X-Ray gantry inspection systems are able to cope with large composite aerospace components, below and inset
UNMANNED AIR SYSTEMS During amajor innovation speech at the University of Oxford in late February, defence secretary SirMichael Fallon announced the launch of an £8mtwo-year second phase of innovative research and development, exploring the future of unmanned air systems. Developed in partnership with Leonardo
Helicopters in Yeovil, the RotaryWing Unmanned Air Systems (RWUAS) Capability ConceptDemonstrator is aimed at helpingUK armed forces understand how unmanned air systems can support personnel on the battlefields of the future by developing new concepts and technologies. WestlandHelicopters was a British
aerospace company; originallyWestland Aircraft, the company focused on helicopters after the SecondWorldWar. It was amalgamated with several other British firms in 1960 and 1961. In 2001, itmerged with Italian helicoptermanufacturer Agusta to form AgustaWestland (in turn merged into Leonardo- Finmeccanica since 2016). “Defence is working with
partners across the country to harness innovation to keep this country safe and build a prosperous economy for everyone,” Fallon says. “Backed by our rising defence budget and £178bn Equipment Plan, this joint research will deliver the understanding our armed forces need tomaintain our military advantage in the future.” The jointly funded
programme will utilise the specialist engineering skills base at LeonardoHelicopters by exploring emerging rotary wing technologies and methods. It aims to identify, develop and exploit the opportunities offered by emerging technologies, to reduce costs and increase the agility, flexibility, resilience and persistence ofUK rotary wing capability. The announcement comes after the Royal Navy-ledUnmannedWarrior in 2016: an international demonstration of autonomous systems which could transformthe way the armed forces of the future keep Britain safe. Chief executive officer of theMOD’s
Defence Equipment and Support organisation, TonyDouglas, said: “This project also highlights how we collaborate effectively with industry, utilising skills across both organisations to fully understand the emerging capabilities in the unmanned arena.”
Launchers will use this for the design and development of Ariane 6, the European Space Agency’s next generation launcher. More than 700 engineers working on the
Ariane 6 acrossmultiple sites in Europe are usingDassault Systèmes’ software for the systems architecture, detailed design definition, validation of propulsion systems and the space vehicle. A digitalmock-up is used to explore a greater number of alternatives and accelerate the selection of themost competitive configurations for Ariane 6, avoiding errors,minimising changes and reducing development and industrial ramp-up times.
METAL 3D PRINTING Sciaky’s Electron BeamAdditive Manufacturing (EBAM) systemis set to help Airbus save time andmoney on the production of large titaniumstructural parts.
SD150 - HERO The SD-150Hero is a state-of-the-art Short Range Tactical RotaryUnmanned Air Vehicle (RUAV) designed and manufactured by the Finmeccanica HelicopterDivision.Hero design criteria comply with both civil andmilitary international regulations and is developed for land andmaritime operations. Hero has an interoperable ground
control station (GCS) with an advanced humanmachine interface. The latter can control andmonitor single ormultiple RUAVmissions simultaneously and allows sensor data transmitted fromthe RUAV to bemonitored. SIMULATING EARLY DESIGN Elsewhere,Dassault Systèmes’Winning Programsoftware is designed for aerospace and defence companies looking to optimise early programme phases and programme development using design, simulation and collaboration. Airbus Safran
EBAMcombines computer-aided design
(CAD), additivemanufacturing and an electron beamheat source. Starting with a CAD 3Dmodel, a fully-articulated,moving electron beamgun depositsmetal via wire feedstock, layer by layer, until the part reaches near-net shape. Fromthere, the part requires heat treatment and post- productionmachining. In the end, there is minimalmaterial waste. Sciaky brings quality and control
together in one step with its Interlayer Real-time Imaging and Sensing System (IRISS), believed to be the only real-time monitoring and control systemthat can sense and digitally self-adjustmetal deposition with precision and repeatability. This closed-loop control is the primary reason that EBAMdelivers consistent part geometry,mechanical properties, microstructure andmetal chemistry. EBAMcan accommodate a wide variety ofmetals and refractory alloys, including titanium, tantalum, niobium, tungsten, Inconel and stainless steels. Sciaky’s EBAM110 System has a work envelope of 1,778 x 1,194 x 1,600mm.
QUALITY CONTROL COMPOSITE PARTS KongsbergDefence Systems, aNorwegian aerospace supplier of honeycomb structures and other composite components fromNorway, has just installed the high- end X-ray inspection systemXRHGantry from
VisiConsult to performcompliant
quality control on composite parts for LockheedMartin to such quality standards as ASTM2737, ASTM2597,NADCAP, EN- 17636, BSS7042. This Gantry systemis specifically
designed for big aerostructures, like winglets, honeycombs and rudders, or complex structures like welded pipes out of titanium. This roof-mounted X-ray inspection systemallowsmanufacturers to transition fromanalogue filmto digital detectors. A foldable inspection roomis saving a lot
of space in comparison to known X-ray protection bunkers. It also gives greater flexibility, as the whole systemcan be moved at any time. The XRHGantry itself can bemodified in terms of dimension and layout depending on the inspection task, while common inspection processes are simply automated through CNC controlled sequences. EE
April 2017 /// Environmental Engineering /// 45
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