Ultrasonic Optical Flaw Detector New Inspection Technique Visually Reveals Flaws Below the Surface

Shimadzu’s new ultrasonic optical flaw detector Miv-X can detect flaws on – and even under – the surface. Miv-X not only detects cracks, voids, delamination, etc. but also visually displays them.

Shimadzu has announced the European release of its new ultrasonic optical flaw detector: Miv-X. Unlike conventional ultrasonic flaw detection systems, Miv-X exposes defects both on and below the surface. It also provides a clear visualization of any flaws detected – another improvement over conventional systems, shares the company.

Distinct advantages of the Miv-X

• Improves inspection of both surface and near-surface areas: Conventional ultrasonic flaw detectors provide good results starting from 1–5 mm, whereas the new ultrasonic optical flaw detector easily shifts the starting point of accurate perception to the surface. This makes it ideal for analyzing peeling of coatings.

• Enlarges batch inspection area: Conventional techniques only inspect a restricted area, while the Miv-X utilizes the camera’s entire field of view to define the inspection area. This increases the observation field up to 400 x 600 mm and reduces total inspection time.

• Eliminates concerns about differences in acoustic impedance: Conventional tools find the inspection of materials with different acoustic impedance challenging. The new ultrasonic optical flaw detector successfully overcomes the impedance challenge and accurately detects defects in multi-material samples.

MIV = make it visible

The Maivis-Miv-X uses a new, proprietary Shimadzu light-imaging technique to visualize hidden defects. By combining an ultrasonic oscillator with a stroboscope, the target area is subjected to both continuous ultrasonic waves and laser-light imaging irradiation. By observing the inspection area with a camera, any microscopic out-of-plane displacement of the surface or near-surface is easily and non-destructively detected by using shearography (speckle pattern shearing interferometry). From the resulting discontinuity of the ultrasonic wave, any flaws can be visualized on the display.

According to the firm, this ultrasonic optical flaw detection enables the visualization of internal flaws that are hard to find using conventional ultrasonic testing – up to a depth of approximately 1 mm – including peeling of the bonding and adhesive surfaces of heterogeneous materials as well as paint, thermal sprays, and coatings. And it easily detects flaws in joints and bonding surfaces in research and development processes involving multi-materials, which are created by combining different materials to increase strength and reduce weight, adds the company.

Performance applications for industry and R&D

Due to its enhanced scope, depth and speed of analysis, the ultrasonic optical flaw detector offers numerous benefits for industrial and research applications in fields such as Materials, Chemicals, Electrical, Electronics, Semiconductors, Transport and Infrastructure.

These include:

• Inspection of jointing in dissimilar materials

• Inspection of cracks in a base material below a film

• Inspection of adhesive surface delamination between CFRP and stainless steel

• Inspection of adhesive surface delamination between CFRP and titanium alloy

Additional high-value features

• The Noise-Removal function simplifies flaw identification and provides a clear, high-definition image of the defects.

• The Dimension Display and Marking functions streamline the identification of defect position and size, and the simple user interface and clever assists like a display scale (ruler) enable easy and explicit presentation of the results.

• The optional Optical Zoom Set provides visualization of even smaller defects by decreasing the minimum detection size by a factor of approximately two (Miv-X standard: from approximately 1 mm dia. to 0.5 mm dia.). It also enables laser-optical axis adjustment, improving irradiation uniformity.

Advancing beyond conventional solutions

Shimadzu’s Miv-X Ultrasonic Optical Flaw Detector detects and visualizes cracks, voids, delamination, and other hidden defects in areas where ultrasonic testing is difficult, and which are normally impossible to check visually. With the Miv-X, anyone can quickly and easily perform a visual surface and near-surface inspection, mentions the firm.

These and its other advantageous features make the ultrasonic optical flaw detector the new benchmark device for fast, accurate and easy flaw detection on the surface and below it, concludes the company.

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