Abstract:
A method for manufacturing components is provided. The method includes coupling a drive assembly to a positioning assembly, coupling a plurality of components to be manufactured to a plurality of fixtures, securing the plurality of fixtures to the drive assembly wherein each fixture is configured to receive a component to be manufactured, and repositioning the plurality of components simultaneously using the positioning assembly to facilitate manufacturing of the plurality of components, wherein the components are configured to be oscillated in a first plane of rotation via the drive assembly and rotated through a second plane of rotation via the plurality of fixtures.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
       [0001]     The present invention relates generally to manufacturing components, and more specifically to methods and apparatus for aligning, supporting, and/or securing components for manufacture.  
         [0002]     Accurate manufacturing of gas turbine engine components may be a significant factor in determining both manufacturing timing and cost. Specifically, when the component is a gas turbine engine blade, accurate manufacturing of the blade may be a significant factor affecting an overall cost of fabrication of the gas turbine engine, as well as subsequent modifications, repairs, and inspections of the blade. For example, at least some known gas turbine engine blades receive a protective coating to facilitate protection of the turbine blades when the blades are subjected to high velocity fluid flows in a high temperature environment. Accurately coating the turbine blades facilitates enhancing a useful life of the blades.  
         [0003]     To align a turbine blade for spray coating, known systems enable a single blade to be coupled to a positioning system to enable a spray coating to be applied to the blade. At least some known positioning systems require the blades be repositioned several times through a variety of orientations to enable the coating to be applied at the desired thickness across each portion of the blade to be coated. The process is then repeated for each blade requiring a coating. As such, applying a coating to a component using known systems may be a time consuming process that increases engine manufacturing cycle times and fabrication costs.  
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION  
       [0004]     In one aspect, a method for manufacturing components is provided. The method includes coupling a drive assembly to a positioning assembly, coupling a plurality of components to be manufactured to a plurality of fixtures, securing the plurality of fixtures to the drive assembly wherein each fixture is configured to receive a component to be manufactured, and repositioning the plurality of components simultaneously using the positioning assembly to facilitate manufacturing of the plurality of components, wherein the components are configured to be oscillated in a first plane of rotation via the drive assembly and rotated through a second plane of rotation via the plurality of fixtures.  
         [0005]     In another aspect, a fixture assembly for use in manufacturing a plurality of components is provided. The fixture assembly includes at least two fixtures configured to support the plurality of components being manufactured, a drive assembly, the at least two fixtures coupled to the drive assembly and rotatable along a first axis of rotation, the drive assembly comprises a plurality of spindles extending outward therefrom and a plurality of platens coupled to the spindles, the plurality of spindles and the plurality of platens configured to oscillate in a second plane of rotation that is orthogonal to the first axis of rotation.  
         [0006]     In a further aspect, a coating system is provided. The coating system includes a drive assembly, a fixture assembly comprising at least two fixtures coupled to the drive assembly, and a positioning assembly coupled to the fixture assembly, the drive assembly comprises a plurality of spindles extending outward therefrom and a plurality of platens coupled to the spindles, the plurality of spindles and the plurality of platens configured to oscillate in a second plane of rotation that is orthogonal to the first axis of rotation.  
     
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0007]      FIG. 1  is a perspective view of an exemplary component spray coating system including a component manufacturing assembly;  
         [0008]      FIG. 2  is a schematic of an end view of an exemplary component manufacturing apparatus used with the spray coating system shown in  FIG. 1 ;  
         [0009]      FIG. 3  is a perspective view of a portion of a partially assembled drive assembly used with the spray coating system shown in  FIG. 1 ;  
         [0010]      FIG. 4  is an end perspective view of the drive assembly shown in  FIG. 3  and in an intermittent stage of assembly;  
         [0011]      FIG. 5  is a side view of the drive assembly shown in  FIG. 3  and in a final stage of assembly; and  
         [0012]      FIG. 6  is an enlarged perspective view of the component manufacturing apparatus assembly shown in  FIG. 1 . 
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION  
       [0013]      FIG. 1  is a perspective view of an exemplary embodiment of a component spray coating system  100  in a first position. In the exemplary embodiment, system  100  is used to spray turbine blades  112 . System  100  includes a coating applicator  104  having a spray nozzle  105 , a component manufacturing apparatus  102  that includes a fixture assembly  106 , and a positioning and coating control system (not shown on  FIG. 1 ). In  FIG. 1  fixture assembly  106  is rotated towards coating applicator  104  and is coupled to a positioning assembly  108 .  
         [0014]     Fixture assembly  106  includes a plurality of fixtures  110  used to secure the components. More specifically, in the exemplary embodiment, assembly  106  includes four fixtures  110  which enable four turbine blades  112  to be coated simultaneously as described in more detail below. In an alternative embodiment, assembly  106  includes any number of a plurality of fixtures  110 . Turbine blades  112  are shown for illustrative purposes only and fixture assembly  106  is not limited to only being used in the manufacture of blades  112 . Fixture  110  is securely coupled to a respective one of a plurality of platens  114 . The exemplary embodiment includes four platens  114  that each cooperate with a respective fixture  110 . Platens  114  are each coupled to a drive assembly  116 .  
         [0015]     Drive assembly  116  includes an enclosure  117  that contains a plurality of drive gears (not shown in  FIG. 1 ) coupled to a plurality of spindles (not shown in  FIG. 1 ) and platens  114 . Spindles (not shown in  FIG. 1 ) extend outwardly from assembly  116 , and the plurality of drive gears are sized, positioned, and aligned to enable each spindle and platen  114  rotate at substantially the same rate. Drive assembly  116  includes a mounting frame  119  and a plurality of lifting slots  121  that are formed integrally with mounting frame  119 . The arrows labeled J 8  on  FIG. 1  illustrate a plane of rotation and a direction of rotation of platens  114 . Drive assembly  116  also houses a plurality of upper bearings (not shown in  FIG. 1 ), a plurality of platen-to-spindle biased couplings (not shown in  FIG. 1 ), a plurality of collars (not shown in  FIG. 1 ), a main drive gear (not shown in  FIG. 1 ), a plurality of platen drive gears (not shown in  FIG. 1 ), a plurality of inter-platen drive gears (not shown in  FIG. 1 ), a main drive gear drive shaft (not shown in  FIG. 1 ), and a plurality of lower bearings (not shown in  FIG. 1 ).  
         [0016]     In the exemplary embodiment, positioning assembly  108  is a turntable that has been modified and that includes a plurality of floor supports  122 , a tilt drive electric motor  124 , a tilt drive shaft and support bearing (not shown in  FIG. 1 ), a platen drive motor  126 , a platen drive translational gear  128 , a plurality of electric power cables  130 , and a raised floor stand  132 . Assembly  108  also includes a platen drive shaft-to-main drive gear drive shaft coupling (not shown in  FIG. 1 ) through which assembly  108  powers drive assembly  116 . In  FIG. 1 , the arrows labeled J 7  illustrate a tilt plane of rotation and a direction of rotation of assembly  106 .  
         [0017]      FIG. 2  is a schematic of an end view of a component manufacturing apparatus  102  used with coating system  100 . In addition to spindles  120 , assembly  102  also includes a plurality of upper bearings  150 , a plurality of collars  152 , a main drive gear  154 , a plurality of platen drive gears  156 , a plurality of inter-platen drive gears  158 , a plurality of inter-platen drive gear shafts  159 , a main drive gear drive shaft  160 , a plurality of lower bearings  162 , a platen drive shaft  164 , a drive assembly-to-positioning assembly coupling  166 , a tilt drive shaft  168 , a tilt drive shaft bearing  170  and a tilt axis of rotation  172 . Bearing  170  supports tilt drive shaft  168 . A platen drive shaft-to-main drive gear drive shaft coupling (not shown in  FIG. 2 ) rotatably coupled to drive shaft  164  to drive shaft  160 .  
         [0018]     In the exemplary embodiment four fixtures  110  (shown in  FIG. 1 ) are securely coupled each respective platen  114  to enable up to four turbine blades  112  (shown in  FIG. 1 ) to be coupled to apparatus  102 . Platen drive electric motor  126  is coupled to platen drive shaft  164  via translational gear  128 . Gear  128  receives input from motor  126  and causes drive shaft  164  to rotate in a plane of rotation that is orthogonal to tilt axis of rotation  172 . More specifically, in the exemplary embodiment, the rotation may be in a clockwise or counterclockwise direction, or the motor  126  may cause oscillation between the two rotational directions.  
         [0019]     Drive shaft  164  is rotatably coupled to main drive gear drive shaft  160  via platen drive shaft-to-main drive gear drive shaft coupling (not shown in  FIG. 2 ) and rotation is induced to drive shaft  160  from drive shaft  164 . Drive shaft  160  subsequently rotates main drive gear  154  which causes rotation of two adjacent platen drive gears  156 . Gears  156  transmit rotation to inter-plated drive gears  158  located adjacent to gears  156 . Gears  158  transmit rotation to a second pair of platen drive gears  156  adjacent to gears  158 . Upper bearings  150 , collars  152 , lower bearings  162 , and inter-platen drive shafts  159  provide axial and radial support for gears  160 ,  158 , and  156 .  
         [0020]     Rotation transmitted to platens  114  subsequently oscillates fixtures  110  and blades  112  such that an orientation of blades  112  is selectively changed in unison with respect to spray nozzle  105 . More specifically, in the exemplary embodiment, the rotation transmitted to platens  114  is substantially uniform such that the orientation of blades  112  with respect to spray nozzle  105  is changed in a substantially constant manner that facilitates a consistent deposition of a coating being applied to each of all blades  112 .  
         [0021]     Moreover, during operation, positioning assembly  108  also provides tilt rotation along tilt axis  172 . More specifically, tilt drive electric motor  124  induces rotation to tilt drive shaft  168  because shaft  168  is coupled to positioning assembly  108 , tilt rotation is transmitted to positioning assembly  108 . In the exemplary embodiment, positioning assembly  108  is coupled to fixture assembly  106  and as tilt rotation is transmitted to positioning assembly  108 , assembly  106  tilts simultaneously with assembly  108  to selectively change the orientation of blades  112  with respect to spray nozzle  105 . Selective tilt rotation of blades  112  facilitates a consistent deposition of a coating being applied to blade  112 .  
         [0022]     Spray nozzle  105  is selectively moveable in a direction that is substantially parallel to, and radially toward and away from, component manufacturing apparatus  102 . The movement of spray nozzle  105 , and the oscillation and tilting of blades  112  are selectively controlled via a positioning and coating control sub-system (not shown in  FIG. 2 ) that includes a plurality of inputs, a plurality of outputs, a plurality of algorithms, a plurality of operator interfaces, and at least one processor to facilitate a desired deposition of coating being concurrently applied to blades  112 .  
         [0023]      FIG. 3  is a perspective view of a portion of a partially assembled drive assembly  116  used with coating system  100  (shown in  FIG. 1 ).  FIG. 4  is an end perspective view of drive assembly  116  in an intermittent stage of assembly. During assembly of drive assembly  116 , main drive gear  154  is coupled to main drive gear drive shaft  160  and is supported by lower bearing  162  (not shown in  FIG. 3 ). Collar  152  is coupled to main drive gear drive shaft  160  and supported by main drive gear  154 . Two platen drive gears  156  are coupled around spindles  120  and supported by lower bearing  162  (not shown in  FIG. 3 ) on opposite sides of main drive gear  154 . Collars  152  are inserted over spindles  120  and are positioned in contact with platen drive gears  156 . Two inter-platen drive gears  158  are coupled around inter-platen drive gear shafts  159  and supported by lower bearings  162  (not shown in  FIG. 3 ) such that collars  152  are in contact with inter-platen drive gears  158  on opposite sides of platen drive gears  156 . Two platen drive gears  156  are coupled to spindles  120  and supported by lower bearing  162  (not shown in  FIG. 3 ) on opposite sides of inter-platen drive gears  158 . A biased spindle-to-platen coupling  210  is coupled to each spindle  120 . Platens  114  (not shown in  FIG. 3 ) are inserted over spindles  120  and spring-loaded, biased couplings  210  securely engage platens  114  through direct contact of coupling  210  to platen  114  inner wall. Top section  220  is then coupled to assembly  116 .  
         [0024]      FIG. 5  is a side view of drive assembly  116  in a final stage of assembly with a platen brace  230  installed. Brace  230  facilitates maintaining platens  114  in a relatively stationary position during transport to and installation of assembly  116  to positioning assembly  108 . During installation of drive assembly  116 , straps (not shown in  FIG. 5 ) are inserted through lifting slots  121  on both sides of assembly  116 . A chain (not shown in  FIG. 5 ) may be inserted through at least one strap loop (not shown in  FIG. 5 ) and may be coupled to a hoisting mechanism (not shown in  FIG. 5 ), to enable assembly  116  to be transported to, and coupled to, positioning assembly  108  (not shown in  FIG. 5 ).  
         [0025]      FIG. 6  is an enlarged perspective view of component manufacturing apparatus  102 . Drive assembly  116  is coupled to positioning assembly  108 . Multiple turbine blades  112  are coupled to multiple fixtures  110  to illustrate the ability to coat a plurality of blades  112  in a single coating cycle.  
         [0026]     In an alternate embodiment of fixture assembly  106 , a single fixture spool may be coupled to base assembly  108  in place of drive assembly  116  to facilitate coating a single blade  112 . Platen  114  is coupled to the spool, fixture  110  is coupled to platen  114  and blade  112  is coupled to fixture  110 . Tilt and rotation is substantially similar to that described above with the exception being that the length of time of the coating cycle and the movement of spray nozzle  105  may be reduced to account for the smaller number of blades  112 .  
         [0027]     The component manufacturing assembly described herein facilitates manufacturing of a component. More specifically, the component manufacturing assembly will position turbine components to facilitate application of coatings. As a result, the time and expense of manufacturing turbine components can be reduced.  
         [0028]     Although the methods and systems described and/or illustrated herein are described and/or illustrated with respect to manufacturing components, and more specifically, turbine blades, practice of the methods and systems described and/or illustrated herein is not limited to turbine blades nor to turbines generally. Rather, the methods and systems described and/or illustrated herein are applicable to manufacturing any component on any machine.  
         [0029]     Exemplary embodiments of manufacturing components are described above in detail. The methods, apparatus and systems are not limited to the specific embodiments described herein nor to the specific components manufactured, but rather, may be utilized independently and separately from other methods, apparatus and systems described herein or to manufacture components not described herein. For example, other components can also be manufactured using the methods described herein.  
         [0030]     While the invention has been described in terms of various specific embodiments, those skilled in the art will recognize that the invention can be practiced with modification within the spirit and scope of the claims.