Hi people,

I'm new in the world of thermography and i was wondering if there are any standards (API, ISO, ASNT, etc.) applicable to this kind of activity?

A little help creating a reading list?

Merry Xmas

HI BRO
YOU CAN GO THROUGH NFPA 7OE WHICH IS MOST REQUIRED FOR ELECTRICAL THERMOGRAPHY.

THANKS & REGARDS

Yes, NFPA 70E addresses safety. There also several OSHA standards on that part.

NFPA 70B has a few words about frequency of inspection and limits. Not tremendously detailed, but it's a start

The EPRI Infrared Guide is a great document to look through if you work for a member utility.

ASTM 1934 has some general motherhood type information about how a thermography survey should be conducted.

I'm not sure exactly what type of info are you looking for. Websites? Limits? Qualification requirements? At any rate, there are some great training classes out there if you haven't taken one. Snell, Infraspection, etc.

You are right Pete. There are a lot of great training classes but seeing the great number of standards applicable to vibration monitoring (ISO, API, etc). I was wondering if that was also the case to thermography.

My aim was originally to have a solid formal basis (In the near future i'll have to work with thermography) in wich to have limits, qualification requirements, and so on. But now my question is: Is thermography really that new?.

Thanks everybody for answering

If you google "history of thermography" you will find a lot of documentation that may answer some of your questions. I think it's been around since the 50's or so. The old cameras were very big, heavy, and expensive. The first one I remember seeing was in the 70's and it was old at that time. It required the thermographer to wear a battery belt to power it and some kind of coolant was used to keep the camera from overheating. I don't know any real detail about it, I was a kid working in a motor shop and one of the engineers used the camera.

Hi Joe,

I was wondering about how they stored the images in those old cameras of 50's? Was it through normal films?

Have a nice day!!

As best I can remember they hooked the camera up to a monitor and took polaroid snapshots of the image on the screen. Like I said above, I didn't have anything to do with IR directly back then, I just stood close to the engineer that did the work sometime. I was working as a machinist/mechanic at that time but was interested in the stuff the engineers were doing. Maybe one of the guys on this board can give you more detail. John Snell, where are you?

Infrared was discovered in 1800 by William Herschel.His son, John Herschel produced the first image in 1840. The first imaging camera was made in Sweden by AGA Bofors around 1958. The first commercial imager was Aga Thermovision Model 661. This came to market in 1969, but even this was VERY large and not really portable, it certainly did not have a battery belt as it required a very large trolly. If you saw a camera in the 70s that had a battery belt, it probably was not that old at the time.

I remember helping to cart one around on a two wheel dolly that we poured liquid nitrogen in for reference. It used a car battery, and used it pretty quick
The pictures were stored on a 5-1/4" disk. Had a bunch of those too. I'm not sure what he had that took the pictures from the monitor to the disk.
This would have been around 1990. I bought an Inframeterics camera in 93 (I think) that was state of the art
You had to wear a battery belt with it if you wanted over 3 or 4 hours shooting time. You couldn't carry enough batteries with you to satisfy that cooler.

Dave

Thanks for jumping in on this discussion Bob & Dave. I was in over my head for sure.

Hi,

For years we have waited for a standard; we are nearly there, check out ISO 18434-1 (currently in draft status for final approval, but available). I also recommend (no axe to grind here!) the Infraspection Institutes Guideline for Inspection of Electrical and Mechanical Systems, which can be had in PDF format for $25.
http://www.infraspection.com/useful_guidelines.html

Chris

Hello for everybody,
I am working in a siderurgical industry and this year i have started to implement the Thermography in the Predictive Maintenance,so
I wonder if someone has standards to monitoring furnaces (holding furnace, etc) with thermography.

I really appreciate your help.

Regards.

quote:

The old cameras were very big, heavy, and expensive. The first one I remember seeing was in the 70's and it was old at that time.

This was from the late 80s and early 90s. It was considered "man portable," weighed in at 20-25# and cost in excess of $60K.

I don't miss the "good, old days!"

quote:

I am working in a siderurgical industry and this year i have started to implement the Thermography in the Predictive Maintenance,so
I wonder if someone has standards to monitoring furnaces (holding furnace, etc) with thermography.

There are not standards to my knowledge. Best to work with engineering to determine what thickness of refractory is considered an alarm and then what surface temperature will be produced as that limit is approached. Err on the side of caution of course!

John

Great photo!

Bring back the Blue Tech jackets! I think that would be a great trademark for Snell inspectors!

Thanks for posting it - what a long way Infrared has come.

Like computers, it seems like IR cameras have gotten smaller and less expensive

Vibration analyzers have gotten smaller and less expensive

Ultrasound has - oops - ultrasound has actually gotten larger and more expensive! What is up with that?

Terry O

quote:

quote:
The old cameras were very big, heavy, and expensive. The first one I remember seeing was in the 70's and it was old at that time.

This was from the late 80s and early 90s. It was considered "man portable," weighed in at 20-25# and cost in excess of $60K.

Thanks for clearing that up John. I guess my memory really is as bad as I say it is. It seemed like it was more than 20 years ago but I bow to your knowledge of this subject.

quote:

Originally posted by Chris WhiteSF:

I also recommend (no axe to grind here!) the Infraspection Institutes Guideline for Inspection of Electrical and Mechanical Systems, which can be had in PDF format for $25.
http://www.infraspection.com/useful_guidelines.html

Chris

Dear All:

As a point of information, Infraspection Institute has just announced the release of eight new standards for infrared thermography. These new standards replace the popular Guidelines that we have been publishing since 1988. Four of the new standards cover thermal imaging applications and four are dedicated to equipment operation and temperature measurement.

Titles of particular interest are listed below. These documents are a 'must have' for anyone providing infrared inspection services.

• Standard for Infrared Inspection of Electrical Systems & Rotating Equipment
• Standard for Infrared Inspection of Insulated Roofs
• Standard for Infrared Inspection of Building Envelopes
• Standard for Infrared Inspections to Detect Pests and Pest Related Damage


For information on other available titles, please visit the Infraspection Institute website.

Copies of the new Infraspection standards are available in PDF format and may be purchased by calling Infraspection Institute at 609-239-4788 or visiting the Infraspection Online Store.


Hope this is helpful.


Jim Seffrin, Director
Infraspection Institute

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