Aircraft that incorporates a rounded-hat composite stringer connected to an inner side of the skin of the aircraft to form an elongate conduit that defines a conduit axis, where the conduit axis includes at least one curving portion. The rounded-hat composite stringer can be manufactured by constructing a lower forming die and an upper forming die, each forming die having a length and defining a curve along at least a portion of the length of the die, cutting a pre-cured flat composite charge dimensioned to form the rounded-hat composite stringer, pressing the flat composite charge between the lower and upper forming dies to shape the composite charge into a pre-formed stringer having an inner side between curved fillet portions, contacting a forming member against the inner side of the pre-formed stringer, applying radius fillers to the curved fillet portions of the pre-formed stringer, curing the pre-formed stringer, and removing the forming member from the cured stringer.

A manufacturing method of a control surface of an aircraft, the control surface including an upper skin, a lower skin, ribs joining the upper skin and the lower skin and located along a chordwise direction of the control surface. The manufacturing method includes the steps of providing a single composite preform comprising the upper skin, the lower skin and the ribs, and curing the single composite preform such that an integrated box comprising the upper skin, the lower skin and the ribs is formed.

Grid structure, such as a lattice or grid-stiffened structure and a process of manufacturing such a grid structure. Fiber material is laid up on a base tool to form intersecting ribs defining a grid with a plurality of cavities. In the same step fiber material is laid to form one or more; local substructures. Blocks are placed, at the positions of the cavities. The fiber material of the ribs and. the local substructures is impregnated with a resin. Optionally, one or more layers of fiber material are placed on the base tool and/or over the ribs and the blocks to form an outer skin. The ribs, the local substructure and optionally the outer skin jointly consolidated to form, the grid, structure.

In accordance with at least one aspect of this disclosure, a composite structure can be formed of or including a plurality of composite strips. The plurality of composite strips include one or more filler strips which can have at least one filler edge having a filler edge geometry between a first surface and second surface, the second surface being opposite the first surface. The filler edge geometry can be configured to prevent formation of one or more gaps between one or more adjacent composite strips.

A method for manufacturing a centre wing box which includes inner stiffeners, at least one of which has at least one through-hole is described. For each stiffener having at least one through-hole and having a first leg of a first U-shaped and C-shaped profile and a second leg of a second U-shaped and C-shaped profile, the method includes, for each through-hole, the steps of producing a first section of the through-hole in the first U-shaped or C-shaped profile and of producing a second section of the through-hole in the second U-shaped or C-shaped profile before the first and second U-shaped or C-shaped profiles are positioned on the mould.

A resin impregnation measurement device includes a jig and a resin impregnation sensor. The jig is formed into an inner surface shape of a protrusion of a stringer. The jig includes outer surfaces including a facing surface that is to face an inner surface of the protrusion. The resin impregnation sensor is disposed on the facing surface of the jig.

A wall stud member comprising an inner component and an outer component. The inner and outer components are coupled together. In some configurations, the wall stud member forms a web with an outer flange and an inner flange. The wall stud member may be positioned as a part of a wall construction.

A thermoforming method includes forming a skin comprising a plurality of plies thermoplastic resin and fiber, securing an edge of the skin to a mandrel, heating, via a heating element, the skin to a forming temperature, moving a thermoforming apparatus with respect to the mandrel, rolling at least one roller of the thermoforming apparatus along the skin in a direction away from the clamped edge of the skin in response to the thermoforming apparatus moving with respect to the mandrel, and in response to the at least one roller of the thermoforming apparatus rolling along the skin, compressing the skin between the at least one roller and the mandrel, consolidating the plurality of plies of material, and bending the skin to conform to a shape of the mandrel. The consolidated and formed skin is then cooled and removed from the mandrel.

A tool for creating a self-stiffened panel, which comprises a support, a set of punches and a channel delimited between two punches, for each punch, a first securing arrangement including a slider that is able to move in translation on the support and at least one hook secured to the slider, and a second securing arrangement including at least one nose integral with the punch, and an actuating arrangement that moves the slider from a securing position in which each nose is located between the support and a hook, to a release position in which the hooks are offset with respect to the noses. With such a tool, each punch is held in position over its length, which ensures correct positioning during lay-up, even in the event of the tool being rotated.

A method for producing a structural section of a vehicle comprises the steps of providing multiple separate skin panels of a fiber-reinforced plastic having an inner side, an outer side and a border running peripherally around the respective skin panel; arranging at least one stiffening component of a fiber-reinforced plastic on each skin panel, on the respective inner side; integrally connecting the respective at least one stiffening component to the skin panels concerned to form a structural component; arranging at least two structural components on a carrier, so that at least regions of the borders of the structural components concerned are in surface-area contact; and integrally connecting the regions of the borders that are in surface-area contact to one another.