3D-Printed Drilling Jig Structure for Lightweight Precision Tooling
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Solution Overview
Problem
The aerospace industry faces challenges in reducing the manufacturing time, cost, and weight of conventional aluminum drilling jigs used for drilling apertures in aircraft parts, as current methods are inefficient and require significant machining time and resources.
Innovation Solution
A one-piece additively manufactured drilling jig with spatially separated cylindrical sockets and a web member, featuring cylindrical bushings for drill bit guidance and stand-off members to create a clearance gap for shaving removal, fabricated using aluminum alloy powder and steel bushings for enhanced efficiency and accuracy.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Manufacturing precision
If conventional aluminum drilling jigs are machined from raw material, then high dimensional accuracy and robust structure are achieved, but manufacturing time and cost increase significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces conventional subtractive machining processes with additive manufacturing (3D printing) to fabricate drilling jigs. This substitution of manufacturing methodology dramatically reduces production time while maintaining the required dimensional accuracy for jig features such as hole positions and geometries.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention changes the manufacturing parameters by transitioning from traditional CNC machining of aluminum plate to additive manufacturing processes. This parameter change enables complex geometries to be produced directly without extensive machining operations, thereby reducing manufacturing time while preserving dimensional precision through digital control.
2Manufacturing precision
If conventional aluminum drilling jigs are machined from raw material, then robust structure and high dimensional accuracy are achieved, but manufacturing cost increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces expensive conventional machining operations with additive manufacturing technology. This substitution eliminates costly CNC setup, programming, and machining time while reducing material waste, thereby lowering overall manufacturing cost while maintaining the necessary dimensional accuracy for drilling jig functionality.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention changes the manufacturing approach from subtractive to additive processes, fundamentally altering cost parameters. Additive manufacturing reduces material consumption, eliminates extensive machining operations, and enables direct production of complex geometries, all of which contribute to cost reduction while preserving dimensional precision.
3Weight of moving object
If pockets are machined into conventional aluminum drilling jigs to reduce weight, then jig weight decreases, but manufacturing time and cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent employs porous or lattice structures within the additive manufactured jig body to reduce weight. These internal porous geometries are directly formed during the 3D printing process without requiring additional machining operations, thereby achieving weight reduction while avoiding the increased manufacturing time and cost associated with machining pockets into conventional jigs.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention utilizes the third dimension enabled by additive manufacturing to create internal weight-saving structures. Complex internal geometries and lattices are built layer-by-layer during printing, allowing weight reduction through volumetric optimization rather than surface-level pocketing, thus avoiding additional machining time.
4Productivity
If additively manufactured jigs are used, then manufacturing time and cost are reduced and weight is decreased, but structural analysis and thermal expansion considerations become necessary
Solution Approach 1:
The invention changes the material selection and manufacturing parameters to mitigate analysis complexities. By carefully selecting additive manufacturing parameters, materials, and post-processing techniques, the patent ensures that dimensional stability and structural integrity meet requirements without excessive analysis, maintaining productivity benefits while managing analysis needs.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The solution reduces manufacturing time and cost while maintaining high dimensional accuracy, allowing for lighter jigs with improved shaving removal and adaptability for specific drilling geometries, optimizing the drilling process for aerospace applications.
Implementation Method 1
The jig body may be formed of an additively laser sintered metallic powder, e.g., a powder comprised of aluminum alloy
Implementation Method 2
Shavings from material being removed from the workpiece by the drill bit during the drilling operation are therefore allowed to be removed from the drilling location which may also be facilitated by the influence of a pressurized fluid (e.g., air) being directed to the drilling location
Data Source
AI summary
Drilling jigs are provided which include a one-piece jig body (preferably additively manufactured from laser-sintered metallic (e.g., aluminum alloy) powders) having at least one set of cylindrical sockets that are spatially separated from one another, and a web member joining the at least one set of sockets. Cylindrical bushings may thus be positioned within each of the cylindrical sockets so as to define respective cylindrical guideways for a drill bit. According to certain embodiments, the web member may be planar and oriented parallel to a substantially longitudinal bisecting plane of the cylindrical sockets.