Method for repairing an aircraft structure component

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9382017-B2
Application number	US-201113311648-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Dec 6, 2011
Priority date	Dec 6, 2010
Publication date	Jul 5, 2016
Grant date	Jul 5, 2016

Abstract

A method is provided for repairing an aircraft structural component which has a component fault in a portion adjoining a cavity of the aircraft structural component. The method includes removing a region of the aircraft structural component that has the component fault, introducing a bearing element into the cavity of the aircraft structural component through an opening, which has been formed in the aircraft structural component by the removal of the region of the aircraft structural component having the component fault, in such a way that a bearing surface of the bearing element comes to lie against a region, adjacent to the opening, of an inner surface of the aircraft structural component facing the cavity of the aircraft structural component, fixing the bearing element in its position in the cavity of the aircraft structural component, and closing the opening by means of a repair material.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A method of repairing an aircraft structural component, which has a component fault in a portion adjoining a cavity of the aircraft structural component, wherein the method comprises the following steps:
removing a region of the aircraft structural component that has the component fault,
introducing a bearing element into the cavity of the aircraft structural component through an opening, which has been formed in the aircraft structural component by the removal of the region of the aircraft structural component that has the component fault, in such a way that a bearing surface of the bearing element comes to lie against a region, adjacent to the opening, of an inner surface of the aircraft structural component facing the cavity of the aircraft structural component,
fixing the bearing element in its position in the cavity of the aircraft structural component, and
closing the opening by means of a repair material,
wherein bearing element comprises an expansion anchor, which while being introduced through the opening into the cavity of the aircraft structural component is in a first non-expanded position and which in the cavity of the aircraft structural component is brought into a second expanded position, in which the bearing surface formed on the expansion anchor of the bearing element may be brought to lie against the region, adjacent to the opening, of the inner surface of the aircraft structural component facing the cavity of the aircraft structural component,
and wherein the expansion anchor comprises two swivel elements pivotable relative to one another about a swiveling axis and each carrying a portion of the bearing surface, the expansion anchor brought from its first non-expanded position into its second expanded position by pivoting the two swivel elements relative to one another about the swiveling axis,
and wherein the region of the aircraft structural component that has the component fault is removed in steps such that a cross-section of the opening formed in the aircraft structural component by removal of the region of the aircraft structural component having the component fault increases stepwise from an inner surface of the aircraft structural component that adjoins the cavity of the aircraft structural component in the direction of an outer surface of the aircraft structural component that faces away from the cavity of the aircraft structural component,
and wherein the bearing surface is at least in sections provided with a surface layer of the same material as the repair material, and the repair material is joined through the opening to the surface layer.

2. The method according to claim 1 , wherein during closing of the opening by means of the repair material a pressure is exerted on an outer surface of the repair material that faces away from the cavity of the aircraft structural component.

3. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the bearing element, in its state of being fixed in its position in the cavity of the aircraft structural component, during closing of the opening by means of the repair material exerts a pressure on an inner surface of the repair material that faces the cavity of the aircraft structural component.

4. The method according to claim 3 , wherein the pressure, which during closing of the opening by means of the repair material the bearing element in its state of being fixed in its position in the cavity of the aircraft structural component exerts on the inner surface of the repair material facing the cavity of the aircraft structural component, corresponds substantially to the pressure, which during closing of the opening by means of the repair material is exerted on the outer surface of the repair material that faces away from the cavity of the aircraft structural component.

5. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the bearing element comprises a helical body that is screwed through the opening into the cavity of the aircraft structural component until the bearing surface formed on the helical body of the bearing element comes to lie against the region, adjacent to the opening, of the inner surface of the aircraft structural component facing the cavity of the aircraft structural component.

6. The method according to claim 5 , wherein an opening formed in the helical body in the region of a centre line of the helical body is sealed by means of a sealing sleeve.

7. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the bearing element is introduced by means of a threaded rod through the opening into the cavity of the aircraft structural component, wherein the threaded rod during the introduction of the bearing element into the cavity of the aircraft structural component projects through the opening into the cavity of the aircraft structural component.

8. The method according to claim 7 , wherein the bearing element is braced in its position in the cavity of the aircraft structural component by means of a clamping device that is connected to the threaded rod.

9. The method according to claim 7 , wherein after closing of the opening by means of the repair material the threaded rod is removed from the bearing element and that a receiving opening provided in the repair material for receiving the threaded rod is closed by means of a suitable closure element.

10. The method according to claim 9 , wherein the closure element is configured in the form of a countersunk bolt and that before introducing the closure element into the receiving opening provided in the repair material for receiving the threaded rod a countersink is introduced into the repair material.

11. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the opening is closed by means of a plurality of superimposed repair material layers.

12. The method according to claim 11 , wherein an inner repair material layer that adjoins the cavity of the aircraft structural component has a smaller area than an outer repair material layer that faces away from the cavity of the aircraft structural component.

Assignees

• Benthien Hermann
• Soeffker Axel
• Airbus Operations Gmbh

Inventors

• Benthien Hermann
• Soeffker Axel

Classifications

• B64F5/0081 Primary

  Operations & Transport · mapped topic

• B29C73/105

  provided with a centering element · CPC title

• B29C73/10

  using patches sealing on the surface of the article (B29C73/14 takes precedence) · CPC title

• B29C73/30

  for local pressing or local heating · CPC title

• Y10T29/49723

  including reconditioning of part · CPC title