Under contract with the Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI), Southwest Research Institute® (SwRI®) developed a patent-pending flexible probe array (FPA) configured in a glove that can be worn by an inspector. The FPA conforms to the inspection surface and allows inspection of a wide region with each scan of the array. With this arrangement, the operator receives tactile feedback of surface profile changes and is able to adjust the pressure on the FPA to accommodate changing geometries.

The FPA approach eliminates the need to maintain probe alignment and the raster scanning needed with a conventional probe. The system has been successfully demonstrated at six operating power plants.

This product is the result of collaborative research performed by the Electric Power Research Institute, Inc.

Application Examples• Combined cycle heat recovery steam generator

(HRSG) tube-to-header welds

• Turbine blades and rotors

Features• Polyimide flexible printed circuit board probe array

◦ Low cost in quantity ◦ Field replaceable ◦ Reconfigurable for custom applications ◦ Replaceable ultra-high molecular weight (UHMW) wear surface for increased probe life

◦ Extensible to mechanized scanning systems

• Low-profile circuitry for ergonomic design

• Adaptable to multiple eddy current testing (ECT) instruments

• Configured to support the following instruments: ◦ Eddyfi Reddy ◦ Olympus Omniscan MX I ◦ Corestar Omni-200 ◦ SMART-2097

Wearable Flexible Eddy Current Probe Array for Inspecting Complex Surfaces

Wearable flexible eddy current probe and Eddyfi Reddy ECT instrument

On-site HRSG inspection

Customized flexible probe array connected to rigid adapter board (right) before attachment to cable from eddy current instrument

Southwest Research Institute is a premier independent, nonprofit research and development organization using multidisciplinary services to provide solutions to some of the world’s most

challenging scientific and engineering problems. Headquartered in San Antonio, Texas, our client-focused, client-funded organization occupies 1,200 acres, providing more than 2 million

square feet of laboratories, test facilities, workshops, and offices for nearly 2,700 employees who perform contract work for government and industry clients.

An Equal Employment Opportunity/Affirmative Action Employer

Race/Color/Religion/Sex/Sexual Orientation/Gender Identity/National Origin/Disabled/VeteranCommitted to Diversity in the Workplace

swri.org

SwRI Business InquiriesPO Drawer 28510

San Antonio, Texas 78228-0510 USA

ask@swri.org • 210.522.2122

©2017 Southwest Research Institute. All rights reserved.

Designed & printed by SwRI MPS 18-1017 258234 tp

We welcome your inquiries.For more information, please contact:

Jonathan Bartlett Jay L. Fisher, Sc.D.Group Leader Program Director+1.210.522.6099 +1.210.522.2028jonathan.bartlett@swri.org jay.fisher@swri.org

Sensor Systems and NDE Technology DepartmentMechanical Engineering Division

ndesensors.swri.org

Benefiting government,

industry and the public through

innovative science and technology

Onsite in-situ inspection of turbine assembly