Programmed controller for ultrasonic testing

In a system for ultrasonically testing the material of a turbine rotor including at least one electronically controlled crystal transducer;

• a drive unit operative to axially insertably index said at least one crystal transducer within the bore of said turbine rotor under test in predetermined increments while arcuately rotating said at least one crystal transducer about the longitudinal axis of the rotor bore through a predetermined angle for each predetermined incremental index;
• and an electronic ultrasonic tester for activating said at least one crystal transducer at various indexed axial positions and angular orientations thereof within said rotor bore to transmit ultrasonic signals into said turbine rotor material and for receiving electrical signals from said at least one crysal transducer which are representative of back reflected echo signals corresponding to each transmitted ultrasonic signal, said ultrasonic tester being operative to generate measurable parameter test data signals including a first signal representative of the amplitude of the back reflected echo signal received from the at least one crystal transducer, a second signal which is representative of the depth location within the rotor material concurrently corresponding to an instantaneous amplitude value of said first signal, and at times, an anomaly indication which is representative of said first signal exceeding a preset reference threshold amplitude level, said anomaly indication representing the detection of a potential imperfection in said turbine rotor material, said drive unit being further operative to generate test data signals representative of measurable parameters including said axial position of the at least one crystal transducer within the rotor bore and the angular orientation thereof about the longitudinal axis of the rotor bore related to determining the location of a detected potential imperfection in said turbine rotor bore, the improvement comprising a programmed electronic controller including;
• a memory unit for storing a plurality of programmed sets of instructions and data digital words which characterize the operation of said programmed electronic controller;
• a microprocessor means operative to process said plurality of programmed sets of instructions and data digital words stored in said memory unit;
• first means for electrically coupling said ultrasonic tester to said programmed electronic controller to coordinate the exchange of digital information therebetween in accordance with the processing operations of said microprocessor means, said first means being governed by said microprocessor means at predetermined times during the ultrasonic testing operation to observe said measurable parameter test data signals including said first and second signals and anomaly indications generated by said ultrasonic tester;
• second means for electrically coupling said drive unit to said programmed electronic controller to coordinate the exchange of digital information therebetween in accordance with the processing operations of said microprocessor means, said second means being governed by said microprocessor means at predetermined times during the ultrasonic testing operations to observe said measurble test data signals including said axial position and angular orientations of said at least one crystal transducer generated by said drive unit and to adaptively control the drive unit in accordance with the values of the measured test data signals observed from said drive unit and ultrasonic tester and, at times, said generated anomaly indications;
• and
• an operator interactive device electrically coupled to said programmed electronic controller to coordinate the exchange of digital information therebetween in accordance with the processing operations of said microprocessor means, said operator interactive device being operative to enter instructional and initialization test information to said programmed electronic controller and to record ultrasonic test data resulting from the operation of the programmed electronic controller as governed by the microprocessor means included therein.