Damage Detection in Riveted Aircraft Elements Based on the Electromechanical Impedance Measurements

This work is devoted to the use of the electromechanical impedance method for the damage detection in a riveted aircraft element. In the first part of the paper a theoretical background of the impedance-based damage detection technique is made. Next, the description of the utilised experimental set-up is described. Then, an application of the method used to detect damage in a wing sheathing of a turboprop training aircraft is presented. A damage scheme incorporating multiple notches through the selected rivets is considered. Finally, the suitability of the described method to distinguish close and far field damages is discussed.