A Comparative Study on the Characteristics Between Different Computed Tomographic Acquisition Techniques

Computed tomography is widely used and a well-known nondestructive testing technique. However, the newest generations of computed tomography systems, specifically the sixth and seventh, are just now in the process of being incorporated for use into the industrial world. Most of the current computed tomography systems used in the industry utilize the common back-projected cone beam reconstruction process, which provides an extensive amount of data in many situations. In some cases, the artifacts, required resolution, mechanics of the motion hardware, and configuration of the part itself can all contribute to lost, masked, or incorrect information in the final reconstruction. In general, a proportion of the applicable parts that are inspected using computed tomography would be more accurately reconstructed using a helical acquisition and reconstruction process. This paper provides an overview of different reconstruction techniques and specifically shows the empirical differences between three different techniques commercially available in today's market.