibration process includes a probe parallelism calibration step and a probe perpendicularity calibration step. Specifically, the probe parallelism calibration step involves adjusting the axes of the transmitting probe 13 and the receiving probe 11 to be on the same straight line; the probe perpendicularity calibration step involves adjusting the transmitting probe 13 and the receiving probe 11 to be at their minimum and equal distances from the positioning plane.

[0103] Specifically, such as Figure 3 As shown, the probe parallelism calibration steps include:

[0104] The transmitting probe 13 and the receiving probe 11 are replaced with transmitting pin 24 and receiving pin 23 respectively. The transmitting pin 24 and the receiving pin 23 have sharp ends, which makes it easier to observe whether they are aligned and overlapped. Compared with the transmitting probe 13 and the receiving probe 11, it is easier to judge the parallelism.

[0105] Adjust the transmitting and receiving posture adjustment mechanisms, specifically, adjust the angles of the first receiving joint 7, the second receiving joint 9, the first transmitting joint 17, and the second transmitting joint 14, so that the tips of the transmitting pin 24 and the receiving pin 23 coincide. If the tips of the transmitting pin 24 and the receiving pin 23 cannot coincide, it indicates that the two plates of at least one of the transmitting joint bracket 18 and the receiving joint bracket 6 are not perpendicular, resulting in an angular error. Adjust the mounting components until the tips of the transmitting pin 24 and the receiving pin 23 coincide. Specifically, the influence of the aforementioned error can be mitigated by adding a feeler gauge between the transmitting joint bracket 18 / receiving joint bracket 6 and the first connecting plate 5.

[0106] like Figure 4 and Figure 5 As shown, after the probe parallelism calibration step is completed, the perpendicularity calibration step is performed. Specifically, the perpendicularity calibration step includes:

[0107] Replace the transmitter pin 24 and receiver pin 23 with the transmitter probe 13 and receiver probe 11, respectively. Coarsely adjust the transmitter and receiver posture adjustment mechanisms, that is, adjust the angles of the first receiver joint 7, the second receiver joint 9, the first transmitter joint 17, and the second transmitter joint 14 so that the transmitter and receiver posture adjustment mechanisms are in a straight downward state (i.e., the transmitter link 16 and the transmitter probe seat 15 are in a straight line, and the receiver link 8 and the receiver probe seat 10 are in a straight line). That is, the transmitter and receiver posture adjustment mechanisms are approximately perpendicular to the flat sample 25. Due to the adjustment accuracy of the transmitter and receiver posture adjustment mechanisms, they cannot be strictly perpendicular and need to be corrected in subsequent steps.

[0108] Set the ultrasonic flaw detector 3 to the ultrasonic signal self-transmission and self-reception mode, that is, both the transmitting end pin 24 and the receiving end pin 23 can transmit and receive ultrasonic waves. It should be noted that this step can be performed before or after the above-mentioned approximately vertical adjustment step.

[0109] Fine-tune the transmitter and receiver attitude adjustment mechanisms to ensure that the distance d between the transmitter probe 13 and the receiver probe 11 and the flat plate sample 25 on the positioning plane is adjusted. 发射 and d 接收 To be the minimum value, that is, with d 发射 and d 接收 Based on the principle of minimizing the value, adjust the transmitting and receiving attitude adjustment mechanisms, d 发射 d represents the distance between the transmitting probe 13 and the flat sample 25. 接收 To adjust the distance between the receiving probe 11 and the flat sample 25, the distance can be changed by finely adjusting the transmitting and receiving attitude adjustment mechanisms. 发射 and d 接收Choose the smallest d from the values. 发射 and d 接收 Then determine d 发射 and d 接收 The size of d 发射 and d 接收 If they are not equal, then robotic arm 1 needs to be adjusted so that d 发射 and d 接收 Equal, that is, the robot arm 1 can change d 发射 and d 接收 Numerical joints (such as the control of the manipulator 1 along the joints) Figure 4 The coordinate system shown rotates along the X-axis, causing one value to increase while the other decreases, or both values ​​to increase or decrease simultaneously at different rates. This gradually changes the difference between the two values ​​until they are equal. It should be noted that this equality doesn't necessarily mean mathematical identicalness; as long as the difference is within a set range, it can be understood as d. 发射 and d 接收 Same. By adjusting the robotic arm to move d 发射 and d 接收 After adjusting to be equal, return to the previous step and fine-tune the transmitter and receiver attitude adjustment mechanisms to make the distance d between the transmitter probe 13 and the receiver probe 11 and the flat plate sample 25 on the positioning plane equal. 发射 and d 接收 Find the minimum value, and then determine d. 发射 and d 接收 The size up to d 发射 and d 接收 The minimum value must be equal to the minimum value; otherwise, the robot arm needs to be adjusted to make d 发射 =d 接收 "With d" 发射 and d 接收 "Based on the principle of minimizing the value, adjust the transmitting and receiving attitude adjustment mechanisms." "Judgment d..." 发射 and d 接收 Loop through "whether they are equal";

[0110] Adjust robotic arm 1, for example, adjust the edge of robotic arm 1. Figure 4 The joint motion rotating along the Y-axis of the coordinate system shown ensures that the received echo amplitudes of both the transmitting probe 13 and the receiving probe 11 are at their highest. This completes the perpendicularity calibration of the transmitting probe 13 and the receiving probe 11 with the flat plate sample 25. After calibration, the transmitting probe 13 and the receiving probe 11 are equidistant from and perpendicular to the flat plate sample 25.

[0111] The ultrasonic pole scanning detection method disclosed in this invention, based on the automatic control of the robotic arm 1, vision sensor 20, transmitting posture adjustment mechanism and receiving posture adjustment mechanism, has formulated a calibration process for the entire pole scanning device according to the characteristics of pole scanning technology. This avoids the risks and hidden dangers such as large posture adjustment errors in the processing, assembly and motion control process, and can achieve fully automatic and high-precision pole scanning detection, with the advantage of high intelligence.

[0112] As indicated in this application and claims, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise, the words "a," "an," "a," and / or "the" are not specifically singular and may include the plural. Generally, the terms "comprising" and "including" only indicate the inclusion of expressly identified steps and elements, which do not constitute an exclusive list, and the method or apparatus may also include other steps or elements. An element defined by the phrase "comprising an..." does not exclude the presence of other identical elements in the process, method, product, or apparatus that includes the element.

[0113] In the description of this application, unless otherwise expressly defined, terms such as "setup," "installation," and "connection" should be interpreted broadly, and those skilled in the art can reasonably determine the specific meaning of the above terms in this application in conjunction with the specific content of the technical solution.

[0114] The various embodiments in this specification are described in a progressive manner, with each embodiment focusing on the differences from other embodiments. The same or similar parts between the various embodiments can be referred to each other.

[0115] This article uses specific examples to illustrate the principles and implementation methods of the present invention. The descriptions of the above embodiments are only for the purpose of helping to understand the method and core ideas of the present invention. It should be noted that those skilled in the art can make several improvements and modifications to the present invention without departing from the principles of the present invention, and these improvements and modifications also fall within the protection scope of the claims of the present invention.

Claims

1. An ultrasonic polar scanning device, characterized in that, It includes a robotic arm (1), an ultrasonic flaw detector (3), and an ultrasonic polar scanning body, wherein the ultrasonic polar scanning body includes: The transmitting probe (13) and the receiving probe (11) are both communicatively connected to the ultrasonic flaw detector (3); The transmitter posture adjustment mechanism and the receiver posture adjustment mechanism are used to adjust the distance and angle between the transmitter probe (13) and the positioning plane of the sample under test (12), and the receiver posture adjustment mechanism is used to adjust the distance and angle between the receiver probe (11) and the positioning plane. The mounting assembly is used to connect both the transmitting posture adjustment mechanism and the receiving posture adjustment mechanism to the end joint of the manipulator (1). The end joint of the manipulator (1) can drive the transmitting posture adjustment mechanism and the receiving posture adjustment mechanism to rotate along an axis perpendicular to the positioning plane. The installation components include: The first connecting plate (5) is fixed to both the transmitting posture adjustment mechanism and the receiving posture adjustment mechanism; The second connecting plate (22) is connected to the end housing of the robotic arm (1); The drive shaft (19) is rotatably supported on the second connecting plate (22), and its first end is perpendicular to and fixedly connected to the first connecting plate (5), and its second end is connected to the end joint of the robot (1). The installation positions of the transmitting posture adjustment mechanism and the receiving posture adjustment mechanism are symmetrically arranged along the axis of the drive shaft (19). The launch posture adjustment mechanism includes a first launch joint (17), a second launch joint (14), a launch link (16), and a launch probe seat (15). The first launch joint (17) is fixed on the first connecting plate (5). The output shaft of the first transmitting joint (17) is parallel to the axis of the output shaft of the second transmitting joint (14), and the output shaft of the first transmitting joint (17) is connected to the second transmitting joint (14) through the transmitting link (16). The transmitting probe seat (15) is connected to the output shaft of the second transmitting joint (14), and the transmitting probe seat (15) is used to install the transmitting probe (13). The receiving posture adjustment mechanism includes a first receiving joint (7), a second receiving joint (9), a receiving link (8), and a receiving probe seat (10). The first receiving joint (7) is fixed on the first connecting plate (5). The output shaft of the first receiving joint (7) is parallel to the axis of the output shaft of the second receiving joint (9), and the output shaft of the first receiving joint (7) is connected to the second receiving joint (9) through the receiving link (8). The receiving probe seat (10) is connected to the output shaft of the second receiving joint (9), and the receiving probe seat (10) is used to install the receiving probe (11). The output shaft of the first transmitting joint (17) and the output shaft of the first receiving joint (7) are both perpendicular to the transmission shaft (19); The transmitting posture adjustment mechanism and the receiving posture adjustment mechanism are arranged symmetrically along the axis of the transmission shaft (19).

2. The ultrasonic polar scanning device as described in claim 1, characterized in that, It also includes a conductive slip ring (21), which includes an electrically connected rotating part and a stationary part. The stationary part is fixed on the second connecting plate (22), and the rotating part is fitted and fixed on the transmission shaft (19). The transmitting probe (13) and the receiving probe (11) are connected to the ultrasonic flaw detector (3) via the conductive slip ring (21).

3. The ultrasonic polar scanning device as described in claim 1, characterized in that, A vision sensor (20) is provided on the second connecting plate (22), which is used to identify the position of the sample (12) being inspected.

4. The ultrasonic polar scanning device as described in claim 1, characterized in that, The first launching joint (17) is fixed to the first connecting plate (5) by launching joint bracket (18), and the launching joint bracket (18) is fixed to the first connecting plate (5) by fasteners. The first receiving joint (7) is fixed to the first connecting plate (5) by the receiving joint bracket (6), and the receiving joint bracket (6) is fixed to the first connecting plate (5) by fasteners.

5. The ultrasonic polar scanning device according to any one of claims 1-4, characterized in that, The robotic arm (1) is a multi-axis robotic arm.

6. The ultrasonic polar scanning device according to any one of claims 1-4, characterized in that, Also includes: The work platform (2) is on which the robotic arm (1) is mounted; The water tank (4) is in which the sample (12) to be tested is positioned.

7. An ultrasonic polar scanning detection method, characterized in that, The ultrasonic polar scanning device according to any one of claims 1-6 includes: The probe calibration step involves adjusting the transmitting probe (13) and the receiving probe (11) to have the minimum and equal distance from the positioning plane; In the scanning start position adjustment step, the sample to be tested (12) is placed on the positioning plane. The robot (1) moves the transmitting probe (13) and the receiving probe (11) to the top of the detection point of the sample to be tested (12). The transmitting posture adjustment mechanism and the receiving posture adjustment mechanism are adjusted so that the incident angle of the transmitting probe (13) and the receiving angle of the receiving probe (11) are both the set starting angle θ0 and the water distance is the set h. The ultrasonic flaw detector (3) is adjusted to the signal transmission and reception mode. The robot (1) is adjusted so that the plane where the axis of the transmitting probe (13) and the receiving probe (11) are located coincides with the set initial scanning plane. The ultrasonic scanning procedure for the sample under test involves adjusting the incident angle and receiving angle from the initial angle θ0 to the target angle θ0 using the transmitter and receiver attitude adjustment mechanisms, according to the set incident angle and step angle Δθ. 目 The stepping motion is controlled by the end joint of the manipulator (1) according to the set azimuth step angle Δφ. The transmitting posture adjustment mechanism and the receiving posture adjustment mechanism are rotated to complete the scanning of all azimuth angles φ of each incident angle in sequence, and at the same time, the corresponding maximum echo amplitude data is collected and the incident angle θ, azimuth angle φ and maximum echo amplitude data A are recorded. In the polar scanning image imaging step, the incident angle θ, azimuth angle φ, and maximum echo amplitude data A are plotted on a planar polar coordinate image.

8. The ultrasonic polar scanning detection method as described in claim 7, characterized in that, The probe calibration steps include a probe parallelism calibration step and a probe perpendicularity calibration step; The probe parallelism calibration step involves adjusting the axes of the transmitting probe (13) and the receiving probe (11) to be on the same straight line; The probe verticality calibration step involves adjusting the transmitting probe (13) and the receiving probe (11) to have the minimum and equal distance from the positioning plane.

9. The ultrasonic polar scanning detection method as described in claim 8, characterized in that, The probe parallelism calibration steps include: Replace the transmitting probe (13) and the receiving probe (11) with the transmitting pin (24) and the receiving pin (23) respectively. Adjust the transmitter posture adjustment mechanism and the receiver posture adjustment mechanism so that the tips of the transmitter pin (24) and the receiver pin (23) coincide. If the tips of the transmitter pin (24) and the receiver pin (23) cannot coincide, adjust the mounting components until the tips of the transmitter pin (24) and the receiver pin (23) coincide.

10. The ultrasonic polar scanning detection method as described in claim 9, characterized in that, The probe verticality calibration steps include: Replace the transmitter pin (24) and receiver pin (23) with the transmitter probe (13) and receiver probe (11) respectively, and coarsely adjust the transmitter posture adjustment mechanism and the receiver posture adjustment mechanism so that the transmitter posture adjustment mechanism and the receiver posture adjustment mechanism are in a straight downward position. Set the ultrasonic flaw detector (3) to the ultrasonic signal self-transmission and self-reception mode; Fine-tune the transmitter and receiver attitude adjustment mechanisms to adjust the distance d between the transmitter probe (13) and receiver probe (11) and the flat plate sample (25) on the positioning plane. 发射 and d 接收 To be the minimum value, d 发射 d is the distance between the transmitting probe (13) and the flat sample (25). 接收 To determine the distance between the receiving probe (11) and the flat sample (25), if d 发射 and d 接收 If they are not equal, adjust the robotic arm (1) so that d 发射 and d 接收 If they are equal, then return to the steps of fine-tuning the transmitter pose adjustment mechanism and the receiver pose adjustment mechanism; Adjust the robotic arm (1) so that the received echo amplitude of both the transmitting probe (13) and the receiving probe (11) is at its highest.

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