Cradle assembly for supporting a door for uninstalling or installing to an aircraft, and arrangements and methods for the same

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10850867-B2
Application number	US-201815988742-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	May 24, 2018
Priority date	May 24, 2018
Publication date	Dec 1, 2020
Grant date	Dec 1, 2020

Abstract

Cradle assemblies for supporting a door for one of uninstalling and installing the door to a fuselage of an aircraft, and arrangements and methods for the same are provided. In one example, a cradle assembly includes a first contoured board configured to support a first outer section of the door. A second contoured board is spaced apart from the first contoured board and is configured to support a second outer section of the door. The cradle assembly is configured to be positioned proximate to the fuselage.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A cradle assembly for supporting a door to a fuselage of an aircraft, the cradle assembly comprising:
a first contoured board configured to support a first outer section of the door; and
a second contoured board spaced apart from the first contoured board and configured to support a second outer section of the door, wherein the first and second contoured boards are contoured to substantially match the first and second outer sections, respectively, of the door, and wherein the cradle assembly is configured to be positioned proximate to the fuselage, wherein the cradle assembly further comprises:
at least one first arm disposed outboard of and coupled to the first contoured board and having a first inboard side; and
at least one second arm disposed outboard of and coupled to the second contoured board and having a second inboard side, wherein the at least one first arm and the at least one second arm are spaced apart from each other a distance outboard of the first contoured board and the second contoured board, respectively, to allow the door to nest on the first and second contoured boards with edges of the door disposed inboard of the first and second inboard sides of the at least one first and second arms to limit lateral movement of the door.

2. The cradle assembly of claim 1 , wherein the first contoured board has a first contoured edge that substantially matches a shape of the first outer section of the door, and wherein the second contoured board has a second contoured edge that substantially matches a shape of the second outer section of the door.

3. The cradle assembly of claim 2 , wherein the first and second contoured edges each have a substantially concave shape for supporting the first and second outer sections of the door.

4. The cradle assembly of claim 2 , further comprising:
a first flexible guard disposed along the first contoured edge for interfacing with the first outer section of the door; and
a second flexible guard disposed along the second contoured edge for interfacing with the second outer section of the door.

5. The cradle assembly of claim 4 , wherein the first and second flexible guards are formed of an elastomeric material.

6. The cradle assembly of claim 2 , further comprising a base, wherein the first contoured board extends generally upward from the base and the first contoured edge is disposed distally from the base, and wherein the second contoured board extends generally upward from the base and the second contoured edge is disposed distally from the base.

7. The cradle assembly of claim 6 , wherein the base has an outer perimeter base section that surrounds at least one opening, and wherein the first and second contoured boards correspondingly extend generally upward from opposite sides of the outer perimeter base section.

8. The cradle assembly of claim 7 , wherein the at least one opening includes a first opening and a second opening formed through the base that are separated by an intermediate base section that extends between the opposite sides of the outer perimeter base section.

9. The cradle assembly of claim 6 , further comprising at least one support brace beam that extends between and is coupled to the first and second contoured boards.

10. The cradle assembly of claim 9 , further comprising:
a plurality of brackets including:
a first bracket that couples the first contoured board to the base;
a second bracket that couples the second contoured board to the base;
a third bracket that couples the at least one support brace beam to the first contoured board; and
a fourth bracket that couples the at least one support brace beam to the second contoured board.

11. The cradle assembly of claim 1 , further comprising:
at least one first layer of foam disposed along the first inboard side of the at least one first arm; and
at least one second layer of foam disposed along the second inboard side of the at least one second arm.

12. The cradle assembly of claim 1 , further comprising at least one strap having a first end coupled to the first contoured board and a second end coupled to the second contoured board, wherein the strap is configured to at least partially wraparound the door to limit movement of the door.

13. A cradle assembly and lift arrangement for supporting a door to a fuselage of an aircraft, the cradle assembly and lift arrangement comprising:
a lift comprising a table and configured to vertically move the table;
a base mounted on the table of the lift;
a cradle assembly comprising:
a first contoured board extending generally upward from the base and having a first contoured edge that is disposed distally from the base and that is configured to support a first outer section of the door; and
a second contoured board spaced apart from the first contoured board and extending generally upward from the base, wherein the second contoured board has a second contoured edge that is disposed distally from the base and that is configured to support a second outer section of the door, and wherein the first and second contoured boards are contoured to substantially match the first and second outer sections, respectively, of the door, wherein the cradle assembly further comprises:

at least one first arm disposed outboard of and coupled to the first contoured board and having a first inboard side; and
at least one second arm disposed outboard of and coupled to the second contoured board and having a second inboard side, wherein the at least one first arm and the at least one second arm are spaced apart from each other a distance outboard of the first contoured board and the second contoured board, respectively, to allow the door to nest on the first and second contoured boards with edges of the door disposed inboard of the first and second inboard sides of the at least one first and second arms to limit lateral movement of the door.

14. The cradle assembly and lift arrangement of claim 13 , wherein the first and second contoured edges are configured to correspondingly support the first and second outer sections while the door is in a generally horizontal position.

15. The cradle assembly and lift arrangement of claim 13 , wherein the base is attached to the table of the lift.

16. The cradle assembly and lift arrangement of claim 15 , wherein the base has an outer perimeter base section and the first and second contoured boards correspondingly extend generally upward from opposite sides of the outer perimeter base section, and wherein the opposite sides of the outer perimeter base section are each releasably attached to the table of the lift.

17. The cradle assembly and lift arrangement of claim 16 , wherein one of the opposite sides of the outer perimeter base section has a first base through-hole that is aligned with a first table through-hole formed through the table, and another of the opposite sides of the outer perimeter base section has a second base through-hole that is aligned with a second table through-hole formed through the table, and wherein the cradle assembly and lift arrangement further comprises:
a first releasable pin element that is disposed through the first base through-hole and the first table through-hole to releasably attach the one of the opposite sides of the outer perimeter base section to the table; and
a second releasable pin element that is disposed through the second base through-hole and the second table through-hole to releasably attach the another of the opposite sides of the outer perimeter base section to the table.

18. A method for supportin

Assignees

• Gulfstream Aerospace Corp

Inventors

• Leonard Patrick
• Keough Jim
• Beasley Bartley
• Perdue James

Classifications

• B64F5/50 Primary

  Handling or transporting aircraft components · CPC title

• B64F5/40

  Maintaining or repairing aircraft · CPC title

• B64C1/1407

  Doors; surrounding frames · CPC title

• B66F7/0625

  with wheels for moving around the floor · CPC title

• B66F7/065

  Scissor linkages, i.e. X-configuration · CPC title