Fast Measurement Technique Research Articles

A novel light field imaging based 3D geometry measurement technique for turbomachinery blades

This paper presents a novel snapshot three-dimensional (3D) imaging technique for fast turbomachinery blade geometrical measurements. The proposed measurement system employs a microlens array based light-field camera to capture 3D blade geometry into one light-field image, from which 100 new perspective images can be generated and the blade 3D point cloud can be recovered through sophisticated light-field rendering algorithms. The measurement accuracy is determined to be approximately by measuring a series of standard gauge blocks. Performance of the proposed technique is compared against a coordinate-measuring machine (CMM) and laser scanner by measuring a turbine blade. It reveals that the single light-field camera 3D measurement system can produce data point in with an average measurement accuracy of , which is considerably more efficient than the current CMM and laser scanning techniques.

Non-invasive measurement techniques for quantitative assessment of optic nerve head blood flow.

Diseases of the optic nerve head involving changes in blood flow are common. However, the pathophysiology is not always fully understood. Several non-invasive methods for measuring optic nerve head blood flow are available, but currently no gold standard has been established. Methods for measuring blood flow in optic neuropathies including colour Doppler imaging, retinal function imager, optical coherence tomography angiography and laser speckle flowgraphy are reviewed. Ultrasound colour Doppler imaging is a fast measurement technique where several different parameters, especially the blood flow velocity, can be calculated. Though used for many years in ophthalmology, its use is not standardized and it requires significant observer skills. The retinal function imager is a direct method where the haemoglobin in erythrocytes is visualized and blood flow velocities in retinal vessels are calculated from a series of photos. The technique is not suitable for direct measurement of blood flow within the optic nerve head. Laser speckle flowgraphy uses a laser light which creates a light scatter pattern in the tissue. Particles moving in the area causes changes in the speckle pattern from which a relative blood flow can be estimated. It is, however, not known whether optic nerve head microcirculation is measurable with the technique. Optical coherence tomography angiography uses multiple scans to evaluate blood flow with good reproducibility but often problems with artefacts. The technique is continuously being refined and increasingly used in research as a tool for the study of blood flow in retinopathies and optic neuropathies. Most of the conducted studies are based on small sample sizes, but some of the methods show promising results in an optic nerve head blood flow research setting. Further and larger studies are required to provide standardized and comparable measurements before one or more of the methods can be considered clinical helpful in daily practice.

Magnetic Induction Spectroscopy for Biomass Measurement: A Feasibility Study.

Background: Biomass measurement and monitoring is a challenge in a number of biotechnology processes where fast, inexpensive, and non-contact measurement techniques would be of great benefit. Magnetic induction spectroscopy (MIS) is a novel non-destructive and contactless impedance measurement technique with many potential industrial and biomedical applications. The aim of this paper is to use computer modeling and experimental measurements to prove the suitability of the MIS system developed at the University of South Wales for controlled biomass measurements. Methods: The paper reports experimental measurements conducted on saline solutions and yeast suspensions at different concentrations to test the detection performance of the MIS system. The commercial electromagnetic simulation software CST was used to simulate the measurement outcomes with saline solutions and compare them with those of the actual measurements. We adopted two different ways for yeast suspension preparation to assess the system’s sensitivity and accuracy. Results: For saline solutions, the simulation results agree well with the measurement results, and the MIS system was able to distinguish saline solutions at different concentrations even in the small range of 0–1.6 g/L. For yeast suspensions, regardless of the preparation method, the MIS system can reliably distinguish yeast suspensions with lower concentrations 0–20 g/L. The conductivity spectrum of yeast suspensions present excellent separability between different concentrations and dielectric dispersion property at concentrations higher than 100 g/L. Conclusions: The South Wales MIS system can achieve controlled yeast measurements with high sensitivity and stability, and it shows promising potential applications, with further development, for cell biology research where contactless monitoring of cellular density is of relevance.

Accessing quantitative heat transfer with Temperature Decline Thermography

Analyzing local heat transfer on complex components in fluid flows is crucial for the optimization of modern aerodynamical systems. Many flow situations like in gas turbines, are difficult to access and require fast measurement techniques which offer two-dimensional information with negligible impact on flow conditions. Therefore, a transient measurement technique based on infrared thermography is investigated to access local heat transfer coefficients without contact by means of a calibration. A flat plate in a free-jet is used as a calibration vehicle where results are compared to the flat plate Nusselt correlation in laminar flow. To transfer the observed linear calibration relation to different flow conditions, a turbulent boundary layer is generated and results are compared to the turbulent Nusselt correlation. Good agreement of converted measurement data and theory is obtained. Temperature Decline Thermography (TDT) was introduced by the authors to qualitatively measure laminar-turbulent transition. In this work TDT is extended to access quantitative heat transfer coefficients.

Continuous online process analytics with multiplexing gas chromatography by using calibrated convolution matrices

The development of fast and precise measurement techniques for process analytical technology is important to operate chemical processes safely and efficiently. For quantitative measurements of multiple components at a trace level, often gas chromatographic methods are used which have a response time of several minutes or of up to one hour. For fast changing processes, this can be too slow for efficient control. For reducing the dead time of a control loop by increasing the measurement frequency, a multiplexing gas chromatography (mpGC) technique for a chromatographic system exhibiting a systematic non-linear response has been developed. For mpGC, superimposed chromatograms are measured by injecting consecutive samples before all components of previous samples have eluted from the column. The deconvolution of a superimposed chromatogram yields a computed chromatogram which is an average over the single chromatograms forming the superimposed chromatogram. Such a computed chromatogram typically shows so called correlation noise depending on the degree by which the single chromatograms forming the superimposed chromatogram will differ from each other (non-linear response). A technique is presented to calibrate the convolution matrix in order to suppress correlation noise introduced by systematic errors of the chromatographic system. The remaining correlation noise in the computed chromatogram is then exclusively caused by changing concentrations in the sample stream. For the method presented here, the sample is injected five times during the run time of a single chromatogram. The computed chromatogram is obtained three times within this timespan while representing each time an averaged chromatogram over the last five injections. Therefore, the sample throughput is increased by a factor of three compared to conventional GC.

Fast distributed dynamic strain sensing using a modified gain-profile tracing technique.

Gain-profile tracing (GPT) is a useful strategy of distributed sensing in BOTDA technique for achieving high spatial resolution, which has not been used for the dynamic strain measurement previously. In this paper, we propose a modified gain-profile tracing (MGPT) technique for fast dynamic strain measurement while maintaining the advantage of high spatial resolution. This technique is based on a modified pump pulse modulation scheme and the slope-assisted demodulation method. The time consumption using MGPT technique for a single pump pulse measurement of dynamic strain is less by 25% than the conventional GPT technique. The spatial resolution of our BOTDA system using MGPT technique is 50cm and maximal frequency of dynamic strain detection could be up to 53.5 Hz for 248m sensing length. In the experiments, we measure two vibration events spacing 50 cm with the frequency of 14.0 Hz and 17.0 Hz in a 248 m single-mode fiber. The proposed method is a potential real-time dynamic alternative for distributed structural health monitoring.

Technical note: A rapid, non-invasive method for measuring live or preserved insect specimens using digital image analysis

The measurement of insects is an important component of many entomological applications, including forensic evidence, where larvae size is used as a proxy for developmental stage, and hence time since colonization/death. Current methods for measuring insects are confounded by varying preservation techniques, biased and non-standardized measurements, and often a lack of sample size given practical constraints. Towards enhanced accuracy and precision in measuring live insects to help avoid these variables, and that allows for different measurements to be analyzed, we developed a non-invasive, digital method using widely available free analytical software to measure live blow fly larvae. Using crime scene photographic equipment currently standard in investigation protocols, we measured the live length of 282 Phormia regina larvae. Repeated measurements of maggots, for all instars, were performed for several orientations and images. Most accurate measurements were obtained when maggots were oriented in their natural full extension. Killed specimens resulted in greater length measurements (Mean 1.79 ± 1.11 mm) when compared to live length. Herein, we report a technically simple, fast, and accurate measurement technique adapted for field and lab-based measurements, as well as, a simple linear equation for conversion of live length to standard killed length measurements. We propose this method be utilized for the standardization of forensic entomological evidence collection and development model creation.

Simultaneous calibration and inversion algorithm for multiconfiguration electromagnetic induction data acquired at multiple elevations

Electromagnetic induction (EMI) is a contactless and fast geophysical measurement technique. Frequency-domain EMI systems are available as portable rigid booms with fixed separations up to approximately 4 m between the transmitter and the receivers. These EMI systems are often used for high-resolution characterization of the upper subsurface meters (up to depths of approximately 1.5 times the maximum coil separation). The availability of multiconfiguration EMI systems, which measure multiple apparent electrical conductivity ([Formula: see text]) values of different but overlapping soil volumes, enables EMI data inversions to estimate electrical conductivity ([Formula: see text]) changes with depth. However, most EMI systems currently do not provide absolute [Formula: see text] values, but erroneous shifts occur due to calibration problems, which hinder a reliable inversion of the data. Instead of using physical soil data or additional methods to calibrate the EMI data, we have used an efficient and accurate simultaneous calibration and inversion approach to avoid a possible bias of other methods while reducing the acquisition time for the calibration. By measuring at multiple elevations above the ground surface using a multiconfiguration EMI system, we simultaneously obtain multiplicative and additive calibration factors for each coil configuration plus an inverted layered subsurface electrical conductivity model at the measuring location. Using synthetic data, we verify our approach. Experimental data from five different calibration positions along a transect line showed similar calibration results as the data obtained by more elaborate vertical electrical sounding reference measurements. The synthetic and experimental results demonstrate that the multielevation calibration and inversion approach is a promising tool for quantitative electrical conductivity analyses.

Formation and emission of hydrogen chloride in indoor air

To improve our understanding of chlorine chemistry indoors, reactive chlorine species such as hydrogen chloride (HCl) must be analyzed using fast time-response measurement techniques. Although well studied outdoors, sources of HCl indoors are unknown. In this study, mixing ratios of gaseous HCl were measured at 0.5Hz in the indoor environment using a cavity ring-down spectroscopy (CRDS) instrument. The CRDS measurement rate provides a major advance in observational capability compared to other established techniques. Measurements of HCl were performed during three types of household activities: (a) floor exposure to bleach, (b) chlorinated and nonchlorinated detergent use in household dishwashers, and (c) cooking events. Surface application of bleach resulted in a reproducible increase of 0.1 ppbv in the affected room. Emissions of HCl from automated dishwashers were observed only when chlorinated detergents were used, with additional HCl emitted during the drying cycle. Increased mixing ratios of HCl were also observed during meal preparation on an electric element stovetop. These observations of HCl derived from household activities indicate either direct emission or secondary production of HCl via chlorine atoms is possible. Calculations of photolysis rate constants of chlorine atom precursors provide evidence that photolysis may contribute to indoor HCl levels.

Motionless and fast measurement technique for obtaining the spectral diffraction efficiencies of a grating.

The measurement of the spectral diffraction efficiencies of a diffraction grating is essential for improving the manufacturing technique and for assessing the grating's function in practical applications. The drawback of the currently popular measurement technique is its slow speed due to the hundreds of repetitions of two kinds of time-consuming mechanical movements during the measuring process (i.e., the rotation of the mechanical arm to capture the light beam and the mechanical variation of the output wavelength of the grating monochromator). This limitation greatly restricts the usage of this technique in dynamic measurement. In this manuscript, we present a motionless and fast measurement technique for obtaining the spectral diffraction efficiencies of a plane grating, effectively eliminating the aforementioned two kinds of mechanical movements. Herein, the proposed solution for removing the first kind of mechanical movement is tested, and the experimental result shows that the proposed method can be successfully used to measure the plane transmission grating's spectral diffraction efficiencies in the wavelength range of 550-750 nm. The method for eliminating the second kind of mechanical movement is not verified in this manuscript; however, we think that it is very straightforward and commercially available. We estimate that the spectral measurement can be achieved on a millisecond time scale by combining the two solutions. Our motionless and fast measuring technique will find broad applications in dynamic measurement environments and mass industrial testing.

Identification of Interface States and Shallow and Deep Hole Traps under NBTI Stress using Fast, Normal, and Charge-pumping Measurement Techniques

We propose an identification method of interface state density (NSUBit/SUB), shallow hole trap density (NSUBht.S/SUB), and deep hole trap density (NSUBht.D/SUB), which were generated by negative bias temperature instability (NBTI) stress. NSUBht.S/SUB, NSUBht.D/SUB, and Nit were decoupled into recoverable traps and permanent traps through the proposed method. We analyzed which traps among hole-trapping charges and interface states constitute the main permanent damage component and have the largest power-law exponent with various stress voltages and temperatures. The power-law exponent of each trap showed that NSUBht.D/SUB and NSUBit/SUB lead to considerable timedependent degradation. Moreover, based on the recovery characteristics of each trap, 31% of the total traps became permanent traps and 77% of the permanent traps were NSUBht.D/SUB, which implies that NSUBht.D/SUB is a crucial factor, constituting the main component of the permanent damage.

Investigating Small-Scale Air–Sea Exchange Processes via Thermography

The exchange of trace gases such as carbon dioxide or methane between the atmosphere and the ocean plays a key role for the climate system. However, the investigation of air-sea gas exchange rates lacks fast and accurate measurement techniques that can be used in field campaigns, e.g. onboard a ship on the ocean. A promising way to overcome this deficiency is to use heat as a proxy tracer for gas transfer. Heat transfer rates across the aqueous boundary layer of the air-water interface can be measured via thermography with unprecedented temporal and spatial resolution in the order of minutes and meters, respectively. Either passive or active measurement schemes can be applied. Passive approaches rely on temperature differences across the water surface that are caused naturally by radiative and evaporative cooling of the water surface. Active measurement schemes force an artificial heat flux through the aqueous boundary layer by means of heating a patch at the water surface with an appropriate heat source, such as a $\textrm{CO}_2$ laser. For the active measurement approach the choice of the excitation signal is crucial. It is beneficial to apply periodic heat flux densities with different excitation frequencies. In this way, the air-water interface can be probed for its response in terms of temperature amplitude and phase shift between excitation signal and temperature response. This concept from linear system theory is also well established in the field of non-destructive material testing, where it is known as lock-in thermography. This article gives a short introduction into air-sea gas exchange, before it presents an overview of different thermographic measurement techniques used in wind-wave facilities and at sea from their early implementations. The article closes with a novel multifrequency excitation scheme for even faster measurements.

Development and Implementation of a Technique for Fast Five-Hole Probe Measurements Downstream of a Linear Cascade

Flow measurement using a linear compressor or turbine cascade is a well-established technique to characterize the flow in turbomachines with a certain degree of abstraction. A common way to obtain a general characterization of the flow is to measure the flow downstream of the cascade with a five-hole probe, obtaining, e.g., total pressure losses and flow turning. Pneumatic five-hole probes are used to capture steady or time-averaged flow quantities, if not specified otherwise. In dependency of probe geometry, measurement set-up and flow properties, such measurements can be very time-consuming. Various techniques, in order to decrease the measurement time, are proposed in literature but for certain applications the efforts required to implement such techniques can outweigh the enhanced measurement speed. In this paper, methods proposed by other authors are combined and extended to allow for fast or transient five-hole probe measurements at strongly varying flow conditions. The effectiveness of this method is presented for flow measurements downstream of a compressor cascade with attached and stalled flow (by varying the Reynolds number) as well as with steady and periodically unsteady inflow. The new method allows to reduce the measurement time by up to 90 percent without compromising measurement accuracy. In fact, due to higher spatial resolution, the flow downstream of the cascade can be better resolved with the new method.

Towards prediction of soil erodibility, SOM and CaCO3 using laboratory Vis-NIR spectra: A case study in a semi-arid region of Iran

Soil Visible–Near-Infrared (Vis-NIR) spectroscopy has become an applicable and interesting technique to evaluate a number of soil properties because it is a fast, cost-effective, and non-invasive measurement technique. The main objective of the study to predict soil erodibility (K-factor), soil organic matter (SOM), and calcium carbonate equivalent (CaCO3) in calcareous soils of semi-arid regions located in south of Iran using spectral reflectance information in the Vis-NIR range. The K-factor was measured in 40 erosion plots under natural rainfall and the spectral reflectance of soil samples were analyzed in the laboratory. Various soil properties including the CaCO3, soil particle size distribution, SOM, permeability, and wet-aggregate stability were measured. Partial least-squares regression (PLSR) and stepwise multiple linear regression (SMLR) were used to obtain effective bands and develop Spectrotransfer Function (STF) using spectral reflectance information and Pedotransfer Function (PTF) to predict the K-factor, respectively. The derived STF was compared with developed PTF using measurable soil properties by Ostovari et al. (2016) and the Universal Soil Loss Equation (USLE) predictions of the K-factor. The results revealed that the USLE over-predicts (0.030thMJ−1mm−1) the K-factor when compared to the ground-truth measurements (0.015thMJ−1) in the semi-arid region of Iran. Results showed that developed PTF had the highest performance (R2=0.74, RMSE=0.004 and ME=−0.003thMJ−1mm−1) to predict K-factor. The results also showed that the PLSR method predicted SOM with R2 values of 0.67 and 0.65 and CaCO3 with R2 values of 0.51 and 0.71 for calibration and validation datasets, respectively. We found good predictions for K-factor with R2=0.56 and ratio of predicted deviation (RPD)=1.5 using the PLSR model. The derived STF (R2=0.64, RMSE=0.002 and ME=0.001thMJ−1mm−1) performed better than the USLE (R2=0.06, RMSE=0.0171 and ME=0.0151thMJ−1mm−1) for estimating the K-factor.

Higher-order spin and charge dynamics in a quantum dot-lead hybrid system

Understanding the dynamics of open quantum systems is important and challenging in basic physics and applications for quantum devices and quantum computing. Semiconductor quantum dots offer a good platform to explore the physics of open quantum systems because we can tune parameters including the coupling to the environment or leads. Here, we apply the fast single-shot measurement techniques from spin qubit experiments to explore the spin and charge dynamics due to tunnel coupling to a lead in a quantum dot-lead hybrid system. We experimentally observe both spin and charge time evolution via first- and second-order tunneling processes, and reveal the dynamics of the spin-flip through the intermediate state. These results enable and stimulate the exploration of spin dynamics in dot-lead hybrid systems, and may offer useful resources for spin manipulation and simulation of open quantum systems.

On the Use of Luminescence Intensity Images for Quantified Characterization of Perovskite Solar Cells: Spatial Distribution of Series Resistance

AbstractPerovskite solar cells (PSCs) have made rapid advances in efficiency when fabricated as small‐area devices. A key challenge is to increase the active area while retaining high performance, which requires fast and reliable measurement techniques to spatially resolve cell properties. Luminescence imaging‐based techniques are one attractive possibility. A thermodynamic treatment of the luminescence radiation from MAPbI3 and related perovskite semiconductors predicts that the intensity of luminescence emission is proportional to the electrochemical potential in the perovskite absorber, bringing with it numerous experimental advantages. However, concerns arise about the impact of the often‐observed hysteretic behavior on the interpretation of luminescence‐based measurements. This study demonstrates that despite their hysteretic phenomena, at steady‐state perovskite solar cells are amenable to quantitative analysis of luminescence images. This is demonstrated by calculating the spatial distribution of series resistance from steady‐state photoluminescence images. This study observes good consistency between the magnitude, voltage‐dependence, and spatial distribution of series resistance calculated from luminescence images and from cell‐level current–voltage curves and uncalibrated luminescence images, respectively. This method has significant value for the development of PSC process control, design and material selection, and illustrates the possibilities for large‐area, spatially resolved, quantitative luminescence imaging‐based characterization of PSCs.

Laser ablation ICP-MS for impurity analysis in multicrystalline silicon wafers

Laser Ablation Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry (LA-ICPMS) is an important characterization technique for elemental analysis of solid samples. It has been extensively used for analysing geological and forensic samples, but its use for silicon photovoltaics has been limited. In the last four decades, detailed studies have shown that the presence of metallic impurities in silicon wafers is detrimental for cell performance and reliability. In this study, we explore the potential of LA-ICPMS to provide a fast, accurate and sensitive measurement technique for measuring metallic contamination in industrially manufactured multicrystalline silicon (multi-Si) wafers. A quick scan using a LA-ICPMS system is used to measure the gettering effectiveness of a phosphorus diffusion process. We observe that transition elements are more concentrated at the grain boundaries than within the grains of high-performance multi-Si wafers. Thus, LA-ICPMS could be used to monitor wafer quality during manufacturing. We also study the elemental compositions of regions of a multi-Si wafer that degrade to different extents during light elevated temperature induced degradation and observe that there is a positive correlation between the extent of degradation and spatial concentration of certain transition elements.

Potential of Laser Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy for analyzing the quality of unroasted and ground coffee

Coffee is an important commodity and a very popular beverage around the world. Its economic value as well as beverage quality are strongly dependent of the quality of beans. The presence of defective beans in coffee blends has caused a negative impact on the beverage Global Quality (GQ) assessed by cupping tests. The main defective beans observed in the productive chain has been those Blacks, Greens and Sours (BGS). Chemical composition of BGS has a damaging impact on beverage GQ. That is why analytical tools are needed for monitoring and controlling the GQ in coffee agro-industry. Near Infrared Spectroscopy (NIRS) has been successfully applied for assessment of coffee quality. Another potential technique for direct, clean and fast measurement of coffee GQ is Laser Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy (LIBS). Elements and diatomic molecules commonly present in organic compounds (structure) can be assessed by using LIBS. In this article is reported an evaluation of LIBS for the main interferents of GQ (BGS defects). Results confirm the great potential of LIBS for discriminating good beans from those with BGS defects by using emission lines of C, CN, C2 and N. Most importantly, some emission lines presented strong linear correlation (r>0.9) with NIRS absorption bands assigned to proteins, lipids, sugar and carboxylic acids, suggesting LIBS potential to estimate these compounds in unroasted and ground coffee samples.

An accurate automated technique for quasi-optics measurement of the microwave diagnostics for fusion plasma

A new integrated technique for fast and accurate measurement of the quasi-optics, especially for the microwave/millimeter wave diagnostic systems of fusion plasma, has been developed. Using the LabVIEW-based comprehensive scanning system, we can realize not only automatic but also fast and accurate measurement, which will help to eliminate the effects of temperature drift and standing wave/multi-reflection. With the Matlab-based asymmetric two-dimensional Gaussian fitting method, all the desired parameters of the microwave beam can be obtained. This technique can be used in the design and testing of microwave diagnostic systems such as reflectometers and the electron cyclotron emission imaging diagnostic systems of the Experimental Advanced Superconducting Tokamak.

Evaluation of dynamics of forehead skin temperature under induced drowsiness

Drowsiness is one of the leading causes of traffic accidents. A technique for fast and easy measurement of the level of drowsiness is desirable. The objective of the present paper is to evaluate the dynamics of forehead skin temperature (FHT) under induced drowsiness. With a precursory change associated with drowsiness from the FHT, which is a noninvasive measurement, drowsiness can be detected at an early stage and, possibly, traffic accidents can be prevented. In this study, the measured FHTs were categorized into five drowsiness levels according to facial expressions (Level 1 is awake and Level 5 is extremely drowsy). In an experiment, the thermoregulation process of drowsiness was represented by a decrease in the total peripheral resistance, elevation of the nasal skin temperature, and decline in the tympanum temperature. The experimental results showed a significant decrease in FHT for drowsiness Levels 3–5 compared to the rest state (Mann–Whitney U‐test, p < 0.01). Because FHT did not increase in accordance with the process for nasal skin temperature, FHT could represent both skin and core temperatures. The results suggest that FHT can be an indicator for predicting drowsiness. © 2017 Institute of Electrical Engineers of Japan. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Inc.