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With the growing use of carbon fiber composite structure in Aircraft Manufacturing, the challenge of drilling carbon fiber stacked with Titanium has become a focus point. Due to the abrasive nature of the carbon fiber (CF), cutting tool life is relatively short when drilling carbon fiber stalked with Titanium. A common drill wear indicator is exit burr formation in the Titanium. As drilling tools wear due to the abrasive nature of the CF, the exit burr in the in the Titanium increases. This study seeks to understand the factors that lead to tool wear and exit burr formation. A correlation may be made relating drilling thrust forces with exit burr formation. Different cutting tools geometries and materials are studied using a high speed camera to attempt to understand the factors influencing exit burr formation. Findings are optimized and tested. Decreasing exit burr in the drilling of CF and Titanium may increase tool life thereby reducing tool costs to airframe manufacturers.

A significant step is achieved on the flight control actuation system toward the more electrical aircraft through the Airbus A380, A400M and the A350 development phase ongoing. The A380/A400M/A350 features a mixed flight control actuation power source distribution, associating electrically powered actuators with conventional FlyByWire hydraulic servocontrols. In the scope of the preparation of the future Airbus Aircraft, this paper presents the perspectives of the use of the EMA technologies for the flight control systems in the more electrical aircraft highlighting the main technical challenges need to treat: jamming susceptibility, “on board” maintenance reduction, Operational reliability increase, power electronics and power management optimization, and regarding the environmental constraints, the predicted performances; the benefits associated to the optimized utilization of on-board power sources.

In the frame of the COVADIS project (flight control with distributed intelligence and systems integration) supported by the DPAC and where Airbus and Sagem are partners, an electromechanical actuator (EMA) developed and produced by Sagem (SAFRAN group) flew for the first time in January 2011 as an aileron primary flight control of the Airbus A320 flight test Aircraft. With this new type of actuator, in the scope of the preparation of the future Airbus Aircraft, the perspectives of using EMA technologies for the flight control systems is an important potential enabler in the more electrical aircraft. The paper deals with the development phase of this actuator from the definition phase up to the flight tests campaign. It is focused on : COVADIS project context (flight control with distributed intelligence and systems integration), The challenges of the definition phase, Test results presentation (ground and flight).