Pulse-Echo Probe Mounting Fixture for Blind Alignment on Pipes

The probe and its mounting fixture are critical parts of the health monitoring of steam pipes. A high-temperature, piezoelectric transducer generates and receives ultrasonic waves, and the probe has to transmit the wave normal to the pipe surface. The mounting fixture is designed to allow for alignment of the probe even without a reference reflection, and thus enables blind alignment. In order to allow aligning of the probe normal to the surface of potential water condensation, and to secure intimate contact to the pipe surface, a novel mounting fixture was conceived and developed.