Patent ID: 8701494

Claim:
A nondestructive evaluation apparatus for use in responding to surface displacements caused by ultrasonic waves on a surface of a material or structure under test, the apparatus comprising: a dimensionally stable conformable flexible sheet or pad or panel having attached thereto a plurality of optical waveguides, each optical waveguide comprising a plurality of spaced apart acousto-optical transducers adapted to be placed in mechanical contact with the surface under test and to respond to surface displacements of the surface of the structure under test caused by ultrasonic wave energy in the structure by modulation of the wavelength of optical energy transiting the transducer and is communicated through the waveguides to enable processing of the optical modulation of each transducer; one or more ultrasonic wave sources adapted to inject ultrasonic vibration into the structure and thereby on the surface on which the transducers are positioned; the transducers being located on the sheet or pad in known spatial relationship to each other and to the one or more ultrasonic wave sources; means for receiving from the waveguides and processing the optical modulation of the transducers caused by the ultrasonic vibration of the surface for reconstruction of the distribution of ultrasonic wave variations across the surface and determining therefrom information about structural characteristics of the structure under test and providing such information to users.