Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Limited

The Society of Japanese Aerospace Companies

Otowa Electric Co., Ltd.

Tooru Hashigami

Yuichiro Kamino

Hiroaki Yamaguchi

Koichi Nakamura

Kazuyuki Oguri

Nobuyuki Kamihara

Hiroki Makimura

Koki Higashide

Masaki Kitaoka

Naotatsu Ishimaru

A composite tank that can suppress electrification, corrosion and strength degradation, a wing comprising the composite tank, and a method for manufacturing the composite tank. The composite tank comprises: a tank body inside which a combustible material is stored, having a first resin portion () formed from a fiber reinforced resin and a metal portion formed from a metal material, a second resin portion () formed from a fiber reinforced resin, which covers at least those regions on the inner surface of the tank body where the first resin portion () adjoins the metal portion, and a plurality of conductive portions () that enable charge transfer through the second resin portion (), from the surface that contacts the combustible material to the first resin portion (), wherein the fiber in the second resin portion () has a higher electrical resistivity than fiber in the first resin portion (), and the second resin portion () forms a layer that isolates the first resin portion () from the metal portion.

Composite tank, wing, and method for manufacturing composite tank

Even when a large-current, high-voltage load is applied, damage is prevented. A current generating device () supplies a current simulating a current flowing when lightning occurs to a test piece () subjected to a lightning resistance test using power supplied from a power supply device (). The current generating device () includes electric double-layer capacitors that store and discharge power supplied from the power supply device (), a semiconductor switch () that switches between supplying and not supplying the power stored in the electric double-layer capacitors to the test piece (), and a protection unit () that is connected between the semiconductor switch () and the test piece () and that cuts the connection between the semiconductor switch () and the test piece () when a current larger than a predetermined value flows through the semiconductor switch ().

Current generating device

An aircraft fuel tank that is capable of suppressing the occurrence of sparks on a pipe caused by a lightning current through the pipe during a lightning strike, and also suppressing static electricity charging of a pipe caused by flow electrification generated by the fuel. An aircraft fuel tank () in which a storage section is formed using a conductive upper skin (), a conductive lower skin () and conductive spars (), the tank comprising: pipes inside the tank, such as a refuel pipe (), an engine feed pipe () and an inert gas pipe (), which are disposed inside the storage section and are earthed () at a plurality of locations, and pipe outer surface layers () having semiconductor properties that are formed in an integrated manner on the outer surfaces of the pipes inside the tank such as the replenishing pipe (), the supply pipe () and the gas pipe ().

Aircraft fuel tank

An aircraft fuel tank capable of suppressing electrostatic charging caused, for example, by flow electrification with the fuel. The aircraft fuel tank comprises an upper skin () and a lower skin () that exhibit conductivity and form a portion of a container for storing fuel, an internal structure () formed from a metal, and an inner surface layer () which has semiconductor properties or insulating properties and is formed in an integral manner on the inner surfaces of the upper skin () and the lower skin () in a location where the internal structure () contacts the upper skin () and the lower skin (), and in the surrounding portion thereof, wherein the inner surface layer () is formed, at least in the surrounding portion, from a material having semiconductor properties.

Growing community of inventors

Nagoya, Japan

Tooru Hashigami