Patent · US Expired

Method for quantitatively determining the width of a soft zone area of a partially hardened workpiece

US7423423B2 · kind B2 · utility

2Cited by
2References
26Claims
0Family size

Assignee

Inventors

Key dates

Filing dateSep 15, 2004
Grant dateSep 9, 2008
Priority date
Expiry dateSep 15, 2024

Classification

  • Technology area (CPC G)Physics
  • CPC primaryG01N27/90
  • WIPO fieldMeasurement
  • WIPO sectorInstruments

Abstract

Disclosed is a method for quantitatively determining the width of a soft zone area of a partially hardened metallic workpiece, which has at least one hardened and one unhardened area, by means of at least one multifrequency eddy current sensor. A single workpiece being individually is moved relative to the multifrequency eddy current sensor in such a manner that a spatially delimited eddy current field generated by the multifrequency eddy current interacts with the workpiece contactlessly, generates eddy currents therein which, in turn, generate a measuring signal in the multifrequency eddy current sensor, in which the spatially delimited eddy current field has a greatest extension oriented in longitudinal direction to the surface of the workpiece which extension is greater than the maximum extension of the soft zone area in longitudinal direction of the surface of the workpiece.

Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.