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MX2 Training Program 07 UT Configuration
MX2 Training Program 07 UT Configuration
UT general gain is applied equally to all focal laws within the group. It is
added to the sum gain that is explained in a later section for all focal laws.
The general gain is available in increment steps of .1, .5, 1, 2, and 6 dB that
can be changed using the increment + and keys.
The OmniScan MX2 has a dynamic range of 74 dB (1.32 Vp-p maximum)
independent of sum gain, focal law offset gain (ACG) and TCG gain that are
explained in later sections.
The gain function key is circled in red below and can be accessed in the UT>General
sub menu.
A short stroke of the gain function key enables the gain parameter to be modified in
the upper left display.
A long stroke of the gain function key opens the UT>General sub menu.
In true depth UT mode, the range is set for one focal law and extrapolated to the
others automatically based on the angle.
In the example to the below, the range of 0-40mm was entered while the 50 degree
focal was active. That equals 0-21mm in true depth for the 70 degree focal law. This
results in the typical S-scan pie shape display.
The advantage of the true depth display is that weld overlays are available and it is
easier to analyze the data.
The disadvantage of the true depth display is that is only uses approx of the data
widow and complicates the ability to use gates and set range efficiently.
For S-scan weld inspection a good rule of thumb for setting the range on a weld is to
select the last focal law (70 degrees) and set it for 1.5 X the weld thickness.
Generally the low angles (45-55 degrees) cover the middle and cap of the weld on
the 2nd leg and the high angles (55-70 degrees) cover the root on the 1st leg.
Depending on the pitch of the probe, this allows a single sector scan inspection of a
weld up to approximately 30mm from one index position. (One line scan)
In uncorrected mode the range for all focal laws is the same allowing 100% of the
data window to be utilized on the S-scan. (Menu>Display>UT Mode>Uncorrected)
A short stroke of either function key enables the parameter in the upper left display.
A long stroke of either function key opens the UT>General sub menu.
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The voltage selected under UT>Pulser>Voltage is available as follows for the first
generation OmniScan acquisition modules:
The voltage is not independently selectable for each group. What is used on group 1
must be used for all other groups in the setup.
Voltage selected is directly related to battery life and heat and should be set correctly
for the type and pitch of probe being used.
High voltage used on small pitch probes such as the Cobra can be detrimental to the
probe life and does not result in better performance.
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The pulse width is the duration of the square wave pulse used to excite individual
elements in the probe.
The MX2 acquisition modules utilize a negative square wave pulser adjustable from
30-500ns in steps of 2.5ns.
When the MX2 pulse width is set to auto, the pulse width is automatically adjusted
based on probe frequency using the following formula:
Pulse width (ns) = 500 / probe center frequency (MHz)
1 MHz =
500ns
2.25 MHz = 222ns
3.5 MHz = 143ns
5 MHz =
100ns
7.5 MHz = 66ns
10 MHz = 50ns
15 MHz = 33ns
20 MHz = 25ns
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The pulse width by default is automatically set based on the nominal frequency
of the probe and for most applications need not be changed.
Making minor adjustments to the pulse width to maximize signal amplitude is
sometimes beneficial and is the same function as conventional instruments that
have a Tunable pulser function.
This is most useful in low frequency applications for inspection of highly
attenuating materials and\or long sound paths.
Although adjusting the pulse width to account for center frequency shift due to
attenuation can sometimes increase signal amplitude, it will also desensitize
near surface reflectors and is not recommended for most applications.
Manual tuning of the pulse width should only be done by experts with an
understanding of the adverse affects.
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1 MHz = 500ns
2.25 MHz = 222ns
3.5 MHz = 143ns
5 MHz = 100ns
7.5 MHz = 66ns
10 MHz = 50ns
15 MHz = 33ns
20 MHz = 25ns
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In the case of multi-group inspection, the PRF takes into account the emission of all
focal laws on all groups. Group 1, focal law 1through group last, focal law last.
Again, a manual inspection even with multiple groups is fixed at 60Hz until the
number of focal laws or UT range is increased to the point where the PRF must be
reduced by the software.
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The PRF indicator can be seen above the readings in the MX2 display and in a
normal condition it is displayed in green text. PRF:60 as below.
The clock icon
in the upper left corner of the MX2 display indicates the pulser is
firing on clock speed as opposed to an encoder or scanner.
The mechanical wheel icon
indicates that the pulser is firing on an encoder.
When the PRF:XX is displayed in yellow it indicates not all signals are shown on the
screen, and in red indicates a condition where data loss and missed alarms are
possible.
The V:60 indicator correlates PRF to acquisition rate. Manual scanning (No encoder)
is limited to 60mm per second without data loss or missed indications.
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Below are the parameters that slow PRF in descending order of affect and how to
manipulate them to maximize speed. (Note: Some of these parameters have not
been presented yet at this point in the training)
When many specific features are enabled at the same time the MX2 may not be
able to produce the requested PRF. When this condition exists the PRF indicator
is yellow or red and requires manually reducing the PRF value or changing the
current condition.
Changing a parameter that is related to PRF may or may not change the PRF
value because the bottle neck for the data throughput can be different parameters
under different conditions.
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Receiver pulser.
Digital filters.
A-scan rectification.
Video filtering.
Averaging. Reject.
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Band pass
Low pass
The MX2 has a series of preset digital filters that include low
pass, band pass, high pass, and none.
Like in conventional UT, the receiver filters are used to
improve signal to noise ratio by cropping off portions of the
probes bandwidth.
Filters will decrease amplitude significantly but increase the
signal to noise ratio and should be selected prior to
calibration.
High pass
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RF Waveform
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The video filter enables digital smoothing based on the probe frequency and
is only available in FW, HW+, and HW- rectification mode. (Not RF mode)
The video filter is not available on the 32:128PR module when in PC mode.
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am
Be
Index Offset
y
la
De
Refracted Angle
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The reference amplitude can be found under the UT>Advanced sub menu. The MX2
default is 80% and can be set to any value between 1-100.
This number is relative to readings that compare the signal in gate A to the reference
amplitude used for calibration. It is typically used for code based flaw reporting.
When set to 80% is selected the peak amplitude signal in gate A is adjusted to 80%
by modifying the general gain for all focal laws.
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When the reference is set to on, the general gain is fixed and an adjustment
gain appears to the left of the gain value (6dB below). The gain applied to all
focal laws in the group is general gain + adjustment gain (19.5dB + 6.0dB
below)
This feature allows the operator an easy way to increase and decrease dB
for manual scanning without losing the reference sensitivity.
Adjustment gain cannot be modified in analysis mode.
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The scale factor is a non editable parameter that displays the compression scale
factor of the current group.
The benefits of compression are faster acquisition speed and reduced file size
without compromising A-scan amplitude data or flaw detectability.
A compression scale factor of 4 indicates that the most relevant point of every 4
points sampled at the digitizing frequency (100MHz) is displayed on the A-scan and
recorded in the acquisition.
The optimum scale factor is automatically calculated based on the UT range and
number of points selected for the A-scan and under normal inspection conditions
need not be adjusted. (MX2 default is 320 points).
A scale factor of 1 indicates no compression.
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MX2 A-scans are digitized at a fixed 100 MHz allowing high compression scale
factors without compromising inspection results.
Corrosion mapping, thickness readings, and composite inspections that require more
precise measurement on the UT axis can be optimized by manipulating the UT range
and point quantity.
The MX2 system defaults and auto scale factor calculation will provide excellent Ascan quality meeting the needs of typical code based inspections such as ASME,
API, AWS, etc in addition to precision crack sizing and similar applications.
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The point quantity parameter determines the number of points for all Ascans in the group. (The MX2 default is 320)
For every point on the digitized A-scan, an XY position is recorded that
correlates to time or distance vs. amplitude.
The number of points in the A-scan is directly related to file size and under
some conditions can affect PRF and scanning speed.
Optimizing the UT range for the inspection ensures that the maximum
number of A-scan points are distributed over the area of interest for the
inspection and the compression scale factor remains as low as possible.
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The higher the point quantity the better the resolution on the A-scan.
The point quantity is a compromise between file size and A-scan resolution.
320-640 points is sufficient for the most common inspections and ensures precision
readings.
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The sum gain is the gain applied to all elements in the focal law after summation.
Sum gain is automatically calculated based on the number of elements and does
not normally need to be adjusted.
It is independent from general gain, focal law gain offset, and TCG gain.
Manually adjusting the sum gain can result in the loss of vertical amplitude linearity
and should only be modified by expert users when necessary.
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