The Boeing Company

Bobby C Philpott, Jr

Darrell Darwin Jones

Paul Elfes Nelson

David Paul Banks

James Niemann Buttrick

Ronald W Outous

Charles H Glaisyer

Terrence J Rowe

Mark C Boberg

Laurance N Hazlehurst

Harry E Townsend

Kostadinos D Papanikolaou

John Richard Porter

A production system for manufacturing a workpiece comprises an index system including a plurality of index devices removably mounted on the workpiece at known longitudinally spaced locations therealong, and a longitudinally extending index member releasably engaged with at least two of the index devices such that a position and orientation of the index member are fixed relative to the workpiece by the index devices, the index member having position-indicating features distributed therealong. The production system further comprises a machine module mounted for longitudinal movement along the index member and operable to perform an operation, the machine module being operable to detect the position-indicating features on the index member and thereby determine a position of the machine module relative to the workpiece.

Production system and an associated index device for use as a reference feature

Indexing device for manufacturing system for aircraft structures and other large structures

Manufacturing system for aircraft structures and other large structures

Growing community of inventors

Kent, WA, United States of America

Bobby C Philpott, Jr