1、Designation: E317 11Standard Practice forEvaluating Performance Characteristics of Ultrasonic Pulse-Echo Testing Instruments and Systems without the Use ofElectronic Measurement Instruments1This standard is issued under the fixed designation E317; the number immediately following the designation ind
2、icates the year oforiginal adoption or, in the case of revision, the year of last revision. A number in parentheses indicates the year of last reapproval. Asuperscript epsilon () indicates an editorial change since the last revision or reapproval.This standard has been approved for use by agencies o
3、f the Department of Defense.1. Scope*1.1 This practice describes procedures for evaluating thefollowing performance characteristics of ultrasonic pulse-echoexamination instruments and systems: Horizontal Limit andLinearity; Vertical Limit and Linearity; Resolution - EntrySurface and Far Surface; Sen
4、sitivity and Noise; Accuracy ofCalibrated Gain Controls. Evaluation of these characteristics isintended to be used for comparing instruments and systems or,by periodic repetition, for detecting long-term changes in thecharacteristics of a given instrument or system that may beindicative of impending
5、 failure, and which, if beyond certainlimits, will require corrective maintenance. Instrument charac-teristics measured in accordance with this practice are ex-pressed in terms that relate to their potential usefulness forultrasonic testing. Instrument characteristics expressed inpurely electronic t
6、erms may be measured as described inE1324.1.2 Ultrasonic examination systems using pulsed-wavetrains and A-scan presentation (rf or video) may be evaluated.1.3 The procedures are applicable to shop or field condi-tions; additional electronic measurement instrumentation is notrequired.1.4 This practi
7、ce establishes no performance limits forexamination systems; if such acceptance criteria are required,these must be specified by the using parties. Where acceptancecriteria are implied herein they are for example only and aresubject to more or less restrictive limits imposed by customersand end user
8、s controlling documents.1.5 The specific parameters to be evaluated, conditions andfrequency of test, and report data required, must also bedetermined by the user.1.6 This practice may be used for the evaluation of acomplete examination system, including search unit, instru-ment, interconnections, f
9、ixtures and connected alarm andauxiliary devices, primarily in cases where such a system isused repetitively without change or substitution. This practiceis not intended to be used as a substitute for calibration orstandardization of an instrument or system to inspect any givenmaterial. There are li
10、mitations to the use of standard referenceblocks for that purpose.21.7 Required test apparatus includes selected test blocks anda precision external attenuator (where specified) in addition tothe instrument or system to be evaluated.1.8 Precautions relating to the applicability of the proce-dures an
11、d interpretation of the results are included.1.9 Alternate procedures, such as examples described in thisdocument, or others, may only be used with customer approval.1.10 UnitsThe values stated in inch-pound units are to beregarded as standard. The values given in parentheses aremathematical convers
12、ions to SI units that are provided forinformation only and are not considered standard.1.11 This standard does not purport to address all of thesafety concerns, if any, associated with its use. It is theresponsibility of the user of this standard to establish appro-priate safety and health practices
13、 and determine the applica-bility of regulatory limitations prior to use.2. Referenced Documents2.1 ASTM Standards:3E114 Practice for Ultrasonic Pulse-Echo Straight-BeamContact TestingE127 Practice for Fabricating and Checking AluminumAlloy Ultrasonic Standard Reference BlocksE428 Practice for Fabri
14、cation and Control of Metal, Otherthan Aluminum, Reference Blocks Used in UltrasonicTestingE1316 Terminology for Nondestructive Examinations1This practice is under the jurisdiction of ASTM Committee E07 on Nonde-structive Testing and is the direct responsibility of Subcommittee E07.06 onUltrasonic M
15、ethod.Current edition approved Aug. 1, 2011. Published August 2011. Originallyapproved in 1967. Last previous edition approved in 2006 as E317 - 06a. DOI:10.1520/E0317-11.2Beck, K. H., “Limitations to the Use of Reference Blocks for Periodic andPreinspection Calibration of Ultrasonic Inspection Inst
16、ruments and Systems,”Materials Evaluation, Vol 57, No. 3, March 1999.3For referenced ASTM standards, visit the ASTM website, www.astm.org, orcontact ASTM Customer Service at serviceastm.org. For Annual Book of ASTMStandards volume information, refer to the standards Document Summary page onthe ASTM
17、website.1*A Summary of Changes section appears at the end of this standard.Copyright ASTM International, 100 Barr Harbor Drive, PO Box C700, West Conshohocken, PA 19428-2959, United States.E1324 Guide for Measuring Some Electronic Characteris-tics of Ultrasonic Examination Instruments2.2 Other Stand
18、ard:IEEE Std 100 IEEE Standard Dictionary of Electrical andElectronic Terms43. Terminology3.1 DefinitionsFor definitions of terms used in this prac-tice see Terminology E1316. Other relevant definitions may befound in IEEE Standard 100.4. Summary of Practice4.1 An examination system to be evaluated
19、comprises anultrasonic pulse-echo instrument, search unit, interconnectingcables, and couplant; for immersion examination systemssuitable fixturing is required.4.2 When checking an entire system to be used for a givenexamination, test conditions are selected that are consistentwith the intended end-
20、use as determined by the user.4.3 The ultrasonic response from appropriate test blocks isobtained, and presented in numerical or graphical form.5. Significance and Use5.1 This practice describes procedures applicable to bothshop and field conditions. More comprehensive or precisemeasurements of the
21、characteristics of complete systems andtheir components will generally require laboratory techniquesand electronic equipment such as oscilloscopes and signalgenerators. Substitution of these methods is not precludedwhere appropriate; however, their usage is not within the scopeof this practice.5.2 T
22、his document does not establish system acceptancelimits, nor is it intended as a comprehensive equipmentspecification.5.3 While several important characteristics are included,others of possible significance in some applications are notcovered.5.4 Since the parameters to be evaluated and the applicab
23、letest conditions must be specified, this practice shall be pre-scribed only by those familiar with ultrasonic NDT technologyand the required tests shall be performed either by such aqualified person or under his supervision.5.5 Implementation may require more detailed proceduralinstructions in the
24、format of the using facility.5.6 In the case of evaluation of a complete system selectionof the specific tests to be made should be done cautiously; if therelated parameters are not critical in the intended application,then their inclusion may be unjustified. For example, verticallinearity may be ir
25、relevant for a go/no-go test with a flaw gatealarm, while horizontal linearity might be required only foraccurate flaw-depth or thickness measurement from the displayscreen.5.7 No frequency of system evaluation or calibration isrecommended or implied. This is the prerogative of the usingparties and
26、is dependent on application, environment, andstability of equipment.5.8 Certain sections are applicable only to instrumentshaving receiver gain controls calibrated in decibels (dB). Whilethese may sometimes be designated “gain,” “attenuator,” or“sensitivity” on various instruments, the term “gain co
27、ntrols”will be used in this practice in referring to those whichspecifically control instrument receiver gain but not includingreject, electronic distance-amplitude compensation, or auto-matic gain control.5.9 These procedures can generally be applied to anycombination of instrument and search unit
28、of the commonlyused types and frequencies, and to most straight-beam exami-nation, either contact or immersed. Certain sections are alsocompatible with angle-beam, wheel, delay-line, and dual-search unit techniques. Their use, however, should be mutuallyagreed upon and so identified in the test repo
29、rt.5.10 The validity of the results obtained will depend on theprecision of the instrument display readings. This is assumed tobe 60.04 in. (61 mm), yielding between 1 % and 2 % of fullscale (fs) readability for available instrumentation havingsuitable screen graticules and display sharpness.6. Proc
30、edures for Obtaining Ultrasonic Response Data6.1 General:6.1.1 A procedure, using this document as a guide, shouldbe prepared for each specific type of instrument or system to beevaluated. For each procedure determine from the requestingdocuments the instrument examination range to be evaluated,sele
31、ct the appropriate search unit, fixtures, and test blocks, andestablish the required display conditions. Unless otherwiserequired, mid-range values are suggested for most panelcontrols and “reject” must be off unless specifically desired tobe evaluated. It may be desirable to vary the instrumentcont
32、rols from these initial values. If so, it is important toobserve and report any anomalous effects on the parametersbeing evaluated when the controls are so varied.6.1.2 When a procedure requires a change in receiver gainby the use of a calibrated control, it is assumed that thosewhich increase sensi
33、tivity with higher panel readings aredesignated “gain” and those which decrease sensitivity withhigher readings are designated “attenuation.” Fine (reference)gain controls, when available, are sometimes not calibrated indecibels and increase sensitivity with clockwise rotation.6.1.3 Although the pro
34、cedures in this practice do not de-scribe the use of electronic distance-amplitude compensation,its use is not precluded. If it is used to affect any one orcombination of characteristics, measured under this document,then all characteristics shall be evaluated with the same level ofcompensation as w
35、as used on any one, and this level should bereferenced in the report. If desired by the using parties, a dualset of test data may be made both with and without distance-amplitude compensation.6.1.4 If the display screen does not provide a suitableinternal graticule, and deflection measurements are b
36、eingmade, fix the eye relative to the external scale to minimizeparallax. This practice assumes reading precision of within 2 %of full scale. If, for any reason, this is not feasible for thesystem under test, estimate the probable accuracy and includethis in the report. Readability can sometimes be
37、improved by4Published by Wiley-Interscience, New York, NY.E317 112the use of an external scale attached to the display screenhaving 50 or 100 divisions for full scale.6.1.5 For instruments that provide digital readout of signalamplitude, the manufacturers specified accuracy, if available,shall be no
38、ted in the report.6.1.6 When tests are being done by the contact method,position the search unit securely and make certain that couplantchanges are not measurably affecting the results. Refer also toPractice E114.6.1.7 When using the immersion method, allow adequatetime for thermal stabilization; re
39、move bubbles and particlesfrom search unit and test surfaces; maintain the search-unitmanipulator and test blocks in stable positions.6.2 Horizontal Limit and Linearity:6.2.1 Significance Horizontal limit and linearity havesignificance when determination of depth of a discontinuity isrequired. A spe
40、cified minimum trace length is usually neces-sary to obtain the horizontal readability desired. Nonlinearityof sweep trace may affect accuracy of flaw depth or thicknessdetermination made directly from the display screen.6.2.2 ApparatusA test block is required that will giveseveral (preferably eleve
41、n) noninterfering multiple back reflec-tions for the sweep range and other test conditions of interest(see Fig. 1). Any block having good ultrasonic transmittivity,flat parallel faces, and a thickness of about one tenth of thespecified sweep range will usually be adequate. The aluminumblocks shown i
42、n Table 1 will be satisfactory for mid-rangefrequencies and sweep settings on most instruments when thebeam is directed through the thickness T. For other testfrequencies or very large search units, different block dimen-sions or other block designs may be required to eliminateinterferences. The cou
43、plant system used, either contact orimmersed, must provide stable indications during the measure-ments. A horizontal scale permitting reading accuracy asspecified in 6.1.4 is required or, if provided, digital readout ofdepth indication may be used.NOTE 1An encapsulated transducer-targets assembly ma
44、y be used forthis purpose.6.2.3 ProcedureCouple the appropriate block to thesearch unit so that the sound beam does not intercept any testholes. Adjust the instrument gain, sweep-delay, and sweep-length controls to display eleven noninterfering back reflec-tions. Set the amplitude of each back refle
45、ction at 50 % fsbefore measurement of its position. Further adjust the sweepcontrols (range, centering, or delay) to position the leadingedge of the third and ninth back reflections at the 20 % and80 % scale divisions respectively (with each set in turn at 50 %fs). After the third and ninth back ref
46、lections are positionedaccurately on the 20 % and 80 % divisions as described, readand record the scale positions of each other multiple. Alterna-tively, if sweep-delay is not available, position the second andeighth back reflections at the 20 % and 80 % scale divisionsrespectively; read and record
47、the scale positions of the initialpulse start and of the remaining multiples. To calibrate thedigital readout of horizontal position on instruments soequipped this procedure will require positioning a “gate” toprovide an indication from each desired reflection.NOTE 2Either more or fewer reflections
48、can be used by suitablymodifying the procedure. For example, six back reflections may be usedif interference echoes are obtained with eleven, in which case the secondback reflection is positioned at the 20 % scale division and the fifth backreflection at the 80 % scale division. Measurement of the h
49、orizontalposition of each multiple echo, should be made at the same amplitude onthe leading edge of the indication. Any specific value may be selected ifit is used consistently. Typically used values are baseline break, halfamplitude, or signal peak.6.2.4 Interpretation of Data:6.2.4.1 Horizontal limit is given by the maximum availabletrace length falling within the display graticule lines or thecorresponding digital output limits expressed in linear units(inches or millimetres). Unless otherwise noted, this is alsoassumed to represent 100 % fs. Failure to obtain full-scaled
