MONITORING UNIT AND METHOD FOR DETECTING STRUCTURAL DEFECTS WHICH CAN OCCUR IN AN AIRCRAFT NACELLE DURING USE

摘要

The invention relates to a monitoring unit (11) which includes a composite sandwich structure (10) forming a portion of the aircraft nacelle (1), a plurality of sensors (14) for generating signals representative of an amplitude and/or frequency of vibrations. Each sensor (14) transmits said signals via electromagnetic waves, e.g. via radio frequencies. Each sensor (14) is an electromechanical microsystem including a means for converting mechanical energy into electrical energy. A computing unit (15) is suitable for: evaluating the differences between a current transfer function resulting from said signals and a predetermined nominal transfer function; comparing each of said differences with a respective detection threshold; and, from said comparison, estimating or evaluating the size and/or position of said structural defect in the structure (10).