Adaptautomation

Aerospace Industry

Whether its rocket propulsion simulation or aircraft fastener assembly and coating, ADAPT Automation leads the way in improving assembly and testing protocol in the Aerospace industry.

Advancement in the aerospace Industry has been one of ADAPT Automations goal since it’s forming in 1971. From rocket propulsion simulation to advanced assembly technology in the fastener industry, ADAPT Automation has perfected the fastener assembly and crimping technology, with many manufacturing machines still producing quality fasteners after close to thirty years in the field. Working with the likes of Arrowhead Products, Alcon, Honeywell, Raytheon, and many others, ADAPT Automation strives to keep on the leading edge of technology to help advance Americas stronghold in the aviation and aerospace industries. 

Working with the Department of Defense, the Navy, Arrowhead Products, and Ratheon, ADAPT Automation devised a method of simulating the pressures generated by a cruise missile being deployed thirty feet underwater to test the protective covers inside the same missile launch tube. What started out as just a test machine to verify product design, ended up being used as a production test bed for all products being produced. Design factors included spike pressures of up to xx,xxx psi with static pressures mimicking the thirty feet underwater. Containing the pressure generated by spiking pressure, ADAPT Automation designed a pressure vessel that eliminated all air bubbles.

The test machine took the place of a single test procedure that involved deployment of a submarine off the coast of San Diego, equipped with cameras to record the test. Then the submarine would return to port and the covers not used would be removed and evaluated, costing the government millions of dollars for this test. Instead, for a fraction of the cost, the machine was able to not only test and view the simulation, but also generated a spreadsheet of all parameters of the test, allowing for minute changes in the parameters. This machine assured the Navy and the Department of Defense that all covers being produced were made in accordance to their specification to totally remove the accidental leakage of the covers that would allow sea water to infiltrate the cruise missile tube, rendering them useless in their operation for accuracy and dependability.

In the aeronautical industry, airplane exterior aluminum sheeting is riveted to the aluminum bulkheads all along the wings and fuselage. The assembly is quite tedious in that each rivet requires a special sealant applied that is air actuated. Each rivet gets this adhesive applied manually, taking a lot of time. Working with xxx, ADAPT Automation was able to build a machine that automatically applies the sealant and a protective solution over the top that keeps the air from affecting the curing of the sealant. When inserted into the aluminum skin, bulkheads, and crimped, the protective coating breaks up, allowing air to cure the adhesive. The machine would automatically feed, coat, and seal each rivet at a rate of xxx ppm. This save hours of tedious, and time consuming coating that adds time and money to each rivet being used. We all know how many rivets are used in one airplane. Well, not exactly, but there are a bunch.

These same rivets are assembled on ADAPT Automation assembly machines that automatically feed all of the components, assembles them together, and crimps the nuts to keep them from coming apart during shipping. The nuts are designed to break away once the rivet has been actuated. These machines produce rivet assemblies at a rate of xxx ppm. All product is inspected on the machine and only those that meet the inspection criteria are allowed to be offloaded into the shipping containers. All rejects are removed, not allowing them to infiltrate the good rivets.

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Aerospace industry adapt automation

AEROSPACE ASSEMBLY SOLUTIONS

  • Commercial Aircraft Landing Gear Assembly
  • Commercial Aircraft Strut Processing Equipment
  • Arc, Tig and Laser Welding of Aerospace and Commercial Components
  • Aerospace Bridge Wire Welding 
  • Military and Commercial Connector Assembly
  • Aerospace Connector Machining
  • Military Detonator / Igniter Assembly
  • Aerospace Fasteners Assembly
  • Gravimetric Filling Equipment
  • Induction Annealing Aerospace Contacts
  • Insert Contacts / Components prior to Injection Molding 
  • Ink Jet Marking Integration
  • Laser Marking Integration
  • Electrical, Fluid, Flow, Hydraulic and Pressure Testing
  • Vision Inspection Integration
  • Volumetric Filling Equipment

ADAPT’S ENGINEERING CAPABILITIES

  • Proof of Principle / Prototyping
  • Compact Table-Top Design
  • Semi-Automated Systems
  • Fully-Automated Systems
  • Off-The-Shelf Systems Integration
  • Rotary and Linear CAM Driven Indexer Systems
  • Robotic Integration
  • High Speed Walking Beam Part Transfer Integration
  • Palletized Conveyor Systems
  • Precision Servo Motion Technology
  • Continuous Motion Systems
  • Final Packaging Robotics and Packaging