Integrated Wing Panel Structure Reducing Drag and Weight
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Solution Overview
Problem
Aircraft wing structures face challenges in achieving a lightweight, low-profile design that minimizes aerodynamic drag while maintaining the ability to carry high loads, as traditional stringers increase drag and manufacturing costs due to their separate components and bonding requirements.
Innovation Solution
A wing panel structure is formed with an outer layer of material having a predetermined thickness, a core structure for added support, and an inner layer with a selected thickness less than the outer layer, using a honeycomb core and composite materials to reduce weight and drag, and incorporating non-destructive inspection materials for integrity verification.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Strength
If traditional stringers are used to add stiffness to the wing structure, then structural strength is improved, but aerodynamic drag increases and manufacturing cost increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines the stringer and skin into a single integrated component formed from one piece of composite material. This eliminates the need for separate stringer parts and their associated fasteners, reducing aerodynamic drag while maintaining structural strength through the integrated design that provides both stiffening and load-carrying functions in a single element.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent uses composite materials to form the integrated stringer-skin structure. The composite construction allows for optimized structural properties that provide the necessary stiffness and strength while maintaining a low-profile design that minimizes aerodynamic drag, overcoming the limitations of traditional metal stringer constructions.
2Strength
If traditional stringers are used to add stiffness, then structural strength is improved, but manufacturing cost increases due to separate parts and bonding requirements
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges the stringer and skin into a single integrated component that is formed from one piece of composite material. This eliminates the need for separate manufacturing of stringers and their subsequent bonding or fastening to the skin, significantly reducing manufacturing steps, labor costs, and assembly complexity while maintaining structural integrity.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent extracts the separate stringer component and its associated fastening system from the traditional multi-part construction. By removing the need for separate stringer parts and their bonding or fastening operations, the design simplifies manufacturing while preserving the structural stiffening function through the integrated one-piece construction.
3Object-affected harmful factors
If outboard wing sections have shallow depth to minimize aero drag, then aerodynamic efficiency is improved, but access to the inside of the wing panel is limited
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines multiple structural functions into the integrated stringer-skin component, which provides both aerodynamic efficiency through its low-profile design and structural strength through its composite construction. The integration allows the shallow-depth structure to maintain necessary stiffness and load-carrying capacity without requiring additional internal components that would compromise aerodynamic efficiency.
Data Source
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AI summary
A wing panel structure (100) for an aerospace vehicle or the like may include an outer layer (102) of material having a predetermined thickness. A core structure (104) may be placed on at least a portion of the outer layer (102) of material. An inner layer (110) of material may be placed at least on the core structure (104). The inner layer (110) of material may have a selected thickness less than the predetermined thickness of the outer layer (102) of material.