Automatic rotary probe system for the ultrasonic

inspection of steel tube

R. Lewis and A. R. C o r n f o r t h

Manual s y s t e m s f o r tube i n s p e c t i o n a r e unable to keep pace

with h i g h - s p e e d tube m a n u f a c t u r i n g p r o c e s s e s , and only p r o -
vide an i m p r e c i s e t e s t . A r a n g e of high speed r o t a t i n g u l t r a -
sonic p r o b e s y s t e m s and static p r o b e a s s e m b l i e s h a s b e e n
developed for a u t o m a t i c quality c o n t r o l and a c c e p t a n c e t e s t -
ing of t u b e s . T h e s e s y s t e m s afford a u t o m a t i c i n s p e c t i o n of
t u b e s in the d i a m e t e r r a n g e 0 . 5 - 4 4 i n ( 1 2 . 7 r a m - 1 . l l S m ) , .
s e a m l e s s o r welded tubes, at i n s p e c t i o n s p e e d s up to 200ft/
r a i n ( 6 0 . 9 6 m / m i n ) . The s y s t e m s i n c o r p o r a t e s e v e r a l novel
f e a t u r e s in the u l t r a s o n i c and e l e c t r o n i c design. One of
t h e s e s y s t e m s i s d e s c r i b e d in detail.

Steel t u b e s a r e m a n u f a c t u r e d f o r a l a r g e r a n g e of a p p l i c a -
t i o n s involving a v a r i e t y of p r o d u c t i o n p r o c e s s e s . Typical
p r o c e s s e s involving u l t r a s o n i c i n s p e c t i o n include e l e c t r i c
r e s i s t a n c e welding up to 20in(0.457m) outside d i a m e t e r , s u b -
m e r g e d a r c welding up to 44in(1. U 8 m ) outside d i a m e t e r ,
s p i r a l welding to 30in(0.762m) outside d i a m e t e r , r o t a r y
f o r g e d to 18in(0.457m) outside d i a m e t e r and t u b e s that a r e
m a d e by a c o m b i n a t i o n of p r o c e s s e s , f o r example, an e x t r u d -
ed tube which is s u b s e q u e n t l y cold drawn. E a c h p r o c e s s , o r
c o m b i n a t i o n t h e r e o f , p r o d u c e s tube t o l e r a n c e s , s u r f a c e c o n d i -
t i o n s and d e f e c t s which a r e typical of the p r o c e s s . To obtain
good quality c o n t r o l d u r i n g the d i f f e r e n t s t a g e s of m a n u f a c -
t u r e and s u c c e s s f u l a c c e p t a n c e t e s t i n g of the f i n i s h e d tube,
it h a s b e e n n e c e s s a r y to develop a v a r i e t y of u l t r a s o n i c
i n s p e c t i o n s y s t e m s to c o v e r the r a n g e of p r o d u c t s . The
d e v e l o p m e n t of t h e s e s y s t e m s h a s b e e n u n d e r t a k e n in the
D e p a r t m e n t of R e s e a r c h and T e c h n i c a l D e v e l o p m e n t at
Corby, for the N o r t h e r n and T u b e s G r o u p of the B r i t i s h Steel
Corporation.
Typical p r o d u c t i o n s p e e d s of e l e c t r i c r e s i s t a n c e welded
t u b e s can be 2 0 0 f t / m i n ( 6 0 . 9 6 m / m i n ) w h e r e a s s u b m e r g e d a r c
welded t u b e s can b e produced a s slowly a s 8 f t / m i n ( 2 . 4 3 8 m / F i g 1 G e n e r a l view of rotary probe s y s t e m a s i n s t a l l e d in
min). Most welded t u b e s a r e subjected to u l t r a s o n i c i n s p e c - tubeworks
tion of the weld zone i m m e d i a t e l y a f t e r welding. T h e s e s y s -
t e m s g e n e r a l l y have f r o m two to eight p r o b e s o p e r a t i n g in
the s h e a r wave mode f o r the d e t e c t i o n of longitudinally and THE E Q ~ P M E N T
t r a n s v e r s e l y o r i e n t a t e d d i s c o n t i n u i t i e s within the welded
zone. E a c h p r o b e o p e r a t e s on a pulse echo b a s i s . Coupling A tube u n d e r t e s t p a s s e s t h r o u g h a t e s t head, r o t a t i n g at
m o n i t o r i n g f a c i l i t i e s can also be i n c o r p o r a t e d . The-location 1 0 0 r e v / m i n , on which a r e mounted eight u l t r a s o n i c t r a n s -
of i n - l i n e t e s t f a c i l i t i e s on welded tube in conjunction with d u c e r s ; e a c h t r a n s d u c e r thus effectively t r a n s c r i b e s a h e l i c a l
the c l o s e p r o x i m i t y of off-line defect location f a c i l i t i e s p r o - path on the tube s u r f a c e . The t e s t head is located at the c e n -
v i d e s i n f o r m a t i o n f e e d - b a c k to the welding p r o c e s s . Addi- t r e of a s p e c i a l l y d e s i g n e d tube c o n v e y o r s y s t e m which
t i o n a l i n s p e c t i o n of the whole tube could also be r e q u i r e d for t r a n s p o r t s t u b e s t h r o u g h the u l t r a s o n i c t e s t head c o m p l e t e l y
an a c c e p t a n c e test. In the c a s e of s e a m l e s s tubes, full a u t o m a t i c a l l y , at any p r e s e t speed up to 1 0 0 f t / m i n ( 3 0 . 4 8 m /
i n s p e c t i o n of the tube i s n e c e s s a r y for quality c o n t r o l o r rain). The d e g r e e of i n s p e c t i o n to which the tube i s s u b j e c t e d
a c c e p t a n c e t e s t i n g and is p r o v i d e d by r o t a t i n g u l t r a s o n i c can then be c h o s e n by fixing the s p i r a l p i t c h of each t r a n s -
equipment. d u c e r path on the tube s u r f a c e . The u l t r a s o n i c t r a n s d u c e r s
The s y s t e m d e s c r i b e d in t h i s p a p e r p r o v i d e s a fully auto- a r e mounted in s p r i n g loaded pad u n i t s which a r e c a p a b l e of
m a t i c t e s t f o r the u l t r a s o n i c e x a m i n a t i o n of s e a m l e s s t u b e s b e i n g applied to o r r e t r a c t e d f r o m the tube s u r f a c e ; e a c h
m a n u f a c t u r e d by the r o t a r y forge p r o c e s s . T h e s e t u b e s have t r a n s d u c e r is w a t e r coupled to the tube s u r f a c e by m e a n s of
a d i a m e t e r r a n g e of 65~s-18in(168.0mm-0. 457m) and a wall a w a t e r jet, specially d e s i g n e d to r e d u c e the effects of p o s -
t h i c k n e s s v a r i a t i o n of 0. 2-1. 0in(5. 08-25. 4 m m ) . sible w a t e r a e r a t i o n . The t r a n s d u c e r s a r e e l e c t r i c a l l y c o n -
n e c t e d to two e l e c t r o n i c u n i t s v i a a s l i p - r i n g a r r a n g e m e n t
R. Lewis i s S p e c i a l i s t R e s e a r c h P h y s i c i s t and A. R. C o r n f o r t h mounted on the r o t a r y t e s t head, the e l e c t r o n i c u n i t s t o g e t h e r
i s Ndt S u p e r i n t e n d a n t at the B r i t i s h Steel C o r p o r a t i o n , with all the n e c e s s a r y c o n t r o l equipment b e i n g located in a
N o r t h e r n and T u b e s Group, Tube and P i p e s Division, Corby, cabin which i s s i t u a t e d close to the t e s t head, a s shown in
N o r t h a m p t o n s h i r e , UK F i g 1.

128 n o n - d e s t r u c t i v e t e s t i n g A p r i l 1970
 h o s e s (see F i g 3). The c o m p l e t e a s s e m b l y i s mounted on
four m e c h a n i c a l l y linked jacks, t h u s e n a b l i n g the t e s t head to
b e r a i s e d o r l o w e r e d s u c h t h a t the c e n t r e line of the r o t o r
c a n b e aligned with the axis of the tube u n d e r t e s t .

THICKNESS MONITORING AND LAMINATION DETECTION

EQUIPMENT

The e l e c t r o n i c equipment, which i s a s s o c i a t e d with the four

t r a n s d u c e r s on the r o t a r y t e s t head s e t n o r m a l to the tube
s u r f a c e , o p e r a t e s on an u l t r a s o n i c p u l s e echo t e c h n i q u e to
m o n i t o r the tube wall t h i c k n e s s and to d e t e c t l a m i n a r d i s c o n -
t i n u i t i e s . E a c h of the four t r a n s d u c e r s o p e r a t e in s e q u e n c e
and the e l e c t r o n i c unit is a r r a n g e d such t h a t e a c h t r a n s d u c e r
i s gated to e n a b l e it to s h a r e a logic c i r c u i t r y c o m m o n to all
four t r a n s d u c e r s .
E a c h t r a n s d u c e r , excited a t a p u l s e r e p e t i t i o n f r e q u e n c y ( p r o
of lkHz t r a n s m i t s an u l t r a s o n i c p u l s e into the tube wall.
T h i s p r o d u c e s a s e r i e s of e c h o e s due to s u c c e s s i v e r e f l e c -
t i o n s within the wall of the tube. T h e t i m e i n t e r v a l between
t h e s e e c h o e s i s a m e a s u r e of t h e d i s t a n c e the u l t r a s o u n d h a s
to t r a v e l and i s t h u s p r o p o r t i o n a l to the wall t h i c k n e s s .
If, however, the t r a n s d u c e r i s located o v e r a m i d - w a l l l a m i n a -
tion, the t r a n s m i t t e d u l t r a s o n i c p u l s e e i t h e r s u c c e s s i v e l y
r e f l e c t s b e t w e e n the outside wall and the l a m i n a t i o n t h u s
p r o d u c i n g a s e r i e s of e c h o e s with a r e d u c e d t i m e i n t e r v a l
b e t w e e n t h e m , o r is d i s p e r s e d , r e s u l t i n g in a l o s s of the p u l s e
train.
F i g 2 C~meral v i e w of the two e l e c t r o n i c u n i t s . T h e r a d i a l
F o r the sake of s i m p l i c i t y , the o p e r a t i o n of only one t r a n s -
d e f e c t d e t e c t i o n e q u i p m e n t i s on the left and the t h i c k -
d u c e r will be d e s c r i b e d . The t r a n s d u c e r r o t a t e s a r o u n d the
n e s s m o n i t o r i n g e q u i p m e n t i s on the r i g h t
tube, t r a n s c r i b i n g a h e l i c a l path on the tube s u r f a c e , a s the
tube m o v e s l i n e a r l y t h r o u g h the t e s t head, and t r a n s m i t s
u l t r a s o n i c p u l s e s into the tube wall at the r a t e of 1000/s.
F o u r of the t r a n s d u c e r s a r e a r r a n g e d to m o n i t o r the tube The s e r i e s of e c h o e s a s s o c i a t e d with e a c h t r a n s m i t t e d p u l s e
wall t h i c k n e s s and i n d i c a t e the p r e s e n c e of l a m i n a r type i s r e c e i v e d by the t r a n s d u c e r and p a s s e d to the e l e c t r o n i c
d e f e c t s , the u l t r a s o n i c i n f o r m a t i o n c o l l e c t e d by t h e s e t r a n s - unit v i a the s l i p - r i n g s . T h e s e echoes, which c o n s i s t of a
d u c e r s b e i n g p r o c e s s e d by one of the e l e c t r o n i c u n i t s and t r a i n of radio f r e q u e n c y (rf) p u l s e s , a r e suitably a m p l i f i e d
d i s p l a y e d on a twin c h a r t r e c o r d e r . The o t h e r four t r a n s - and then p a s s e d to the pulse p r o c e s s i n g s y s t e m . The t h i r d
d u c e r s a r e used to d e t e c t d e f e c t s which a r e e s s e n t i a l l y and s i x t h p u l s e s a r e e l e c t r o n i c a l l y e x t r a c t e d and used to
r a d i a l ; the i n f o r m a t i o n c o l l e c t e d by t h e s e t r a n s d u c e r s b e i n g s t a r t and stop a high f r e q u e n c y clock p u l s e g e n e r a t o r . The
p r o c e s s e d by the o t h e r e l e c t r o n i c unit and d i s p l a y e d in a f r e q u e n c y of t h i s clock pulse g e n e r a t o r i s s e t s u c h t h a t 50
s i m i l a r m a n n e r on a second twin c h a r t r e c o r d e r (see F i g 2). p u l s e s will o c c u r b e t w e e n p u l s e s 3 and 6 when the tube wall
t h i c k n e s s i s exactly 0 . 5 i n ( 1 2 . 7 r a m ) . As the wall t h i c k n e s s
The e l e c t r o n i c u n i t s a r e a r r a n g e d to give v i s u a l and audible v a r i e s , so too will the t i m e i n t e r v a l b e t w e e n the 3 r d and 6th
a l a r m s when a tube defect condition a r i s e s . The i n f o r m a t i o n p u l s e s , and thus the r e s u l t i n g n u m b e r of p u l s e s obtained f r o m
i s a l s o t r a n s m i t t e d to p a i n t guns v i a a delay s y s t e m s u c h the clock p u l s e g e n e r a t o r will v a r y also. As 50 p u l s e s r e p r e -
t h a t the p o s i t i o n of d e f e c t s along the length of the tube c a n be s e n t 0 . 5 i n ( 1 2 . 7 r a m ) of wall t h i c k n e s s , e a c h pulse r e p r e s e n t s
m a r k e d f o r s u b s e q u e n t i n v e s t i g a t i o n , if t h i s i s d e e m e d n e c e s - 0 . 0 1 i n ( 0 . 2 5 4 m m ) . T h i s l i m i t on the a c c u r a c y of the equip-
sary. m e n t i s p r i m a r i l y c o n t r o l l e d by d e s i g n l i m i t a t i o n s on the
r e c o r d e r , a s the r e s o l u t i o n that can b e obtained by the u l t r a -
s o n i c / e l e c t r o n i c s y s t e m i s of the o r d e r 0.005in(0. 127ram).
THE ROTARY TEST HEAD

The r o t a r y t e s t head c o n s i s t s b a s i c a l l y of a t u b u l a r s t a i n l e s s
s t e e l r o t o r , r u n n i n g on a w a t e r l u b r i c a t e d f a b r i c b e a r i n g i n -
side the s t a t o r ; the r o t o r b e i n g d r i v e n by a 7.5hp(5.593kW)
induction m o t o r v i a a toothed belt, the s t a t o r c o n s t i t u t i n g the
m a i n f r a m e of the c o m p l e t e t e s t head. Mounted on the tube
e n t r y side of the r o t a r y t e s t head a r e four pad u n i t s s p a c e d
at 90 ° i n t e r v a l s . E a c h pad unit c a r r i e s one u l t r a s o n i c t r a n s -
d u c e r f o r m o n i t o r i n g the tube wall t h i c k n e s s and l a m i n a r
d e f e c t detection, and a n o t h e r u l t r a s o n i c t r a n s d u c e r f o r r a d i a l
d e f e c t detection. T h e s e t r a n s d u c e r s a r e mounted a l o n g s i d e
one a n o t h e r , one s e t n o r m a l to the tube s u r f a c e , and the o t h e r
s e t at 17 ° to the n o r m a l . E a c h pad unit c a r r i e s a h a r d e n e d
s t e e l plate c o n t o u r e d to the r a d i u s of c u r v a t u r e of the tube
u n d e r t e s t to m a i n t a i n the t r a n s d u c e r angle to the tube s u r -
face. The pad unit which b o l d s the t r a n s d u c e r s , i s s p r i n g
loaded so that it m a y m o v e r a d i a l l y to follow c h a n g e s in the
p o s i t i o n of the tube u n d e r test, r e l a t i v e to the a x i s of the
r o t a r y t e s t head. The e l e c t r i c a l c o n n e c t i o n s between the
t r a n s d u c e r s and t h e i r r e s p e c t i v e e l e c t r o n i c u n i t s a r e m a d e
v i a c o n c e n t r i c b r a s s s l i p - r i n g s and c a r b o n b r u s h e s , two
b r u s h e s p e r ring. T h i s a r r a n g e m e n t and choice of m a t e r i a l
e n s u r e s that the n o i s e l e v e l i s kept to a m i n i m u m .
T h e w a t e r couplant f o r the u l t r a s o n i c t r a n s d u c e r s i s fed
f r o m the s t a t o r to the r o t o r v i a two s e t s of s e a l s and then F i g 3 C l o s e trp of t h e r o t a r y t e s t h e a d with the w a t e r r e t a i n -
c h a n n e l l e d t h r o u g h the r o t o r to e a c h p r o b e unit v i a flexible trig c o v e r r e m o v e d to show the p r o b e unit m e c l m n / s m

n o n - d e s t r u c t i v e t e s t i n g A p r i l 1970 129
The pulses which are obtained from the clock pulse genera- c a u s e d a s the t r a n s d u c e r m o v e s o v e r the edge of the l a m i n a -
tor are counted electronically and then decoded by a 100-way tion, when s o m e of the u l t r a s o u n d r e c e i v e d by the t r a n s d u c e r
diode gate matrix. The information appearing at the output i s r e f l e c t e d f r o m the l a m i n a t i o n and the back wall of the tube,
of the decoder is fed to the twin-chart recorder. The re- c a u s i n g a compound s e r i e s of echoes. W h e n e v e r a s u r f a c e
corder produces two separate records on electrochemical l a m i n a t i o n o c c u r s , o r a m i d - w a l l l a m i n a t i o n d i s p e r s e s the
recording paper; this type of recording system being chosen sound energy, the s u c c e s s i v e r e f l e c t i o n s b e t w e e n the outside
because of its fast response time. The chart on the left-hand wall and the l a m i n a t i o n cannot b e r e s o l v e d , and consequently
side of the recorder is known as the thickness record, while a r e c o g n i s a b l e s e r i e s of e c h o e s i s not produced. T h e r e f o r e ,
the chart on the right-hand side is known as the geographic when the e q u i p m e n t i s unable to make a n u m b e r of s u c c e s -
record. The chart is fed forward at 10in/rain(254.0mm/min), sive t h i c k n e s s m e a s u r e m e n t s , the t h i c k n e s s r e c o r d is m a r k -
this speed being wholly dependent on the test head rotational ed by e n e r g l s i n g styli 2 and 3. T h i s facility i s a l s o useful in
speed. On the thickness chart, the width corresponds to the a s c e r t a i n i n g the d e g r e e of u l t r a s o n i c coupling to the tube
tube wall thickness, the record being produced by 101 fixed wall, which may fail, f o r example, due to a w a t e r f a i l u r e o r
platinum styli,equally spaced across the width of the chart. bad tube s u r f a c e condition.
The first stylus is permanently energised to m a r k a refe-
So that the o p e r a t o r may a s s e s s the s e v e r i t y of a p a r t i c u l a r
rence line on the chart which corresponds to the outside sur-
indication on the t h i c k n e s s r e c o r d , it i s n e c e s s a r y that s o m e
face of the tube. Every tenth stylus is energised for a short
period of time, every 2in(50.8ram) of chart feed, to produce idea of a r e a of the indication i s p r e s e n t e d . T h i s i s a c h i e v e d
on the g e o g r a p h i c r e c o r d . The width of the c h a r t r e p r e s e n t s
calibration marks across the width of chart, corresponding
the c i r c u m f e r e n c e of the tube and the length of the c h a r t r e -
to tenths of an inch, as shown in Fig 4. As each stylus repre-
p r e s e n t s the length of the tube. The r e c o r d i s p r o d u c e d by
sents 0.01in(0.254mm), the bank of styli represents 0-1in
100 fixed p l a t i n u m styli, which a r e e l e c t r o n i c a l l y s c a n n e d
(0-25.4ram) of tube wall thickness.
once for e v e r y r e v o l u t i o n of the t e s t head; s t y l u s n u m b e r 1
being a r r a n g e d to coincide with the 4 o ' c l o c k p o s i t i o n on the
If the tube wall under test is perfectly concentric at 0.5in
tube. W h e n e v e r an a r e a of thin wall, a l a m i n a t i o n , o r lack of
(12.7ram) thick, there will be 50 pulses counted in the time
t h i c k n e s s m e a s u r e m e n t i s r e a l i s e d by the e l e c t r o n i c logic
interval between pulse 3 and 6 each time the transducer is
c i r c u i t r y , the s t y l u s p r i m e d at that i n s t a n t i s e n e r g i s e d . In
energised, and this wiU be decoded onto stylus number 50,
t h i s way the i n f o r m a t i o n i s i n t e g r a t e d and a m a p - l i k e d e v e -
thus producing a single line down the centre of the chart.
lopment of the tube i s produced (see F i g 4). C a l i b r a t i o n
However, in practice the tube wall is always eccentric, so
m a r k e r s a r e again produced by e n e r g i s i n g e v e r y tenth styli,
that the resulting record shows a number of lines which
such that the c i r c u m f e r e n t i a l extent of the defective a r e a can
indicate the degree of wall thickness eccentricity (see Fig 4)
be a s c e r t a i n e d on a p e r c e n t a g e b a s i s . By p r e s e n t i n g the data
and as a result, thin walls can easily be recognised. In order
in t h i s way, the following i n f o r m a t i o n r e g a r d i n g a l a m i n a r
that the degree of eccentricity is easily ascertained, the
defect i s obtained:
stylus which represents the nominal wall thickness is blank-
ed out by setting the nominal thickness on selector switches. (a) w h e r e it l i e s in the wall
(b) i t s a r e a
If the t r a n s d u c e r p a s s e s o v e r a m i d - w a l l l a m i n a t i o n the
u l t r a s o u n d i s r e f l e c t e d within the wall of the tube between (c) i t s position in the length of the tube
the outside s u r f a c e and the l~mination, causing the t i m e
(d) i t s c i r c u m f e r e n t i a l position in r e l a t i o n to the
i n t e r v a l between p u l s e s 3 and 6 to d e c r e a s e . The pulse count
'4 o ' c l o c k d a t u m ' .
t h u s d e c r e a s e s and when decoded will e n e r g i s e s t y l u s No 25,
if the )~miuation i s exactly 0.251n(6.35ram) below the outside B u i l t - i n v i s u a l a l a r m s and audible a l a r m s , which v a r y in
s u r f a c e . In p r a c t i c e it i s n o r m a l to have a s p r e a d a s shown tone, a r e actuated f o r d i f f e r e n t defect conditions such that the
in Fig 4. The g h o s t p a t t e r n of the m i d - w a l l l a m i n a t i o n is o p e r a t o r ' s attention i s a t t r a c t e d to the c h a r t r e c o r d e r .

inches tube circumference

( dwided into 100 segments )
0 0.1 0.2 0.3 0.4 0.5 0.6 0.7 0.8 0.9
- I I I I I I I_I I I I i i I I

I I I I dl I'
i | 4 i I i 1 I
I
,la
"I I",
,
'1
,,;r
|
',T
d
'
~.
r,
llililllil;,," mid-wall
lamination

ILllil]tllllm'
-
2 lamination mid-wall
"6 propagating through
¢-
I I I
""" I I,
O InlUl l| -- ~ __ I I I I I I o I to inside bore
',',1 L- --
surface
r~'~[ I wall thickness lamination
i f eccentricity
,ii ,

llJi I ip
I ,I dill. ,, t areas of thin wall
i I I I I I I I i I I I ' I I I I I I

,I WALL THICK NESS ......

CHART
,I GEOGRAPHIC CHART
0.53in nominal wall
thickness

F i g 4 T y p i c a l c h a r t record~n E showing how the v a r i o u s t y p e s of l~mtn*~" d e f e c t s a r e p r e s e n t e d

130 n o n - d e s t r u c t i v e t e s t i n g A p r i l 1970
RADIAL D E F E C T DETECTION EQUIPMENT p u r p o s e of the two t r i g g e r l e v e l s i s to i n d i c a t e which d e f e c t s
a p p e a r to b e the m o s t s e v e r e . T h i s i s done so t h a t an
The e l e c t r o n i c e q u i p m e n t which i s a s s o c i a t e d with the four a t t e m p t can b e m a d e to r e m o v e t h e s e d e f e c t s f i r s t by g r i n d -
angled t r a n s d u c e r s (two leading and two logging) also o p e r a - ing, b e f o r e t i m e i s spent on g r i n d i n g the l e s s s e v e r e d e f e c t s ,
t e s on an u l t r a s o n i c p u l s e echo t e c h n i q u e to d e t e c t the p r e - which would b e w a s t e d if a s e v e r e d e f e c t c a u s e d the whole
s e n c e of r a d i a l d i s c o n t i n u i t i e s in the tube wall. The t r a n s - tube length to be r e j e c t e d . C o n s i d e r a b l e t i m e s a v i n g s a r e
d u c e r s a r e a g a i n o p e r a t e d in s e q u e n c e and e a c h t r a n s d u c e r , obtained u s i n g t h i s double t r i g g e r l e v e l s y s t e m . Audible and
excited at a p r f of 2kHz, t r a n s m i t s a p u l s e of u l t r a s o u n d a t v i s u a l a l a r m s a r e a s s o c i a t e d with b o t h t r i g g e r l e v e l s , and
an angle of a p p r o x 40 ° into the tube wall. The flaw s i g n a l s paint guns i n d i c a t e the longitudinai p o s i t i o n of the low l e v e l
r e c e i v e d by the t r a n s d u c e r s a r e p a s s e d to the e l e c t r o n i c and high l e v e l i n d i c a t i o n s , v i a a s u i t a b l e t w i n - c h a n n e l delay
unit w h e r e they a r e suitably a m p l i f i e d and gated and t h e n s y s t e m . The low l e v e l and high l e v e l b a n d s on the signal
p a s s e d to p u l s e height d i s c r i m i n a t o r s . T h e s e d i s c r i m i n a t o r s a m p l i t u d e c h a r t , a s shown in F i g 5, o p e r a t e f r o m the output
s a m p l e the signal a m p l i t u d e in i n c r e a s i n g 3V l e v e l s up to of the delay s y s t e m , c o n f i r m i n g t h a t the p a i n t guns did
27V, which i s just below the a m p l i f i e r s a t u r a t i o n level. The o p e r a t e for the r e q u i r e d l e n g t h of t i m e .
nine d i s c r i m i n a t o r outputs a r e c o n n e c t e d to a t w i n - c h a r t
r e c o r d e r which i s s i m i l a r to t h a t d e s c r i b e d p r e v i o u s l y . TYPICAL TYPES OF D E F E C T
On the l e f t - h a n d c h a r t , which i s known a s the s i g n a l a m p l i -
tude r e c o r d , the width c o r r e s p o n d s to a m p l i t u d e of the s i g n a l s F i g 6 shows an e x a m p l e of thin wail in a r o t a r y forge tube,
r e c e i v e d within the gate t i m e , while the length of the c h a r t and F i g 7 a m i d - w a l l l a m i n a t i o n . The e q u i p m e n t r e s p o n s e s
a g a i n c o r r e s p o n d s to the length of the tube. The 1st s t y l u s to t h e s e types of defect a r e shown in F i g s 4 and 5.
i s e n e r g i s e d p e r m a n e n t l y , while e v e r y t e n t h pen i s e n e r g i s e d
i n t e r m i t t e n t l y to p r o d u c e the c a i i b r a t i o n m a r k e r s . The 100
styli a c r o s s the width of the c h a r t a r e grouped in b a n k s of
10, except f o r the l a s t b a n k which i s subdivided into g r o u p s
of 5. The outputs of the nine pulse h e i g h t d i s c r i m i n a t o r s a r e
c o n n e c t e d to t h e s e g r o u p s of 10 styli, such that, f r o m left to
r i g h t on the c h a r t , e a c h b a n k r e p r e s e n t s a n i n c r e a s e of 3V in
s i g n a l a m p l i t u d e o v e r the p r e c e d i n g bank. In t h i s way, defect
s i g n a l s o c c u r r i n g within the gate t i m e a r e r e c o r d e d (see F i g
5). The g e o g r a p h i c c h a r t o p e r a t e s in exactly the s a m e m a n -
n e r a s d e s c r i b e d f o r the l a m i n a t i o n d e t e c t i o n equipment, the
c h a r t b e i n g m a r k e d w h e n e v e r the s i g n a l in the gate t i m e
e q u a l s o r e x c e e d s a s e l e c t e d level, known a s the low l e v e l F i g 6 T h i n wall i n r o t a r y f o r g e tube, 16in o u t s i d e d i a m e t e r
t r i g g e r . A s shown in F i g 5, the d e f e c t p o s i t i o n in the c i r c u m - by 0 . 4 i n t h i c k (0. 406m by 10. 16ram)
f e r e n c e of the tube i s i n d i c a t e d by l i n e s s i n c e r a d i a l d i s c o n -
t i n u i t i e s do not have any a p p r e c i a b l e a r e a . It should b e noted
in F i g 5 t h a t the t r u e p o s i t i o n of the defect in the c i r c u m -
f e r e n c e of the tube l i e s m i d - w a y b e t w e e n the two i n d i c a t i o n s
on the g e o g r a p h i c c h a r t . The r e a s o n f o r the two ' i n c o r r e c t '
p o s i t i o n i n d i c a t i o n s i s t h a t the two leading t r a n s d u c e r s
i n d i c a t e the p r e s e n c e of the d e f e c t at a skip d i s t a n c e b e f o r e
the defect, while the t r a n s d u c e r s which a r e lagging b e h i n d
i n d i c a t e the d e f e c t p o s i t i o n at a skip d i s t a n c e a f t e r the defect.
T h e r e a r e two t r i g g e r l e v e l s in the equipment, low and high, F i g 7 M i d - w a n |=m4noHon i n rotary forge tube, 14in o u t s i d e
which a r e s e l e c t e d by m e a n s of s w i t c h e s on the unit. The d i n m e t e r b y 0. 4in t h i c k (0. 356m b y 1 0 . 1 6 m m )

Low Level n High teve~

bond i r"
I band
Low Lever High Level ~ ~ Tube circumference
(N5t r n~ch)
igger -trigger
. . . . I~ ~
i , ~-(divdi edintolOOsegments)

i I I I i I I I ! l I ! I l i i i I k
J l l l . . . * --. =. -
I
..... .,,, ,, : . - __Radiat defect g i v i n g s i g n a t
~11 ellll ..
g r e a t e r t h a n t h a t fromNSnotch
~ " ' T r u e circu referential
posit on of d e f e c t

Radiat defect giving signal

="'"'" "- I+ "less than that 1=ram N5 notch
, ' , , , , ' ' ' '11, , , , , , , , ,
| |
IIIIIli I/ True circumferential

IIIILInlllTgLliu [/ Severe radiat defect pro.bobly

-greater than allowobte 12Y2%
depth

F i g 5 T y p i c a l c h a r t r e c o r m n ~ showing how r a d i a l d e f e c t s a r e p r e s e n t e d

n o n - d e s t r u c t i v e t e s t i n g A p r i l 1970 131