Color-Coded Laminate for Coating Film Thickness Evaluation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Measuring the film thickness of coating films on infrastructure structures like bridges and steel towers is challenging due to the difficulty in pressing probes perpendicularly and variations caused by unevenness and pigments, leading to time-consuming repeated measurements.
Innovation Solution
A coating film evaluation structure comprising a laminate of sheets with gradually reducing areas and stepped portions, each with different colors, allowing for easier evaluation of film thickness by visual inspection of exposed colors.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If electromagnetic type or eddy current type film thickness meter is used to measure film thickness, then measurement accuracy can be obtained, but it requires pressing the measuring probe perpendicularly which is difficult to achieve on infrastructure structures
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces the mechanical probe-based electromagnetic measurement system with a visual color-coded evaluation system. Instead of using an electromagnetic film thickness meter that requires perpendicular pressing, the invention uses colored sheets with different visibility thresholds that can be visually assessed, eliminating the need for mechanical probe positioning and pressing operations.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent creates a visual copy of the film thickness information through colored sheets. The colored sheets serve as a visual representation of different film thickness levels, where the visibility of specific colors correlates with the remaining film thickness, allowing evaluation without direct mechanical measurement.
2Reliability
If repeated measurements at multiple locations are performed to suppress measurement variation, then measurement reliability improves, but inspection time increases significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the evaluation range into multiple zones with different colored sheets positioned at different depths. Each color represents a specific film thickness threshold, allowing a single visual inspection to simultaneously assess multiple thickness levels across different segments of the coating, eliminating the need for repeated point measurements.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent transitions from one-dimensional point measurements to a two-dimensional visual field assessment. By arranging colored sheets in a spatial array that corresponds to different thickness thresholds, the system allows simultaneous evaluation of multiple thickness levels in a single visual scan, converting sequential measurements into parallel visual assessment.
Data Source
AI summary
A coating film evaluation structure includes a laminate including a first sheet, a second sheet, and a third sheet which are laminated. The second sheet is disposed on the first sheet, and the third sheet is disposed on the second sheet. In the laminate, the area of each sheet gradually reduces in the lamination direction, and a stepped portion is provided at an end portion. The coating film to be evaluated and the plurality of sheets have different colors. The coating film evaluation structure includes a coating film layer formed on the sheet having the largest area among the plurality of sheets so as to cover the other sheets and having a flat surface.