Self-tracking ultrasonic inspection

Examines the use of a precision robot for automatic testing of complex geometries with free-form surfaces. Each of its three rotation and bending axes have directly driven DC motors and high accuracy optical angle sensors. The distance between the ultrasonic probes and the workpiece can be measured by means of an ultrasonic distance sensor and the data gathered is transmitted to a workstation a graphical representation is produced which is visualised in real time by means of a high-speed graphics processor. Using menu-driven software, components with almost any free-form surface can rapidly be excoriated, modelled and tested with freely selectable paths of very high resolution.