Acoustic detection of invisible damage in aircraft composite panels

The wing and body panels of modern commercial and military aircraft often consist of a three-layer structure in which two thin skins of fibre-reinforced composite or of aluminium are held apart by a much thicker core consisting of a honeycomb structure made from either folded paper-like material impregnated with aramid resin or from thin, folded aluminium sheet. A major maintenance inspection problem arises from the fact that impact by a heavy soft object has the potential to deflect the skin and damage the core, after which the skin can return to its original shape so that the defect is nearly invisible. This paper gives details of an acoustic inspection system that can reveal such damage and provide information on its nature and size using a hand-held “pitch-catch” device that can be scanned over the suspected area to produce a visual display on a computer screen. The whole system operates in the frequency range 10–30 kHz and embedded programs provide optimal examination procedures.