Patents by Inventor Philip A. Walker

Philip A. Walker 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: 4114455
    Abstract: In a pulse echo ultrasonic velocity measuring apparatus timing gate signals corresponding to the transit time of search signals traveling through a workpiece are generated. The quantity of fixed frequency pulses occurring during successive timing gate signals is counted and accumulated using time interval averaging techniques until a predetermined quantity of pulses commensurate with the thickness of the workpieces is accumulated. Concurrently, the quantity of search signals required to accumulate the predetermined quantity of pulses is counted. The quantity of search signals counted is commensurate with the acoustic velocity of the workpiece.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 7, 1977
    Date of Patent: September 19, 1978
    Assignee: Krautkramer-Branson, Incorporated
    Inventor: Philip A. Walker
  • Patent number: 4070917
    Abstract: In a pulse-echo ultrasonic circuit an ultrasonic search signal is periodically transmitted into a workpiece. The ensuing pair of echo signals (entrant and rear surface reflection respectively) are fed to a timing circuit for providing a timing signal responsive to the time interval between the two echo signals. A fixed pulse width pulse generator is triggered responsive to the search signal. The output from the fixed pulse width generator and the timing signal from the timing circuit are selectively fed to a converter circuit for providing an output signal indicative of workpiece thickness or workpiece acoustic velocity. The converter circuit includes adjustable parameters comprising current magnitude and resistance to provide suitable calibration. Similar calibration is achieved also by varying the repetition rate of the search signal.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 19, 1976
    Date of Patent: January 31, 1978
    Assignee: Krautkramer-Branson, Incorporated
    Inventors: Ludwig Niklas, Philip A. Walker
  • Patent number: 4003244
    Abstract: An electrical circuit incorporated in a receiver circuit of an ultrasonic pulse-echo thickness and/or velocity measuring apparatus causes the entrant surface and rear wall responsive video signals to be of equal magnitude and in phase with each other. The provision of echo responsive video signals having equal amplitude and phase results in a measuring apparatus exhibiting improved accuracy while requiring fewer and less expensive circuit components.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 30, 1975
    Date of Patent: January 18, 1977
    Assignee: Krautkramer-Branson, Incorporated
    Inventors: Patrick M. O'Brien, Richard J. Pittaro, Philip A. Walker
  • Patent number: 3994154
    Abstract: In a pulse-echo ultrasonic circuit an ultrasonic search signal is periodically transmitted into a workpiece. The ensuing pair of echo signals (entrant and rear surface reflection respectively) are fed to a timing circuit for providing a timing signal responsive to the time interval between the two echo signals. A fixed pulse width pulse generator is triggered responsive to the search signal. The output from the fixed pulse width generator and the timing signal from the timing circuit are selectively fed to a converter circuit for providing an output signal indicative of workpiece thickness or workpiece acoustic velocity. The converter circuit includes adjustable parameters comprising current magnitude and resistance to provide suitable calibration. Similar calibration is achieved also by varying the repetition rate of the search signal.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 30, 1975
    Date of Patent: November 30, 1976
    Assignee: Krautkramer-Branson, Incorporated
    Inventors: Ludwig Niklas, Philip A. Walker
  • Patent number: 3969926
    Abstract: This invention refers to an ultrasonic pulse-echo nondestructive test method and apparatus for causing the axis of an ultrasonic energy search beam path transmitted from an ultrasonic transducer probe to a workpiece to be maintained normal to an irregularly contoured workpiece entrant surface. Electrical circuit means measure and compare the echo signals reflected from the workpiece and cause the search probe to be positioned to maximize the amplitude of the received signals.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 27, 1975
    Date of Patent: July 20, 1976
    Assignee: Krautkramer-Branson, Incorporated
    Inventors: Philip A. Walker, Karl G. Walther