Patent ID: 8986778
Filing Date: 2015-03-24
Classification: G01N

Abstract:
1. A method for non-destructive evaluation of an article of manufacture, the method comprising the following sequence of steps: coating a surface of the article with a temperature-sensitive coating; stimulating the article with an evaluation energy that preferentially generates heat in the article proximate a flaw therein, producing temperature-induced changes in the temperature-sensitive coating that visibly indicate the flaw in the article, wherein the evaluation energy is selected and controlled for evaluation of the article; evaluating the article via the temperature-induced changes in the temperature sensitive coating; conducting a repair on the article using the temperature-induced changes in the temperature-sensitive coating on the surface of the article as a guide for locating the repair; wherein: the coating step comprises applying the temperature-sensitive coating in a grid pattern at a particular scale on the surface; and the evaluating step comprises evaluating the temperature-induced changes in conjunction with the grid pattern to determine a dimension of the flaw in the article.