Patent Application
20060038988
The present invention relates to a device for detecting a condition of a rotating part and, more particularly, to a borescope assembly incorporating fiber optic lines coupled with a strobe light source for detecting the rotating part condition.
Borescopes are commonly used for inspection of gas turbine engines to determine if there are any cracks or defects in rotating components such as the turbine blades. Existing borescopes are used to investigate internal parts of the units for cracks or overall integrity of the parts without the need of opening up the unit cover when the unit is cooled and not operating. Typically, the turbine engine includes strategically placed apertures into which a narrow borescope can be inserted. The borescope acts as a camera and delivers an image signal to a display. From the images, a condition of the rotating component, e.g., the existence of cracks, defects, oxidation, can be determined. Existing borescopes, however, are designed for static applications and are unable to view actively rotating components (e.g., turbine blades rotate 3000 RPMs or more during operation); as a consequence, the unit has to be stopped for inspection. The increased down time for inspection translates to increased operating costs. It would thus be desirable to provide a borescope assembly that is capable of inspecting rotating parts during operation.
In an exemplary embodiment of the invention, there is provided a borescope assembly for detecting a condition of a rotating part. The assembly includes a borescope disposed in a borescope housing. The borescope has structure that relays an image to an image viewer. A plurality of fiber optic lines are disposed in the borescope housing, and a strobe light source is coupled with the fiber optic lines. An image processor is coupled with the image viewer.
In another exemplary embodiment of the invention, the borescope assembly includes a borescope disposed in a borescope housing, the borescope including structure that relays an image to an image viewer. A plurality of fiber optic lines are disposed affixed to the borescope in the borescope housing, and a strobe light source is disposed in the borescope housing and coupled with the fiber optic lines. An image processor is coupled with the image viewer. The image processor receives the image from the image viewer and displays the image on a display.
Borescopes are known for inspection of gas turbine engines. See, for example, U.S. Pat. No. 6,333,812. As described therein, a borescope may include a tube having a distal end and a proximal end received within a housing or chassis. A side viewing in port is provided at the distal end of the tube, and a prismatic reflector is located adjacent the viewing port so as to reflect light from a laterally located object in the general direction of a longitudinal axis defined by the tube. The tube contains axially spaced relay lenses, which together comprise an optical relay operable to relay an image of an object being viewed through the tube to an image viewer within the housing. The image viewer may include an ocular lens mounted in a cylindrical ocular mount along with an eyepiece assembly. A dove prism may be mounted within the tube in order to correct image inversion resulting from reflection by the reflector. As noted, the structure and operation of a borescope are known, and further details thereof will not be described.
With reference to
The protective shield tube 16 serves to define a cooling path between a cooling air inlet 20 and a cooling air outlet 22. A cooling air pump 24 is disposed adjacent the cooling air inlet 20 for supplying cooling air to the cooling path. Other known gaseous coolants such as nitrogen may also be used. In some applications, e.g., in cooler parts of the engine such as inlets, borescope cooling may not be necessary, and such an apparatus could be constructed without a cooling path according to the intended use of the system. In this context, the cooling air pump 24 may simply be turned off or the protective shield tube 16 may be eliminated. Additionally, cooling air flow rates may vary per application by adjusting a flow rate of the cooling air pump 24 depending on the amount of cooling necessary (e.g., additional cooling for higher temperature locations, and less cooling for lower temperature locations). Still further, the assembly may be adapted via suitable piping and the like to utilize other cooling mediums, such as water or other liquid coolant.
With continued reference to
A strobe light source 34 is coupled with the fiber optic lines 26. A frequency of a strobe light generated by the strobe light source 34 is adjusted by a triggering mechanism or the like to match the rotating speed of the rotor or other rotating part, thus matching the frequency of the rotating part passing in front of the borescope 12. By matching the strobe light frequency with the frequency of the rotating part, the part can be inspected without terminating operation of the unit. Moreover, by slightly modifying the strobe light frequency and then re-matching the strobe light frequency with the frequency of the rotating part in order to illuminate a different part, all of the rotating parts (e.g., blades) can be inspected in a very short time while the unit is still in operation.
An image processor 36, such as a borescope camera or computer screen, is coupled with the image viewer of the borescope 12 and receives and displays images from the borescope 12. A tip end of the borescope 12 is disposed adjacent a window 38 attached to the borescope housing 14. The window 38 allows the borescope 12 to focus at the target. Typically, the window 38 is formed from a high temperature resistant glass, such as sapphire glass, that is brazed hermetically to the borescope housing 14. The borescope housing 14 is preferably made of stainless steel to avoid rusting and oxidation.
The dimensions of the borescope assembly of the invention can be customized according to an intended use location. That is, the borescope assembly is typically inserted into an opening in a flange of the device containing the rotating part 40 (
The borescope assembly of the invention incorporates fiber optic lines 26 connected to a strobe light source 34 and enables the detection of an operating condition (i.e., the existence of cracks, oxidation or other defects) of rotating parts, such as rotating turbine parts (e.g., blades) without stopping the machine from operating. Since down time equates to increased costs, by enabling inspection without requiring machine shut down, the structure thus saves time and costs in machine maintenance.
While the invention has been described in connection with what is presently considered to be the most practical and preferred embodiments, it is to be understood that the invention is not to be limited to the disclosed embodiments, but on the contrary, is intended to cover various modifications and equivalent arrangements included within the spirit and scope of the appended claims.
