Improved Grid Fin Manufacturing Techniques

Grid fin designs used for air launched munitions offer many advantages over conventional air foil shaped fins such as a reduction in flight actuator size and weight resulting in the improved performance of the missile systems. The major draw back in the use of grid fins has been the high manufacturing cost. Grid fins are currently machined from a solid billet of metal by electrical discharge machining (EDM) or water jet cutting. Air Force estimates of the cost of a stainless steel grid fin fabricated by EDM are as high as $2,000 per fin. This price is beyond the level of reasonableness for many classes of munitions. A more cost efficient grid fin fabrication method is needed. This project proposes to design, fabricate, test and qualify lightweight low cost composite missile grid fins capable of surviving aircraft launch and flight loads, and the environmental exposures experienced during flight, transportation and storage. The grid fins will be comprised of novel high performance composite materials and manufactured using an innovative economical molding process that will produce low cost complexly shaped grid fins in large quantities. Virtually any size or shape composite grid fin can be economically manufactured using this molding process.