Non-destructive inspection

What is non-destructive inspection using direct velocity mapping?

The DVM NDI technology offers a fast, non-contact, scalable and clean process making it very suitable to inspect large surfaces in an automated way which is a combination not offered by existing benchmark NDI technologies. The DVM NDI technology involves applying Lamb waves into a structure and detecting irregularities in Lamb wave velocity and/or amplitude as a result of damage using a Micro-Electrical Mechanical System (MEMS) array. The combination of advantages of DVM NDI make it very suitable to be used for in-line manufacturing and in-service inspections using robots.

Non-destructive inspection in manufacturing industry

NDI is currently widely used in the aerospace manufacturing and maintenance industry but may also be applicable to other sectors, in particular when stringent quality assurance requirements are involved. In Europe the aerospace manufacturing sector is tiered with tier 0 companies involving Airbus, Dassault Aviation, Leonardo, and Saab. Tier 1 suppliers include for instance GKN-Fokker, Daher, AERRNOVA and Premium AEROTEC. The list of subsequent tiers is quite extensive and within the Netherlands the Netherlands Aerospace Group has a list of members as an example.

Current research about DVM NDI technology

The research has shown promising results and in particular for defects that influence the Lamb wave pattern due to a change in thickness or disbonds/delaminations. Current research activities involve determining the operational design domain and improving the key process variables such as robustness, measurement and processing speeds.