INNOVATIVE MANUFACTURING FOR AUTOMATED DRILLING OPERATIONS.

The major cost drivers in airframe fabrication are identified. In the assembly area, drilling for various fastening systems is described both from economic and quality aspects. The Five-Axis Automated Assembly Fixture developed jointly by Grumman and the U. S. Air Force addresses both labor intensity and reliability with minimal capital investment. The system can automatically locate the substructure of a part using a digital scanning process and form a precise map of the location of the parts. The digitized information is used to drill and countersink through skins and substructures without costly templates. The evolution of the system is followed from the development stage into production, and economic analyses and projections for aircraft structures at various learning curves and production rates are given, including the aluminum A-6E wing and A-10 horizontal stabilizer, and advanced composite B-1 horizontal stabilizer.