Patent ID: 8057623

Claim:
A method of manufacturing a panel, the panel comprising a composite skin and at least one composite stiffener, the method comprising: forming stiffener portions on each of first and second mandrels; forming said stiffener by locating said stiffener portions adjacent one another and positioning said first and second mandrels on opposite sides of said stiffener; transporting said stiffener and said mandrels to a joining station wherein said mandrels support the weight of said stiffener during the transporting step; joining said stiffener to said skin at the joining station by the steps of laying said skin onto the stiffener at the joining station, the mandrels supporting the weight of the stiffener during the laying step; positioning first and second compaction tools on opposite sides of the skin; and compacting the skin between the first and second compaction tools by moving one or both of the compaction tools, wherein the movement of at least one of the compaction tools causes the first and second mandrels to move towards the stiffener along inclined paths so as to compact the stiffener between the mandrels.