Efficient optimization of single and multiple element tranducers for the inspection of complex-shaped components
Abstract
Ultrasonic inspection of components of complex geometry often suffers from loss of sensitivity, beam distortions and beam misorientations if the transducer is not perfectly matched to the specimen. A procedure is presented which allows to optimize single and multiple element transducers where-depending on the specific inspection configuration under concern-the shape of the piezoelement is determined to ensure a proper focusing of the beam field in the range of interest. The method is based on delay time calculation for multiple element transducers and employs a superposition technique for beam field calculation. The procedure is exemplified for a standard pipe inspection problem.
