The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
Oct. 23, 2001
Filed:
Jul. 16, 1999
Ulf Breuer, Grasberg, DE;
Jochen Mueller, Bremen, DE;
DaimlerChrysler Aerospace Airbus GmbH, Hamburg, DE;
Abstract
A method for fabricating a stringer-stiffened shell structure using fiber composite materials involves the following steps. A fiber reinforced skin member having a specified surface curvature is laid onto a correspondingly curved mold surface of a shell mold. Stringer core blanks are cut from a cured plate of fiber composite material, whereby each blank has a narrow edge with a curvature matching the curvature of the skin member. These stiff pre-cut blanks are arranged extending along and vertically protruding from the skin member, with the narrow edges of the blanks lying in contact along the skin surface. An auxiliary frame is placed around the perimeter of the shell mold, and the ends of the stringer core blanks are received in slots in the frame to hold the blanks in proper positions. Then, stiffening profile members are laid lengthwise along and against the stringer core blanks and the adjoining areas of the skin member, whereby these profile members are made of uncured fiber composite material so that they are easily deformable along the skin member and the stringer core blanks. The assembled structure is pressurized and cured so as to integrally bond the components to each other and fully cure and harden all of the components. A stiffening stringer of the finished structure is formed by a respective stringer core blank sandwiched between two adjoining stiffening profile members.