Off-axis digital image correlation using projected speckles for damage imaging with minimal surface preparation

This paper presents a feasibility study for the visualization of hidden damage in aluminum plates using the integration of a digital camera, projected speckles, and a baseline-free wavelet transform mode shape curvature (WT-MSC) damage index. To capture out-of-plane motion in the plates, off-axis 2D digital image correlation (DIC) is applied. With the camera at an angle with respect to the plate surface normal, a component of the higher-amplitude transverse displacements can be captured. Compared to 3D DIC, the system is less complex, there is no need for camera calibration, and the 2D DIC algorithm is more computationally efficient. A major limitation of DIC for practical applications is the need to apply a speckle pattern to the surface to introduce trackable features in the image for tracking displacement. Projected speckles replace the need for surface-applied speckle patterns. Thus, minimal surface preparation is required. Two geometrically identical 305-mm x 305-mm aluminum plates with thinning defects of different sizes and depths were used to demonstrate the system. Through the excitation of a 20 Hz to 1 kHz chirp signal in a single-edge-clamped plate, the first 12 transverse vibration modes of the plate were sensed. These mode shapes were recreated with the off-axis 2D DIC system, and a wavelet transform mode shape curvature (WT-MSC) damage index was applied for damage imaging. This index is sensitive to irregularities in the higher mode shapes caused by differences in geometry in the damaged regions. The system provided clear damage images with a clear correlation with actual damage geometry regardless of plate orientation. This system serves as a preliminary study for the eventual application of imaging barely visible impact damage in composite plates using projected speckles.