Method for manufacturing a rivet connection of a fiber composite component

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10427358-B2
Application number	US-201715604277-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	May 24, 2017
Priority date	Jun 8, 2016
Publication date	Oct 1, 2019
Grant date	Oct 1, 2019

Abstract

A method for manufacturing a rivet connection of a fiber composite component. The method includes positioning a first component which contains a fiber composite material in an overlap joint with a second component, laser-drilling a shared through-hole at least through the fiber composite material of the first component, inserting a rivet into the through-hole and fixing the rivet to the first and to the second component.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A method for manufacturing a rivet connection of a fiber composite component, comprising:
positioning a first component which contains a fiber composite material in an overlap joint with a second component;
laser-drilling a shared through-hole at least through the fiber composite material of the first component by at least one of single-pulse drilling, percussion drilling, trepanning or spiral drilling;
forming at least one conical entry to the through-hole using a laser beam that is initially widened or defocused, and subsequently less widened or less defocused;
inserting a rivet into the through-hole; and
fixing the rivet to the first component and to the second component.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the laser-drilling is carried out using a high-energy laser beam.

3. The method of claim 2 , wherein the high-energy laser beam has a laser power greater than approximately 6 kilowatts.

4. The method of claim 1 , wherein the second component contains a fiber composite material which is drilled through during the laser-drilling.

5. The method of claim 1 , wherein the fiber composite material contains carbon fibers, some of which are partially drilled through by the laser-drilling.

6. The method of claim 1 , wherein the laser beam is widened or defocused to produce a desired hole diameter.

7. The method of claim 1 , wherein at least the first component is provided in planar form.

8. The method of claim 7 , wherein a plurality of parallel joint lines are provided along an edge of the first component.

9. The method of claim 1 , wherein a plurality of shared through-holes are formed in the first component and in the second component in a line extending along an edge of the first component by laser-drilling, a rivet being inserted into each of the through-holes and fixed to the first component and to the second component to form a uniformly continuous joint line.

10. The method of claim 9 , wherein a plurality of parallel joint lines are provided along an edge of the first component.

11. A structural arrangement, comprising:
a first component which contains a fiber composite material and a second component, the first component and the second component being connected using a rivet connection manufactured by a method comprising:
positioning a first component which contains a fiber composite material in an overlap joint with a second component;
laser-drilling a shared through-hole at least through the fiber composite material of the first component by at least one of single-pulse drilling, percussion drilling, trepanning or spiral drilling;
inserting a rivet into the through-hole; and
fixing the rivet to the first component and to the second component.

12. The structural arrangement of claim 11 , wherein a through-hole of the rivet connection comprises a hole wall which comprises a surface which is manufactured without cutting.

13. The structural arrangement of claim 12 , wherein the surface of the hole wall is manufactured by direct evaporation.

14. A method for manufacturing a vehicle skin, the method comprising:
providing a first component in a form of a first skin portion which contains a fiber composite material;
providing a second component in a form of a second skin portion or a connecting portion for connecting the first skin portion to a second skin portion in a butt joint; and
connecting the first component to the second component using a rivet connection manufactured by a method comprising:
positioning a first component which contains a fiber composite material in an overlap joint with a second component;
laser-drilling a shared through-hole at least through the fiber composite material of the first component by at least one of single-pulse drilling, percussion drilling, trepanning or spiral drilling;
forming a conical entry on at least one side of the through-hole using the laser;
inserting a rivet into the through-hole; and
fixing the rivet to the first component and to the second component.

15. A vehicle skin manufactured by a method comprising:
providing a first component in a form of a first skin portion which contains a fiber composite material;
providing a second component in a form of a second skin portion or a connecting portion for connecting the first skin portion to a second skin portion in a butt joint; and
connecting the first component to the second component using a rivet connection manufactured by a method comprising:
positioning a first component which contains a fiber composite material in an overlap joint with a second component;
laser-drilling a shared through-hole at least through the fiber composite material of the first component by at least one of single-pulse drilling, percussion drilling, trepanning or spiral drilling;
inserting a rivet into the through-hole; and
fixing the rivet to the first component and to the second component.

16. A method of using laser-drilling to manufacture a rivet connection of a fiber composite component, the method comprising:
positioning a first component which contains a fiber composite material in an overlap joint with a second component;
laser-drilling a shared through-hole at least through the fiber composite material of the first component by at least one of single-pulse drilling, percussion drilling, trepanning or spiral drilling;
focusing the laser from a wider focus to a narrower focus to form at least one conical entry to the through-hole for countersinking a rivet;
inserting a rivet into the through-hole in a flush manner; and
fixing the rivet to the first component and to the second component.

17. The structural arrangement of claim 12 , wherein the surface of the hole wall is covered with material directly solidified from a molten liquid state.

Assignees

• Airbus Operations Gmbh

Inventors

• Jörn Paul
• Linde Peter

Classifications

• B29L2031/3082

  Fuselages · CPC title

• B29C66/73941

  characterised by the materials of both parts being thermosets · CPC title

• B29C66/73921

  characterised by the materials of both parts being thermoplastics · CPC title

• B29C66/54

  Joining several hollow-preforms, e.g. half-shells, to form hollow articles, e.g. for making balls, containers; Joining several hollow-preforms, e.g. half-cylinders, to form tubular articles · CPC title

• B29C66/0246

  Cutting or perforating, e.g. burning away by using a laser or using hot air (simultaneously welding and severing using a fluid B29C65/7471; simultaneously welding and severing using radiation B29C65/7473; cutting-off or cutting-out a part of a strip-like or sheet-like material, transferring that part and fixing it to an article B29C69/005) · CPC title