Quality assessment of welded joints using the mean value distribution of amplitude spectrums calculated by the time window method

In continuous monitoring systems of welded joints of thin-walled structures, a vibrodiagnostic method is the most promising. Its most important advantage is that it is effective and offers the greatest real-time research capabilities. It is used in classic NDT techniques as well as in structural health monitoring during exploitation. This work presents a measurement method of dynamic characteristics of the structure with the use of piezoelectric sensors. The article presents the assumptions concerning the evaluation of welded joints using the analysis of the mean value distribution of the amplitude spectrums calculated by the time window method. The statistical measure used in the form of the mean value is a proposed parameter. The parameter's analysis for a given welded joint may enable an unambiguous assessment of its quality. Attention was paid to the elements important for the study. A calculation algorithm as well as and the exemplary results from the proposed method used for some selected samples with different welds is included in the article. The work contains the description of the scientific apparatus to register dynamic characteristics in case of welded joints. The results of the tests show that the analysis of the distribution of mean value for amplitude spectrums calculated by the time window method indicates that they differ markedly depending on the welds, indicating their quality and defects that are associated with them.