An apparatus for an airship, including: a spacer ring adapted to couple to a joint opening of a joint, the spacer ring having multiple internal protruding portions adapted to form a gap between the spacer ring and a connector inserted into the joint; an injecting clamp adapted to clamp around a first portion of the spacer ring, the injecting clamp having an injecting hole for receiving an adhesive and an outlet for injecting the adhesive to fill a space formed between the joint and a portion of the connector inserted into the joint; and a heating clamp adapted to clamp around a portion of the joint that surrounds the portion of the connector inserted into the joint, the heating clamp including a heat source adapted to heat the adhesive in the space formed between the joint and the portion of the connector during a curing process.

A stiffened part formed from at least two members of thermoset composite material including at least one body of a first structure and optionally a second structure. A manufacturing method includes: forming a fibre preform and impregnating each body of the first structure with thermosetting resin or forming a pre-impregnated fibre preform to obtain a body formed from uncured thermosetting composite material supported by a mandrel; optionally partially or fully polymerising at least one body supported by a mandrel; optionally, providing the second structure formed from uncured, partially uncured or fully uncured thermosetting composite material; optionally, depositing a layer of uncured thermosetting adhesive on an area where a fully cured member makes contact with another member of the part; joining the members, each member being juxtaposed with; or stacked upon, at least one other member; fully curing the assembly by heat treatment; removing the mandrel from each fully cured body.

A method of joining a non-metallic pipe to a metallic pipe. The pipe may be wrapped with one or more sheets of reinforcement material (e.g., pre-impregnated fiberglass, carbon fiber, or aramid fiber) and then fitted with an adapter or fitting that is connectable to a metallic pipe. The reinforcement material may be heated using a heating apparatus which allows the material to bond to the pipe to strengthen the joint.

A heat sealing machine and method form blister packages. A backing material web extends between a nesting tray assembly and a seal and cut tooling assembly and a blister tray is resident within a blister nest of the nesting tray assembly. The backing material web is clamped between a clamping gasket support shoulder of the nesting tray assembly and a clamping shoulder of the seal and cut tooling assembly, and between a sealing gasket support shoulder of the nesting tray assembly and a heat seal shoulder of a heater assembly. A knife of the seal and cut tooling assembly extends between the clamping gasket support shoulder and the sealing gasket support shoulder to cut a backing sheet from the backing material web that is heat sealed to an attachment surface of the blister tray to form the blister package.

A wind turbine blade and associated method of manufacture is described. The blade comprises an outer shell formed of first and second half shells joined together. A shear web is arranged inside the outer shell. The shear web has a web panel disposed between first and second longitudinally-extending mounting flanges. The shear web is bonded to inner surfaces of the respective half shells via a first adhesive bond line between the first mounting flange and the inner surface of the first half shell and a second adhesive bond line between the second mounting flange and the inner surface of the second half shell. One or more bond spacers are provided in the second bond line, and optionally in the first bond line. The bond spacers are compressed between a shear web mounting flange and an inner surface of a half shell and are plastically deformed. The method of making the shear web involves compressing and the one or bond spacers in the bond line(s) such that they undergo plastic deformation. This results in high quality bond lines.

A method for assembling a body and a cover of a vane by polymerisation of a resin. The covens positioned on a junction face of the body covered with this resin. A sheet is placed against a pressure side of the vane, formed by an outer face of the cover and an outer face of the body, so as to define a space sealed with a bead of mastic sealant. The bead of mastic sealant is deposited on the outer face of the body, around the junction face of this body. The space between the sheet and the pressure side of the vane is placed under vacuum during a heating operation of the vane in an autoclave, in order to press the cover against the body of the vane.

A method of assembling a member and a cap of a vane using a tool which allows the application of a pressing force of the cap against the member during a step of polymerisation by heating a resin for bonding these components. To this end, the tool includes an inflatable bladder and a pocket which surrounds the bladder and the vane so that the inflated bladder applies the pressing force. The heating can be carried out by resistors which are mounted in the bladder and/or using a device for supplying external heat.

A method and system applying glue to a fabric to create a bonded seam by applying a carrier liquid to a predetermined area of a first piece of fabric and in a pre-determined pattern; applying uniformly, to the first piece of fabric, particles of a powdered elastomer such that the particles of the powdered elastomer adhere to the applied carrier liquid; removing excess particles of the powdered elastomer, the excess particles of the powdered elastomer being particles of the powdered elastomer not adhering to the applied carrier liquid; applying a second piece of fabric to the predetermined area of a first piece of fabric; and curing the particles of a powdered elastomer to create a bonded seam between the first piece of fabric and the second piece of fabric.

The heater assembly includes a case having a heating element therein, a channel extending through the case and having a size and shape for selectively receiving therethrough a first end of an elastomeric fixture outstretched through a substrate to a first length having a first width, and a heat transfer surface positioned relative to the heating element for receiving generated heat therefrom. The heat transfer surface is generally positionable relative to the substrate to cooperate with an adhesively bondable attachment coupled to a second end of the elastomeric fixture opposite the first end and including an uncured bonding agent disposed thereon. The heater assembly and attachment simultaneously sandwich the substrate in compression engagement in between when the elastomeric fixture extends through the substrate into the central channel and relaxes to a second relatively shorter length having a second relatively larger width.

In an example, a method is described. The method comprises placing a repair patch over a repair area of a structure, the repair patch comprising a repair-patch hole. The method also comprises sealing the repair patch and repair area with a vacuum bag having a seal ring around a periphery of the vacuum bag. The method also comprises evacuating, via an adhesive injection apparatus attached to the repair-patch hole and the seal ring of the vacuum bag, the repair area and an injection channel of the adhesive injection apparatus. The method also comprises forcing adhesive through the evacuated injection channel and into the evacuated repair area.