Abstract: A self-aligning aircraft door stop pin assembly, which minimizes galling and compensates for misalignment problems. The assembly consists of a base pad containing a concave spherical recess, which is swaged onto the convex spherical head at one end of a threaded stop pin. The base pad is free to align, so as to make full face contact with the structural stop pad. The sperical interface between stop pin and base pad is provided with lubrication, on one or both parts.

Abstract: A force limiting cartridge comprises a housing and end cap which screw together to contain a slidable piston biased by a coil spring. The cartridge surrounds a conventional pull-up clamp. The bottom end of the cartridge pushes against the top layer of the laminate. The piston is pushed against the spring when the clamp screw is tightened. The piston is provided with a cross mark which when aligned with cross hairs on the housing indicate a desired clamping pressure has been attained. The cartridge can be calibrated to any desired pressure (depending on the spring's performance characteristics) by adjusting the total length of the housing/end cap assembly.

Abstract: A brass strap is utilized as a common grounding bar for the shields of a plurality of coaxial cables. The individual coaxial cables pass through holes in the common grounding bar, and the inner conductors are connected to the pins of a printed circuit board connector.

Abstract: A butterfly valve is utilized to control air flow in the environmental control air distribution system of an aircraft. A linkage system enables the valve to be manually controlled under normal conditions but to be shut off remotely in case of an emergency condition.

Abstract: Polymeric anti-extrusion rings are provided for internal cooling of a drawbolt swaging apparatus. One such ring is located on either side of an elastomeric expansion sheath on a drawbolt. There rings are formed of polymeric material which has low creep, high tensile strength and is substantially unaffected at swaging temperatures. The rings are sized to fit snugly on the drawbolt shank and to provide minimum practical clearance with the interior dimensions of the tube to be swaged. The outer perimeter of the rings adjacent to the drawbolt head and bushing are chamfered.

Abstract: A device for receiving rivets from a rivet delivery tube of a pneumatic supply system, slowing the rivet velocity, and holding the rivet in a staged position until it is ready to be fed into a hole in a workpiece, includes a perforated tube having a connection to the rivet delivery tube. The interior diameters of the rivet brake and staging tube and the rivet delivery tube are equal so the rivet sees no edges or shoulders when passing through the delivery tube into the staging tube. The rivet brake and staging tube has a flange by which it is connected to the side of a shuttle carrier which carries a shuttle body in which is mounted a slotted rivet guide shoe. The rivet guide shoe has an arm that is positioned in front of the end of the rivet brake and staging tube when the shuttle is in its drilling position, so the rivet may be sent while the rivet hole is being drilled, and the rivet is held at the end of the rivet brake and staging tube, ready for insertion into the hole.

Abstract: This invention relates to a machine and its constituent components for drilling a hole in a workpiece, inserting a rivet in the hole, and upsetting the rivet, all without moving the lateral position of the machine or the workpiece, and to an assembly for supporting and positioning a plurality of said machines for working simultaneously on the workpiece.

Abstract: A brake wear limit indicator which is matched to the brake energy capacity of the overhauled brake. A wear limit bushing is attached to the brake piston housing. The bushing length is chosen based on the brake energy capacity of the brake and is marked with a related part number. A wear pin is attached to the brake pressure plate and extends through a hole in the bushing. Brake overhaul is required when the brake wears such that the pin no longer protrudes from the bushing.

Abstract: A mount for use by optical elements in a laser tooling alignment system. The mount provides a high degree of isolation from external rotational disturbances about any horizontal axis (i.e., pitch and roll) by retaining optical components in a fixed relationship to the local gravity gradient. The mount is a passive gravity referencing two stage, fluid damped pendulum. When a constant deviation optic (e.g. pentaprism beam splitter) is attached to the mount, effective isolation from yaw disturbances is also achieved.

Abstract: A method of detecting rivets which are outside of a predetermined length tolerance includes holding a rivet in a first reference position with its head in a rivet hole countersink, and moving a probe, in the form of a rivet tail die, into contact with the rivet tail. The position of the probe when it contacts the rivet tail is detected and compared with the predetermined position tolerences corresponding to the rivet length tolerences. The rivet is held in the first reference position by a rivet head die with a force greater than the force exerted by the probe when contacting the rivet tail to ensure that the rivet stays in the reference position during the measuring step. If the rivet is too long or too short, a rivet recovery sequence is executed to remove the out-sized rivet and a new rivet is inserted and measured. When the rivet is confirmed to be within the length tolerance, the rivet dies are driven inward toward each other to upset the rivet.

Abstract: An apparatus for suctioning chips cut by a drill, mist lubrication of the drill, and cooling the coil of an electromagnetic riveter includes a movable shuttle body having a drill/suction cavity open at the top to receive a drill dit, and having a tapered opening at the bottom through which the drill descends to drill a hole in a workpiece clamped by a pressure foot attached to a carrier in which the shuttle body slides. A port opening in the side of the cavity is connected to a vacuum hose through which drill chips cut by the drill bit are suctioned away from the workpiece as they are made. A second port opening in the side of the cavity aligns with a nozzle through which mist lubrication is blown on the drill bit before it starts drilling, and through which air is blown into the cavity to swirl the chips as they are being cut by the drill to facilitate their removal through the vacuum port. The coil of an electromagnetic riveter is cooled by conduction to a transducer with which the coil is in contact.

Abstract: A device for feeding rivets around a small radius curve includes a rivet guide shoe that fits into a recess in a movable shuttle body that can be moved to position a drill cavity, the rivet insertion device, and a rivet die sequentially under the machine axis for drilling, rivet insertion, and rivet upsetting. The rivet guide shoe has a curved, arched slot which is aligned with the delivery end of the rivet supply line when the shuttle is in its rivet insert position. The rivet is blown through the rivet supply line into the curved, arched slot in the rivet guide shoe. It travels around the slot and enters a rivet guide tube that is fitted into the end of the slot and has an axial passage equal in diameter to the diameter of the curved, arched slot, so the rivet encounters no edges or other discontinuities in the transition from the slot to the guide tube.

Abstract: A method of mist lubrication of a drill, suctioning chips cut by the drill, and cooling the coil of an electromagnetic riveter includes aligning the open top of a drill/suction cavity of a movable shuttle body with a drill which descends through the cavity and through a tapered opening at the bottom of the cavity to drill a hole in a workpiece clamped by a pressure foot attached to a carrier in which the shuttle body slides. As the drill descends through the cavity, mist lubrication is blown on the drill bit through a nozzel aligned with a port opening in the side of the cavity. Drill chips cut by the drill bit are suctioned away from the workpiece as they are made through a second port opening in the side of the cavity which is connected to a vacuum hose. Air is blown into the cavity through the same nozzel to swirl the chips as they are being cut by the drill to facilitate their removal through the vacuum port.

Abstract: An electrical cable having a wire bundle core surrounded by a thermal protection sleeve, the thermal protection sleeve consisting of a sandwich structure of a laminate of silicone foam provided on both sides with an acrylic adhered layer of fiber glass, the sandwich structure having an additional outer layer of acrylic adhesive adhered silicone release liner material or fiber glass lacing tape.

Abstract: A lever force gauge, for measuring the force necessary to pivot a lever, includes a connector for attaching the device to the end of a lever, and a positioner to which a load cell is attached for producing an electrical signal indicative of the force exerted by the operator to move the lever. The positioner is pivotally attached to the connector in such a way that it can be pivoted to any of three positions to orient the load cell in the desired direction to exert a force on the load cell to move the lever and measure the force exerted before the lever moved. The load cell is connected via an electrical cable to an instrument that records and displays the peak force exerted on the load cell to move the lever.

Abstract: A gauge for measuring the depth of a hole countersink in a workpiece for a fastener, or for measuring the protrusion height of a fastener head above the surface of the workpiece, includes a tapered cylindrical case for holding a transducer such as an LVDT, and a probe assembly removably mounted on the lower end of the case. The probe assembly includes a foot having an annular contact ring at its lower end for contacting the workpiece around the hole or around the fastener head to establish the reference position from which the measurement is to be taken. A probe is mounted in a well in the foot for axial sliding movement therein and is captured within the food by a connector which is screwed onto the upper end of the foot.

Abstract: An apparatus for holding honeycomb core parts down on a conveyor while dust is being cleaned from the cells of the honeycomb by an upper air knife blowing a narrow jet of air down through the honeycomb cells as the part is being carried on a conveyor belt through an exhaust hood, and a pair of upwardly aimed air knives below the conveyor belt blowing two narrow jets of air on both sides of the first air knife through the honeycomb cells. The part is held down on the conveyor belt against the lifting force of the two air jets from the two lower air knives by a floating hold-down mechanism, which is adjustably counterbalanced to control the amount of hold-down force it exerts on the honeycomb part. The upper air knife is mounted on a counterbalance system that enables it to ride above and blow down through the hold-down mechanism without exerting significant force on the honeycomb part.

Abstract: An electrical connector modularly arrayed wherein electrical contacts either manual or automatic assemble through a grommet assembly into retention clips.

Abstract: A safety device for an aircraft inflatable escape slide which functions to prevent inadvertent inflation of the slide during shipping. The safety device incorporates a rotatable hook means which retains the firing lanyard in a fixed position and is adapted to release the firing lanyard when the slide pack covers are leased. A pair of swaged ball elements are provided on the lanyard, one on either side of the hook means.

Abstract: Novel means for deploying airplane wing flaps feature a bent shaft which is translatable fore and aft in the fairing cavity. The shaft has an adjacent follower member which travels in a concentric curved flap track to rotate shaft as it extends. The bent shaft has a support ball fitting and end roller which provide flap deflection with respect to the fixed wing as the shaft is extended aft and rotated. The subject flap deployment means are mechanically elegant resulting in lower manufacturing and installation cost and high reliability.