A novel simulation model for ring type ultrasonic motor

In this paper, a novel mathematical model for a traveling wave ultrasonic motor, developed by Alenia Spazio, now Alcatel Alenia Space Italia S.p.A. (Roma, Italy), within an Italian Space Agency (ASI) program, is described. The dynamic equations for the stator and the rotors of the ultrasonic motor are assembled into a differential system, whose equations are coupled by terms which represent interface generalized forces. Neglecting transient conditions, the complete mathematic model of the system is solved and an iterative process is developed, in order to obtain the motor’s running curves for different operation parameters, geometric dimensions and physical features of the system. The algorithm is implemented in Matlab environment and a graphical user interface is constructed for user-friendly managing. The model, also validated by means of experimental tests, can be used for parametric analyses with respect to different parameters, in order to optimize motor’s configuration. It represents a simple but powerful aid to determine final motor design that can satisfy specifications or to predict motor’s behavior under different working conditions.     

Interaction of ultrasonic waves with structural damage: A diffraction analogy

This study investigates the interaction of ultrasonic waves and structural damage, i.e., cracking and corrosion. It is shown that cracking and corrosion damage produces a diffraction pattern that resembles that associated with the traditional physics of wave motion. The extension of this hypothesis implies that it may be possible to use a simple ripple tank to investigate how to best detect/sense and size a given damage state, e.g., corrosion. We also find that cracking, and corrosion damage, has a significant effect on both the amplitude and period of the waveform and also on the local (apparent) refractive index of the material and that these effects have the potential to be used as damage indicators.     

Visualization of ultrasonic fields

The expressions for the intensity distribution of light modulated by an ultrasonic field are analyzed. Phase modulation and modulation in the geometric optics approximation are considered. The effects of both types of modulation on the structure of the optical image are considered on the basis of the Rytov theory of diffraction.Translated from Zhurnal Prikladnoi Mekhaniki i Tekhnicheskoi Fiziki, No. 3, pp. 190–195, May–June, 1975.     

A note on the contact problem in an ultrasonic travelling wave motor

In this paper we discuss the non-linear contact problem between the stator and the rotor of an ultrasonic travelling were motor. For a first simplified mathematical model the problem is formulated for a linear motor in which the stator is modelled as a Bernoulli-Euler beam and the slider (rotor) is assumed to be rigid. A thin layer of visco-elastic material is assumed to exist between stator and slider. Expressions are obtained for the contact pressure between the two parts. The frictional forces both in the sticking and in the sliding zone can then be easily obtained assuming Coulomb friction.     

A new method for probing the turbulence scalar spectrum by ultrasonic sonar scanning

 A new method is proposed to obtain a turbulent scalar spectrum and the energy dissipation rate in turbulent flow from ultrasonic frequency scanning data. A scanning sonar with frequency varying from 0.5 MHz to 5 MHz has been used to directly probe the energy dissipation rate ɛ and the three-dimensional scalar spectrum E _θ(k). Experiments were conducted in a laboratory open-channel flow in clear water with Reynolds numbers varying from 1.2×10⁵ to 6.9×10⁵. Good agreement is found between measured spectra and those predicted by the Batchelor theory. The energy dissipation rates compare favourably with those obtained from acoustic Doppler velocimeter measurements. Received: 20 March 1997/Accepted: 27 September 1997     

Transient high-frequency ultrasonic water atomization

An experimental study was performed to improve the understanding of the characteristics of ultrasonic water atomization when excited with waves in the MHz range. In the present experiments, small volumes of water were atomized, observing the temporal evolution of the process. Typical diameters of the resulting droplets are of the order of a few microns. To visualize them, images were acquired with very high magnification. Appropriate lenses were used to enable high resolution at a distance from the flow. Droplet size distributions were also calculated with a Malvern diffractometer. Droplet exit velocity was measured using particle image velocimetry. It was noticeable that, as the remaining liquid mass deposited over the ultrasonic transducer decreased, the atomization characteristics changed, and a second peak of larger droplets appeared in the size distribution function. This phenomenon is related to the change in the curvature of the liquid surface. Although results are not conclusive, it appears that, under the conditions in this study, some observations about droplet formation are better described by cavitation phenomena rather than by the simplified surface wave theory usually invoked to explain these processes.     

On-line force measurement to monitor contact lens polymerization

Experimental Techniques - Polymerization often causes a decrease in material density as monomers are cross-linked to form a dense matrix. This decrease in volume can induce anisotropic stress and...     

Reliability analysis of ultrasonic power transducers

Ultrasonic power transducers are commonly used in applications like cleaning, plastics welding or sonochemistry. Typically, the design of transducers for new applications is a tedious iterative process of design, prototype construction and tests. The transducers must fulfill the needs and restrictions of the specific application, as otherwise the transducer might be oversized or fail during operation. While reliability has been studied worldwide intensively in the case of piezoelectric multilayer actuators—driven by car industry which now uses such actuators in their fuel injection systems—nearly no literature is available for the reliability of ultrasonic power transducers. As well, manufacturers seldom present data about aging or lifetime of their components. To enhance the knowledge about typical failure mechanisms of ultrasonic power transducers under different load conditions, our contribution—as a first step—reports on a theoretical study on the reliability of common known ultrasonic transducers and gives some examples of typical failures and their influence on the characteristics of the transducer.     

静电陀螺监控器锚泊启动方法

静电陀螺监控器在海上应急启动时,要求载体等纬度匀速直线航行,这种条件很难满足.为此,通过分析静电陀螺监控器的启动原理和方法,完成设备在锚泊条件下海上启动试验.试验结果表明,锚泊启动过程中采取适当措施可使静电陀螺监控器在动态条件下完成启动和标定,导航精度接近码头启动的指标要求.这可在系统应急启动情况下降低对舰船航行工况的要求,为静电陀螺监控器在不同航行状态下的海上启动提供借鉴.     

A new technique for ultrasonic nondestructive evaluation of adhesive joints: Part II. Experiment

Transmission of a plane longitudinal ultrasonic wave through a lap joint immersed in water has been measured using piezoelectric transducers. The comparison between the measurements and theory developed in Part I was found to be extremely good for all five joints tested. Some preliminary work concerning the inverse problem was also carried out. The sensivity of the transmission transfer function to various joint parameters was studied in detail. These results indicate that using frequencies less than 10 MHz it should be possible to deduce the joint parameters from the measured transfer function to the following precision: ±10 m in adhesive and adherend thickness, ±0.1 percent in the adherend wave speed, and ±5 percent in the adhesive wave speed.Paper was presented at the 1991 SEM Spring Conference on Experimental Mechanics held in Wilwaukee, WI on June 9–13, 1991.     

A novel ultrasonic strain gauge for single-sided measurement of a local 3D strain field

A novel method is introduced for the measurement of a 3D strain field by exploiting the interaction between ultrasound waves and geometrical characteristics of the insonified specimen. First, the response of obliquely incident harmonic waves to a deterministic surface roughness is utilized. Analysis of backscattered amplitudes in Bragg diffraction geometry then yields a measure for the in-plane strain field by mapping any shift in angular dependency. Secondly, the analysis of the reflection characteristics of normal incident pulsed waves in frequency domain provides a measure of the out-of-plane normal strain field component, simply by tracking any change in the stimulation condition for a thickness resonance. As such, the developed ultrasonic strain gauge yields an absolute, contactless and single-sided mapping of a local 3D strain field, in which both sample preparation and alignment procedure are needless. Results are presented for cold-rolled DC06 steel samples onto which skin passing of the work rolls is applied. The samples have been mechanically loaded, introducing plastic strain levels ranging from 2 % up to 35 %. The ultrasonically measured strains have been validated with various other strain measurement techniques, including manual micrometer, longitudinal and transverse mechanical extensometer and optical mono- and stereovision digital image correlation. Good agreement has been obtained between the ultrasonically determined strain values and the results of the conventional methods. As the ultrasonic strain gauge provides all three normal strain field components, it has been employed for the extraction of Lankford ratios at different applied longitudinal plastic strain levels, revealing a strain dependent plastic anisotropy of the investigated DC06 steel sheet.     

A device for measuring the velocity of ultrasonic waves: An application to stress analysis

In this paper we present a device for the practical application of an ultrasonic critical-angle refractometry (UCRfr) technique. UCRfr is a technique for measuring the velocity of longitudinal, shear and Rayleight waves, developed to improve the traditional ultrasonic methods for measuring the stress level in materials by means of acousto-elasticity. The technique consists of relating the variations in wave propagation velocity to variations in the angle of refraction at the interface with a second medium. Variations in the angle of refraction are determined on the basis of delay in receiving of the same wave at two different points. The study deals with the measurements of velocity changes of longitudinal wave due to uniaxial stress. In the present work the effects of stress on aluminum and steel specimens have been studied. Experimentation has show the potential of the technique for stress measurement; on the other hand, when the applied stress is known, it allows the measurement of the acoustoelastic constants of longitudinal waves. As regards measuring variations in velocity induced by stress, using this method it is possible, with a suitable choice of the material the device is made of, to isolate the effects of stress on velocity from the possible effects of temperature.     

A new technique for ultrasonic nondestructive evaluation of adhesive joints: Part I. Theory

In this paper we proposed a new technique for ultrasonic nondestructive evaluation (UNDE) of adhesively bonded joints. We report an exact solution to the problem of reflection and tarnsmission of a plane, time-harmonic, longitudinal wave through anN-layered medium. The solution is valid for perfectly elastic as well as linear-viscoelastic materials, and for isotropic as well as anisotropic materials (for example, fiber-reinforced composite) so long as the wavepropagation vector coincids with one of the material coordinates. The transfer function,H ^*() is defined as the trans-mitted (or reflected) field normalized with respect to the incident field. A closed-form solution forH ^*() for the case of an adhesive joint (consisting of two adherends joined by an adhesive layer) immersed in an elastic fluid is derived. A detailed analysis of the sensitivity ofH ^*() to the wave speed and thickness of the adherends and the adhesive is carried out. An experimental verification of the analysis is the subject of Part II of this paper.Paper was presented at the 1991 SEM Spring Confernce on Experimental Mechanics held in Milwaukee, WI on June 9–13.     

Velocity profile measurement by ultrasonic doppler method

The ultrasonic velocity profile measuring method has been developed at PSI for application in fluid mechanics and fluid flow measurement. It uses pulsed ultrasonic echography together with the detection of the instantaneous Doppler shift frequency. This method has the following advantages over the conventional techniques: (1) an efficient flow mapping process, (2) applicability to opaque liquids, and (3) a record of the spatiotemporal velocity field. After a brief introduction of its principle, the characteristics and specifications of the present system are given. Then examples in fluid engineering for oscillating pipe flow, T-branching flow of mercury, and recirculating flow in a square cavity are described that confirm the method's advantages. Several other works under way by other investigators are introduced. A potential for in-depth study of fluid dynamics is demonstrated by several examples from an investigation of modulated wavy flows in a rotating Couette system. The position-averaged power spectrum and the time-averaged energy spectral density were used to study the dynamic characteristics of the flow, and subsequently the velocity field was decomposed into its intrinsic wave structure based on two-dimensional Fourier analysis.     

Film thickness measurement with an ultrasonic transducer

A technique for measuring condensate film thickness using an ultrasonic transducer is described. In the experiment, the condensate film thickness with R-113 and FC-72 (a fluorinert compound developed by the 3M Company) condensing on the horizontal lower surface of a rectangular duct was measured at several locations. From the measured values a power law relation between the condensate film thickness and the axial distance from the leading edge of the condensing surface was derived by regression analysis. Assuming a linear temperature profile in the condensate film, local and average heat transfer coefficients were computed from the condensate film thickness. The average heat transfer coefficients were compared with the values obtained by measuring the heat transfer rate to the coolant. The two values were within ±12% of each other. As yet there is no satisfactory analytical model to predict the local heat transfer coefficient even in the annular condensation regime. One of the main difficulties in modeling the condensation is the lack of a suitable model to predict the interfacial shear stress. With the measurement of the film thickness it is possible to determine the interfacial shear stress. It is hoped that the shear stresses so determined will lead to the development of a satisfactory model for interfacial shear stress with condensation.