Light weight and high strength fuselage
First Claim
1. A fuselage assembly for an aerospace craft defining a long axis, said fuselage assembly comprising:
- a plurality of longitudinal stringer members radially spaced from, and extending generally parallel to, the longitudinal axis of the fuselage, said longitudinal stringer members further spaced circumferentially from each other, each of the longitudinal stringer members having a stringer wall structure including an outer longitudinal surface;
a plurality of annular frame members spaced along the longitudinal axis, each of the annular frame members having a frame wall structure including a plurality of outer circumferential surfaces, each of the outer circumferential surfaces interposed between a respective pair of the longitudinal stringer members;
a lightweight doubler attached to and covering at least a portion of the outer surfaces of the frame and stringer members; and
a laminate sheet comprising alternating layers of metal and composite, said laminate sheet disposed over, and attached to, the lightweight doubler so as to form an outer skin of the fuselage strengthened by the underlying lightweight doubler, the annular frame members and the stringer members, wherein at least a portion of the laminate sheet disposed over the lightweight doubler defines an opening therethrough and has a constant gauge thickness approximately equal to another, remote portion of the laminate sheet that is free of openings and not disposed over the lightweight doubler.
1 Assignment
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Accused Products
Abstract
A fuselage comprising a skin assembly including an outer, laminate skin bonded to an inner, aluminum doubler. The fuselage also includes a support structure comprising a plurality of longitudinal stringer members and a plurality of annular frame members that are attached to, and cooperate to support, the skin assembly. The aluminum doubler provides additional structural support for the fuselage, and in particular, for the outer laminate skin of the skin assembly. The additional structural strength added by the aluminum doubler allows the use of an improved range of fasteners, such as knife-edge, countersink rivets and further allows the use of the laminate layer even in areas with a large number of cutouts, such as the window track of the fuselage. The members of the support structure may interconnected via a plurality of integral flanges, which, when combined with the skin, provide improved structural strength for the entire fuselage.
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Citations
17 Claims
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1. A fuselage assembly for an aerospace craft defining a long axis, said fuselage assembly comprising:
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a plurality of longitudinal stringer members radially spaced from, and extending generally parallel to, the longitudinal axis of the fuselage, said longitudinal stringer members further spaced circumferentially from each other, each of the longitudinal stringer members having a stringer wall structure including an outer longitudinal surface;
a plurality of annular frame members spaced along the longitudinal axis, each of the annular frame members having a frame wall structure including a plurality of outer circumferential surfaces, each of the outer circumferential surfaces interposed between a respective pair of the longitudinal stringer members;
a lightweight doubler attached to and covering at least a portion of the outer surfaces of the frame and stringer members; and
a laminate sheet comprising alternating layers of metal and composite, said laminate sheet disposed over, and attached to, the lightweight doubler so as to form an outer skin of the fuselage strengthened by the underlying lightweight doubler, the annular frame members and the stringer members, wherein at least a portion of the laminate sheet disposed over the lightweight doubler defines an opening therethrough and has a constant gauge thickness approximately equal to another, remote portion of the laminate sheet that is free of openings and not disposed over the lightweight doubler. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11)
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12. A method of assembling a skin of a lightweight fuselage to a support structure including a plurality of longitudinal stinger members and annular frame members, the method of attaching the skin comprising:
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positioning the stringer members and frame members so that the members define a plurality of outer surfaces;
bonding a plurality of lightweight doubler panels to respective laminate skin panels to form a plurality of skin assembly panels;
positioning each of the skin assembly panels over a respective portion of the plurality of outer surfaces; and
attaching each of the skin assembly panels to the respective portion of the plurality of outer surfaces by transfixing the skin assembly panels and the members with a plurality of fasteners wherein at least one of the fasteners is transfixed through a portion of one of the skin assembly panels including the laminate skin and doubler, said laminate skin having a constant gauge thickness with respect to another remote portion of the laminate skin not disposed over the lightweight doubler. - View Dependent Claims (13, 14, 15, 16, 17)
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Specification