Edison Welding Institute, Inc.

General Electric Company

Siemens Energy, Inc.

Timothy V Stotler

Timothy Joseph Trapp

Mark Lawrence Hunt

Gregory Christopher Firestone

Jonathan David Mast

Scott Sager Campbell

Suhas Prabhakar Vaze

Mathew Skilliter

Gerald Joseph Bruck

Pazhayannur Ramanathan Subramanian

Earl Claude Helder

Jerry Ellison Gould

Steven English Richard

Joseph P Bellino

Karen Broadwell Lausier

William C Mohr

Mark L Hunt

Wendell L Johnson

Mathew D Skiliter

Michael J Caulfield

An airfoil component for attaching to a cropped airfoil is provided. The cropped airfoil comprises a cropped airfoil attachment section and a cropped first side opposite a cropped second side, which each extend axially between a cropped first edge and a cropped second edge to define a cropped chord length. The airfoil component comprises a body having a component first side opposite a component second side. The body defines an attachment section for attaching the airfoil component to the cropped airfoil at the cropped airfoil attachment section. The attachment section extends axially between a component first edge and a component second edge to define a component chord length, and the attachment section is oversized with respect to the cropped airfoil attachment section such that the component chord length is longer than the cropped chord length. Systems and methods also are provided.

Airfoil joining apparatus and methods

A method of inertia friction welding a superalloy substrate, the method including: rotating and forcing a deposit material () against the superalloy substrate (); plastically deforming at least one of the deposit material () and the superalloy substrate () to form a weld joining the deposit material () to the superalloy substrate (), thereby forming an assembly; and heat-treating the assembly. Heat-treating includes: a post-weld intermediate stress-relief (ISR) treatment; a solutionizing treatment; and a precipitation hardening heat treatment.

Inertia friction weld of superalloy with enhanced post weld heat treatment

The apparatus () includes a friction stir welding tool (), a local clamping means (), and an interface () that joins the tool () and the local clamping means (). The local clamping means () is in close proximity to the at least one sidewall () of the tool () and has a housing () and a plurality of contact devices (). The local clamping means () transfers a clamping force to the first and the second components (C, C) and holds them firmly in place during welding. The local clamping means () includes a plurality of contact devices () that may take the form of casters, rollers (), and ball bearings (). The location of the contact devices () is significant as external clamping is greatly reduced, and often eliminated, as the contact devices () are brought into close proximity to the area of the weld.

Method and apparatus for locally clamping components that are to be joined by friction stir welding

A friction stir welding (FSW) travel axis load control method and apparatus for controlling a travel axis load applied to a FSW setup during the joining of workpieces by FSW. The method and apparatus recognize that controlling certain attributes of a friction stir welding plasticized region are key to controlling the quality of the resulting weld. This invention controls any of a number of qualities associated with the plasticized region thereby producing welds having improved mechanical and aesthetic properties, as well as extending the life of the FSW tool. The method and apparatus may control the FSW process to obtain a predetermined optimum size of a heat affected zone. The plasticized region may be monitored in a number of ways including, but not limited to, force on the tool, torque applied to the tool, workpiece temperature, plasticized region physical dimension, as well as changing surface characteristics such as color and reflectivity.

Friction stir welding travel axis load control method and apparatus

The present invention provides a friction stir welding apparatus and associated thermal management systems and methods for joining one or more similar or dissimilar materials forming a workpiece along a joint to be welded. The friction stir welding apparatus includes a pin tool apparatus selectively disposed adjacent to and in direct contact with a first surface of the workpiece along the joint to be welded and a heating member disposed adjacent to a second surface of the workpiece along the joint to be welded, the heating member operable for controllably heating at least a portion of the workpiece adjacent to the joint to be welded. The friction stir welding apparatus also includes an annular spindle having an interior portion and an axis, the interior portion of the annular spindle at least partially defining one or more cooling channels, the one or more cooling channels operable for containing a cooling fluid. The friction stir welding apparatus further includes a shoulder disposed adjacent to the annular spindle and substantially aligned with the axis of the annular spindle and a pin tool disposed adjacent to the shoulder and substantially aligned with the axis of the annular spindle. The cooling fluid is operable for cooling at least one of the shoulder and the pin tool.

Friction stir welding apparatus and associated thermal management systems and methods

A portable inertia welder is mounted in a housing so as to afford both axial and rotational movement of a shaft with flywheel weights. Rotational motion is provided by a motor affixed to the drive shaft while axial motion is provided by means of a hydraulic housing mounted around said shaft. A chuck mounted to the shaft holds a first workpiece for rotational and axial displacement. Holding devices such as vacuum cups secure the welder to a second workpiece. A flash cutting tool and an appurtenance with a flash trap, welding flats, and an internally threaded bore are described.

Portable inertia welder

A radiused corner support plate is used to form a corner void when making L- and T-corner welds that are filled with plasticized work piece material during friction stir welding to form a filleted corner weld. An improved friction stir welding tool uses either disrupting features such as crossed rectangular grooves in the distal tip end or a curved tip region or both to improve plasticized work piece material flow below the distal end and in the region of the fillet.

Friction stir welding of corner configurations

A friction stir welding tool for welding high-strength materials with one or more of the following features: 1) a curved transition geometry structure at the shoulder face and probe interface; 2) a tool material selected on the basis of an ultimate tensile strength determined at or above the temperature of the tool processing temperature; 3) a compressive stress at the point of crack fatigue introduced by mechanical or chemical means; and 4) a threaded probe with a) a major to minor thread diameter ratio that increases toward the distal end of the probe and/or b) with a curved thread root.

Tool for friction stir welding

An apparatus is provided for joining electrically conductive materials by friction stir welding. The apparatus includes a shaft portion for being received by a rotation imparting apparatus, and a second end having a cut-away portion configured for deflecting plasticized material during friction stir welding. A pilot formed of a material harder than the electrically conductive material extends from the second end. The pilot is configured and dimensioned for friction stir welding electrically conductive members together.

Growing community of inventors

Columbus, OH, United States of America

Timothy V Stotler