Airbus Operations Gmbh

Matthew Webster

Matthew Cross

Andrew John Fay

Richard Dobbin

A blind fastener is disclosed having a head, a shaft with a tail, a tail of the blind fastener including the tail of the shaft and a sleeve surrounding the tail of the shaft, and a barrier secured to the tail of the blind fastener. The sleeve is configured to expand away from the tail of the shaft to form an expanded sleeve which is forced against a face of a workpiece to clamp the workpiece between the head and the expanded sleeve. The barrier is configured to be forced against the face of the workpiece to form a sealed cover around the tail of the blind fastener.

Blind fastener

A blind fastener is disclosed having a bolt part, a sleeve part, and a tubular insulating sheath. The bolt part is at least partially received within the sleeve part. A first end of the sheath is retained on the bolt part such that relative axial movement between the first end of the sheath and the bolt part is substantially prevented. The blind fastener is movable between: a pre-installation configuration in which the sleeve part has a first axial position relative to the bolt part and a predetermined section of the sheath is adjacent an outer surface of the sleeve part; and a post-installation configuration in which the sleeve part has a second, different axial position relative to the bolt part and the predetermined section of the sheath is adjacent an inner surface of the sleeve part.

Blind fasteners

A method of joining a first workpiece to a second workpiece is disclosed including securing a spark containment cap to the first workpiece, the cap comprising an electrically insulating washer and a cap body defining an air cavity. Once the cap has been secured, a tail of a fastener is inserted into the air cavity through the second workpiece, the first workpiece and the washer. Upon tightening the fastener, the tail of the fastener urges the washer against the first workpiece and the first and second workpiece are thereby clamped between the washer and a head of the fastener so as to form a joint. Advantageously, it has been found that forming a joint in this manner can help to better protect the joint from the effects of electrical arcing.

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Bristol, United Kingdom

Matthew Webster