Aircraft Airframe Component Hole Drilling from Measured Digital Models
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Solution Overview
Problem
The production of aircraft airframes faces challenges in achieving precise assembly due to difficulties in producing separate sections with tight tolerance bounds, often requiring lengthy and expensive shimming processes and dedicated assembly fixtures.
Innovation Solution
A method involving digital modeling and additive manufacturing to create and assemble aircraft airframe components, including the use of digital models to specify and drill fastener holes, allowing for precise alignment and assembly without the need for traditional assembly fixtures.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If separate airframe sections are produced using traditional methods, then production flexibility is improved, but assembly precision deteriorates due to difficulty in achieving tight tolerance bounds
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary action by creating a digital twin model before physical production that incorporates all components including fasteners and shims. This digital model is used to pre-calculate and optimize assembly tolerances and fastener hole positions before any physical assembly occurs, ensuring tight tolerance bounds are achieved while maintaining production flexibility through independent section manufacturing
Solution Approach 2:
The patent creates a digital copy (digital twin) of the entire airframe assembly including all components and their relationships. This digital model allows virtual assembly and tolerance analysis to be performed repeatedly without physical resources, enabling optimization of assembly precision while maintaining the flexibility to produce separate sections independently
2Manufacturing precision
If traditional assembly fixtures are used for each assembly process, then assembly precision is improved, but device complexity and cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces physical assembly fixtures with a digital twin model that serves as a virtual fixture. This digital model contains all the positioning, alignment, and tolerance information that would traditionally require complex physical fixtures, thereby eliminating the need for multiple dedicated fixtures for different assembly processes while maintaining assembly precision
Solution Approach 2:
The digital twin model serves multiple functions that would traditionally require separate fixtures: it provides positioning, alignment, tolerance verification, and fastener hole location for all assembly operations. This single multi-functional digital model replaces numerous specialized physical fixtures, reducing device complexity and cost
3Productivity
If separate airframe sections are produced independently, then productivity is improved, but assembly difficulty increases due to gap filling requirements
Solution Approach 1:
The patent performs preliminary action by calculating and optimizing shim requirements in the digital twin model before physical assembly. The digital model identifies all gaps between separately produced sections and pre-determines the exact shim specifications needed, allowing shims to be prepared in advance and eliminating lengthy on-site shimming processes during assembly
Solution Approach 2:
The patent uses feedback from measuring actual surfaces of produced sections against the digital twin model to identify deviations and adjust the digital model accordingly. This feedback loop ensures that the digital model accurately reflects actual production variations, enabling precise prediction and compensation of assembly gaps through appropriately specified shims
Data Source
AI summary
A method of producing a component part (202, 204) of an aircraft airframe (200), the method comprising: providing a first digital model, the first digital model being a digital model of the component part (202, 204); producing an initial physical part using the first digital model; measuring a surface of the initial physical part; creating a second digital model using the measurements of the surface of the initial physical part, the second digital model being a digital model of the initial physical part; specifying one or more fastener holes (606) in the second digital model; and drilling one or more fastener holes (606) in the initial physical part using the second digital model with the one or more fastener holes specified therein, thereby producing the component part (202, 204) of an aircraft airframe (200).