Electrical conductor pathway system and method of making the same

• US 10,118,712 B2
• Filed: 03/31/2016
• Issued: 11/06/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 08/17/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: The Boeing Co.
• Original Assignee: The Boeing Co.
• Inventors: Garcia, Victoria L., Gardner, Mark J., Layton, Otis F., Duce, Jeffrey Lynn, Marshall, IV, Joseph A.
• Primary Examiner(s): Thompson, Timothy
• Assistant Examiner(s): Patel, Amol
• Application Number:
  US15/088,051
• Publication Number:
  US 20160214735A1
• Time in Patent Office: 950 Days
• CPC Class Codes: B64C 1/12 Construction or attachment of skin panels
• CPC Class Codes: B64C 3/26 Construction, shape, or attachment of separate skins, e.g. panels
• CPC Class Codes: B64D 2045/0085 Devices for aircraft health monitoring, e.g. monitoring flutter or vibration
• CPC Class Codes: B64D 45/02 Lightning protectors; Static dischargers in general H01T
• CPC Class Codes: G01L 1/16 using properties of piezoelectric devices
• CPC Class Codes: G01M 5/0016 of aircraft wings or blades
• CPC Class Codes: G01M 5/0033 by determining damage, crack or wear
• CPC Class Codes: G01M 5/0083 by measuring variation of impedance, e.g. resistance, capacitance, induction
• CPC Class Codes: H05K 1/0224 Patterned shielding planes, ground planes or power planes H05K1/0253 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H05K 1/0259 Electrostatic discharge [ESD] protection
• CPC Class Codes: H05K 1/097 Inks comprising nanoparticles and specially adapted for being sintered at low temperature H05K1/095 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H05K 2201/10409 Screws
• CPC Class Codes: H10N 30/302 Sensors
• CPC Class Codes: H10N 30/8554 Lead-zirconium titanate [PZT] based

Abstract

The disclosure provides in one embodiment an electrical conductor pathway system for diverting an electric charge. The electrical conductor pathway system includes a substrate having a first surface to be printed on and having one or more grounding points. The electrical conductor pathway system further includes a direct write conductive material pattern printed directly onto the first surface via a direct write printing process. The direct write conductive material pattern forms one or more electrical pathways interconnected with the one or more grounding points. The one or more electrical pathways interconnected with the one or more grounding points divert the electric charge from the first surface to the one or more grounding points.

Claims

1. An electrical conductor pathway system for diverting an electric charge, the electrical conductor pathway system comprising:

a substrate having a first surface to be printed on and having one or more grounding points; and

a direct write conductive material pattern printed directly onto the first surface via a direct write printing process, the direct write conductive material pattern forming one or more electrical pathways interconnected with the one or more grounding points, and the direct write conductive material pattern comprising a grid pattern having repeating geometric-shaped units comprising one or more of, square-shaped units, hexagon-shaped units, triangle-shaped units, and circle-shaped units,

wherein the one or more electrical pathways interconnected with the one or more grounding points divert the electric charge from the first surface to the one or more grounding points.

2. The system of claim 1 wherein the substrate has a primer layer applied over the first surface of the substrate to form a primed substrate having a primed surface, and the direct write conductive material pattern is printed directly onto the primed surface.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein the substrate comprises one or more of, a fiberglass material, a composite material, a metallic material, and a combination of the composite material and the metallic material.

4. The system of claim 1 further comprising a conductive coating applied over the direct write conductive material pattern.

5. The system of claim 4 wherein the conductive coating comprises one or more of, a conductive metal paint, and a conductive sealant, the conductive metal paint and the conductive sealant both having a conductive metallic material comprising one or more of, copper, aluminum, titanium, nickel, bronze, gold, silver, and an alloy thereof.

6. The system of claim 4 further comprising a topcoat layer applied over the conductive coating.

7. The system of claim 1 wherein the direct write conductive material pattern is made of a conductive material comprising one or more of, copper, aluminum, titanium, nickel, bronze, gold, silver, an alloy thereof, and a lead zirconate titanate (PZT) nanoparticle ink.

8. The system of claim 1 wherein the direct write printing process comprises one or more of, a jetted atomized deposition process, an ink jet printing process, an aerosol printing process, a pulsed laser evaporation process, a flexography printing process, a micro-spray printing process, a flat bed silk screen printing process, a rotary silk screen printing process, a gravure printing process, and a plasma spraying process.

9. The system of claim 1 wherein the grid pattern comprises one or more grid lines forming the one or more electrical pathways, the one or more grid lines each having a width of from 0.1 inch to 0.3 inch.

10. The system of claim 1 wherein the electric charge comprises one or more of, electric charge from a lightning strike, and electric charge from precipitation static (P-static).

11. An air vehicle comprising:

an air vehicle structure having an electrical conductor pathway system, the electrical conductor pathway system comprising;

a primed substrate having a primed surface to be printed on and having one or more grounding points;

a direct write conductive material pattern comprising a grid pattern printed directly onto the primed surface via a direct write printing process, the direct write conductive material pattern forming one or more electrical pathways interconnected with the one or more grounding points, and the direct write conductive material pattern comprising a grid pattern having repeating geometric-shaped units comprising one or more of, square-shaped units, hexagon-shaped units, triangle-shaped units, and circle-shaped units;

a conductive coating applied over the direct write conductive material pattern; and

a topcoat layer applied over the conductive coating,

wherein the one or more electrical pathways interconnected with the one or more grounding points divert an electric charge from one or more of, a lightning strike, and precipitation static (P-static) on an exterior surface of the air vehicle structure to the one or more grounding points.

12. The air vehicle of claim 11 wherein the direct write conductive material pattern is made of a conductive material comprising one or more of, copper, aluminum, titanium, nickel, bronze, gold, silver, an alloy thereof, and a lead zirconate titanate (PZT) nanoparticle ink.

13. The air vehicle of claim 11 wherein the direct write printing process comprises one or more of, a jetted atomized deposition process, an ink jet printing process, an aerosol printing process, a pulsed laser evaporation process, a flexography printing process, a micro-spray printing process, a flat bed silk screen printing process, a rotary silk screen printing process, a gravure printing process, and a plasma spraying process.

14. The air vehicle of claim 11 wherein the one or more grounding points comprise one or more of, one or more fasteners made of a conductive metallic material, and one or more ground elements and one or more ground connections, both made of the conductive metallic material.

15. A method of making an electrical conductor pathway system for diverting an electric charge on a structure, the method comprising the steps of:

providing the structure having a surface to be printed on and having one or more grounding points;

printing, via a direct write printing process, a direct write conductive material pattern onto the surface of the structure to form one or more electrical pathways, the direct write conductive material pattern comprising a grid pattern having repeating geometric-shaped units comprising one or more of, square-shaped units, hexagon-shaped units, triangle-shaped units, and circle-shaped units; and

interconnecting the one or more electrical pathways with the one or more grounding points to divert the electric charge from the surface to the one or more grounding points.

16. The method of claim 15 further comprising prior to printing, applying a primer layer over the surface of the structure.

17. The method of claim 16 further comprising after interconnecting, applying a conductive coating over the direct write conductive material pattern.

18. The method of claim 17 further comprising after applying the conductive coating, applying a topcoat layer over the conductive coating.

19. The method of claim 15 wherein printing further comprises printing the direct write conductive material pattern comprising the grid pattern made of a conductive material comprising one or more of, copper, aluminum, titanium, nickel, bronze, gold, silver, an alloy thereof, and a lead zirconate titanate (PZT) nanoparticle ink.

20. The method of claim 15 wherein printing further comprises printing via the direct write printing process comprising one or more of, a jetted atomized deposition process, an ink jet printing process, an aerosol printing process, a pulsed laser evaporation process, a flexography printing process, a micro-spray printing process, a flat bed silk screen printing process, a rotary silk screen printing process, a gravure printing process, and a plasma spraying process.