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The high requirements for complete machining and assembly in jigs, replacing traditional pre-machining of individual components prior to assembly, is boosting the development of new machining technologies, such as flexible and mobile machining equipment and new tools and processes. Tomorrows airplanes are designed around large subcomponents with vast tolerances, that is impossible to pre-machine prior to assembly, but has to be machined in the assembly jigs, using adaptive machines with the capability to drill up to 1,5 inches diameter and 8 inches deep holes in titanium in one shot, without deforming the component being drilled. The machines and processes must also have the capability to circular interpolate holes from ¼ inch up to 2,5 inches in stack material, consisting of titanium, aluminium and carbon fiber, maintaining tolerances of H7 without delamination and/or deformation of the components.

Historically, assembly of large aerospace structures has always required large, heavy duty, expensive machines designed and built with (and for) high accuracy over the entire work envelope. Such large machines are also generally very complex and it is normally financially and physically impossible to build these machines with more than one spindle/assembly tool. The presentation will present “use cases” utilizing a platformless design, to deliver high dynamics and accuracy while dramatically reducing cost and eliminating the restrictions of one spindle/assembly tool. Case studies will show the application of extreme mobility in combination with adapting technologies such as cross lasers, which can perform accurate agile assembly over very large areas without the use of accurate large expensive heavy duty structures.

The endeavor for low cost machining and assembly equipment within aerospace manufacturing has driven the industry to adapt articulated arm robots to perform machining and assembly work that are traditionally performed by machine tools and/or special designed machines.

The evolving Aerospace manufacturing environment has created challenges that until now are not achievable with standard machine tools, large monumental gantry style machines and robots, or even manually operations. The solution is a lightweight, mobile/portable, and modular PKM (Parallel Kinematics Machine) solution, capable of machining to high tolerances, with minimal time and effort to relocate to a different area, at an affordable price With the carbon fiber PKM module mounted on a mobile platform, the module can simply be relocated using a standard pallet mover or forklift, to all areas in a factory. The module can also be removed from the mobile platform by two people, and mounted in a desired location and in any orientation “in hours”. The modularity of the PKM does not only make it possible to move it around in different production areas, but also makes it possible to reconstruct in an area that is not typically accessible by machines or robots.

In all modern automated assembly it is essential to be able to accommodate all kind of processes like surface detection, drilling, countersinking, orbital drilling, cleaning, sealing, and assembly, without having to develop special equipment for each and every application, and it is also important that an automated system can be adapted to various shapes and materials on large parts, such as wings and fuselages, as well as smaller parts like flaps and doors. Historically this type of assembly has always required large, heavy-duty, expensive machines designed and built with (and for) high accuracy over the entire work envelope and consequentially such large machines been generally very complex and normally financially and physically impossible to build with more than one spindle/assembly tool.

The improvements in Parallel Kinematic Machines (PKM) coupled with new innovative technologies, allow for Advanced Automated Milling, Drilling and Fastening in the Aerospace industry. Providing economical alternatives to processes that currently utilize highly customized machine tools, sacrificing flexibility and dynamics, or complex robotic cells sacrificing system capabilities with the rigidity and accuracy limitations of serial robots. The latest in PKM technology eliminates the ball joints that were mandatory in all previous PKM machines, as well as the heavy platforms or structures supporting the actuators. This allows for the strength and rigidity common to machine tools, but with the flexibility and high dynamics associated with standard serial robots. The new use of Auto-Calibration and cross lasers allow for highly accurate positioning, adaptation to a material surface, edge, datum, hole, etc. or to reference the machine to the adjacent work zone.

The utilization of new materials and tightening of desired tolerances has driven the advancement of Practical and Portable Automated Machining. Increased demand in volume within the aerospace industry not only requires minimizing the amount of manual operations, but also applying automation inside existing manual fixtures. In the past, manual labor, with drastic limitations on achievable accuracies, has been utilized in areas that machine tools cannot either access or the limited amount of work does not justify the expense of additional machines. Assemblies requiring critical hole alignment or drilling through stack materials often are difficult to achieve using manual operations. The solution is a practical and very portable machining unit that is small enough to fit into otherwise difficult areas and is lightweight enough to be either moved into position by small machines or quickly disassembled/assembled with each subassembly capable of being positioned manually.