Tool for honing an external surface of a right cylindrical tube and method of use

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10183373-B2
Application number	US-201615003382-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jan 21, 2016
Priority date	Jan 23, 2015
Publication date	Jan 22, 2019
Grant date	Jan 22, 2019

Abstract

A honing tool (1) for honing a cylindrical external surface (2) of a rod (3). The tool comprises a plurality of honing inserts (4), adapted to hone a metal, and a support (5) for the honing inserts. The inserts (4) are carried by the support (5) and define a passage (6) around which the inserts (4) are to be found and in which the cylindrical external surface (2) of the rod (3) is insertable. The tool (1) includes a plurality of sliding skids (7) carried by the support (5), the sliding skids (7) and the honing inserts (4) being arranged to be capable of coming simultaneously into contact against the cylindrical external surface (2) of the rod (3) when the rod is placed inside the passage (6) and so as to be able to center the cylindrical external surface (2) inside the passage (6).

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A honing tool ( 1 ) for honing a cylindrical external surface ( 2 ) of a rod ( 3 ), the tool comprising:
a plurality of honing inserts ( 4 ) adapted to hone a metal; and
a support ( 5 ) for the honing inserts, the inserts ( 4 ) being carried by the support ( 5 ) so as to define a passage ( 6 ) around which the inserts ( 4 ) are to be found and in which it is possible to introduce the cylindrical external surface ( 2 ) of the rod ( 3 );
wherein the tool ( 1 ) includes a plurality of sliding skids ( 7 ) carried by the support ( 5 ), the sliding skids ( 7 ) and the honing inserts ( 4 ) being arranged to be capable of coming simultaneously into contact against the cylindrical external surface ( 2 ) of the rod ( 3 ) when the rod is placed inside said passage ( 6 ) and so as to be able to center the cylindrical external surface ( 2 ) inside said passage ( 6 ), and
wherein the tool further includes a connection structure ( 8 ) between said support ( 5 ) for supporting the honing inserts ( 4 ) and a drive motor (M) for rotating the insert support, the connection structure ( 8 ) comprising:
assembly means ( 9 ) for assembling the connection structure ( 8 ) with the support ( 5 ) for the honing inserts ( 4 ), the assembly means ( 9 ) allowing the connection structure ( 8 ) to be disassembled from the insert support ( 5 ); and
a drive shaft ( 10 ) for rotating the connection structure ( 8 ), the drive shaft ( 10 ) being connected to the assembly means ( 9 ) via a deformable connection ( 11 ),

the honing tool further including a centering part ( 16 ) presenting an external surface of revolution ( 17 ) extending along a main axis of symmetry (Y-Y) of the passage, the honing inserts ( 4 ) and the sliding skids ( 7 ) extending along the main axis of symmetry (Y-Y) of the passage and parallel to the main axis of symmetry, and
wherein the honing inserts ( 4 ) and the sliding skids ( 7 ) all being spaced apart from the external surface of revolution ( 17 ) and at equal distances from said external surface of revolution ( 17 ), the centering part ( 16 ) presenting a through internal bore ( 18 ) extending along the main axis of symmetry (Y-Y) of the passage,
the tool further including a centering pin ( 19 ) extending inside the through internal bore ( 18 ) of the centering part ( 16 ) in order to provide a rotary and sliding connection for the centering part ( 16 ) along the centering pin ( 19 ), the centering part ( 16 ) being separable from the centering pin ( 19 ).

2. The honing tool ( 1 ) according to claim 1 , wherein at least some of the honing inserts ( 4 ) and at least some of the sliding skids ( 7 ) form pairs, each of these pairs being formed by a honing insert ( 4 ) and a sliding skid ( 7 ) placed facing each other on opposite sides of the passage ( 6 ).

3. The honing tool according to claim 2 , wherein these pairs are distributed regularly around said passage ( 6 ).

4. The honing tool according to claim 1 , wherein the support ( 5 ) is ring-shaped.

5. The honing tool according to claim 1 , wherein each honing insert ( 4 ) has a honing surface (S 1 ), and each sliding slid ( 7 ) presents a sliding surface (S 2 ), these honing and sliding surfaces (S 1 , S 2 ) being shaped to come into contact against the cylindrical external surface ( 2 ) of the rod ( 3 ) when the rod is placed in the passage ( 6 ), and these honing and sliding surfaces (S 1 , S 2 ) being elongate in a direction parallel to an axis of revolution (X-X) of the cylindrical external surface of the rod ( 2 ).

6. The honing tool according to claim 1 , wherein:
each honing insert ( 4 ) has a honing surface (S 1 ) and each sliding skid ( 7 ) presents a sliding surface (S 2 ), the honing and sliding surfaces (S 1 , S 2 ) being shaped to come into contact against the cylindrical external surface ( 2 ) of the rod ( 3 ) when the rod is placed in the passage ( 6 );
during sliding friction against a complementary metal surface ( 2 ), each of the honing surfaces (S 1 ) presents a first coefficient of friction in sliding; and
during sliding friction against a complementary metal surface, each of the sliding surfaces (S 2 ) presents a second coefficient of friction in sliding, the first coefficient of friction being at least three times greater than the second coefficient of friction.

7. The honing tool according to claim 1 , wherein the drive shaft ( 10 ) for rotating the connection structure ( 8 ) presents a right cylindrical end of diameter less than 20 mm so as to enable the right cylindrical end to be gripped by a chuck of a portable tool ( 12 ) having a motor (M) for driving rotation of the support ( 5 ) of the inserts ( 4 ).

8. The honing tool according to claim 1 , wherein the assembly means ( 9 ) comprise a plurality of peripheral pins ( 13 ) that are mutually parallel and that are assembled to a common support part ( 14 ) for these peripheral pins, the peripheral pins ( 13 ) being arranged so as to be capable of being positioned together in complementary slots ( 15 ) formed in the insert support ( 5 ) and these assembly means ( 9 ) being such that when they are assembled with the insert support ( 5 ), the peripheral pins ( 13 ) are constrained to move in translation relative to the insert support and in a translation direction that is parallel to the peripheral pins ( 13 ).

9. The honing tool according to claim 1 , wherein the honing insert support ( 5 ) includes control means ( 30 ) for causing the honing inserts to move simultaneously relative to said passage ( 6 ).

10. A method comprising:
using a tool according to claim 1 for honing a cylindrical external surface ( 2 ) of an aircraft landing gear rod ( 3 ).

11. The method according to claim 10 , wherein the landing gear rod ( 3 ) is held stationary and then the support ( 5 ) supporting honing inserts ( 4 ) is put into position around the cylindrical external surface ( 2 ) of the rod ( 3 ) so that the guide skids ( 7 ) and the honing inserts ( 4 ) press against the cylindrical external surface ( 2 ) of the rod, and then the assembly means ( 9 ) of the connection structure ( 8 ) are used to assemble the connection structure with the honing insert support, and a drive motor (M) coupled to the rotary drive shaft of the connection structure is used to drive the honing tool in rotation relative to the rod so as to hone the cylindrical external surface of the landing gear rod that is being held stationary.

Assignees

• Messier Bugatti Dowty

Inventors

• Labelle Normand
• Caceres Alan
• Nguyen Nhu

Classifications

• B24B33/083

  with different sets of honing stones · CPC title

• B24B33/04

  designed for working external surfaces of revolution · CPC title

• B24B33/081

  for external surfaces · CPC title

• B24B33/08 Primary

  Honing tools {(for manufacturing gear teeth B23F21/03)} · CPC title

• B24B5/04

  for grinding cylindrical surfaces externally (grinding combined cylindrical and conical surfaces B24B5/14) · CPC title