Aircraft Wing Attachment Rail and Strap System

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Solution Overview

Problem

Current methods for joining aircraft wings to bodies are time-consuming, costly, and result in additional body weight, reducing aircraft performance and fuel efficiency, with hazardous secondary fuel barrier applications complicating the process.

Innovation Solution

The implementation of an attachment system using attachment rail and strap members fixedly attached to the wing assembly, allowing the aircraft body to be secured without penetrating fasteners, decoupling the body frame connection from the wing fuel cell and enabling full body frame installation before wing integration, thus allowing pre-completion of the wing fuel cell and reduced manufacturing cycle time.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Strength

If conventional fastening systems are used to join wing assembly to aircraft body, then structural connection is achieved, but manufacturing time increases and aircraft weight increases

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvestructural connectionVSAvoidmanufacturing time

Core Design Contradiction:

StrengthVSProductivity

Solution Approach 1:

The attachment system is divided into separate components: attachment rails fixed to the wing assembly and attachment straps fixed to the aircraft body. This segmentation allows each component to be optimized independently and enables parallel assembly operations, reducing manufacturing time while maintaining structural connection strength.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #1Segmentation

Solution Approach 2:

The attachment rails and straps serve as intermediary elements between the wing assembly and aircraft body. These intermediaries distribute the connection load across multiple attachment points, achieving strong structural connection without requiring time-consuming conventional fastening systems at each individual point.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #24Intermediary (Mediator)

2Strength

If conventional fastening systems are used to join wing assembly to aircraft body, then structural connection is achieved, but aircraft weight increases reducing fuel efficiency

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvestructural connectionVSAvoidaircraft weight

Core Design Contradiction:

StrengthVSWeight of moving object

Solution Approach 1:

By segmenting the attachment system into rails and straps, the design eliminates the need for heavy conventional fastening systems at each connection point. The distributed attachment approach uses lighter materials and simpler components, reducing overall aircraft weight while maintaining required structural connection strength.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #1Segmentation

Solution Approach 2:

The attachment system changes the connection parameters by using multiple distributed attachment points with optimized geometry. The attachment rails and straps are designed with specific cross-sectional dimensions and material properties that reduce weight while maintaining connection strength, improving fuel efficiency.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #35Parameter changes

3Ease of operation

If body frame splice is used to allow lower frame segment to become loose integration piece, then wing to body integration is enabled, but frame weight increases

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvewing to body integrationVSAvoidframe weight

Core Design Contradiction:

Ease of operationVSWeight of stationary object

Solution Approach 1:

The attachment rails and straps extract the integration function from the body frame splice. Instead of splicing the frame to enable wing integration, the rails and straps provide the necessary connection points, allowing the frame to remain continuous and eliminating the weight of the splice while enabling wing to body integration.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #2Taking out (Extraction)

4Object-affected harmful factors

If secondary fuel barrier application process is completed after wing to body integration, then hazardous fumes are avoided, but manufacturing process complexity increases

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvehazardous fumesVSAvoidmanufacturing process complexity

Core Design Contradiction:

Object-affected harmful factorsVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The attachment rails and straps enable preliminary completion of the wing fuel cell before body integration. By providing stable attachment points in advance, the system allows the fuel cell to be constructed and sealed prior to final assembly, eliminating hazardous fume exposure while simplifying the overall manufacturing process through better sequence planning.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #10Preliminary action

Data Source

PatentUS9180956B1Methods and apparatus for attaching an aircraft wing assembly to an aircraft body

Publication Date: 2015.11.10 THE BOEING CO

AI summary

The present disclosure is generally directed to an aircraft including an aircraft body having a number of body frame members on an outboard portion of the aircraft body, a wing assembly extending through a portion of the aircraft body. At least one pair of an attachment member and an attachment strap member are fixedly attached to an upper surface of the wing assembly proximate the portion of the aircraft body at a location of one of the number of body frame members. A number of fasteners fixedly attach the aircraft body via at least one body frame member to one attachment member and a corresponding attachment strap member, thereby securing the aircraft body to the wing assembly.