Patent Document ID: 20040089811
Application ID: 10292293
Patent Status: 0

Claim One:
1. A method of enhancing the determination of the presence of a surface breaking or subsurface defect in an object under test, the method comprising the steps of: sensing a first test image of at least portions of an object under test in an infrared spectrum; contactingly transferring ultrasonic energy at a preselected frequency to the object under test so that the ultrasonic energy causes an increase in friction in portions of the object adjacent a defect and thereby increases the temperature of the portions adjacent the defect; sensing a second test image of the at least portions of the object under test in an infrared spectrum; identifying a different brightness level between the portions of the object representative of the increased temperature and surrounding regions thereof in the sensed second test image so that different temperature gradients thereby define a determined presence of a defect; and comparing the sensed second test image to the sensed first test image.