Patent ID: 7409848
Filing Date: 2008-08-12
Classification: G01N

Abstract:
1. An apparatus for bulge testing an article comprising a pressure vessel arranged to define a chamber, the pressure vessel having a first aperture and a second aperture, means to pressurise the chamber, means to measure the deflection of the article, means to measure the pressure in the pressure vessel and means to determine material properties of the article using the measurements of pressure in the pressure vessel and the measurements of deflection of the article, a piston being arranged to move within the pressure vessel, the chamber being filled with a fluid, the means to pressurise the pressure vessel comprising a gun arranged to fire a projectile to strike the piston to produce a high pressure in the fluid in the chamber in the pressure vessel to deform the article, whereby in use the article being arranged over the first aperture in the pressure vessel to seal the pressure vessel wherein the means to measure the deflection of the article comprises at least one high-speed high-resolution camera and two mirrors arranged at different angles relative to the surface of the article in order to produce a stereoscopic view of the article, each mirror being arranged to focus on a respective portion of the image plane of the camera.