A system and method for drilling a hole in a vehicle structure and installing a fastener in the hole. A drill plate having openings and associated machine-readable elements is positioned on the structure. A drill gun is positioned in a particular opening and reads hole information from the associated element, and a computer determines whether the drill gun is properly set-up to drill the hole. A fastener insertion gun is positioned in the particular opening and reads fastener information from the element, and the computer determines whether the hole has been drilled and, if so, whether the fastener insertion gun is properly set-up to insert the fastener. A fastener delivery subsystem stores, tracks, and delivers fasteners to the fastener insertion gun. A system computer monitors the drilling of every hole, the insertion of every fastener, and the overall operation of the fastener delivery subsystem.

Systems and methods are provided for aircraft assembly. The method includes receiving a half barrel section of fuselage in an assembly line having a plurality of serially arranged work stations; advancing the half barrel section in a process direction through the assembly line such that the half barrel section extends across at least a portion of the work stations; and performing work on the half barrel section with the portion of the work stations simultaneously.

A system for assembling two parts, in particular parts forming the fuselage or the wings of an aircraft, includes a positioning aid guiding positioning tools so as to juxtapose the two parts at the level of an assembly zone. The assembly system further includes a set of eddy current sensors positioned in at least one of the two parts to determine the separation of the two parts at the level of the assembly zone. If the separation does not conform to a predetermined criterion the positioning tools move at least one of the parts.

A method of manufacturing a casting is provided and includes establishing desired dimensions of a nominal casting, executing a casting process to produce multiple actual castings with each of the multiple actual castings having respective dimensions that differ from each other and from the desired dimensions of the nominal casting and engaging one or more tools to adaptively machine, without rigidly-programmed toolpaths, each of the multiple actual castings to reduce the respective differences between the actual dimensions of each of the multiple actual castings and the desired dimensions.

The invention relates to tooling for holding parts in position to enable them to be friction welded together in order to construct a hollow structure, the tooling comprises: a framework made up of two frames for receiving the parts for welding together in their positions for forming the hollow structure, the parts comprising preformed parts and an intermediate section; shape-holder members for holding the hollow structure, associating backing thrust members and lateral grip members for gripping the outsides of the preformed parts; anvils suitable for being placed inside the set of preformed parts beside the section; and clamping means operable to take up a clamping position in which they cause opposing thrust to be applied against the anvil and the inside face of a preformed part, its part itself bears against the shape-holder members.

A tool for removal of a spring clip from a nut plate assembly includes an inner sleeve having a first cleat configured to engage a first end of a spring clip and an outer sleeve having a second cleat configured to engage a second end of the spring clip, the outer sleeve being rotatably disposed around a portion of the inner sleeve. The tool includes first and second grip tabs respectively extending radially from a longitudinally extending central axis of the inner sleeve and the outer sleeve. Movement of the first grip tab and the second grip tab towards each other rotates the inner sleeve relative to the outer sleeve, and causes the first cleat and the second cleat to rotate towards each other to engage the first and second ends of the spring clip and to enable the spring clip to be removed from an assembled nut plate.

A method for manufacturing annular sectors of an air intake lip includes arranging a revolution-shaped blank facing a three-dimensional forming surface of a die of a hydroforming tool, the three-dimensional surface including at least two plunging cavities spaced from each other along a circumferential direction, forming an air intake lip preform in one piece by hydroforming the revolution-shaped blank on the three-dimensional surface of the die, the air intake lip preform having in section a U-shape and including a plurality of crenellated portions each delimited by a plunging cavity, the production of a plurality of cutouts in the air intake lip preform so as to divide the preform into a plurality of annular sectors, each cutout including the removal of a sacrificial portion at the level of a crenellated portion so as to form two adjacent assembly edges with one of the two adjacent assembly edges including a plunging.

An apparatus for threading a tool unit onto an elongate structural element. The apparatus has a holding arrangement for holding it on a feed device, a tool unit to be threaded onto the elongate structural element. The tool unit has a tool axis and a vibration unit connected to the tool unit and configured to generate a periodic force in at least one first spatial direction that runs transversely with respect to the tool axis. First and second coupling components, held elastically on one another, are provided. The first coupling component is connected to the holding arrangement, the second coupling component is connected to the tool unit. The vibration unit is operated, during a feed movement of the holding arrangement for threading the tool unit onto the elongate structural element, to add an additional, periodically varying transverse component to a feed force acting on the tool unit.

A mobile fixture configured to move a structure in a manufacturing environment may include a motorized base configured to move on a surface and a support system connected to the motorized base, the support system being configured to support the structure, the support system being configured to position the structure along at least one of an X-axis, a Y-axis, and a Z-axis, the support system being configured to position the structure about the Z-axis, and the support system being configured to provide free rotation of the structure about at least one of the X-axis and the Y-axis.

Systems and methods are used to determine a defined fastener for fastening two parts together at an assembly fastener location. The defined fastener comprises fastener components selected from a plurality of different fastener components available for use in an assembled fastener. The fastener components of the defined fastener may be selected based on criteria defining characteristics of an assembly stackup including the two parts and the assembled defined fastener. Dimensions of the two parts at respective fastener locations forming the assembly fastener location may be used to determine a part stackup dimension for the assembled fastener at the assembly fastener location.