US 2010/0132468 A1 · Advanced Ultrasonic Interferometer and Method of Non-Linear Classification and Identification of Matter using Same

Abstract

An ultrasonic interferometer for the characterization of the matter (solids, fluids & gases) in a medium is described, along with a method of using the same. The interferometer accurately determines the travel time of the multi-frequency ultrasonic signal in the matter that is being queried. By carefully selecting the design of the multi-frequency ultrasound signal, various properties of the material can be derived using a trainable classification system to classify or recognise the substance, or state of a process. The apparatus exploits the normally undesirable higher harmonics characteristics of the piezoceramic transducer to gain penetration through a spatial-frequency window that is not suitable for the higher frequency signals that are required to achieve the measurements.

Claims24

Dependent claims

An apparatus for investigating a characteristic of a medium, comprising:

a transmitter for generating a multi-frequency coded ultrasonic signal;
a receiver for receiving the signal after it has passed though the medium;
a means for calculating the phase shifts of each frequency of the signal and a means for calculating an array of times of flight for the frequencies of the signal, wherein the array of times of flight for the frequencies identifies the characteristic of the medium.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Facts

Application

11/993,211Filed 27 Jun 2006

Priority

CA 2,510,97228 Jun 2005

Published

3 Jun 2010

Term ends

Not estimatedThe source records don’t support an estimate.

Classification10 codes

G01N 29/07
Analysing solids: by measuring propagation velocity or propagation time of acoustic waves
G01N 29/024
Analysing fluids: by measuring propagation velocity or propagation time of acoustic waves
G01N 29/348
Generating the ultrasonic, sonic or infrasonic waves , e.g. electronic circuits specially adapted therefor: with frequency characteristics, e.g.…
G01N 29/4445
Processing the detected response signal , e.g. electronic circuits specially adapted therefor: classification of defects

Advanced Ultrasonic Interferometer and Method of Non-Linear Classification and Identification of Matter using Same

Life of this patent

Advanced Ultrasonic Interferometer and Method of Non-Linear Classification and Identification of Matter using Same

Life of this patent

Abstract

Claims24