| 摘要 |
A method for non-destructive evaluation of an article of manufacture ( 30 ) by coating the article with a temperature-sensitive coating ( 34 ), stimulating the article with energy ( 18 ) to induce temperature changes in the article responsive to features of the article, then evaluating ( 24 ) a resulting topography of energy-induced changes ( 50, 52, 53 ) in the coating ( 34 ). The energy imparted to the article may be, for example, electromagnetic, magnetic, or sonic energy that produces localized changes in temperature in the article ( 30 ) in response to features ( 32 ) of the article such as flaws or other discontinuities. The coating ( 34 ) may be a suspension of liquid crystals in a liquid, and the energy may be an application of sonic energy. The coating may be a material that hardens ( 42, 54 ) or softens ( 44, 56 ) upon a slight increase in temperature. Layers ( 34, 35 ) of different energy-sensitive coatings ( 38, 40 ) may be applied to indicate different aspects of features of the article.
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