Northrop Grumman Systems Corporation

Other

Matthew Allen Neal

Charles R Smith

Michael J Ehrlich

Stephen R Berg

Cory Michael Combs

John C Rufino

Robert E Bauer

Arthur Richard Daniel Thompson

Jonathan D Wells

Timothy A Burke

A fastener assembly includes a bolt having a shaft and a head. The shaft has proximal and distal shaft ends and a shaft body, with the head at the proximal shaft end. At least a bondable portion of the shaft body is at least partially made of a bondable material. At least one collar has proximal and distal collar ends longitudinally separated by a collar body which includes a longitudinally oriented collar aperture extending through a thickness thereof between proximal and distal collar surfaces. The collar aperture defines an inner collar wall having a bondable portion which is at least partially made of a bondable material. At least the bondable portion of the shaft body is located inside the collar aperture. The bondable material of both of the inner collar wall and the shaft body is activated to bond the shaft and the collar into an integral fastener assembly structure.

Diffusion bonded fastener assembly

A ball-lock type fastening device for connecting a work piece to a structure is disclosed. The fastening device includes a number of features designed to improve the reliability, repeatability and strength of the locking mechanism compared to traditional ball-lock fasteners. The features include the shape of the locking balls, the shape of the retention housing which engages the locking balls, and mechanisms for controlling deployment and retraction of the locking balls.

Ball-lock fastening device

A dynamic conformal aerodynamic seal that bridges the gap between an aircraft control surface and an aircraft wing, stabilizer or tail. The seal has a first edge and a second edge, where the first edge of the seal is rigidly coupled to the aircraft wing, stabilizer or tail and the second edge of the seal is slidably coupled to the control surface by magnetic coupling so that when the control surface pivots relative to the aircraft wing, stabilizer or tail, the second edge of the seal slides along the control surface.

Dynamic conformal aerodynamic seal (CAS) for aircraft control surfaces

Advanced lock design for ball-lock devices

A permanent faster is disclosed that utilizes an amorphous metal alloy for a retaining collar that is thermoplastically formed on install. The fastener includes a headed pin with locking grooves disposed thereon and a collar having a cylindrical inner wall. Head geometry may be any suitable shape; countersunk, counter bore, flat, etc., and may also be non-rotationally symmetric. The pin is disposed into aligned holes through the work pieces to be secured, and the collar is disposed about the pin over the locking grooves. The collar is heated into a thermoplastic region, something only allowed because of the amorphous metal material properties. The cylindrical wall of the collar is then radically compressed into the locking grooves to affix the collar on the pin. The amorphous metal properties allow use of a smaller fastener, and the thermoplastic region is reached at a temperature which does not damage composite work pieces.

Amorphous metal permanent fastener utilizing a thermoplastically swaged retainer

A bi-directional coupler that selectively couples and de-couples a driving element to a driven element. The coupler includes an outer shaft having an outer shaft slot and an inner shaft having an inner shaft slot, where the inner and outer shafts are configured to rotate independently of each other. The coupler also includes a ball bearing provided within the inner shaft slot and having a size so that when the ball bearing is located at a center portion of the inner shaft slot it does not interfere with rotation of the outer shaft, where the ball bearing is held in that location by a magnet located in the inner shaft. Rotation of the inner shaft above a predetermined rotational speed causes the ball bearing to engage the outer shaft slot so as to cause the inner shaft to be locked to the outer shaft and rotate therewith.

Bi-directional magnetic clutch

A method for providing air traffic controlled flight of drones flying in to and out of an air traffic controlled space around an airport. The method includes causing the drones to congregate at a congregation area in the air traffic controlled space, causing the drones to fly from the congregation area as a group out of the air traffic controlled space under air traffic control, causing the drones to disperse from the group once the drones are out of the air traffic controlled space, causing the drones to fly to a package delivery location after they are dispersed to deliver the package, causing return drones to fly to a re-congregation area outside of the air traffic controlled space after they have delivered their packages, and causing the return drones to enter the air traffic controlled space as a group under air traffic control.

Means of controlling large numbers of commercial drones over airports and populated areas

A method for providing air traffic controlled flight of a large number of commercial drones each carrying one or more packages in to and out of an air traffic controlled space around an airport. The method includes providing an outbound corridor from a carrier facility through and out of the air traffic controlled space, where the outbound corridor does not allow any other air traffic to fly therein, and allowing the drones to fly through the outbound corridor to leave the air traffic controlled space without requiring air traffic control. The method also includes providing an inbound corridor through the air traffic controlled space to the carrier facility that does not allow any other air traffic to fly therein, and allowing drones to return to the carrier facility through the air traffic controlled space by flying through the inbound corridor without requiring air traffic control.

Alternate means of controlling large numbers of commercial drones over airports and populated areas

A magnetic fastener assembly for securing an access panel to an aircraft structure. A panel magnetic foundation member is rigidly secured to a surface of the panel facing the aircraft structure and a land magnetic foundation member is rigidly secured to a surface of the aircraft structure facing the panel. A planar magnet is positioned between the panel magnetic foundation member and the land magnetic foundation member and being magnetically coupled thereto so as to secure the panel to the aircraft structure. A separation device, such as a pneumatic bladder, is positioned between the panel and the land structure and adjacent to the magnet, and is rigidly secured to the aircraft structure. The separation device is actuated to apply pressure to the panel and break the magnetic attraction between one or both of the panel magnetic foundation member and the magnet or the land magnetic foundation member and the magnet.

Method and apparatus for magnetic panel attachment

A Z-pin including a first bi-metal structure having a first metal strip and a second metal strip bonded together, where the first and second metal strips have different coefficients of thermal expansion, and a second bi-metal structure having a third metal strip and fourth metal strip bonded together, where the third metal strip and the fourth metal strip have different coefficients of thermal expansion. The first and third metal strips are selectively secured together at at least one discrete location so that heating of the Z-pin causes the first and second bi-metal structures to deform relative to each other. The Z-pin is inserted into a composite laminate structure while it is in its uncured state, where curing of the composite structure causes the first and second bi-metal structures to deform relative to each other to lock the laminate layers together.

Thermally activated, shape configurable mechanical locking Z-pin

A method of noninvasively determining desired positioning of a component beneath a substrate is described. The component has a concealing surface longitudinally separated by a substrate body from an accessible surface of the substrate. A component having longitudinally differing activated and deactivated positions is provided. The component is located longitudinally beneath the concealing surface of the substrate. The accessible surface of the substrate is inspected with an inspection device while the component is beneath the concealing surface. With the inspection device, at least one of an activated and a deactivated position of the component is detected. The detected activated and/or deactivated position of the component is indicated, in a user-perceptible format. An apparatus for noninvasively determining desired positioning of a component beneath a substrate is also provided.

Apparatus and method for noninvasively determining positioning of a component beneath a substrate

A fastener for highly curved access panels on aircraft or other structures, featuring a bottom-grasping design allowing for an unblemished outer panel surface, simple and rapid pneumatic fastener actuation, built-in clamping pre-load, and full retractability of the fastener inside the supporting structure. The fastener includes a Belleville spring with a piston centrally disposed therein, where the piston and spring deflect outward upon application of pneumatic pressure. A pressure chamber within the piston has inlet and outlet orifices designed so that the pressure in the piston chamber gradually increases, requiring several seconds to reach a pressure which causes locking dogs in the piston to deploy radially into a cavity in the access panel. When pressure is removed, the Belleville spring relaxes, the locking dogs grasp a lip of the cavity, and the access panel is latched onto the structure with a clamping pre-load. A pneumatic sequence for unlatching is also provided.

Temporally staged rapid panel access fastener for highly curved panels

A fastener for highly curved access panels on aircraft or other structures is disclosed. The fastener features a bottom-grasping design which allows for an unblemished outer panel surface, simple and rapid pneumatic fastener actuation for both latching and unlatching, high reliability, built-in clamping pre-load of the access panel onto the structure, and full retractability of the fastener inside the supporting structure. The fastener includes a Belleville spring with a piston centrally disposed therein, where the piston and spring deflect outward upon application of pneumatic pressure. A pneumatic valve opens upon application of a higher pressure, allowing locking dogs in the piston to deploy radially into a cavity in the access panel. When pressure is removed, the Belleville spring relaxes, the locking dogs grasp a lip of the cavity, and the access panel is latched onto the structure with a clamping pre-load. A pneumatic sequence for unlatching is also provided.

Rapid panel access fastener for highly curved panels

A base structure of the system with a pair of center containers each of rectangular form with a square width and height and an elongated length attached along an elongated side of each. A side container may be attached to each side of the center containers. A semicircular shaped inlet port is formed in a top wall of each of the center containers to form a circular inlet port. A vertical duct of cylindrical form may be attached over the inlet port and have a lower portion of constant diameter cross-section and an upper portion diverging outwardly. A fan placed in each center container to cause an air flow toward a center of each center container to be channeled upwardly to exit through the inlet port for air to flow through the vertical duct to exit the open top end. A recirculating air structure may be formed with additional containers.

Growing community of inventors

Palmdale, CA, United States of America

Matthew Allen Neal