Abstract:
A method of inspecting the surface finish of a component comprising providing an original surface to be inspected. A release agent is applied onto the original surface and an epoxy mixture is applied over the release agent. The epoxy mixture is allowed to harden into a replicated surface. Once the epoxy mixture has hardened, the replicated surface is removed and a metallic coating is applied thereon. The coated replicated surface is then ready for inspection.

Description:
TECHNICAL FIELD  
         [0001]    This invention relates to a method of inspecting a hard-to-access surface area of a component.  
         BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
         [0002]    There are many available techniques for inspecting metal surfaces such as optical microscopes and profilers having styluses. These methods work well for inspecting rolled steel or large surface areas where microscopes, cameras, and styluses are accessible. However, these techniques do not work well when inspecting the metal on internal surfaces or other hard-to-access areas such as gear teeth. Direct optical surface finish measurement of fine pitch gears is difficult because of line-of-sight problems. The adjacent tooth prevents the surface positioning perpendicular to the light beam. Angular positioning leads up to 20% loss of the reflected light. Replicas became necessary for fine pitch gears to get surface finish inspection without gear destruction. Further, these methods frequently require that a portion of the surface to be inspected be cut from the main article of manufacture and is thus destructive. A non-destructive method is therefore necessary to monitor accumulative damage.  
           [0003]    Accordingly, an epoxy-based replicating technique was developed. The technique involves applying a petroleum distillate, which contains 10 to 12 chain-linked hydrocarbons, to the surface to be inspected. Finely ground charcoal must be mixed with the epoxy to provide proper reflective quantities. The mixture is then applied to the surface. After the mixture hardens, the replicated surface is removed and inspected. This technique has certain drawbacks. The ratio of ingredients must be precise or the replicated surface will not have proper reflective qualities. Further, if the mixture is not completed in 30 seconds, the replicating properties are sharply reduced. Accordingly, a new replicating technique is needed.  
         SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
         [0004]    Accordingly, it is an object of this invention to provide an improved method of inspecting a surface in inaccessible areas without damaging the original article of manufacture and that does not depend on precise ratios of ingredients.  
           [0005]    The present invention overcomes a compromised encountering of prior art by providing a method for inspecting the surface finish of a component by first providing an original surface. A release agent is then applied to the original surface. An epoxy mixture is then applied onto the original surface over the release agent. After the epoxy mixture hardens into a replicated surface, it is removed. A metallic coating is then applied to the replicated surface and the replicated surface is then inspected.  
           [0006]    In another embodiment of the invention, the epoxy mixture comprises charcoal.  
           [0007]    In yet another embodiment of the invention, the step of applying metallic coating comprises sputtering a metallic coating of gold, aluminum, or silver. 
       
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0008]    [0008]FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a gear having a surface to be inspected;  
         [0009]    [0009]FIG. 2 is a fragmentary view of the gear in FIG. 1 to show a release agent being applied to the surface of a gear tooth;  
         [0010]    [0010]FIG. 3 is a fragmentary view like FIG. 2 to show an epoxy being applied to the release agent;  
         [0011]    [0011]FIG. 4 shows a metal coating being applied onto a replicated surface;  
         [0012]    [0012]FIG. 5 shows the replicated surface being inspected using an interferometer; and  
         [0013]    [0013]FIG. 6 shows the replicated surface being inspected using a scanning electron microscope. 
     
    
     DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT  
       [0014]    Referring now to FIG. 1, a gear  10  has a plurality of teeth  15 . In this example, the inside surface  20  of a tooth  15  is sought to be inspected in a non-destructive manner. Such inspection is critical to evaluate the gear manufacturing process and to evaluate the degradation of the gear caused by actual use. Because of the configuration of the teeth  15 , it is generally not possible to simply remove the gear and inspect it. Accordingly, a replica of that inside surface must be made and inspected.  
         [0015]    An inspector locates an imaginary target spot  25  on inner surface  20  of the tooth  15  for inspection. The spot  25  is picked as an original surface so that it can be consistently and repeatedly found for inspection or testing throughout the life of a particular gear or for comparing one gear to another gear. A release agent  30  is applied over the target inspection spot  25  using, for example, an eyedropper  35 . Various release agents can be used. Preferably, the release agent is a petroleum distillate containing aromatic and aliphatic hydrocarbons.  
         [0016]    Referring now to FIG. 3, an epoxy mixture  40  is applied on top of the release agent  30  which had been applied over the original surface. The epoxy mixture may be any commercially available epoxy. Preferably, the epoxy has a one-to-one ratio of resin to hardener. Similar to the release agent, the epoxy mixture may be applied by an eyedropper  45 . The epoxy mixture is applied within the confines of the underlay of release agent so that the epoxy mixture will not adhere to the tooth  15 .  
         [0017]    Charcoal  43  may be added to the epoxy mixture to provide some reflective characteristics for the replica. Preferably, the epoxy mixture will contain approximately 5% charcoal by volume but may also contain 0% to 30% charcoal by volume. Additionally, any powder that provides reflective qualities can be used in the same ratios.  
         [0018]    The epoxy mixture  40  hardens in approximately ten minutes for a typical spot size. Using larger or smaller spot sizes will affect the hardening time. Once the epoxy mixture hardens, it is removed using known methods such as by forceps. The hardened epoxy mixture has thus become a replicate  46  of the original surface.  
         [0019]    A metal coating  55  is then applied to the replicated surface  46  using deposition (not shown) or sputtering technique as shown in FIG. 4. In the sputtering technique, a source of metal particles  50  emits metal particles  56  toward the replicated surface. The deposition technique involves evaporating a metal in a container with the replicated surface. The evaporated metal then deposits onto the replicated surface forming a thin layer. Other methods of applying a metal coating onto the replicated surface may also be used. The purpose of the metallic coating is to provide a reflective surface to the replicated surface  46 . By using the metallic coating, the charcoal content becomes less critical and in some instances avoided entirely. The metallic coating can be any material that has reflective qualities but is preferably gold, aluminum, or silver. In order to view the minute details sought, the metallic coating is preferably between 10 and 90 angstroms thick, but more preferably between 20 and 40 angstroms thick.  
         [0020]    Referring now to FIG. 5, the replicated surface  46  is shown being inspected in an interferometer. There are many different interferometers available. All interferometers measure the difference in the phase of light reflected from the specimen. One example illustrated in FIG. 5 is known as a Twyman-Green interferometer. A laser and beam expander  80  transmits a beam  81  approximately the size of the specimen to be tested. A beam splitter  82  allows a portion of the beam  81  to pass through onto a reference surface  84 . Part of the beam  81  is reflected to the replicated surface  46  by the beam splitter  82 . The beams  81  are reflected back from the reference surface  84  and the replicated surface  46  towards the beam splitter  82 . The beam splitter  82  transmits the combined reflected beams  86  through an imaging lens  88  and a resulting interferogram  90  is formed. Using known formulas, the surface finish can be determined. The interferogram can be analyzed using a computer and color-coded diagrams showing the variations in the surface can be obtained. Other types of interferometers can be used. Commercially-available units from, for example, Wyko Corporation (now part of Veeco Corporation of Woodbury, N.Y.) and Zygo Corporation of Middlefield, Conn., are available.  
         [0021]    Referring now to FIG. 6, the replicated surface  46  having a metal coating thereon is then put in an electron microscope  60 . The electron microscope  60  comprises an electron gun  62  that shoots a beam of electrons  65  onto the replicated surface  46 . Secondary electrons  68  are thrown off of the replicated surface  46  and are received by a receiver  70 . The receiver  70  then causes a picture of the surface to be displayed on the display  72 . A scanning electron microscope has a magnification of 5 to 500,000 times and a resolution of approximately 10 mm.  
         [0022]    Optionally, the reflected surface can also be inspected using an optical microscope or a light sectioning microscope.  
         [0023]    Although the technique has been described for use on a gear, it is equally applicable to other components having surfaces which are difficult to access or are inconvenient to bring to a laboratory for analysis. By using this technique, a sample may be non-destructively taken in the field and inspected in a laboratory later.  
         [0024]    The technique may be used to inspect a variety of surfaces such as metal, plastic, or ceramic.  
         [0025]    While embodiments of the invention have been illustrated and described, it is not intended that these embodiments illustrate and describe all possible forms of the invention. Rather, the words used in the specification are words of description rather than limitation, and it is understood that various changes may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention.