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In May 1991, the San Antonio Air Logistics Center sponsored a study to investigate the feasibility of standardizing fuel quantity indicating systems (FQISs) in existing US Air Force aircraft. The study resulted in a recommendation that FQISs be standardized and employ ultrasonic technology and a centralized processing architecture. The author describes the modernization and evolution of fuel quantity indicating systems, highlights selected aspects of the study, including an evaluation of new technologies used in fuel quantity sensing and an evaluation of tradeoffs between distributed and centralized processing architectures, proposes a standard FQIS, and projects trends in FQISs in military aircraft over the next decade. >

The usage of ultrasonic oscillations energy for a nucleus pulposus disintegration of intervertebral disks allows to approach to treatment of a spine less radically and traumatically. On the chair of an industrial and medical electronics of Tomsk polytechnic university together with the chair of outpatient polyclinic help of Tomsk military-medical academy the experimental sample of ultrasonic surgical eliminator with following acoustic parameters was designed: signal frequency is 22 kHz, signal swing is 20-100 microns, power is 30-70 W/cm/sup 2/. The device is designed on the basis of a piezoelectric transducer with the usage of an original method of introducing it in a disk space. With the help of the given device, in anatomical lab of the Siberian medical university and in Tomsk instrument-making plant a series of experiments on nucleus pulposus destruction is conducted. In outcome it is detected, that the more intensive dissemination of ultrasonic oscillations in self-contained area of the intervertebral disk destroys the disk in the periphery, but impacts it closer to center. So it is suggested that one fills the annulus fibrosus space by a medium, which destroys the nucleus pulposus physicochemical connections and, besides that, plays the role of an inversion liquid. To increase the Q-factor of a system the technique of flexural oscillation damping and thermal shield of a working section of the device is offered. A surgical eliminator of the given type introduces concern for the practicing physicians providing treatment of different consequences of nerve compression syndromes.

Richard W Timm, Ryan M Asher, Karalyn R Tellio, Alissa L Welling, Jeffrey W Clymer, Joseph F Amaral Ethicon Inc., Cincinnati, OH, USA Introduction: Ultrasonic energy is a mainstay in the armamentarium of surgeons, providing multifunctionality, precision, and control when dissecting and sealing vessels up to 5 mm in diameter. Historically, the inability to seal vessels in the 5–7 mm range has been perceived as an inherent limitation of ultrasonic technology. The purpose of this study was to evaluate sealing of vessels up to 7 mm in diameter with an ultrasonic device that modulates energy delivery during the sealing period. Methods: In ex vivo benchtop and in vivo acute and survival preclinical models, a new ultrasonic device, Harmonic ACE®+7 Shears (Harmonic 7), was compared with advanced bipolar devices in sealing vessels 1–7 mm in diameter with respect of burst pressure, seal reliability, and seal durability. Lateral thermal damage and transection time were also evaluated. Results: Ex vivo tests of Harmonic 7 demonstrated significantly greater median burst pressures than an advanced bipolar device both for vessels

Aircraft efficiency is improved by implementing more accurate fluid level measurement solutions. Reducing the amount of fuel or water needed during a flight reduces the weight and increases the aircraft efficiency. Airlines know how much water or fuel is necessary for a specific flight/aircraft combination. Sensors with improved accuracy allow the required level to be added, dependent on the passenger loading and flight plan. The development of a nonintrusive level sensor based on ultrasonic technology is discussed. Benefits of the sensor are high reliability, high accuracy, broad measurement range, light weight, low cost, and ease of installation.

Ultrasonic technology is a core technology within BFGoodrich Aerospace. It has successfully been used to measure potable water levels accurately and detect in-flight and ground icing. The fruition of ultrasonic technology within the division is largely due to the realization of turning breadboard concepts into brassboard products. These are noteworthy accomplishments in light of the harsh environments associated with aircraft. The considerations given and principles followed in the development of products within the Commercial Transport group of BFGoodrich Aircraft Sensors are presented.

10th Iketani Conference on Materials Research Toward the 21st Century, June 26-30 2000, Karuizawa Japan

12 páginas, 7 figuras, At present, there is a growing interest in the field of dehydration for preserving food. Ultrasonic energy represents a means to obtain dehydration without affecting the food. This paper deals with an experimental study about the use of high-intensity ultrasound for vegetable dehydration by using a new power ultrasound generator and a procedure in which ultrasonic vibrations are applied in direct contact with the product and under a certain static pressure. The drying effect of this new process is compared with that obtained from forced-air drying assisted by air-borne ultrasonic radiation and from a conventional hot-air drying. The results show that by using the new technology and procedure it is possible to reduce dramatically the treatment time and it is relatively easy to reach a final moisture content in the samples less than 1%. In addition, the product qualities are well preserved, the sample rehydration is higher than 70% and, because of the high efficiency of the new ultrasonic system employed, the energy consumption is low. As a consequence of the results a new technology for industrial applications is under development.

With the development of endoscopic surgery, new hazards of high-frequency (HF) electrosurgery have been recognized. The potential risks of monopolar electrosurgery, the limitations of bipolar technique, and the need to reduce instrument interchange have favored the use of ultrasonic technology, which becomes more and more popular. This work aims at presenting the main features of the currently available ultrasonically activated scalpels, as well as their advantages, limitations, and indications.

ÖZET Ultrasonik teknoloji, gelişmesini devam ettiren bir bilim olup, pekçok sahada alternatifsiz kullanım alanları bulmuştur. Bunlar, askeri ve sivil denizcilikte su altı radarları, malzeme mühendisliğinde metallerin ve konstrüksiyonların iç yapı kontrolleri ve tıbbi ultrasonografi vb.dir. Ultrasonik teknolojinin teşhis amacıyla kullanıldığı bu sahaların yanında, ultrasonik enerjinin sıvı ortamlarda yarattığı kavitasyon etkisine dayanarak kimyasal bir araç olarak kullanılması sonokimya alanını ortaya çıkarmıştır. Sonokimyasal etkinin fiziksel- mekanik etkilere dayanması, bize bu yöntemin geleneksel tekstil yıkama tekniğine de ciddi bir alternatif oluşturacağını göstermektedir. Ancak özellikle yağlı makina parçalarının çözücü banyoları içinde temizlenmesi endüstride yaygın olarak kullanılmış olmasına rağmen, tekstil yıkama teknolojisinde, henüz araştırma ölçülerinin çok dışına çıkamamıştır. Çünkü birinci halde ultrasonik enerjinin sadece mekanik etkisi, ikincisinde ise çok daha karmaşık sonokimyasal ve mekanik etkiler bileşimi rol oynamaktadır. Bu çalışmada 3 farklı standart test bezi, 3 farklı deterjan ve 5 değişik yıkama zamanında, 5 ilave parametre (deterjan katkı maddeleri) kullanılarak, ultrasonik ve konvansiyonel yıkama teknikleri mukayese edilmişler ve değerlendirilmişlerdir. Deneyler sonucunda ultrasonik enerjinin, yeni nesil çamaşır makinalarında mevcut tekniklerle kombine edilebilecek önemli bir alternatif oluşturduğu anlaşılmıştır. ABSTRACT The field of ultrasonic is still making strides toward perfection, but already many applications of ultrasonic waves have been found in science and technology. Some examples are military and non- military exploration of sea floor and sonarsystems, non-destructive testing in material engineering, medical therapy and diagnosis. All of which are primarily of diagnostic/nature. There is also a field called sonochemistry where ultrasonic energy is used to create some chemical and mechanical effects on matter immersed or solved in liquids. Although cleaning and degreasing of parts and assemblies in automotive and other industries is widely used, ultrasonic energy is still not applied in industrial scale for textile washing. This is due to the complexity of controlling the combination of chemical and mechanical effects, whereas at degreasing of machine parts only the mechanical effect is applied. It was presumed that ultrasonic textile washing could be a competitive alternative to conventional techniques, therefore following experiments have been conducted. Three types of standard test clothes, have been washed with 3 types of detergents where five washing cycle duration's and respectively five different additives have been tested. The test have been conducted in both type of washing equipment simultaneously (conventional and ultrasonic) and sound comparison was made. As a result it was found that ultrasonic energy is a very useful component which should be incorporated into new generation washing machines. 155

Summary Cleaning of metal parts is often done using aqueous technology (vs. solvent). Ultrasonic technology is commonly used to provide mechanical force to augment the aqueous detergents. This author's experience is that ultrasonic facilities are often treated by some as “add-ons” and by others as “insurance policies” to and for cleaning equipment. Neither viewpoint is correct. Ultrasonic technology should be integral to and designed for a cleaning machine. These three columns have shown how a manager can be certain that is done.

The widespread application of diffusion bonding has been hindered, in part, by concerns over kissing bonds. Kissing bonds are generally considered to be conditions where a bond has little or no strength and the concern is that such conditions might escape detection. At Rohr we differentiate between an intimate contact disbond (which has no bond between the surfaces but is detectable by careful ultrasonic testing) and a kissing bond (which also has no bond between the surfaces but is not detectable using current ultrasonic technology). These definitions will be used throughout.

The generation and detection of ultrasound with lasers has evolved to become a useful laboratory tool. An extensive compilation of laser ultrasonic technology and applications is available [1]. These laser ultrasonic techniques are complimentary to other methods such as piezoelectric transducers. Since they are non-contact and have very high resolution, these techniques provide otherwise unavailable NDE options. They are unfortunately relatively inefficient in their signal to noise ratio (SNR) in comparison to other NDE techniques limiting their value to potential applications where traditional NDE methods are unable to perform satisfactory. The work presented here demonstrates progress in overcoming some of the problems which have prevented laser ultrasonics from becoming useful in industrial environments.

This paper focuses on the application of ultrasonic detection technology to obstacle detection systems. Field test results show that drivers are the key to the successful expansion of the application of obstacle detection devices.

A combination electrosurgical instrument and vibratory device provides simultaneous transmission of radiofrequency energy and vibratory ultrasonic energy via a simple efficient handpiece attachment enabling a surgeon to modulate all types of tissues with different degrees of effectiveness. The combination of the invention enhances the proven effectiveness of both radiofrequency and ultrasonic technology. In a preferred embodiment, a small unbalanced motor that vibrates when activated is used to cause an electrosurgical handpiece containing the electrosurgical electrode to vibrate as a whole and to transmit to the electrode ultrasonic energy. The invention is of especial value when applied to skin resurfacing, but will also be of value for tissue modulation, coagulation, hemostasis and other electrosurgical procedures.

The development of ultrasonically driven tools for revision joint arthroplasty is presented. The data represent seven-years' experience and include information from laboratory investigation and clinical experience from 20 surgical cases. Whole bone torsional strength studies reveal no decrease in strength parameters after the removal of cement ultrasonically. Comparison studies demonstrate that ultrasonic tools allow more rapid completion of cement and prosthesis removal than traditional manual tools. Histologic studies using an in vivo canine model demonstrate no deleterious effects to endosteal bone where cement had been removed by ultrasound. Clinical studies indicate that the use of ultrasound facilitates the surgery and causes no cortical perforations; the creation of cortical windows was not necessary in all cases. Ultrasound is safe and efficacious in cement and prosthesis removal during revision surgery.

The application of ultrasonic technology in medicine has taken place in the last fifteen years and was made possible by far sighted and determined individuals who initially made use of industrial flaw detection equipment. In the last decade medical ultrasonics has developed into a multi-million pound business and has become an important aid to diagnosis and patient management. In this article we describe the use of ultrasonics as a method of investigating the internal structures of the body for diagnostic purposes. Other applications of ultrasonics in medicine include humidifiers and the use of instruments based on the Doppler principle for measuring the velocity of blood flowing in vessels.

In order to increase our understanding and control of the quality aspects of aluminum in the molten state, Reynolds Metals Company has developed a pulse-echo ultrasonic system to make four ultrasonic measurements: discontinuity evaluation, relative changes in attenuation, longitudinal wave velocity, and spectrum analysis of reflected pulses. These measurements are made possible through the use of a specially designed probe which is immersed in the molten metal; the metal can be either in a quiescent or a dynamic (flowing) condition. The system has been applied to examine several conditions of molten alumimum quality, and it has been determined that it can detect improvements, as well as deleterious effects.

Recent advances in ultrasonic technology have permitted differentiation of tissue within an organ. Fifty-nine patients in whom satisfactory follow-up could be obtained under-went grey-scale ultrasonic examination of their livers. Fifty-three patients were scanned successfully and of these a correct diagnosis as to whether metastases were present or not was given in 46. Ultrasound is a safe non-invasive way of detecting hepatic metastases.

Surprisingly diverse applications of ultrasonic energy are found throughout manufacturing industry. This article discusses some of the more novel uses, aspects of the technology and the future of this somewhat neglected engineering field

An ultrasonic technique was developed to detect and characterize laser damage in critical optics . During normal usage, sub critical flaws induced by high laser fluence can grow to critical size and potentially can cause unanticipated failure of the optics. This ultrasonic technique monitors the optic in situ and provides a quick, reliable way to quantify the location, number and, ultimately, the size of defects that may initiate and grow during firing of the laser.

This is the third work in a series of monographs* written by a col- lective group of authors and is devoted to the physical mechanisms of specific ultrasonic technological processes that have already come into general use, as well as those which have just begun to enjoy practical applications. The problems covered in the book are exceedingly important insofar as the understanding of the phys- ical mechanisms of ultrasonic processes forms the solitary basis of an intelligent approach to the design of industrial equipment and proper choice of optimum working conditions. The purely em- pirical approach to the solution of these problems does not afford satisfactory results, because the state of affairs in a high-inten- sity acoustic field is complex and diversified. Many papers in the Soviet Union and abroad have been con- cerned with the practical utilization of ultrasound, but the over- whelming majority is limited to the solution of highly individual- ized practical problems, usually under conditions that are not amenable to comparison. Systematic studies have been initiated in the Ultrasonics Section of the Acoustics Institute of the Academy of Sciences of the USSR on the physics of high-intensity ultrasonic waves and their effects on matter; the results of these studies form the basis of the present book.