Integrated acoustic emission/vibration sensor for detecting damage in aircraft drive train components

Abstract

Diaphragm-type couplings are high misalignment torque and speed transfer components used in aircrafts. Crack development in such couplings, or in the drive train in general, can lead to component failure that can bring down an aircraft. Real time detection of crack formation and growth is important to prevent such catastrophic failures. However, there is no single Nondestructive Monitoring method available that is capable of assessing the early stages of crack growth in such components. While vibration based damage identification techniques are used, they cannot detect cracks until they reach a considerable size, which makes detection of the onset of cracking extremely difficult. Acoustic Emission (AE) can detect and monitor early stage crack growth, however excessive background noise can mask acoustic emissions produced by crack initiation. Fusion of the two mentioned techniques can increase the accuracy of measurement and minimize false alarms. However, a monitoring system combining both techniques could prove too large and heavy for the already restricted space available in aircrafts.In the present work, we will present a newly developed integrated Acoustic Emission/Vibration (AE/VIB) combined sensor which can operate in the temperature range of -55°F to 257°F and in high EMI environment. This robust AE/VIB sensor has a frequency range of 5 Hz-2 kHz for the vibration component and a range of 200-400 kHz for the acoustic emission component. The sensor weight is comparable to accelerometers currently used in flying aircraft. Traditional signal processing approaches are not effective due to high signal attenuation and strong background noise conditions, commonly found in aircraft drive train systems. As an alternative, we will introduce a new Supervised Pattern Recognition (SPR) methodology that allows for simultaneous processing of the signals detected by the AE/VIB sensor and their classification in near-real time, even in these adverse conditions. Finally, we will discuss the architecture developed to produce a fully autonomous monitoring tool based on the fusion of the AE and Vibration techniques.

Development of an automated assessment technology for detecting damage in body armour

“…Godinez-Azcuaga et al. 15 presented an automated damage assessment system for ballistic protective inserts using low-frequency ultrasonics. The system uses a large frame and conveyor belt to place ballistic inserts under cylindrical roller transducers that acted as through-thickness transmitters and receivers.…”