Ultrasonic inspection equipment

Abstract

To enable inspection of defects in an analyte at high accuracy and in a short time, even though an area of the analyte to be inspected with an ultrasonic inspection device is large.SOLUTION: An ultrasonic inspection device comprises: a transmission unit having a transmission surface for transmitting an ultrasonic beam toward an analyte; and a plurality of reception units having a reception surface for receiving the ultrasonic beam transmitted through the analyte, and arranged in an array form. An area of the reception surface is (10×λ)2 or smaller where λ denotes a wavelength of the ultrasonic beam.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to an ultrasonic inspection device. [Background technology]

[0002] Conventionally, there has been an ultrasonic inspection device that has a transmitting unit that transmits ultrasonic waves to an object to be inspected and a receiving unit that receives ultrasonic waves that have passed through the object to detect defects inside the object by analyzing the reception status of the ultrasonic waves at the receiving unit. Patent Document 1 discloses an ultrasonic inspection device (ultrasonic flaw detector) that detects defects inside the object with high accuracy by making the receiving surface of the receiving unit smaller than the transmitting surface of the transmitting unit. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2020-176916 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] However, with conventional ultrasonic inspection devices, there is a problem in that it takes a long time to inspect a wide area of ​​an object for defects with high accuracy (high resolution).

[0005] The present invention has been made in consideration of the above-mentioned circumstances, and aims to provide an ultrasonic inspection device that can inspect defects in an object to be inspected with high accuracy and in a shorter time, even if the area of ​​the object to be inspected is large. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] A first aspect of the present invention is covered a transmitting unit having a transmitting surface for transmitting an ultrasonic beam toward a subject; Received a receiving surface for receiving the signal; According to a given patterna plurality of arranged receiving units; The receiving unit includes a substrate that outputs a reception signal corresponding to the ultrasonic beam received, and a resin is interposed between the receiving unit and the substrate, or the receiving unit and the substrate are in direct contact with each other, so that the plurality of receiving units are integrally provided on the substrate. It is an ultrasound testing device. [Effects of the Invention]

[0007] According to the present invention, even if the area of ​​the test object to be inspected by the ultrasonic inspection device is large, it is possible to inspect the test object for defects with high accuracy and in a shorter time. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0008] [Figure 1] 1 is a cross-sectional view schematically showing a main part of an ultrasonic inspection device according to an embodiment. [Figure 2] FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line II-II in FIG. [Figure 3] FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view showing a first example of a receiving unit of an ultrasonic inspection device according to an embodiment. [Figure 4] FIG. 10 is a cross-sectional view showing a second example of the receiving unit of the ultrasonic inspection device according to the embodiment. [Figure 5] FIG. 2 is a plan view showing a first example of a receiving surface of a receiving unit of an ultrasonic inspection device according to an embodiment. [Figure 6] FIG. 10 is a plan view showing a second example of the receiving surface of the receiving unit of the ultrasonic inspection device according to the embodiment. [Figure 7] FIG. 10 is a plan view showing a third example of the receiving surface of the receiving unit of the ultrasonic inspection device according to the embodiment. [Figure 8] 1 is a cross-sectional view showing the positional relationship between an end of a subject, a transmitter, and a receiver in an ultrasonic inspection device according to one embodiment. [Figure 9] 1 is a functional block diagram of an ultrasonic inspection device according to an embodiment. [Figure 10] 1 is a diagram showing how ultrasonic waves transmitted from a transmitting unit of an ultrasonic inspection device according to an embodiment are diffracted at the periphery of a defect in an object to be inspected. FIG. [Figure 11] FIG. 10 is a perspective view schematically showing a main part of an ultrasonic inspection device according to another embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0009] Hereinafter, one embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 , an ultrasonic inspection device 1 of this embodiment inspects a test object 100 for defects using ultrasonic waves. The test object 100 in this embodiment is a packaging container in which a storage space 102 is formed inside by overlapping and joining the edges of container members 101. In the illustrated example, the container members 101 are sheet members, but the container members 101 may be any member, such as a cup-shaped member. The portion of the test object 100, which is a packaging container, that is subject to defect inspection is a joint portion 103 where the container members 101 are overlapped and joined. In the following description, this joint portion 103 may also be referred to as the test object 100. As illustrated in FIG. 10 , a defect 104 in the test object 100 of this embodiment is a peeled portion of the container members 101 at the joint portion 103.

[0010] In the drawings, the Z-axis direction indicates the direction in which the container members 101 overlap at the joint portion 103. The Y-axis direction indicates the direction in which the joint portion 103 moves away from the non-joined portion 105 of the container members 101 that is not joined and forms the storage space 102. The X-axis direction indicates the longitudinal direction of the joint portion 103, which is perpendicular to the Z-axis direction and the Y-axis direction.

[0011] As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the ultrasonic inspection device 1 includes a transmitting section 10 and a receiving unit 20. The transmitting unit 10 has a transmitting surface 10a that transmits an ultrasonic beam W toward the subject 100. In this embodiment, the transmitting unit 10 transmits the ultrasonic beam W toward the joint 103 of the packaging container, which is the subject 100. The ultrasonic beam W transmitted from the transmitting unit 10 passes through the joint 103 generally in the direction in which the container members 101 overlap. The direction in which the ultrasonic beam W passes through the joint 103 is not limited to strictly the direction in which the container members 101 overlap (Z-axis direction), but may be a direction inclined relative to the direction in which the container members 101 overlap.

[0012] In this embodiment, the transmitting surface 10a of the transmitter 10 is formed in an arc shape recessed toward the positive Z-axis direction when viewed from the Y-axis direction, as shown in Fig. 2. Furthermore, the transmitting surface 10a extends linearly in the Y-axis direction, as shown in Fig. 1. Therefore, the shape of the transmitting surface 10a when viewed from the Y-axis direction does not change regardless of the position in the Y-axis direction. In other words, the shape of the transmitting surface 10a in this embodiment is similar to a part of the circumferential direction of the inner circumferential surface of a cylinder. With the transmitting surface 10a formed as described above, the ultrasonic beam W transmitted from the transmitting surface 10a of the transmitter 10 converges (focuses) in the X-axis direction as it moves in the negative Z-axis direction, but does not converge in the Y-axis direction, as shown in Figures 1 and 2. As a result, the ultrasonic beam W becomes linear at the converged position, with a small length in the X-axis direction and a large length in the Y-axis direction.

[0013] The receiving unit 20 has a plurality of receiving sections 21. Each receiving section 21 has a receiving surface 21a that receives the ultrasonic beam W that has passed through the subject 100. The area of ​​the receiving surface 21a is limited and is expressed using the wavelength of the ultrasonic beam W. The area of ​​the receiving surface 21a is, for example, (10×λ) where λ is the wavelength of the ultrasonic beam W. 2 The following is the result. The receiving surface 21a of the receiving unit 21 may be formed in a square shape, for example, as shown in Fig. 5. When the area of ​​the receiving surface 21a is (10 × λ) 2 In this case, the length l1 of one side of the receiving surface 21a is preferably (10×λ) or less. The length of the diagonal of the square receiving surface 21a may be (10×λ) or less.

[0014] The receiving surface 21a of the receiving unit 21 may be formed in a rectangular shape, for example, as shown in Fig. 6. If the area of ​​the receiving surface 21a is (10 × λ) 2 In this case, the length l2 of the short side of the receiving surface 21a is preferably (10×λ) or less. Note that the length of the long side or diagonal of the rectangular receiving surface 21a may be (10×λ) or less. The receiving surface 21a of the receiving unit 21 may be formed in a circular shape, for example, as shown in Fig. 7. When the area of ​​the receiving surface 21a is (10 × λ) 2If this is the case, the diameter l3 of the receiving surface 21a should be (10×λ) or less.

[0015] The area of ​​the receiving surface 21a is, for example, (6×λ) 2 In this case, it is preferable that the length l1 of one side of the square receiving surface 21a, the length l2 of the short side of the rectangular receiving surface 21a, and the diameter l3 of the circular receiving surface 21a are each equal to or less than (6×λ). The area of ​​the receiving surface 21a is, for example, (4×λ) 2 In this case, it is preferable that the length l1 of one side of the square receiving surface 21a, the length l2 of the short side of the rectangular receiving surface 21a, and the diameter l3 of the circular receiving surface 21a are each equal to or less than (4×λ). Furthermore, the area of ​​the receiving surface 21a is, for example, (2×λ) 2 In this case, it is preferable that the length l1 of one side of the square receiving surface 21a, the length l2 of the short side of the rectangular receiving surface 21a, and the diameter l3 of the circular receiving surface 21a are each equal to or less than (2×λ).

[0016] 1 and 2, the multiple receiving units 21 are arranged in an array corresponding to the converged linear ultrasonic beam W. That is, the multiple receiving units 21 are lined up in a row in the Y-axis direction. The multiple receiving units 21 do not necessarily have to be arranged exactly at the position where the ultrasonic beam W converges, and may be arranged, for example, at a position shifted in a direction away from the transmitting unit 10 (negative direction of the Z-axis) from the position where the ultrasonic beam W converges. However, it is more preferable that the multiple receiving units 21 be arranged as close as possible to the position where the ultrasonic beam W converges.

[0017] In this embodiment, the multiple receiving sections 21 are arranged at intervals from one another, as shown in FIGS. 3 and 4. A layer or member having acoustic properties different from those of the receiving sections 21 may be interposed between adjacent receiving sections 21. The acoustic properties include acoustic impedance. In the receiving unit 20 illustrated in FIGS. 3 and 4, a resin 22 is interposed between adjacent receiving sections 21. Note that, for example, an air layer or paper may be interposed between adjacent receiving sections 21. In this embodiment, the resin 22 fixes the plurality of receiving units 21 together.

[0018] The receiving unit 20 of this embodiment further includes a FET substrate 23. The FET substrate 23 outputs a reception signal corresponding to the ultrasonic beam W received by the receiving section 21 to the outside. The plurality of receiving sections 21 are integrally provided on the FET substrate 23. In FIGS. 3 and 4, the resin 22 is interposed between the receiving section 21 and the FET substrate 23, but the receiving section 21 and the FET substrate 23 may be in direct contact with each other, for example.

[0019] The receiving unit 20 of this embodiment further includes a partition wall 24. The partition wall 24 extends in a direction away from the receiving surface 21a of the receiving section 21 (in the positive direction of the Z axis) and divides the space above the multiple receiving surfaces 21a into individual receiving surfaces 21a. The partition wall 24 forms multiple cylindrical bodies 25 extending in the positive direction of the Z axis from the periphery of each receiving surface 21a.

[0020] 4, the receiving unit 20 may further include a lid 26 that covers the opening at the tip of the partition wall 24 (cylindrical body 25) in the extension direction. The lid 26 is formed with a communication hole 27 that connects the inside and outside of each cylindrical body 25. When viewed from the Z-axis direction, the size of the communication hole 27 is smaller than the space inside the cylindrical body 25.

[0021] 1 and 2, the subject 100 is placed between the transmitting section 10 and the receiving unit 20 (particularly the receiving section 21). Specifically, a joint 103 of a packaging container, which is the subject 100, is placed at a position where the ultrasonic beam W transmitted from the transmitting section 10 converges. The joint 103 of the packaging container is also placed so that its width direction (Y-axis direction) faces the longitudinal direction of the converged linear ultrasonic beam W. As a result, the ultrasonic beam W transmitted from the transmitting section 10 passes through the joint 103, which is the subject 100, and is then received by the receiving section 21. In the following description, the tip of the joint portion 103 in the extension direction (negative Y-axis direction) relative to the non-joint portion 105 will be referred to as the end 103A of the joint portion 103 (subject 100).

[0022] 8, in this embodiment, the transmitter 10 and the receiver 21 are located inside (on the positive Y-axis side) the end 103A of the joint 103 (subject 100) in an orthogonal direction (Y-axis direction) perpendicular to the transmission direction (mainly the negative Z-axis direction) of the ultrasonic beam W. That is, the transmitter 10 and the receiver 21 are located so as not to protrude further in the negative Y-axis direction than the end 103A of the joint 103. At least one of the distance d1 between the end 103A of the joint 103 and the transmitter 10 in the Y-axis direction and the distance d2 between the end 103A of the joint 103 and the receiver 21 is equal to or greater than the wavelength of the ultrasonic beam W.

[0023] In the above-described configuration, the transmitting unit 10 and the receiving unit 21 may be disposed so as to extend outward (toward the negative Y-axis direction) from the end 103A of the joint 103 (subject 100). In this case, the ultrasonic beam W transmitted or received by the portion of the transmitting unit 10 or the receiving unit 21 extending outward from the end 103A can be ignored in signal processing. As a result, the state in which the transmitting unit 10 or the receiving unit 21 extends outward from the end 103A of the joint 103 can be regarded as being substantially equivalent to the state in which the transmitting unit 10 and the receiving unit 21 are positioned inward (toward the positive Y-axis direction) from the end 103A of the joint 103.

[0024] Furthermore, in the above-described configuration, the direction in which the bonded portion 103 extends relative to the non-bonded portion 105 does not have to be strictly perpendicular to the transmission direction of the ultrasonic beam W. For this reason, the transmitting unit 10 and the receiving unit 21 may be located inside the end 103A of the bonded portion 103 (subject 100) in a direction intersecting the transmission direction of the ultrasonic beam W (mainly the negative direction of the Z axis), for example.

[0025] 9, the ultrasonic inspection device 1 of this embodiment further includes a storage unit 30 and a determination unit 40. The ultrasonic inspection device 1 of this embodiment also includes an output unit 50. The storage unit 30 stores, as a reference waveform, the waveform of the ultrasonic beam W when it passes through a reference object having no defect 104 (see FIG. 10 ) in the object 100 and is received by the receiving unit 21. The reference waveform may be the waveform of the ultrasonic beam W actually received by the receiving unit 21, or may be a waveform that imitates the waveform of the ultrasonic beam W when it is received by the receiving unit 21.

[0026] The judgment unit 40 judges whether or not there is a defect 104 in the object to be inspected 100 based on the phase of the waveform to be inspected, which is the waveform of the ultrasonic beam W that has passed through the object to be inspected (i.e., the object to be inspected 100) and received by the receiving unit 21, and the phase of the reference waveform stored in the memory unit 30. The output unit 50 outputs the result of the determination made by the determination unit 40 to a display device or the like.

[0027] An example of a method by which the determining unit 40 determines whether or not there is a defect 104 will be described below. First, the determination unit 40 calculates a correlation value between the phase of the reference waveform stored in the storage unit 30 and the phase of the waveform under inspection. The correlation value is a value obtained by integrating the product of the reference waveform and the waveform under inspection. The determination unit 40 then determines whether or not the inspection target object 100 has a defect 104 based on the correlation value. Specifically, if the correlation value is high, the determination unit 40 determines that the inspection target object 100 does not have a defect 104, and if the correlation value is low, the determination unit 40 determines that the inspection target object 100 has a defect 104.

[0028] As described above, in the ultrasonic inspection device 1 of this embodiment, the area of ​​the receiving surface 21a of each receiving unit 21 that receives the ultrasonic beam W transmitted from the transmitting unit 10 is (10×λ) 2 or less, and the area of ​​the receiving surface 21a is sufficiently small. This allows the defect 104 in the inspection object 100 to be detected with high accuracy. Furthermore, by arranging a plurality of receiving units 21 with small receiving surfaces 21a in an array, the total area of ​​the receiving surfaces 21a can be increased. This makes it possible to inspect the defects 104 in the inspected object 100 with high accuracy and in a short time, even if the area of ​​the inspected object 100 to be inspected is large.

[0029] In addition, in the ultrasonic inspection device 1 of this embodiment, the length l1 of one side of the receiving surface 21a formed in a square shape, or the length l3 of the diameter of the receiving surface 21a formed in a circular shape, is set to (2×λ) or less, so that the area of ​​the receiving surface 21a can be set to (2×λ) 2 It can be as follows: In addition, by making the length l2 of the short side of the rectangular receiving surface 21a smaller than (10×λ), the area of ​​the receiving surface 21a can be reduced to (10×λ). 2 To satisfy the following, it is permissible for the length of the long side of the rectangular receiving surface 21a to exceed (10×λ).

[0030] Furthermore, in the ultrasonic inspection device 1 of this embodiment, the multiple receiving units 21 are arranged at intervals from one another. This makes it possible to prevent the sound pressure of the ultrasonic beam W received at a given receiving unit 21 from being transmitted to another adjacent receiving unit 21. In other words, it is possible to acoustically insulate the adjacent receiving units 21. Therefore, it is possible to reduce physical crosstalk between the adjacent receiving units 21.

[0031] Furthermore, in the ultrasonic inspection device 1 of this embodiment, a resin 22 having acoustic properties different from those of the receiving units 21 is interposed between adjacent receiving units 21. Therefore, even if the distance between adjacent receiving units 21 is reduced, physical crosstalk between the adjacent receiving units 21 can be more effectively reduced. This makes it possible to inspect defects 104 in the test object 100 with higher accuracy. Furthermore, when a resin 22 is interposed between the receiving units 21, the resin 22 can also be used to fix the multiple receiving units 21 together. Even if an air layer is present between adjacent receiving sections 21, the air layer and the receiving sections 21 have different acoustic characteristics, so the same effect as above can be achieved.

[0032] Furthermore, in the ultrasonic inspection device 1 of this embodiment, the determination unit 40 calculates a correlation value between the phase of the reference waveform stored in the storage unit 30 and the phase of the waveform under inspection, and determines the presence or absence of a defect 104 in the inspection target object 100 based on the correlation value. Therefore, even if the size of the defect 104 in the inspection target object 100 is equal to or smaller than the size of the receiving unit 21 (receiving surface 21a), the defect 104 can be detected. This point will be described below.

[0033] The determination unit 40 can determine whether the phase of the waveform to be inspected matches the phase of the reference waveform by calculating the correlation value. If the phase of the waveform to be inspected matches the phase of the reference waveform, the determination unit 40 can determine that the object to be inspected 100 does not have a defect 104. On the other hand, if the phase of the reference waveform and the phase of the waveform to be inspected are misaligned, as shown in FIG. 10, the ultrasonic beam W2 is diffracted at the periphery of a small defect 104 before reaching the receiving surface 21a of the receiving unit 21. Therefore, the phase of the ultrasonic beam W2 diffracted by the defect 104 is shifted from the phase of the ultrasonic beam W1 that is not diffracted. This allows the determination unit 40 to determine that the object to be inspected 100 has a defect 104. From the above, the ultrasonic inspection device 1 of this embodiment can detect defects 104 that are equal to or smaller in size than the receiving unit 21. In other words, the performance of detecting defects 104 can be improved.

[0034] Furthermore, in the ultrasonic inspection device 1 of this embodiment, at least one of the transmitting unit 10 and the receiving unit 21 is located inward from the end 103A of the subject 100 by at least the wavelength of the ultrasonic beam W in an intersecting direction (e.g., Y-axis direction) intersecting the transmission direction (Z-axis direction) of the ultrasonic beam W. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 8, the ultrasonic beam W3 that arrives at the receiving unit 21 from the transmitting unit 10 without passing through the subject 100 becomes a diffracted wave that goes around the end 103A of the subject 100. The path of this diffracted wave is longer than the path of the ultrasonic beam W1 (transmitted wave) that arrives at the receiving unit 21 after passing through the subject 100 from the transmitting unit 10. Therefore, the time from when the ultrasonic beams W1 and W3 are transmitted at a predetermined time until the diffracted wave (ultrasonic beam W3) arrives at the receiving unit 21 is longer than the time until the transmitted wave (ultrasonic beam W1) arrives at the receiving unit 21. This allows a time window to be set at a time earlier than the time at which the diffracted wave (ultrasonic beam W3) of the ultrasonic beam W that goes around the end 103A of the specimen 100 is received by the receiving unit 21, and the presence or absence of a defect 104 in the specimen 100 can be inspected based only on the transmitted wave (ultrasonic beam W1) that passes through the specimen 100 and is received by the receiving unit 21 during the time window.

[0035] Furthermore, in the ultrasonic inspection device 1 of this embodiment, a plurality of receiving units 21 are integrally provided on the FET substrate 23, so that a decrease in sensitivity in the ultrasonic inspection device 1 can be suppressed. To explain this point, as the size of the receiving surface 21a of the receiving unit 21 decreases, the intensity (amplitude) of the ultrasonic beam W received by the receiving unit 21 decreases. Therefore, if the receiving unit 21 and the FET substrate 23 are formed separately and connected to each other by electrical wiring, sensitivity decreases due to electrical loss. In contrast, by providing the receiving unit 21 integrally with the FET substrate 23, the electrical wiring can be eliminated or shortened. This makes it possible to prevent sensitivity from decreasing due to electrical loss.

[0036] The ultrasonic inspection device 1 of this embodiment also includes partition walls 24 that partition the space above the multiple receiving surfaces 21a into individual receiving surfaces 21a. The partition walls 24 form cylindrical bodies 25 that extend in a direction away from each receiving surface 21a. This makes it possible to further reduce physical crosstalk between adjacent receiving units 21 (receiving surfaces 21a). Furthermore, by utilizing the cylindrical bodies 25 formed by the partition walls 24 as resonance tubes, it is possible to improve the sensitivity of the ultrasonic beam W received by the receiving units 21 (receiving surfaces 21a).

[0037] Furthermore, the ultrasonic inspection device 1 of this embodiment may include a lid 26 that covers an opening at the tip of the partition wall 24 (cylindrical body 25) in the extension direction (positive direction of the Z axis), as illustrated in FIG. 4 . A communication hole 27 that connects the inside and outside of the cylindrical body 25 is formed in the lid 26. The size of the communication hole 27 as viewed from the Z axis direction is smaller than the size of the inside of the cylindrical body 25. When the lid 26 is provided at the tip of the partition wall 24, the cylindrical body 25 and the lid 26 can be configured as a Helmholtz resonator. That is, by changing the area of ​​the communication hole 27, the resonant frequency of the cylindrical body 25 can be adjusted, and the sensitivity of the ultrasonic waves received by the receiving unit 21 (receiving surface 21 a) can be appropriately adjusted.

[0038] Although the present invention has been described in detail above, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and various modifications can be made without departing from the spirit of the present invention.

[0039] In the present invention, the determination unit 40 may determine the presence or absence of a defect 104 using a method different from that of the above embodiment. For example, the determination unit 40 may determine that the inspection target object 100 does not have a defect 104 when the phase of the inspection target waveform does not include a phase different from the phase of the reference waveform (a waveform when there is no defect 104) stored in the storage unit 30, and may determine that the inspection target object 100 has a defect 104 when the phase of the inspection target waveform includes a phase different from the phase of the reference waveform. When the determining unit 40 determines the presence or absence of the defect 104 as described above, even if the size of the defect 104 in the inspection target object 100 is equal to or smaller than the size of the receiving unit 21 (receiving surface 21a), the defect 104 can be detected. This point will be described below.

[0040] The phase of the waveform to be inspected including a phase (specific phase) different from the phase of the reference waveform means that the ultrasonic beam W2 is diffracted at the periphery of a small-sized defect 104 and then reaches the receiving unit 21, as exemplified in Fig. 10. This is because the ultrasonic beam W2 is diffracted at the periphery of the small-sized defect 104 and then reaches the receiving unit 21, and the phase of the diffracted ultrasonic beam W2 is shifted from the phase of the undiffracted ultrasonic beam W1. Therefore, when the phase of the waveform to be inspected includes a phase (specific phase) different from the phase of the reference waveform, the determining unit 40 can determine that the inspection target object 100 has a defect 104.

[0041] In the present invention, the memory unit 30 may store, as a reference waveform, for example, a defective object 100 as the reference object, and the waveform of the ultrasonic beam W when it passes through the defective part of the reference object and is received by the receiving unit 21. In this case, when the determination unit 40 determines the presence or absence of a defect by calculating the correlation value between the phase of the reference waveform and the phase of the waveform under inspection, if the correlation value is high, the determination unit 40 determines that the inspection target object 100 has a defect 104. On the other hand, if the correlation value is low, the determination unit 40 determines that the inspection target object 100 does not have a defect 104.

[0042] Furthermore, when the reference waveform is a waveform that has passed through a defective portion and the judgment unit 40 judges whether or not a defect exists based on whether or not the phase of the waveform under inspection includes a phase different from that of the reference waveform, if the phase of the waveform under inspection does not include a phase different from that of the reference waveform, the judgment unit 40 judges that the inspection target object 100 has a defect 104. If the phase of the waveform under inspection includes a phase different from that of the reference waveform, the judgment unit 40 judges that the inspection target object 100 does not have a defect 104.

[0043] In the present invention, the transmission surface 10a of the transmission unit 10 may be a flat surface, for example, as shown in FIG. 11. In this case, the ultrasonic beam W transmitted from the transmission surface 10a of the transmission unit 10 propagates toward the subject 100 without converging. Therefore, the shape of the ultrasonic beam W orthogonal to the transmission direction of the ultrasonic beam W (negative direction of the Z axis) will be a planar shape corresponding to the shape of the transmission surface 10a, regardless of the position in the Z axis direction. Since the shape of the transmission surface 10a illustrated in FIG. 11 is formed into a rectangle (or a square), the shape of the ultrasonic beam W orthogonal to the transmission direction of the ultrasonic beam W will also be a rectangle (or a square). In FIG. 11, the shape (area) of the ultrasonic beam W orthogonal to the transmission direction of the ultrasonic beam W is indicated by the symbol BA.

[0044] In this case, the multiple receiving units 21 are arranged in a matrix corresponding to the planar ultrasonic beam W described above. That is, the multiple receiving units 21 are lined up in two directions (X-axis direction and Y-axis direction) perpendicular to the Z-axis direction. In FIG. 11, the multiple receiving units 21 are lined up in two directions perpendicular to the Z-axis direction, so that the overall shape of the receiving surfaces 21a of the multiple receiving units 21 is a rectangle (or square) corresponding to the shape of the transmitting surface 10a. It is more preferable that the multiple receiving units 21 be arranged as close to the subject 100 as possible in the Z-axis direction. The size of the receiving surface 21a is small (the area of ​​the receiving surface 21a is (2×λ) 2By arranging the receiving units 21 (hereinafter referred to as "receiving units") in a matrix, the total area of ​​the receiving surfaces 21a can be increased as in the above embodiment. This makes it possible to inspect the defects 104 in the inspected object 100 with high accuracy and in a short time, even if the area of ​​the inspected object 100 to be inspected is large.

[0045] In the present invention, the multiple receiving units 21 are not limited to being arranged in a matrix in which they are lined up vertically and horizontally without gaps, or in an array in which they are lined up linearly without gaps, as long as they are arranged according to at least a predetermined pattern. The multiple receiving units 21 may be arranged in a pattern (e.g., a lattice pattern or a checkered pattern) in which receiving units 21 are removed from a matrix arrangement according to a predetermined rule. The multiple receiving units 21 may also be arranged in a line along a curved line (e.g., a spiral). The multiple receiving units 21 may also be arranged in a pattern (e.g., a pattern in which units each consisting of two receiving units 21 are arranged in a line with a gap between them) in which receiving units 21 are removed from a line without gaps according to a predetermined rule.

[0046] In the present invention, the transmitting unit 10 may transmit the ultrasonic beam W so that it spreads in a fan-like or spherical shape as it moves away from the transmitting surface 10a of the transmitting unit 10, for example.

[0047] In the present invention, as described above, the determining section 40 that determines whether or not there is a defect in the inspection object 100 is not limited to making the determination based on the relationship between the phase of the reference waveform and the phase of the inspection target waveform. The determining section 40 may make the determination based on, for example, the relationship between the shape of the reference waveform and the shape of the inspection target waveform. As a specific example, the determining section 40 may determine whether or not there is a defect based on the difference in shape between the reference waveform and the inspection target waveform. In other words, the determining section 40 of the present invention may determine whether or not there is a defect based on the relationship between the reference waveform and the inspection target waveform.

[0048] The ultrasonic inspection device of the present invention may not be provided with, for example, a storage unit 30 for storing a reference waveform. In this case, the ultrasonic inspection device may transmit ultrasonic waves to the object 100 to obtain an inspection target waveform, and at the same time transmit ultrasonic waves to a separately prepared reference object to generate a reference waveform, and compare these reference waveforms with the inspection target waveform. [Explanation of symbols]

[0049] 1...ultrasonic inspection device, 10...transmitting unit, 10a...transmitting surface, 21...receiving unit, 21a...receiving surface, 22...resin, 23...FET substrate, 30...storage unit, 40...determination unit, 100...inspection object, 104...defect, W...ultrasonic beam

Claims

1. A transmitter having a transmission surface that transmits an ultrasonic beam toward a subject; a plurality of receiving units each having a receiving surface for receiving the ultrasonic beam transmitted through the subject, the receiving surface being arranged according to a predetermined pattern; a substrate that outputs a reception signal corresponding to the received ultrasonic beam; An ultrasonic inspection device in which a resin is interposed between the receiving units and the substrate, or the receiving units and the substrate are in direct contact with each other, so that a plurality of the receiving units are integrally provided on the substrate.

2. The ultrasonic inspection device according to claim 1 , wherein the plurality of receiving units are arranged in a matrix or array.

3. 3. The ultrasonic inspection device according to claim 1, wherein the plurality of receiving units are arranged at intervals from one another.

4. 4. The ultrasonic inspection device according to claim 3, wherein a resin or air layer having acoustic properties different from those of the receiving sections is interposed between the adjacent receiving sections.

5. 5. The ultrasonic inspection device according to claim 1, further comprising a determination unit that determines whether or not there is a defect in the object to be inspected based on a relationship between a reference waveform and an object to be inspected waveform, which is the waveform of the ultrasonic beam that has passed through the object to be inspected for the presence or absence of a defect and is received by the receiving unit.

6. the reference waveform is a waveform of the ultrasonic beam when it passes through a reference object among the objects and is received by the receiving unit, 6. The ultrasonic inspection device according to claim 5, wherein the determination unit calculates a correlation value between the phase of the reference waveform and the phase of the waveform under inspection, and determines whether or not there is a defect in the object under inspection based on the correlation value.

7. the reference waveform is a waveform of the ultrasonic beam when it passes through a reference object among the objects and is received by the receiving unit, 6. The ultrasonic inspection device according to claim 5, wherein the determination unit determines whether or not the object to be inspected has a defect depending on whether or not the phase of the waveform to be inspected includes a phase different from the phase of the reference waveform.

8. The ultrasonic inspection device according to claim 5 , further comprising a storage unit that stores the reference waveform.

9. 9. The ultrasonic inspection device according to claim 1, wherein at least one of the transmitting unit and the receiving unit is located inward from an end of the subject by at least the length of the wavelength of the ultrasonic beam in a direction intersecting the transmission direction of the ultrasonic beam.

Images