Application of thermal imaging to electronic fault diagnosis

Lloyd G. Allred; Tom R. Howard

doi:10.1117/12.171172

21 March 1994 Application of thermal imaging to electronic fault diagnosis

Lloyd G. Allred, Tom R. Howard

Proceedings Volume 2245, Thermosense XVI: An International Conference on Thermal Sensing and Imaging Diagnostic Applications; (1994) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.171172
Event: SPIE's International Symposium on Optical Engineering and Photonics in Aerospace Sensing, 1994, Orlando, FL, United States

Abstract

The Air Combat Maneuvering Instrumentation (ACMI) is a telemetry system employed by the joint armed services for scoring weapon accuracy during Red Flag and Top Gun simulated air combat. Thermal imaging was employed as the basis of a repair process. A series of IR photograms, collected during circuit warm-up, is employed to characterize the temperature of every part of the circuit board in question. After sampling the warm-up transients of known good cards, the system has a clear indication if a given component is functioning correctly. The Neural Radiant Energy Detection System is now employed as the basis for repaid for the ACMI. During the repair process, out-of-thermal-tolerance components are replaced, resulting in a high reliability repair process. As a result, the ACMI is out of emergency repair status for the first time in 10 years. The approach offers a significant improvement over traditional electronic fault diagnosis where, in many instances, a faulty component cannot be isolated from the response of an electronic circuit card, particularly in cases of shorts and feedback loops.

Citation Download Citation

Lloyd G. Allred and Tom R. Howard "Application of thermal imaging to electronic fault diagnosis", Proc. SPIE 2245, Thermosense XVI: An International Conference on Thermal Sensing and Imaging Diagnostic Applications, (21 March 1994); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.171172

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