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US 2022/0025784 A1Published application
Fixture for supporting a plurality of gas turbine engine components to be imaged
AssigneeROLLS-ROYCE plc
InventorYe REN
Life of this patent
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Abstract
There is described a fixture for supporting a plurality of gas turbine engine blades that are to be imaged. The mobile fixture comprises a plurality of interconnected mounts arranged to lie within a common plane, wherein each mount comprises at least one support surface for holding a respective blade. Support surfaces of respective mounts are oriented such that their respective normal vectors have the same angle with respect to the common plane.
Claims18
A fixture for supporting a plurality of gas turbine engine blades that are to be imaged, the fixture comprising:
- a plurality of interconnected mounts arranged to lie within a common plane;
- wherein:
- each mount comprises at least one support surface for supporting a respective blade;
- and
- support surfaces of respective mounts are uniformly shaped and oriented such that their respective normal vectors have the same angle with respect to the common plane;
- wherein
- each mount comprises:
- a first support structure comprising a base portion and two parallel side walls extending from a first support surface of the base portion;
- wherein a space is defined between the two side walls for receiving a root portion of the respective blade;
- and
- a second support structure comprising a cuboidal block having a second support surface that is parallel to the common plane.
8 more elements
A kit for supporting a plurality of gas turbine engine blades in two different facing orientations for imaging, the kit comprising:
- a first fixture comprising:
- a plurality of interconnected mounts arranged to lie within a common plane;
- wherein:
- each mount comprises at least one support surface for supporting a respective blade;
- and
- support surfaces of respective mounts are uniformly shaped and oriented such that their respective normal vectors have the same angle with respect to the common plane;
- wherein
- each mount comprises:
- a first support structure comprising a base portion and two parallel side walls extending from a first support surface of the base portion;
- wherein a space is defined between the two side walls for receiving a root portion of the respective blade;
- and
- a second support structure comprising a cuboidal block having a second support surface that is parallel to the common plane;
- and
- a third support structure in the form of a block having a third support surface for supporting an aerofoil section of the respective blade;
- wherein the third support surface is a concave support surface for abutting a convex surface of the aerofoil section for supporting the blade in a first facing orientation at which concave sides of the blades face away from the mounts;
- and
- a second fixture comprising:
- a plurality of interconnected mounts arranged to lie within a common plane;
- wherein:
- each mount comprises at least one support surface for supporting a respective blade;
- and
- support surfaces of respective mounts are uniformly shaped and oriented such that their respective normal vectors have the same angle with respect to the common plane;
- wherein
- each mount comprises:
- a first support structure comprising a base portion and two parallel side walls extending from a first support surface of the base portion;
- wherein a space is defined between the two side walls for receiving a root portion of the respective blade;
- and
- a second support structure comprising a cuboidal block having a second support surface that is parallel to the common plane;
- and
- a third support structure in the form of a block having a third support surface for supporting an aerofoil section of the respective blade;
- wherein the third support surface is a convex support surface for abutting a concave surface of the aerofoil section for supporting the blade in a second facing orientation at which convex sides of the blades face away from the mounts.
28 more elements
A method of imaging a plurality of gas turbine engine blades, comprising:
- providing a fixture comprising:
- a plurality of interconnected mounts arranged to lie within a common plane;
- wherein:
- each mount comprises at least one support surface for supporting a respective blade;
- and
- support surfaces of respective mounts are uniformly shaped and oriented such that their respective normal vectors have the same angle with respect to the common plane;
- wherein
- each mount comprises:
- a first support structure comprising a base portion and two parallel side walls extending from a first support surface of the base portion;
- wherein a space is defined between the two side walls for receiving a root portion of the respective blade;
- and
- a second support structure comprising a cuboidal block having a second support surface that is parallel to the common plane;
- and
- providing a first batch of plural gas turbine engine blades to be imaged;
- providing a digital camera for imaging the batch of blades;
- placing the fixture on a platform, such that the support surfaces of the fixture face the camera;
- placing respective blades of the first batch on the at least one support surface of respective mounts of the fixture, such that the blades have a first common facing orientation with respect to the camera;
- and
- using the digital camera to capture an image of the blades in the first common facing orientation.
16 more elements
A method of imaging a plurality of gas turbine engine blades, comprising providing a kit comprising:
- a first fixture comprising:
- a plurality of interconnected mounts arranged to lie within a common plane;
- wherein:
- each mount comprises at least one support surface for supporting a respective blade;
- and
- support surfaces of respective mounts are uniformly shaped and oriented such that their respective normal vectors have the same angle with respect to the common plane;
- wherein
- each mount comprises:
- a first support structure comprising a base portion and two parallel side walls extending from a first support surface of the base portion;
- wherein a space is defined between the two side walls for receiving a root portion of the respective blade;
- and
- a second support structure comprising a cuboidal block having a second support surface that is parallel to the common plane;
- and
- a third support structure in the form of a block having a third support surface for supporting an aerofoil section of the respective blade;
- wherein the third support surface is a concave support surface for abutting a convex surface of the aerofoil section for supporting the blade in a first facing orientation at which concave sides of the blades face away from the mounts;
- and
- a second fixture comprising:
- a plurality of interconnected mounts arranged to lie within a common plane;
- wherein:
- each mount comprises at least one support surface for supporting a respective blade;
- and
- support surfaces of respective mounts are uniformly shaped and oriented such that their respective normal vectors have the same angle with respect to the common plane;
- wherein
- each mount comprises:
- a first support structure comprising a base portion and two parallel side walls extending from a first support surface of the base portion;
- wherein a space is defined between the two side walls for receiving a root portion of the respective blade;
- and
- a second support structure comprising a cuboidal block having a second support surface that is parallel to the common plane;
- and
- a third support structure in the form of a block having a third support surface for supporting an aerofoil section of the respective blade;
- wherein the third support surface is a convex support surface for abutting a concave surface of the aerofoil section for supporting the blade in a second facing orientation at which convex sides of the blades face away from the mounts;
- providing a first batch of plural gas turbine engine blades to be imaged;
- providing a digital camera for imaging the batch of blades;
- placing a first one of the pair of fixtures on a platform, such that the support surfaces of the fixture in question face the camera;
- placing respective blades of the first batch on the at least one support surface of respective mounts of the fixture in question, such that the blades have a first common facing orientation with respect to the camera;
- using the digital camera to capture an image of the blades in the first common facing orientation;
- coupling the pair of fixtures such that the blades are retained in a space between aligned mounts of the pair of fixtures;
- flipping the coupled assembly and placing the second one of the pair of fixtures on the platform such that the support surfaces of the fixture in question face the camera;
- decoupling the pair of fixtures to reveal the blades in a second common facing orientation with respect to the camera;
- and
- using the digital camera to capture an image of the blades in the second common facing orientation.
38 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.