In-process airflow control of Laser Drilled Small Holes (1000-732)

Triton Systems, Inc., in partnership with the General Electric Company's Laser Laboratory and Quality Vision International Inc.'s Optical Gaging Products Division, proposes the concurrent use of multiple sensor types to collect data, which are then processed by an integrated control system to generate a corrective, real-time adjustment to the laser cooling hole drilling process for gas turbine components. The control system will collect data from acoustic, optical, spectral, thermal and positional sensors and imaging devices related to the laser pulse and plasma plume, as well as the cooling hole size, shape and positional coordinates. It will then process and compare the collected data to a data base previously characterized and correlated to targeted airflow values for the turbine component. The comparison will drive an appropriate compensating change in the process parameters to more closely control hole geometry and thus cooling airflow. Tighter control of airflow will result in longer turbine component life, reduced overall production cycle times and costs and gas turbine efficiencies.