AUTOMATED COMBUSTOR HOLE DRILLING AND INSPECTION SYSTEM
Frank R. Moskal · 1991
Combustor manufacturing for gas turbine engine applications requires the drilling and inspection of numerous cooling holes in each combustor component. Garrett Engine Division sought to improve the process of drilling and inspection through an integrated system. The Automated Combustor Hole Drilling and Inspection System is a U.S. Air Force sponsored Industrial Modernization Incentives Program (IMIP) project. This project provides an automated manufacturing system to economically produce and perform in-process inspection of cooling holes and other machined features. The system combines laser drilling, machine vision inspection, and in-process adaptive control for combustor production. The application of this technology could lead to significant cost savings on other Garrett Engine Division sheet metal components in addition to combustors. The major benefits of the system are that it is extremely flexible, adaptable, and provides process improvements over previous methods. Similar benefits are possible for other aerospace and industrial concerns involved with job shop or batch manufacturing of sheet metal parts.