Optimal design of a coil arrangement for the identification of hidden ferrous objects

The process of identifying unknown hidden objects, such as the detection of electrical conductors in concrete by taking advantage of electromagnetic effects, is becoming more important. Magnetization and eddy currents are the electromagnetic phenomena which are exploited in general. In this case, the layout and arrangement of the exciting coils and receiving coils crucially influences effectiveness and accuracy. When designing an optimal device, the electromagnetic field has to be simulated over and over, which requires an enormous number of three-dimensional finite-element calculations. One way to overcome this problem is to approximate the electromagnetic data necessary for the identification by a neural network. Investigations on a ferrous conductive rod are described