Abstract: A build plate may include one or more thermocouples placed on an underside of the build plate. The one or more thermocouples output temperature fluctuation to assist in monitoring for build plate separation of a product located on top of the build plate.

Abstract: Self-determined shot geometry for open-configuration portable x-ray computed tomography (CT) includes capturing one or more x-ray shot images into a computing system, and estimating an unknown constellation model and one or more shot geometries. It also includes reconstructing a volume image from the one or more captured shot images and the one or more geometries using computed tomography.

Abstract: A method for self-determination of shot geometry for use in open-configuration portable x-ray computed tomography (CT) includes inputting one or more x-ray shot images into a computing system. The method also include determining, by the computing system, one or more shot geometries from the one or more inputted x-ray shot images. The method further includes reconstructing, by the computing system, a volume image from the one or more inputted x-ray shot images and the one or more shot geometries. The method also includes outputting, by the computing system, a reconstructed volume image.

Abstract: A build plate may include one or more thermocouples placed on an underside of the build plate. The one or more thermocouples output temperature fluctuation to assist in monitoring for build plate separation of a product located on top of the build plate.

Abstract: A build plate may include one or more thermocouples placed on an underside of the build plate. The one or more thermocouples output temperature fluctuation to assist in monitoring for build plate separation of a product located on top of the build plate.

Abstract: A build plate may include one or more thermocouples placed on an underside of the build plate. The one or more thermocouples output temperature fluctuation to assist in monitoring for build plate separation of a product located on top of the build plate.

Abstract: An ultrasonic inspection technique may be used to inspect quality of a bond between thermal protection system (TPS) material and a composite. The technique may include a highly damped transducer emitting an incident wave, which may traverse through thermal protection system (TPS) material and to a back wall of a composite. The incident wave may be of a low frequency signal, and may return a bondline echo and a backwall echo. The bondline echo is returned when the incident wave reaches a bondline and the backwall echo is returned when the incident wave reaches the backwall of the composite. The bondline echo and the backwall echo may be used to generate a waveform to assess the bond quality, revealing possible unbonds or kissing unbonds.

Abstract: A portable x-ray computed tomography (CT) system may utilize algebraic reconstruction techniques (ART) to produce 3D volume images from tens of shots or less. The system may be deployed as desired where x-ray source and detector positions are not known beforehand. A fast, accurate matrix may be formed relating voxels to detector pixels via a modified ray tracing algorithm, eliminating artifacts caused by approaches using rough approximations. Masking or recombination may be performed to remove detector pixels that are not part of a region of interest (ROI) or lump the pixels together as one unknown, significantly reducing matrix size, and hence, computation time. The positions and orientations of the x-ray source and detector may be treated as unknowns and refined to optimize a volume image metric. For example, the optimized metric could be image contrast, image sparsity, or total variation.

Abstract: A portable x-ray computed tomography (CT) system may utilize algebraic reconstruction techniques (ART) to produce 3D volume images from tens of shots or less. The system may be deployed as desired where x-ray source and detector positions are not known beforehand. A fast, accurate matrix may be formed relating voxels to detector pixels via a modified ray tracing algorithm, eliminating artifacts caused by approaches using rough approximations. Masking or recombination may be performed to remove detector pixels that are not part of a region of interest (ROI) or lump the pixels together as one unknown, significantly reducing matrix size, and hence, computation time. The positions and orientations of the x-ray source and detector may be treated as unknowns and refined to optimize a volume image metric. For example, the optimized metric could be image contrast, image sparsity, or total variation.

Abstract: An ultrasonic inspection technique may be used to inspect quality of a bond between thermal protection system (TPS) material and a composite. The technique may include a highly damped transducer emitting an incident wave, which may traverse through thermal protection system (TPS) material and to a back wall of a composite. The incident wave may be of a low frequency signal, and may return a bondline echo and a backwall echo. The bondline echo is returned when the incident wave reaches a bondline and the backwall echo is returned when the incident wave reaches the backwall of the composite. The bondline echo and the backwall echo may be used to generate a waveform to assess the bond quality, revealing possible unbonds or kissing unbonds.

Abstract: A system for ultrasonic inspection of railroad axles uses a laser to project a series of pulses onto the axle to create an ultrasonic signal propagating along the surface of the axle. An air-coupled detector detects the ultrasonic signal at a position on the axle spaced apart from the laser impact region. The ultrasonic signal can then be analyzed to detect the presence of a reflected wave indicating the presence of a defect in the axle.

Abstract: Formed Laser Sources (FLS) using pulsed laser light for generation of ultrasonic stress waves are combined with air-coupled detection of ultrasound to provide for the hybrid non-contact, dynamic and remote ultrasonic testing of structural materials, especially railroad tracks. Using this hybrid technique, multimode and controlled frequency and wavefront surface acoustic waves, plate waves, guided waves, and bulk waves are generated to propagate on and within the rail tracks. The non-contact, remote nature of this methodology enables high-speed, fill access inspections of rail tracks. The flexibility and remote nature of this methodology makes possible the detection of critical cracks that are not easy, or impossible to detect, with current inspection techniques available to the railroad industry.

Abstract: A remote, non-contact system for detecting a defect in a railroad wheel as the wheel is stationary or moving along a railroad track includes; (1) a pulsed, laser light source for generating an ultrasonic wave in the wheel, the ultrasonic wave having a direct portion and reflected and transmitted portions if the direct portion encounters a defect in the wheel, (2) an optical component in the path of the light from the light source for forming the light into a specified illumination pattern so that the generated ultrasonic wave has a specified wavefront, (3) an air-coupled transducer or a group of transducers for sensing the acoustic signal emanating from the wheel that results from the ultrasonic wave traveling through the wheel, and (4) a signal processor, responsive to the sensed acoustic signal, capable of distinguishing whether the sensed signal has a component that indicates the existence of a reflected portion in the ultrasonic wave, wherein the presence of such a component in the acoustic signal indicat

Abstract: A remote, non-contact system for detecting a defect in a railroad wheel as the wheel is stationary or moving along a railroad track includes; (1) a pulsed, laser light source for generating an ultrasonic wave in the wheel, the ultrasonic wave having a direct portion and reflected and transmitted portions if the direct portion encounters a defect in the wheel, (2) an optical component in the path of the light from the light source for forming the light into a specified illumination pattern so that the generated ultrasonic wave has a specified wavefront, (3) an air-coupled transducer or a group of transducers for sensing the acoustic signal emanating from the wheel that results from the ultrasonic wave traveling through the wheel, and (4) a signal processor, responsive to the sensed acoustic signal, capable of distinguishing whether the sensed signal has a component that indicates the existence of a reflected portion in the ultrasonic wave, wherein the presence of such a component in the acoustic signal indicat

Abstract: Formed Laser Sources (FLS) using pulsed laser light for generation of ultrasonic stress waves are combined with air-coupled detection of ultrasound to provide for the hybrid non-contact, dynamic and remote ultrasonic testing of structural materials, especially railroad tracks. Using this hybrid technique, multimode and controlled frequency and wavefront surface acoustic waves, plate waves, guided waves, and bulk waves are generated to propagate on and within the rail tracks. The non-contact, remote nature of this methodology enables high-speed, full access inspections of rail tracks. The flexibility and remote nature of this methodology makes possible the detection of critical cracks that are not easy, or impossible to detect, with current inspection techniques available to the railroad industry. For purpose of field testing, the equipment of the present invention can be located above the top surface of the rail.