The Boeing Company

Patrick Lee Anderson

Barry Allen Fetzer

Dennis P Sarr

Joseph Daniel Brennan

Hien T Bui

John Willard Dorsey-Palmateer

Steven Ray Walton

Bruce S Howard

Jimmy Susumu Takeuchi

Jeffry J Garvey

Edward G Sergoyan

Stephen John Bennison

Solomon Tadesse Atsebha

Christer E Bjorkegren

Mark B Simpson

Leonard P Estrada

Milton Perque

Lori E Kovarik (Forner)

Soloman T Atsebha

John W Dorsey-Palmateer

An automated rivet measurement system comprises a number of end effectors, a number of cameras, a processor, and a comparator. The number of end effectors is configured to perform drilling and riveting on a structure. The number of cameras is connected to the number of end effectors. The number of cameras is configured to take a first image of a hole in the structure and a second image of a rivet in the hole. The processor is configured to process the first image and the second image to identify a number of reference points in the first image and the second image. The comparator is configured to determine a rivet concentricity using the hole in the first image and the rivet in the second image, in which the first image and the second image are aligned using the number of reference points.

Automated rivet measurement system

A probe is used to inspect the health of a corner radius within an elongate internal cavity of a structure. The probe is transported through the cavity on a carriage that maintains the probe a substantially constant distance from the corner radius as the carriage traverses changes in the cross sectional shape of the cavity.

Device and method for inspecting a corner radius

Apparatus is provided for slitting composite material int1aaaaaaaaaaao tape and for measuring the width of the slit tape as the tape is being reeled onto take up rolls. The tape width is measured by an optical micrometer. The optical micrometer includes a transmitter for directing radiant energy over the tape and, a receiver for receiving radiant energy from the transmitter that passes across an edge of the tape and for producing a signal related to the width of the tape.

Method and apparatus for measuring the width of composite tape

An ultrasonic inspection apparatus operable within a channel associated with a structure is described. The apparatus includes at least one transducer and a holder. The holder includes a material having a flexibility and tensile strength such that a spring force is provided for maintaining a position of said holder within the channel of the structure. The holder includes a plurality of transducer indexing nodes therein for mounting of the transducers, and each node provides a single point of contact between the holder and the transducer. The transducer indexing nodes are fabricated having a material flexibility and tensile strength with respect to a remainder of the holder for positioning of the transducers along surface variances that define the channel.

Inspection apparatus and method for irregular shaped, closed cavity structures

A microwave paint thickness sensor includes a single cylindrical cavity, a microwave source, and a signal detector. The cylindrical cavity is open at one end, the open end having a choke joint for interfacing with a painted surface. The cylindrical cavity is designed so that the electronic field is normal to the painted surface. In a preferred embodiment, this is accomplished by providing an optimally designed TM011 mode cavity. In this configuration, the resonant frequency of the cavity is linearly related to the inverse of the paint thickness. In accordance with one aspect of the present invention, the resonant cavity is optimally sized to resonate at a frequency where the sensor footprint can be minimized. Thus with the use of the choke joint, the small sensor interface area of the present invention may easily be applied to a curved surface.

Microwave paint thickness sensor

A method for determining the positional laydown accuracy of an automated lamination machine during fabrication of a multiple layered part is described. The method includes measuring a position of a placement head of the lamination machine in a coordinate system, determining a location of a ply edge with respect to the placement head, transforming the location of the ply edge into the coordinate system, based on the measured head position, transforming the location of the ply edge from the coordinate system into a second coordinate system that is associated with the part being fabricated, and comparing actual ply edge location in the second coordinate system to an expected ply edge location defined in the second coordinate system, the second coordinate system associated with the part being fabricated, to determine the laydown accuracy of the machine.

Methods and systems for automated ply boundary and orientation inspection

A measuring instrument and method for measuring paint and coating thickness on conductive and poorly conductive substrates. The instrument uses a microwave amplifier, a measurement cavity, and a reference cavity with supporting electronics to measure the apparent changes in the length of the measurement cavity due to the changes in the paint and coating thickness. The measurement cavity resonates when the measurement cavity is set upon the test surface. The oscillating signal is sent through a reference cavity tuned to give the desired filtered response to cover the paint and coating thickness range allowed. The filtered response of the reference cavity is converted to a dc level signal that serves as input to a data acquisition circuit. The data acquisition circuit converts the input signal to digital form so that the calibration method may be used to associate a given response with the corresponding paint and coating thickness.

Portable paint thickness gauge for composite materials using resonant cavities at x-band

A distance-measuring apparatus for measuring the distance between a capacitance-type sensing probe (60) and a nearby surface of a conductive body is provided. A probe (60) includes a plurality of measuring electrodes (56.sub.l -56.sub.n) and a grounding electrode (58). The grounding electrode protrudes from the probe and grounds the nearby surface of the conductive body. A control system (10) is connected to the probe (60). A processor (12) issues control instructions, S.sub.CTL, to a selector (16). The selector (16) selects one of a plurality of measuring electrodes (56.sub.l -56.sub.n) and connects the selected electrode to a converter (14). A charging circuit (18) applies a charging voltage to the selected electrode, causing a capacitor formed by the selected electrode and the nearby surface of the conductive body to charge up. A timing circuit (22) starts a counter (32) when one of the measuring electrodes (56.sub.l -56.sub.n) is selected and stops the counter (32) when a capacitor charge voltage, V'.sub.C, becomes greater than or equal to a threshold voltage, V.sub.T. The counter (32) counts clock pulses, V.sub.CK, produced by a clock (34) and produces a count value, S.sub.CNT, that is proportional to the charge time of the capacitor. The processor (12) translates the S.sub.CNT value into a distance value corresponding to the distance between the sensing probe (60) and the nearby surface of the body being inspected.

Method and apparatus for measuring the distance between a body and a

A probe (20) that inspects a countersunk hole (21) in a conductive body, such as an aircraft part (22), is provided. A plurality of nested cylinders form an electrode cartridge (54) with a countersink portion (74) having a frustoconical shape and a hole portion (76) having a cylindrical shape. A plurality of lower hole electrode strips (72) are mounted on a lower hole cylinder (110) and a plurality of upper hole electrode strips (70) are mounted on an upper hole cylinder (116). A plurality of lower countersink electrode strips (68) are coupled to a lower countersink cylinder (124) and a plurality of upper countersink electrode strips (66) are coupled to an upper countersink cylinder (132). A dielectric layer (64) covers a plurality of measuring electrode tips (67, 69, 71 and 73) and an outer surface (150) of the hole and countersink portions (76 and 74). A grounding electrode (158) is mounted on the upper hole cylinder ( 116). A ground wire (162) is coupled to the grounding electrode (158) and extends beyond the dielectric layer (64). When probe (20) is inserted into the countersunk hole (21), the countersunk hole (21) is grounded by the ground wire (162). A charging current applied to the measuring electrode strips (66, 68, 70 and 72) in a sequential manner, causes the measuring electrode tips (67, 69, 71 and 73) form fringe field capacitors with the ground wall of the countersunk hole (21). The fringe field capacitors charge up at a rate dependent, in part, upon the distance between the probe (20) and the wall of the countersunk hole (21). Sufficient rate measurements are made of the distance between the probe (20) and the wall of the countersunk hole (20) to permit another device (30) to determine whether the geometry and orientation of the countersunk hole (21) are within engineering specifications.

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Sammamish, WA, United States of America

Patrick Lee Anderson