Flexible Vacuum Track Height Control for Curved Fuselage Assembly
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current track systems used in aircraft manufacturing fail to maintain a constant distance from the curved surface of the fuselage, leading to incorrect fastener installation when the angle deviates beyond a threshold, as they do not account for the contour of the structure and cannot adjust to maintain a desired angle or distance.
Innovation Solution
A vacuum track manufacturing system with flexible tracks and a variable height base system that connects the vacuum cup system and flexible tracks, allowing for adjustment of height and angle to maintain a desired distance and angle relative to the surface, ensuring accurate fastener installation by a crawler robot.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Manufacturing precision
If a fixed-height track system is used on curved fuselage surfaces, then the system structure is simple, but the distance from the track to the fuselage surface varies, causing incorrect fastener installation
Solution Approach 1:
The track system employs adjustable-height support structures that can be dynamically configured to different heights along the fuselage length, allowing the track to adapt to curved surfaces while maintaining a constant working distance from the fuselage skin. This dynamic adjustment capability resolves the contradiction by enabling precision fastener installation without requiring a completely complex restructured track system.
Solution Approach 2:
The system changes the height parameter of the track support structures to match the curvature of the fuselage surface. By adjusting the height parameter along the longitudinal axis, the track maintains optimal positioning for fastener installation while accommodating surface variations, thus achieving manufacturing precision without excessive structural complexity.
2Reliability
If the track system is made rigid to maintain stable position, then positioning stability is improved, but adaptability to curved surfaces deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The track system is divided into multiple independent support segments that can be individually adjusted in height. Each segment can be tuned to match the local curvature of the fuselage while maintaining stable positioning. This segmentation allows the system to be both reliable in positioning and adaptable to curved surfaces.
Solution Approach 2:
The support structures incorporate adjustable mechanisms that allow the track to dynamically adapt its height profile to match fuselage curvature. This dynamic capability enables the system to maintain stable positioning at each location while adapting overall to the curved surface, resolving the contradiction between reliability and adaptability.
3Ease of manufacture
If vacuum cups are used to attach the track to the fuselage, then attachment is simple and reversible, but maintaining constant distance on curved surfaces becomes difficult
Solution Approach 1:
The system combines simple vacuum cup attachment with dynamic height adjustment mechanisms. The vacuum cups provide easy, reversible attachment to the fuselage surface, while the adjustable support structures beneath them maintain the constant working distance required for precise fastener installation, even on curved surfaces.
Solution Approach 2:
The adjustable support structures act as intermediaries between the vacuum cup attachment system and the track. These intermediaries absorb the curvature variations of the fuselage surface, allowing the vacuum cups to maintain simple attachment while the track maintains precise, constant positioning for manufacturing operations.
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
Enables the crawler robot to perform manufacturing operations with the necessary distance and angle, ensuring correct fastener installation and automation of manufacturing processes on curved surfaces by maintaining the desired distance and angle, thereby improving the precision and efficiency of manufacturing operations.
Implementation Method 1
These types of tracks are often attached to the surface of the fuselage using a vacuum system in which vacuum cups connected to the tracks apply a vacuum to hold the tracks on the surface of the fuselage.
Data Source
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AI summary
A method for installing a flexible track system (202) is presented. At least one of a number of heights or a number of angles (420) is selected for a variable height base system (242) that connects a base (300) attaching system (232, 260; 322 (Fig. 7); 800 (Fig. 8)) and flexible tracks (236, 238) in the flexible track system to each other, wherein at least one of the number of heights or the number of angles (420) for the variable height base system (242) maintains at least one of a desired angle (420) and a desired distance (430) between the flexible tracks (236, 238) and a surface (401) of a structure (206) to which the base attaching system (232, 260) is attached (236, 238) so that the flexible track system matches a contour (400) of the surface (401) of the structure (206).