Methods and systems for adaptive accuracy control of ultrasonic non-destructive testing devices

1. A non-destructive testing calibration system, comprising:

a first multi-axis robotic device having a first end effector;

a second multi-axis robotic device having a second end effector, wherein the first multi-axis robotic device can move independent of, and relative to, the second multi-axis robotic device;

a calibration assembly, comprising:

an emitter arranged on the first end effector; and

a receiver arranged on the second end effector, wherein the emitter and the receiver are positioned on opposite sides of the calibration assembly;

at least one data processor; and

a memory storing instructions, which when executed by at the least one data processor causes the at least one data processor to perform operations comprising:

performing a calibration scan at a plurality of ideal measurement points along a scan path of the emitter and the receiver, the calibration scan including commanding the emitter to emit a calibration signal and detecting the calibration signal by the receiver;

measuring, for each ideal measurement point along the scan path, a deviation between a location at which the calibration signal is incident upon on a receiving surface of the receiver and a location of the ideal measurement point with respect to the receiving surface; and

determining a corrected scan path based on the deviation measured at each ideal measurement point during the calibration scan.

2. The non-destructive testing calibration system of claim 1 , wherein the corrected scan path includes a first corrected spatial location for the emitter and a second corrected spatial location for the receiver for each measurement point along the scan path.

3. The non-destructive testing calibration system of claim 1 , wherein the emitter is an ultrasonic transducer and the receiver is an ultrasonic receiver.

4. The non-destructive testing calibration system of claim 3 , wherein the first end effector and the second end effector are configured to generate a fluid stream to couple an ultrasonic signal from the emitter to the receiver.

5. The non-destructive testing calibration system of claim 1 , wherein the emitter is a laser and the receiver is an optical sensor.

6. The non-destructive testing calibration system of claim 1 , wherein the emitter includes a laser-distance sensor and the receiver includes a reflector.

7. The non-destructive testing calibration system of claim 1 , wherein the emitter includes a laser-distance sensor and a camera, and the receiver includes a reflector and a visual marker.

8. The non-destructive testing calibration system of claim 1 , wherein the emitter includes a mandrel extending to the receiver, and the receiver includes a linear position sensor.

9. The non-destructive testing calibration system of claim 1 , wherein the first end effector is connected to the second end effector via a telescoping rod, wherein the telescoping rod is rotatably coupled to the first end effector via a first rotation sensor and the second end effector via a second rotation sensor.

10. The non-destructive testing calibration system of claim 1 , wherein the first multi-axis robotic device and the second multi-axis robotic device have six degrees of freedoms.

11. The non-destructive testing calibration system of claim 1 , wherein the emitter and the receiver are configured to be translated along the corrected scan path to inspect a body for a defect.

12. A method of calibrating a non-destructive testing system, comprising:

performing a calibration scan via an emitter and a receiver, wherein the calibration scan includes a plurality of ideal measurement points along a scan path of the emitter and the receiver, and the emitter is arranged on a first multi-axis robotic device with a first end effector and the receiver is arranged on a second multi-axis robotic device with a second end effector, wherein the first multi-axis robotic device can move independent of, and relative to, the second multi-axis robotic device;

measuring, for each ideal measurement point along the scan path, a deviation between a location at which the calibration signal is incident upon on a receiving surface of the receiver and a location of the ideal measurement point with respect to the receiving surface; and

determining a first corrected spatial location for the emitter and a second corrected spatial location for the receiver for each ideal measurement point along the scan path based on the measured deviation.

13. The method of claim 12 , wherein the corrected scan path includes a first corrected spatial location for the emitter and a second corrected spatial location for the receiver for each measurement point along the scan path.

14. The method of claim 12 , wherein the emitter is an ultrasonic transducer and the receiver is an ultrasonic receiver.

15. The method of claim 14 , wherein the first end effector and the second end effector are configured to generate a fluid stream to couple an ultrasonic signal from the emitter to the receiver.

16. The method of claim 12 , wherein the emitter is a laser and the receiver is an optical sensor.

17. The method of claim 12 , wherein the emitter includes a laser-distance sensor and the receiver includes a reflector.

18. The method of claim 12 , wherein the emitter includes a laser-distance sensor and a camera, and the receiver includes a reflector and a visual marker.

19. The method of claim 12 , wherein the emitter includes a mandrel extending to the receiver, and the receiver includes a linear position sensor.

20. The method of claim 12 , wherein the emitter and the receiver are configured to be translated along the corrected scan path to inspect a body for a defect.