The Boeing Company

Other

David M Kozy

Daniel L Nydegger

Kin Yip Wong

William R Schell

Stephen L Sembritzky

David L Wagner

Steven Ray Walton

Hugh R Schlosstein

Noel A Spishak

David A Yousko

Dennis M Cordy

David J Layton

Hinrich C Patjens

Steve A Brink

Ray Henderson

Edward F Neary

Wiliam R Schell

Michael C Cole

An aqueous tube cleaning system as described herein can be utilized to clean a plurality of tubes having different lengths. The system includes a tower assembly having a wash chamber that houses the tubes during the cleaning cycle. The tower assembly is held in a horizontal load/unload position for loading and unloading of the tubes. The system rotates the tower assembly into a vertical cleaning orientation to accommodate cleaning with cleaning and rinse solutions, which flow through and around the tubes using the force of gravity. After rinsing and draining, the tower assembly is rotated back to the horizontal position for unloading.

Cellular aqueous tube cleaning system and method

An aqueous tube cleaning apparatus and method includes a cleaning receptacle and a vertical receptacle, which is taller than the cleaning receptacle. A tube, or bundle of tubes, is placed in the cleaning receptacle, extending through an inlet port from the vertical receptacle, and a gate is closed to clamp the tubes in place. The vertical receptacle is then filled with a fluid, and the pressure created by gravity forces the fluid through and around the tubes, cleansing the inner and outer surfaces of the tubes.

Aqueous tube cleaning apparatus and method

An apparatus and method is provided for cutting curved tube and duct assemblies using a high-powered laser, which locates, measures and follows a scribe line. The invention generally is comprised of a multi-axis laser-based machine tool to cut formed (i.e., curved) welded tube and duct detailed parts to a planar scribe line. It is further comprised of a laser focusing head positioned on a rotating and tilting platform; fixturing aids to position and hold the tubes or ducts to be cut; a machine vision system to locate and measure a scribe line in a plane on the tube or duct, thus determining its orientation; and a controller that tilts the turntable to a co-planar position, and then operates a high-powered laser to cut the duct at the scribe line.

Tube and duct trim machine

An assembly cell for accurate placement of stringer clips in a channel of a stringer for a compound contour section of an airplane fuselage, and for holding the clips at a predetermined orientation while drilling holes for fastening the clips in the stringers includes a fixture having locating surfaces for holding the stringer in a configuration that is the same as the configuration it will have when installed at its designated position in the airplane. The fixture has headers adjustable to conform to the shape of the airplane in which the stringers will be installed, The headers have clamps for securing the stringers against accurately machined reference surfaces on the headers. An end effector is held by a machine tool in the assembly cell for gripping a stringer clip and inserting it into the stringer channel. The end effector has spreader bars for insertion in the stringer channel operable to spread sidewalls of the stringer and widen the channel to facilitate insertion of the stringer clip, and has clamp bars positionable on opposide sides of the stringer and operable to close on the stringer to squeeze the stringer sidewalls on the stringer clip after insertion in the channel. Opposed drills on the end effector have right angle drives holding drill bits for simultaneously match drilling holes through the sidewalls and through the stringer clip. The end effector machine tool operates as a positioning mechanism for accurately for positioning the drills at each stringer clip location along the stringer clip to positions corresponding to the contour of the fuselage at each of the locations under control of a CNC machine controller.

Contoured stringer/clip drilling

A system for applying a predetermined proof load to a control cable and measuring the resultant cable length thereof includes a motor (32) which, under the control of a controller (14) drives an actuator (28) which, in turn, controllably displaces an end fixture (26). The exact distance moved by the end fixture (26) is monitored by an encoder (34) and a load cell (27) monitors actual loading on a cable under test. A home position sensor (30) provides input to the controller (14) to indicate whether or not the end fixture (26) is homed to its reference position. During cable testing, the fixed end of the cable is fixedly attached to a predetermined position in a channel (20). The free end of the cable is then attached to the end fixture (26). The controller (14) actuates the motor (32) to thereby provide a predetermined proof load profile to the cable under test. At the end of the proof loading test, the controller (14) determines, via the encoder (34), the distance L.sub.2 that the end fixture, and thus the cable have moved from the home position. This distance L.sub.2 is added to the initial distance L.sub.1 from the home position to the fixed anchor hole (23) to thereby determine an overall length L of the cable.

Method and apparatus for applying a predetermined proof load to a cable

The present invention relates to an automatically reconfigurable contour checking fixture for comparing a component to a programmed contour. The fixture comprises a horizontal support table, having a length and width, wherein a drive rack runs along its length. The fixture also includes a plurality of stations positioned at intervals along the length of the support table, each of the stations including an artificial template member, and a multi-service drive assembly which drives the artificial template member of each of the plurality of stations to a respective designated point along the programmed contour. A computer is in communication with the multi-service drive assembly, communicating positional instructions such that the artificial template member of each of the plurality of stations conforms to the programmed contour.

Universal fixture having shared drive assembly

Growing community of inventors

Kent, WA, United States of America

David M Kozy