Improved portable lighting for visual aircraft inspection

Conference · Sat Apr 01 00:00:00 EST 1995

OSTI ID:57178

Shagam, R N ^[1]; Lerner, J; Shie, R ^[2]

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1. Sandia National Lab., Albuquerque, NM (United States)
2. Physical Optics Corp., Torrance, CA (United States)

The most common tool used by aircraft inspectors is the personal flashlight. While it is compact and very portable, it is generally typified by poor beam quality which can interfere with the ability for an inspector to detect small defects and anomalies, such as cracks and corrosion sites, which may be indicators of major structural problems. A Light Shaping Diffuser{trademark} (LSD) installed in a stock flashlight as a replacement to the lens can improve the uniformity of an average flashlight and improve the quality of the inspection. Field trials at aircraft maintenance facilities have demonstrated general acceptance of the LSD by aircraft inspection and maintenance personnel.

• Research Organization: Sandia National Lab. (SNL-NM), Albuquerque, NM (United States)
• Sponsoring Organization: Department of Transportation, Washington, DC (United States)
• DOE Contract Number: AC04-94AL85000
• OSTI ID: 57178
• Report Number(s): SAND-95-0562C; CONF-9506126-1; ON: DE95009855; TRN: 95:004138
• Resource Relation: Conference: Conference on nondestructive evaluation of aging infrastructure, Oakland, CA (United States), 6-8 Jun 1995; Other Information: PBD: [1995]
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

32 ENERGY CONSERVATION, CONSUMPTION, AND UTILIZATION
LIGHT SOURCES
ILLUMINANCE
LENSES
AIRCRAFT
INSPECTION
MAINTENANCE
PORTABLE EQUIPMENT
RECOMMENDATIONS
DIFFUSERS
FIELD TESTS
PERFORMANCE TESTING
VISIBILITY