Differential Sensor Pivot for Multi-Angle Ultrasonic Surface Inspection
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Existing inspection systems for industrial surfaces face challenges in detecting corrosion or damage, particularly cracks and corrosion parallel to the sensing direction, and require personnel exposure to hazardous environments, leading to incomplete inspections prone to human error.
Innovation Solution
A robotic inspection system with a payload that includes pivotally coupled sensor housings and frames, allowing phased array ultrasonic sensors to pivot in multiple degrees of freedom, enabling comprehensive surface scanning while avoiding hazardous environments.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If phased array ultrasonic sensors are used for surface inspection, then detection capability is improved, but inability to detect cracks parallel to sensing direction remains
Solution Approach 1:
The sensor housing is made dynamically adjustable through pivotal coupling mechanisms that allow rotation and tilting. This enables the sensor to change its sensing direction dynamically during inspection, allowing detection of cracks in multiple orientations by adjusting the sensor angle rather than being fixed in a single direction.
Solution Approach 2:
The inspection system adds angular dimensions to the sensing capability by enabling rotation and tilting of the sensor housing. This transforms a single-direction sensing system into a multi-directional system, allowing cracks parallel to the original sensing direction to be detected by changing the sensing angle through pivotal movements.
2Ease of operation
If personnel conduct manual inspections in hazardous environments, then flexibility is maintained, but safety risks and human error increase
Solution Approach 1:
The robotic inspection system performs inspections autonomously without requiring human personnel to enter hazardous environments. The robot navigates, positions sensors, conducts inspections, and transmits data automatically, making the system self-sufficient in hazardous locations while eliminating direct human exposure to risks such as toxic gases, high voltages, and operating equipment.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces manual mechanical inspection operations with an automated robotic system. The robot mechanically traverses the inspection area, positions and orients sensors through pivotal couplings, and performs ultrasonic inspections, substituting human operators with an automated mechanical system that eliminates safety risks while maintaining inspection capability.
3Device complexity
If fixed sensor orientation is used for inspection, then system complexity is reduced, but inspection completeness decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The sensor housing incorporates pivotal coupling mechanisms that enable dynamic adjustment of sensor orientation. The housing can rotate about a first axis and tilt about a second axis, allowing the sensor to be positioned at various angles during inspection. This dynamic capability ensures complete inspection coverage without requiring overly complex multi-sensor arrays.
Solution Approach 2:
The system adds rotational and tilting dimensions to the sensor mounting structure through pivotal couplings. This enables the sensor to access multiple inspection angles and orientations, transforming a single-fixed-orientation system into a multi-orientable system that achieves comprehensive inspection coverage while maintaining relatively simple hardware architecture.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The system provides accurate, systematic, and complete inspections with reduced human exposure to hazards, improving detection of surface conditions and reducing errors.
Implementation Method 1
The first sensor housing includes a first phased array ultra-sonic (UT) sensor aligned with the direction of travel; and the first sensor housing is pivotally coupled to the sensor frame to pivot in a plane substantially perpendicular to the direction of travel
Implementation Method 2
previously known inspection systems for industrial surfaces suffer from a number of drawbacks... difficulty in detecting corrosion or damage of certain types, for example cracks or corrosion that have a parallel orientation to a sensing direction
Data Source
AI summary
A differential pivoting mechanism for a payload for an inspection robot. The mechanism includes a first rotational pivot joint that pivotally couples to a first sensor housing to pivot the first sensor housing in a first degree of freedom in a plane substantially perpendicular to a direction of travel of the inspection robot along an inspection surface plane defined, at least in part, by the surface. A second rotational pivot joint that pivotally couples to a second sensor housing to pivot the second sensor housing in the first degree of freedom in the plane substantially perpendicular to the direction of travel. A differential pivot joint that pivotally couples to a sensor frame of the inspection robot to pivot the first sensor housing with the second sensor housing in a second degree of freedom in the plane substantially perpendicular to the direction of travel.