Patent ID: 6215097
Filing Date: 2001-04-10
Classification: B23K,B23P,C21D,F01D,Y02T

Abstract:
An on the fly method of laser shock peening a gas turbine engine part, said method comprising the following steps:continuously moving a metallic gas turbine engine part while continuously firing a stationary laser beam, which repeatably pulses with relatively constant periods between the pulses, on a portion of the part,using a laser beam with sufficient power to vaporize material on a laser shock peened surface of the portion of the part with the pulses around laser beam spots formed by the laser beam on the surface to form a region having deep compressive residual stresses extending into the part from the laser shock peened surface,flowing a curtain of water over the surface upon which the laser beam is firing while moving the part until the laser shock peened surface is completely covered by the laser beam spots at least once,wherein the part is moved and the laser beam is fired to produce more than one row of overlapping circular laser beam spots having generally equally spaced apart linearly aligned center points wherein adjacent rows of spots overlap, andwherein the laser shock peened surface is laser shock peened using a set of sequences wherein each sequence comprises covering the surface with a material suitable to generate a plasma which results in shock waves to form the region having deep compressive residual stresses and then continuously moving the part while continuously firing a stationary laser beam on the surface such that adjacent laser shock peened circular spots are hit in different ones of said sequences in said set.