Automated Rivet Intelligent Extraction System (ARIES)

THE PROBLEM: Unavailability of Aircraft to the Warfighter / High Maintenance Costs to the Taxpayer The 402 Commodities Maintenance Group (CMXG) at Warner Robins Air Logistic Complex provides program depot maintenance for the C-5, C-17, C-130, F-15, and Global Hawk programs which has a total fleet of over 4,000 aircraft. Among the many tasks required to provide this maintenance, an inspection of the interior cavity of the flight controls is essential. There are several flight controls on each aircraft, which include flaps, ailerons, elevators, and rudder. Today, each flight control for each aircraft is treated in a “silo” using large “monument tooling” that is unique to one single part. THE SOLUTION: Automate the Process with Sensors, Robots, and Artificial Intelligence to provide an As-Built Digital Twin Although they are very different in size/shape/details, the process for removing the flight control skins is very similar across aircraft and flight controls – center drill the rivet and break it off. Delta Sigma Company (DSC) will develop an automated system to accomplish this work quickly with minimal human involvement. DSC has personnel experienced in all the fields required to achieve this development and the facilities with all needed support equipment to complete the task. DSC proposes the development of an Automated Rivet Intelligent Extraction System (ARIES), which will remove thousands of rivets from flight controls with very minimal human interaction. The key ARIES developments that must all work to accomplish this goal include: Flexible tooling that can safely hold a range of different parts A sensor that can find and identify rivets and determine the position and size accurately It must not drill screws or open holes, so reliably detecting the difference with 100% accuracy is critical A sensor that can accurately measure the surface normal of the fastener A system that can take the input data from the sensor suite and drill the rivet without damaging the surrounding structure A system to break the rivet after drilling to release the skin The system should accomplish these tasks as fast or faster than a human does today and with higher accuracy. Such a system could run unattended and thus provide up to 24/7 operations with minimal stress on personnel.