Patents by Inventor Erwin W. Baumann

Erwin W. Baumann has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

  • Patent number: 6006163
    Abstract: An active damage interrogation (ADI) system (and method) which utilizes an array of piezoelectric transducers attached to or embedded within the structure for both actuation and sensing. The ADI system actively interrogates the structure through broadband excitation of the transducers. The transducer (sensor) signals are digitized and the transfer function of each actuator/sensor pair is computed. The ADI system compares the computed transfer function magnitude and phase spectrum for each actuator/sensor pair to a baseline transfer function for that actuator/sensor pair which is computed by averaging several sets of data obtained with the structure in an undamaged state. The difference between the current transfer function and the baseline transfer function for each actuator/sensor pair is normalized by the standard deviation associated with that baseline transfer function.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 15, 1997
    Date of Patent: December 21, 1999
    Assignee: McDonnell Douglas Corporation
    Inventors: Peter F. Lichtenwalner, James P. Dunne, Ronald S. Becker, Erwin W. Baumann