Advanced Techniques for Electrical Wire Fault

This proposal details a novel extension of Time Domain Reflectometry as applied to the detection and location of flaws in (aircraft) wiring systems. Our approach marries two methods commonly used for the inspection of conducting structures: TDR, and Eddy Current Testing (ECT). In many ways, TDR and ECT appear to be orthogonal methods. By combining them, key advantages of both (testing at distance for TDR, and sensitivity for ECT) are retained while avoiding some of their limitations. Our approach will not require the development of any new hardware. We will implement it on a low-cost version of TDR, which has been developed by IAI. Our TDR technology has already met several requirements in the solicitation: detection of insulation chafing, true one-sided access, and the ability to inspect active circuits.