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	The Autogrid system automatically identifies uniformly spaced surface locations on straight and curved pipe where ultrasonic measurements are to be made.

Internal erosion and corrosion of pipes and fittings can result in catastrophic failure. It is standard industry practice to perform periodic ultrasonic thickness measurements to identify regions affected by corrosion or erosion and to quantify the rate of degradation. The standard method for defining the inspection grid for elbows, tees, and reducers involves a laborious and time-consuming series of manual measurements and markings.

Southwest Research Institute (SwRI) designed and developed a prototype inspection system that automatically identifies uniformly spaced surface locations on straight and curved pipe where ultrasonic measurements are to be made. The system addresses the requirements of case N480 of the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code for single-phase erosion and corrosion in piping.

What the Autogrid System Can Do

Capabilities of the Autogrid System include:

• Learns the size, shape, and orientation of the component to be inspected

• Computes the surface coordinates where thickness measurements are to be made

• Displays the measurement grid on a ruggedized laptop computer

• Performs noncontact (3-dimensional acoustic ranging) measurements of the location of the ultrasonic transducer held by the inspector

Upon operator command, the system:

• Records the ultrasonic signal

• Extracts the thickness data from the signal

• Annotates the display screen grid location where data was recorded

The Autogrid System automatically identifies uniformly spaced surface locations on straight and curved pipe where ultrasonic measurements are to be made.

For more information about our nondestructive evaluation (NDE) capabilities, the Autogrid System for ultrasonic inspection technology, or how you can contract with SwRI, please contact Glenn Light, Ph.D., at glight@swri.org or (210) 522-2218.

ndesensors.swri.org

| Sensor Systems and Nondestructive Evaluation (NDE) Technology Department | Mechanical Engineering Division | SwRI Home |

Southwest Research Institute^® (SwRI^®), headquartered in San Antonio, Texas, is a multidisciplinary, independent, nonprofit, applied engineering and physical sciences research and development organization with 11 technical divisions.

January 03, 2013