Abstract:
A reconfigurable system having at least one detachable component and at least one detachable head assembly. The reconfigurable system may be a numerically controlled (NC) machine for manufacturing processes, such as milling or automatic fiber placement (AFP). The reconfigurable system may further comprise a gantry structure comprised of movably attached beams on which detachable components may be movably attached. The detachable components may include a concave component and a convex component. At least one detachable head assembly may be movably attached to at least one of the detachable components. The detachable components and head assemblies may be at least one of physically, electrically, and pneumatically connected to a connecting assembly attached to the gantry structure.

Description:
BACKGROUND 
       [0001]    1. Field 
         [0002]    The present invention relates to numerically controlled (NC) machines used in fields such as milling and manufacturing of structural and aerodynamic aircraft parts. 
         [0003]    2. Related Art 
         [0004]    Numerically controlled (NC) machines are used in a variety of manufacturing processes, including milling and automatic fiber placement (AFP) for manufacturing composite or metal parts for aircrafts and the like. 
         [0005]    NC machines are traditionally custom designed for a specific task and contain a fixed number of structural components in a fixed configuration. Once the NC machine is built with a particular configuration, it can not have primary structural components, such as a movable beam supporting a material placement head, added or removed without retooling the machine, which can be a complicated and expensive process. As such, different machines are typically required for different manufacturing processes. At a manufacturing plant where multiple manufacturing processes are regularly carried out, using a different NC machine for each manufacturing process or each part to be tooled can be expensive. 
         [0006]    Accordingly, there is a need for an improved NC machine that does not suffer from the problems and limitations of the prior art. 
       SUMMARY 
       [0007]    The present invention is a modular, reconfigurable numerically controlled (NC) machine having detachable components for supporting and actuating at least one head assembly, thereby allowing for multiple configurations so that a variety of manufacturing processes may be performed or a variety of parts may be machined on a single piece of equipment. 
         [0008]    In one embodiment of the invention, the reconfigurable NC machine comprises: at least one base beam; a horizontal beam supported by the base beam and movable along a first axis and a second axis relative to the base beam; a connecting assembly attachable to the horizontal beam and movable along a third axis which is different from the first and second axes; at least one detachable modular component movably attached to the connecting assembly; and at least one detachable head assembly movably attachable to at least one of the connecting assembly and the modular component. The modular component may have a linear, concave, or convex shape or surface. Multiple head assemblies may be attached to the modular component and may be movable relative to the modular component. 
         [0009]    In various embodiments of the invention, the connecting assembly comprises a clamp operable to connect at least one of the head assembly and the modular component to the connecting assembly. Additionally, the clamp may connect the modular component or the head assembly to the connecting assembly physically, electrically, or pneumatically. 
         [0010]    Another embodiment of the invention is a method of reconfiguring the reconfigurable NC machine. The method comprises the steps of attaching at least one base beam to the horizontal beam, the horizontal beam being movable along the first axis and the second axis relative to the base beam; attaching the connecting assembly to the horizontal beam, the connecting assembly being movable along the third axis different from the first and second axes; attaching a first detachable component to the connecting assembly; detaching the first detachable component from the connecting assembly; and attaching a second detachable component to the connecting assembly. 
         [0011]    These and other important aspects of the present invention are described more fully in the detailed description below. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
         [0012]    An embodiment of the present invention is described in detail below with reference to the attached drawing figures, wherein: 
           [0013]      FIG. 1  is a perspective view of a reconfigurable system according to one embodiment of the present invention and shown interacting with a mold surface; 
           [0014]      FIG. 2  is a front plan view of the reconfigurable system of  FIG. 1 , illustrating the movement of a connecting assembly, horizontal beam, and head assembly; 
           [0015]      FIG. 3  is a perspective view of the reconfigurable system of  FIG. 1  shown interacting with the mold surface and reconfigured with a concave modular component supporting two head assemblies; 
           [0016]      FIG. 4  is a front plan view of the reconfigurable system of  FIG. 3 ; 
           [0017]      FIG. 5  is a front plan view of the reconfigurable system of  FIG. 3  and illustrating the movement of the concave modular component; 
           [0018]      FIG. 6  is a perspective view of the reconfigurable system of  FIG. 1  interacting with another mold surface and reconfigured with a convex modular component supporting two head assemblies; and 
           [0019]      FIG. 7  is a perspective view of the reconfigurable system of  FIG. 6  reconfigured with only one head assembly supported by the convex modular component. 
           [0020]      FIG. 8  is a fractured close-up perspective view of the connecting assembly and head assembly of  FIG. 2 . 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION  
       [0021]      FIG. 1  illustrates a reconfigurable system  10  constructed in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. The reconfigurable system  10  may be assembled in a plurality of configurations to be used for a variety of manufacturing processes, and is particularly suited for dispensing and compacting portions of a material  12  onto a mold surface  14 , such as automatic fiber placement (AFP) onto a mandrel surface for manufacturing composite parts for aircrafts and the like. The reconfigurable system  10  may be a type of numerically controlled (NC) machine with a plurality of detachable and attachable structural components. 
         [0022]    Referring to  FIG. 1 , an embodiment of the reconfigurable system  10  may comprise: a first and a second base beam  16 , 18 ; a first and a second upwardly extending beam  20 , 22  movably attached to the first and the second base beam  16 , 18 ; a horizontal beam  24  movably attached to the first and the second upwardly extending beam  20 , 22 ; a connecting assembly  26  movably attached to the horizontal beam  24 ; at least one of a plurality of detachable modular components  28 , 30  movably attachable to at least one of the beams and the connecting assembly  26 ; and at least one of a plurality of detachable head assemblies  32 , 34  movably attachable to at least one of the connecting assembly  26  and the modular components  28 , 30 . 
         [0023]    In one embodiment of the invention, the beams  16 - 24  form a gantry structure with the first base beam  16  parallel to the second base beam  18 , the first upwardly extending beam  20  perpendicular to the first base beam  16 , the second upwardly extending beam  22  perpendicular to the second base beam  18 , and the horizontal beam  24  extending from the first upwardly extending beam  20  to the second upwardly extending beam  22 . The first and second upwardly extending beams  20 , 22  may be movably attached to the first and second base beams  16 , 18 , and the horizontal beam  24  may be movably attached to the first and second upwardly extending beams  20 , 22 , as illustrated in  FIGS. 1-2 . Means for movably attaching the beams may be any means known in the art for slidably attaching one object to another, including tracks, rollers, and bearing ways. 
         [0024]    Referring to  FIGS. 3-7 , in various embodiments, the connecting assembly  26  may be movably attached to the horizontal beam  24  and may have a first end  36  and a second end  38 . The connecting assembly  26  may comprise a clamp  40  at its first end  36 , as illustrated in  FIG. 8 , for attaching and detaching at least one of the modular components  28 , 30  or one of the head assemblies  32 , 34 . The clamp  40  may be any type of connection apparatus known in the art for simultaneously making one or more of a physical, electrical, communications, and pneumatic connection between components. For example, appropriate male/female connections known in the art may be used to make any of physical, electrical, communications, and pneumatic connections, as illustrated in  FIG. 8 . 
         [0025]    The modular components  28 , 30  may be curved in shape, including a concave modular component  28  and a convex modular component  30 . The concave modular component  28  may be elongated and curved in a substantially concave shape relative to the mold surface  14 . The convex modular component  30  may be elongated and curved in a substantially convex shape relative to the mold surface  14 . Both the concave and convex modular components  28 , 30  are movably attachable to the connecting assembly  26 . Alternatively, a single curved modular component may be movably attachable to the reconfigurable system  10  in a concave position, so that it curves toward the mold surface  14 , or a convex position, so that it curves away from the mold surface  14 . Other modular components of various shapes and sizes may be at least one of slidably, rotatably, and pivotally attached to the reconfigurable system  10  as required by a given application. For example, in an alternative embodiment of the invention, at least one of the modular components  28 , 30  may be elongated linear components that are not curved in shape (not shown). Each of the connecting assembly  26  and the detachable modular components  28 , 30  may additionally comprise means known in the art for slidably attaching one object to another, including tracks, rollers, and bearing ways. 
         [0026]    The head assemblies  32 , 34  may be any head assembly known in the art, including material placement heads such as an AFP application head, cutter spindles, or probes. Different types of head assemblies may be interchangeably used on the reconfigurable system  10 , thereby allowing a single system, such as a single NC machine, to machine a variety of parts or perform a variety of manufacturing processes. At least one head assembly  32 , 34  may movably attach to at least one of the connecting assembly  24 , the concave modular component  28 , and the convex modular component  30 . 
         [0027]    The beams  16 - 24 , connecting assembly  26 , modular components  28 , 30 , and head assemblies  32 , 34  may further comprise actuators known in the art, such as drive motors, for moving each component relative to each other. For example, an actuator  42  in the connecting assembly  26  may actuate the concave modular component  28  to pivot, as illustrated in  FIG. 5 . The actuator  42  may also actuate the convex modular component  30  or one of the head assemblies  32 , 34  to rotate in at least one plane when attached to the connecting assembly  26 . The beams, connecting assembly  26 , and modular components  28 , 30  may also comprise wires  44  for carrying electrical and communication signals and pneumatic or hydraulic tubes  46  to carry fluid for actuating the connecting assembly  26  and each modular component  28 , 30 . Additionally, each component of the reconfigurable system  10  may comprise programmable logic control (PLC) and EPROM/memory storage devices. 
         [0028]    In various embodiments, each beam of the reconfigurable system  10  may move relative to another beam. The upwardly extending beams  20 , 22  may move along a first axis relative to the base beams  16 , 18 , as illustrated in  FIG. 1 . The horizontal beam  24  may move along the first axis relative to the base beams  16 , 18  and along a second axis relative to the base beams  16 , 18  and the upwardly extending beams  20 , 22 , as illustrated in  FIGS. 1-2 . Additionally, the connecting assembly  26  may be movably attached to the horizontal beam  24  and may move along a third axis perpendicular to the first and second axes, as illustrated in  FIG. 2 . The third axis runs along the length of the horizontal beam  24 . The connecting assembly  26  may also move perpendicularly relative to the third axis, as illustrated in  FIG. 4 . 
         [0029]    The modular components  28 , 30  and the head assemblies  32 , 34  may be at least one of interchangeably and cooperatively attached to the horizontal beam  24  by the connecting assembly  26 . For example, one of the head assemblies  32 , 34  may be attached directly to the connecting assembly  26  or attached to the modular component  28 , which may be attached to the connecting assembly. 
         [0030]    The first end  36  of the connecting assembly  26  may be at least one of slidably, rotatably, and pivotally attached to one of the modular components  28 , 30  and one of the head assemblies  32 , 34 . Specifically, the modular component  28  may rotate in at least one plane when attached to the connecting assembly  26 , and the modular component  30  may rotate in at least one plane when attached to the connecting assembly  26 , as illustrated in  FIG. 3  and  FIG. 5 . Additionally, at least one of the head assemblies  32 , 34  may rotate in at least one plane when attached to the connecting assembly  26 . When attached to the modular components  28 , 30 , the head assemblies  32 , 34  may move perpendicularly relative to the curve of the concave or convex modular components  28 , 30 , as illustrated in  FIG. 4 . The head assemblies  32 , 34  may also move along the length of the concave and convex modular components  28 , 30  when attached to one of the modular components  28 , 30 . 
         [0031]    A method for reconfiguring the reconfigurable system  10  may comprise attaching a first component, such as the concave modular component  28 , the convex modular component  30 , or one of the head assemblies  32 , 34 , to the connecting assembly  26 . The method may further comprise detaching the first component from the connecting assembly  26  and attaching a second component, such as the concave modular component  28 , the convex modular component  30 , or one of the head assemblies  32 , 34 , to the connecting assembly  26 . The second component may be a different component than the first component. 
         [0032]    In one embodiment of the invention, the method may comprise attaching one of the modular components  28 , 30  to the connecting assembly  26 . The method may further comprise attaching both of the head assemblies  32 , 34  to opposing sides of the modular component  28 , 30  that is attached to the connecting assembly  26 . Additionally, the method may comprise detaching head assembly  34  from the modular component  28 , 30  that is attached to the connecting assembly  26 , resulting in, for example, the configuration illustrated in  FIG. 7 . 
         [0033]    Although the invention has been described with reference to the embodiments illustrated in the attached drawings, it is noted that equivalents may be employed and substitutions made herein without departing from the scope of the invention as recited in the claims. Particularly, it is noted that beams and other components may be omitted without departing from the scope of the invention as recited in the claims. For example, the reconfigurable system  10  may simply comprise the first base beam  16  supporting the horizontal beam  24 , which may be movable relative to the first base beam  16 ; the connecting assembly  26  movably attached to the horizontal beam; and at least one detachable modular component  28 , 30  movably attachable to at least one of the beams.