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Title:	Ultrasonic Inspection of Wooden Pallet Parts for Grading and Sorting
Author(s):	Schmoldt, Daniel L.; Morrone, Michael; Duke, John C., Jr.
Date:	1994
Source:	Review of Progress in Quantitative Nondestructive Evaluation 13B. 2161-2166.
Description:	Wooden pallets are the largest single use of sawn hardwood logs in the USA. Unfortunately, millions of pallets are discarded into landfills annually. High quality wooden pallets, on the other hand, promote longevity and re-use. To build durable pallets requires high quality parts. Manual grading and sorting of pallet parts is not feasible, however, so we are developing an automated inspection system. Ultrasonic sensing was selected for this application because (1) it is relatively inexpensive, (2) it can penetrate and characterize internal features of wooden specimens, and (3) its effectiveness has been demonstrated for certain features of wood. Nevertheless, flaws that degrade pallet parts must be characterized in unique ways that have not been previously evaluated quantitatively. Consequently, this study has sought: (1) to demonstrate that pallet part defects can be accurately circumscribed by ultrasonic testing, (2) to determine the ultrasonic parameters that are most effective for doing so, and (3) to specify what aspects of ultrasonic response signals best reflect defect size and location. Results from this work will be applied to the development of an industrial prototype that automatically detects defects and grades parts according to established visual grading rules.
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