The Boeing Company

Theboeing Company

Kenneth Harlan Griess

Gary E Georgeson

Russell Lee Keller

Karen D MacKenzie

Joseph Lawrence Hafenrichter

Jack J Esposito

Derek Paul Vetter

Michael Jeffrey Graves

Everett A Westerman

Keith Daniel Humfeld

Max Urban Kismarton

Julio A Navarro

David Mitchell Anderson

Manny S Urcia

Gerald F Herndon

Robert Thomas Johnson

Lyle Ray Deobald

Otis Franklin Layton

Madhavadas Ramnath

David R Gladish

Aaron N Rinn

Ying Shan

Steven J Bullock

Thomas F Klein, Iii

Non-destructive testing apparatuses, systems, and methods for assessing strain in structural components are disclosed. Structural components include induced predetermined regions having materials of varying density, including induced geometric patterns of differing densities within the structural component that can be a composite material structural component. The method includes projecting waves of energy, that can be beams of electromagnetic (EM) energy and/or waves of ultrasonic (UT) energy, into or through the structural component to evaluate the predetermined induced pattern region of varying density and determining existing strain within a structural component based on the detected energy response.

Methods, systems, and apparatuses for non-destructively inspecting, detecting, and measuring structural component internal deformation and strain by correlating density variations of induced material density patterns

Methods, apparatus, systems, and articles of manufacture are disclosed for high-traffic density personalized transportation. An example system includes a transit carrier having a first movement system, first stacking couplers, first and second magnetic couplers, and a first location, a transit pod having a second movement system, second stacking couplers, and a second location, the second stacking couplers configured to couple to the first stacking couplers, and a controller to in response to obtaining a request to direct the transit carrier to move from the first location to the second location, invoke the transit pod to couple to the transit carrier by directing the transit pod to move on top of the transit carrier using the second movement system, and when the transit carrier is coupled to the transit pod, invoke the transit carrier to move the transit pod to a third location using the first movement system.

Systems, methods, and apparatus for high-traffic density personalized transportation

A laminated metallic structure includes preformed metallic sheets of graduated three-dimensional sizes. The preformed metallic sheets have a three-dimensional shape and are nested together to form a preform. The preformed metallic sheets in the preform are bonded together to form a three-dimensional body, having a near-net three-dimensional shape.

Laminated metallic structures

Methods, apparatus, systems, and articles of manufacture are disclosed for high-traffic density transportation pathways. An example system includes a convoy moving at a first speed, the convoy including a first and second powertrain vehicle, a first land vehicle disposed between the first powertrain vehicle and the second powertrain vehicle, the first land vehicle including a first transit carrier, and a second land vehicle coupled to the first land vehicle, the second land vehicle including a second transit carrier having a first movement system and first stacking couplers, and a transit pod coupled to the second transit carrier, the transit pod having second stacking couplers, the second stacking couplers coupled to the first stacking couplers, and a controller to, in response to a request for a third transit carrier traveling at a second speed to join the convoy, instruct the third transit carrier to join the convoy at the first speed.

Systems, methods, and apparatus for high-traffic density transportation pathways

Methods, apparatus, systems, and articles of manufacture are disclosed for high-traffic density air transportation. An example system includes a land vehicle having a first location and a transit carrier having a movement system, first stacking couplers, a first and second magnetic coupler, and a transit pod having second stacking couplers configured to couple to the first stacking couplers, a UAV having UAV couplers and a second location, and a controller to, in response to obtaining a request to direct the land vehicle to move from the first location to a third location, invoke the UAV to move to the third location, and in response to the land vehicle and the UAV arriving at the third location, invoke the UAV to couple to the transit pod to facilitate transport of the transit pod from the third location to a fourth location by coupling the UAV couplers to the second stacking couplers.

Systems, methods, and apparatus for high-traffic density air transportation

Systems and methods are provided for composite part fabrication. One embodiment is a method for fabricating a composite part. The method includes selecting a tool with sides made of a core material in a desired size and shape, disposing a preform of a fiber reinforced material that surrounds the tool, resulting in a lamina assembly comprising the preform and the tool, heating the tool and the preform, co-bonding the tool to the fiber reinforced material within the lamina assembly, and hardening the preform and the tool into a hybrid composite part.

Internal tooling for composite parts

A structural assembly includes a support structure and an elongate structure intersecting the support structure. The elongate structure has a length and a mass. The mass of the elongate structure varies along the length of the elongate structure. A localized mass of the elongate structure decreases toward the support structure and increases away from the support structure.

Elongate structures, structural assemblies with elongate structures, and methods for supporting a structural load

Systems and methods for assessing strain in structural components are disclosed. Structural components may have geometric patterns of diffraction cavities within the structural component, with the diffraction cavities in the geometric pattern each having a cavity width and being spaced from each other by a cavity spacing distance. The method may include projecting beams of electromagnetic (EM) energy through the structural component to the geometric pattern of diffraction cavities to create diffracted beams of EM energy that are reflected from or transmitted through the geometric pattern of diffraction cavities and have diffracted wavelengths indicating changes in the cavity spacing distances due to strain caused when the structural component is exposed to environmental conditions, detecting the diffracted wavelength of the diffracted beams, and correlating the diffracted wavelengths of the diffracted beams to the strain in the structural components.

Sub-surface patterning for diffraction-based strain measurement and damage detection in structures

A method of forming a laminated metallic structure including (1) nesting metallic preformed components to form a preform, each one of the components includes first and second side portions, wherein a portion of the second side portion is substantially perpendicular to a portion of the first side portion, and a third side portion, wherein at least a portion of the third side portion is substantially perpendicular to at least a portion of the first and second side portions, the third side portion is discontinuous with the first side portion, and adjacent edges of the first and third side portions are parallel, and the components are nested so that the adjacent edges of the first and third side portions are substantially perpendicular to the adjacent edges of the first and third side portions of another one of the components; and (2) bonding the components together.

Methods of making laminated metallic structures

A method is provided for facilitating a vacuum bagging operation during fabrication of a composite laminate. The method comprises applying a vacuum bag over a composite part to fabricate the composite laminate from the composite part. The method also comprises drawing a vacuum in the vacuum bag, and monitoring one or more portions of the vacuum bag for strain within the vacuum bag when the vacuum is drawn. The method further comprises manipulating the vacuum bag to even out strain within the vacuum bag.

Apparatus and method for facilitating a vacuum bagging operation during fabrication of a composite laminate

A composite structure comprises stacked sets of laminated fiber reinforced resin plies and metal sheets. Edges of the resin plies and metal sheets are interleaved to form a composite-to-metal joint connecting the resin plies with the metal sheets.

Multi-layer metallic structure and composite-to-metal joint methods

Interlaminar features of a composite structure are laid up by placing and steering individual chopped fiber pre-preg segments onto a substrate.

Forming composite features using steered discontinuous fiber pre-preg

Systems and methods for assessing strain in structural components are disclosed. Structural components may have geometric patterns of grooves within the structural component, with the grooves in the geometric pattern each having a groove width. The method may include projecting beams of electromagnetic (EM) energy through the structural component to the geometric pattern of grooves to create diffracted beams of EM energy that are reflected from or transmitted through the geometric pattern of grooves and have diffracted wavelengths indicating changes in the groove widths due to strain caused when the structural component is exposed to environmental conditions, detecting the diffracted wavelength of the diffracted beams, and correlating the diffracted wavelengths of the diffracted beams to the strain in the structural components.

Graphene fibers made from a graphene film formed into an elongated fiber-like shape and composite materials made from the graphene fibers. The graphene film has amine groups formed on at least an outer surface of the graphene film and epoxide groups formed on at least one edge of the graphene film. The amine groups are formed in a functionalized area on the outer surface of the graphene film that is within about 10 microns from the at least one edge of the graphene film, or the functionalized area may extend the entire width of the graphene film. The graphene film may also have holes formed through the graphene film. The elongated fiber-like shapes may be the graphene film in a rolled spiral orientation or the graphene film in a twisted formation.

Graphene fiber for aerospace composites

Systems and methods for assessing strain in structural components are disclosed. Structural component may have geometric patterns of grooves, with the grooves in the geometric pattern each having a groove width. The method may include illuminating the geometric pattern of grooves with a first light at a first wavelength that corresponds to the groove width to create diffraction when the first light hits the geometric pattern of grooves and corresponding changes in the wavelength of the light reflected from the geometric pattern of grooves indicating changes in the groove widths due to strain caused when the structural component is exposed to environmental conditions, detecting the wavelength of the light reflected from the geometric pattern of grooves, and correlating the detected wavelength of the light reflected from the geometric pattern of grooves to the strain in the structural components.

Growing community of inventors

Kent, WA, United States of America

Kenneth Harlan Griess