Structure Evaluation Using Internal Wave Guide Sensors
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing methods for evaluating structural damage in thick three-dimensional structures, such as road slabs, struggle to accurately determine the depth of damage, as they rely on surface sensors that cannot effectively penetrate to internal damage locations.
Innovation Solution
A structure evaluation system that includes a rod-shaped wave guide inserted into a hole at a predetermined depth within the structure, with sensors on the surface and bottom to detect elastic waves and calculate the depth of damage based on the differences in wave detection values between the two sensors.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If surface sensors are used to detect elastic waves in thick three-dimensional structures, then the measurement setup is simple, but the depth resolution of damage detection is insufficient
Solution Approach 1:
The invention transitions from two-dimensional surface sensing to three-dimensional damage detection by inserting sensors through surface holes to internal positions. This dimensional extension allows sensors to detect elastic waves from different depths, enabling accurate depth resolution of damage locations that surface-only sensors cannot achieve.
Solution Approach 2:
Holes drilled into the structure serve as intermediaries, allowing sensors to be positioned at internal locations without requiring extensive sensor arrays on the surface. The holes provide a direct pathway for sensors to reach damage zones at various depths, simplifying the overall measurement setup while improving depth resolution.
2Measurement precision
If multiple sensors are arranged on the surface to improve depth detection, then the device complexity increases, but the ease of operation decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The invention extracts sensors from the surface plane and positions them at internal locations through holes. This extraction allows a smaller number of sensors to achieve three-dimensional damage detection capability, reducing the complexity of sensor arrangement and improving ease of operation compared to extensive surface sensor arrays.
3Reliability
If surface sensors detect elastic waves from internal damage, then the detection capability is limited, but adding internal sensors improves detection accuracy while increasing device complexity
Solution Approach 1:
By positioning sensors at internal locations through holes, the system gains three-dimensional detection capability. This allows reliable detection of damage at various depths within the structure, significantly improving damage detection reliability compared to surface-only sensors while adding minimal complexity.
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
Enables precise estimation of damage depth by comparing the detection values from surface and internally placed sensors, effectively overcoming the limitations of surface-only sensing in thick structures.
Implementation Method 1
detecting a first detection value of an elastic wave generated in a measurement object by a first sensor, through a rod-shaped wave guide which is inserted into a hole formed to a predetermined depth from a surface of the measurement object
Implementation Method 2
The acoustic emission is the emission of the elastic waves generated with the progress of a fatigue crack in a material. In the AE method, the elastic waves are detected as a voltage signal (AE signal) by an AE sensor using a piezoelectric element.
Data Source
AI summary
According to one embodiment, a structure evaluation system includes a wave guide, a first sensor, a second sensor, and a calculation part. The wave guide is formed in a rod shape, is inserted into a hole that is formed at a predetermined depth from a surface of a measurement target, and has one end fixed to a deepest portion of the hole. The first sensor is provided at the other end of the wave guide at a position that is substantially the same as the surface. The second sensor is provided on the surface of the measurement target. The calculation part estimates a depth of damage occurring in the measurement target from the surface on the basis of a first detection value of an elastic wave transmitted to the measurement target which is detected by the first sensor through the wave guide and a second detection value obtained by an elastic wave which is detected by the second sensor.