Guide Sleeve Tooling Support for Precise In-Situ Hole Drilling
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing inspection tools for gas turbine engines face challenges in providing precise tooling location and quick changeovers when drilling into components that are difficult to access, leading to potential damage and increased engine removals due to powder metal defects in high-pressure compressor/high-pressure turbine disks.
Innovation Solution
A tooling support system with varying dimensioned guide sleeves and anchors, integrated tool guides, and drilling tools with vacuum and coolant pathways, allowing for precise drilling and minimizing internal component damage, facilitated by a method involving sequential installation of tooling support elements with progressively longer guide sleeves.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If existing inspection tools are used for drilling into gas turbine engine components, then drilling operations can be performed, but precise tooling location and quick changeovers are not achieved, leading to potential damage and increased engine removals
Solution Approach 1:
The tooling support system is divided into modular components including anchors, tool guides, and guide sleeves that can be independently selected and assembled. Each component serves a specific function, allowing for precise positioning while maintaining system manageability through modular architecture.
Solution Approach 2:
The tooling support system is designed as a universal platform that can accommodate multiple drilling operations and tool configurations. The standardized anchor and tool guide components can be reused across different inspection tasks, reducing overall system complexity while maintaining precision capabilities.
2Productivity
If existing inspection tools are used for drilling operations, then drilling can be performed, but quick changeovers are not achieved, increasing maintenance turnaround times
Solution Approach 1:
Multiple guide sleeves with varying dimensions are pre-configured in the tooling support system, allowing operators to select the appropriate sleeve for each drilling operation without time-consuming adjustments. The anchors are pre-positioned in the engine casing, enabling rapid tooling changes between inspections.
Solution Approach 2:
The tooling support system incorporates removable and interchangeable components that can be quickly swapped between operations. The guide sleeves can be easily removed and replaced, and the modular design allows for dynamic reconfiguration of the tooling setup to match different inspection requirements.
3Reliability
If drilling operations are performed without precise tooling support, then drilling can be completed, but internal components may be damaged
Solution Approach 1:
The guide sleeves serve as intermediary components between the drilling tool and the internal components of the gas turbine engine. These sleeves provide a controlled pathway that guides the drilling tool precisely, preventing accidental damage to internal components while allowing the drilling operation to proceed.
Solution Approach 2:
The tooling support system with its precisely positioned guide sleeves and anchors provides a protective framework before drilling begins. This pre-established structure cushions against potential drilling errors by physically constraining the tool path, thereby protecting internal components from damage.
Data Source
AI summary
A tooling support system is provided. The tooling support system includes tooling support elements. Each tooling support elements includes an anchor mountable to an external component of a body being drilled into, a tool guide supportable by the anchor and defining a tooling pathway and a guide sleeve disposed at an end of the tooling pathway. Each of the guide sleeves of the tooling support elements have varying dimensions.