Importance

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Abstract

An apparatus for thermoplastic welding together by fusion bonding an assembly of composite parts, each having a resin-rich thermoplastic surface layer, along bond lines containing a conductive susceptor includes a weld skate that can be moved along guiding and supporting tooling over the bond line to effect the weld. The skate has an induction work coil and two pressure pads, one on each side of the coil in its direction of motion in operation, for applying pressure to the parts while said induction work coil induces eddy currents in the susceptor to heat the susceptor by resistive heating and melt the thermoplastic surface layers. The skate has bearings projecting from its side into cam grooves machined into the sides of the tooling for guiding and supporting the skate during welding by the induction work coil. The tooling, which supports the parts during welding as well as guiding the skate, includes several sets of spaced-apart parallel plates forming between them a slot dimensioned to receive the skate while the skate is supported and guided by engagement of the projecting bearings into the cam grooves, and the forces exerted by the skate pressure pads on the parts are reacted through the tooling by the projecting bearings in the tooling cam grooves. A floor assembly jig includes a box frame having end and intermediate support structures for supporting the tooling parallel to the plane of the box frame. The skate is coupled to a motive means having a servomotor and a loop of chain trained around two spaced sprockets for moving the skate at a controlled speed along the tooling over the susceptors in the bond line while the inductive work coil generates eddy currents in the susceptor to heat the thermoplastic in the bond line, and the pressure pads press the parts together to facilitate fusion bonding of the faying thermoplastic surface layers on the parts.

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First Claim