Back to results
US 10,300,653 B2Granted
Formation of thermoplastic parts
AssigneeThe Boeing Company
InventorAndrew Roy Hackett, Jr.
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A method and apparatus is presented. A portion is cut from a thermoplastic sheet of a first thermoplastic material based on a three dimensional model. The portion is secured to a mold. The portion and the mold are heated under vacuum to form a structure. The structure may take the form of a protective covering. In some illustrative examples, the mold may be formed of a second thermoplastic material based on the three dimensional model using additive manufacturing.
Claims5
A method of manufacturing a protective removable element of an aircraft part comprising:
- cutting a portion from a thermoplastic sheet of a first thermoplastic material based on a three dimensional model, wherein the portion approximates at least part of a geometric net of the three dimensional model;
- securing the portion to a mold;
- and
- heating the portion and the mold under vacuum to form the protective removable element.
1 more element
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.