Patent ID: 8661644
Filing Date: 2014-03-04
Classification: B29C,B29L,B64G,F17C,Y10T

Abstract:
1. A tool device for forming a joint between a composite skirt and a composite dome disposed within and joined to an inner surface of the composite skirt, comprising: a skirt tool shell configured to receive composite plies laid up to form the skirt, the shell including a circumferentially extending flange on an end thereof, the flange configured to receive a force that pulls the tool away from the skirt after the skirt has been cured, the skirt intersecting a surface of the dome; and a spacer comprising a plurality of tool blocks arranged side-by-side around a curvature of the dome, the skirt tool connected to the spacer at a joint, an inboard surface of the skirt tool shell and spacer being substantially smooth and contoured to match a curvature of the dome, an outer surface of the spacer substantially matching an inner mold line of the skirt, the spacer configured to space a vacuum bag away from a point of tangency between the skirt and the dome.