shaping the future of metrology - Brown & Sharpe

Marietta, Georgia
The World’s Largest Planes
Get A Lift From
Coordinate Metrology
When people in the aerospace
industry think big, they think
Lockheed Martin. Lockheed Martin
Aeronautical Systems, Marietta, Georgia,
an operating unit of Lockheed Martin
Corporation, designs and builds some of
the largest and most technically advanced
aircraft in the world. Since moving into
the Marietta facility (officially called Air
Force Plant 6) in 1951, the company has
produced more than 3,000 aircraft. Over
the intervening years, Lockheed Martin
has become the recognized leader in
large aircraft technology for such programs
as the C-130 Hercules, C-141 Star-
Lifter, and C-5 Galaxy cargo aircraft, and
for maritime patrol and surveillance aircraft
such as the P-3 Orion.
Currently in production is a completely
new version of the venerable C-
130, the C-130J. The J, when compared
with earlier models, provides 40 percent
greater range, 40 percent higher cruising
ceiling, 21 percent increase in maximum
speed, 50 percent decrease in time-toclimb,
and a 41 percent decrease in maximum
take-off distance.
The company’s most recent success is
the Air Force’s new F-22 Raptor air dominance
fighter, which had its initial flight
testing in September, 1997.This advanced
fighter incorporates fourth generation
stealth technology, integrated avionics
and sensors, thrust vectoring, and high
4 mfg. Shaping the Future of Metrology
reliability and maintainability in a highly
maneuverable aircraft.
As one of the world’s premiere aerospace
manufacturers, Lockheed Martin
Aeronautical Systems has developed technological
expertise in many areas, including
advanced materials research and
applications, avionics development
and integration, and ad-
vanced aircraft design.The
company is considered a
leader in the practical application
of robotics,
computer-aided design
and manufacturing techniques,
and integrated
product development for the
construction of versatile, reliable
aircraft. It is in the manufacturing area
that the company uses coordinate
metrology as a means of quality and
process control.
Making Data
More Useful
In one inspection operation, two
Brown & Sharpe horizontal arm measuring
machines check the dimensions of
large assembly tooling for the F-22 and
C-130 programs. Recently, Aeronautical
Systems upgraded its inspection software
from MicroMeasure ® III to PC-DMIS for
WINDOWS .
“Most…parts
inspected here are
at least 120" long
and we’ve had some
over 600" long.”
The horizontal arm measuring machines
are large capacity, highly accurate
measuring systems designed to handle
complex workpieces. At Aeronautical Systems,
the machines are used to inspect a
variety of component sizes, from 4"
square to 36" wide by 8' long.
According to Mike Mason,
Senior Operations Analyst, the
company had been spending
a significant amount
of time generating inspection
reports and was
looking for a way to
speed up the process. “We
received new requirements
concerning the method of reporting
out-of-tolerance conditions
on the F-22 tooling,” he said. “We
needed to give our Ft.Worth division the
actual dimensions in aircraft coordinates
and also had to give them the actual
anomalies relative to CATIA ® surfaces.”
Aeronautical Systems uses the CATIA
CAD/CAM software program from Dassault
Systèmes to construct tooling models.
Using the previous inspection software
system, X,Y, Z data had to be
manually entered into the CATIA program
and compared to the CATIA surfaces
after the workpiece was measured.
The system then had to generate tabular
reports as well as graphics. “Depending
on the complexity of the part, this post-
The reputable C-130 Hercules cargo aircraft
serves with distinction in air forces
around the world. Over the years, it has
undergone design changes to make it
one of the most dependable airlifters
ever built. A recently upgraded version,
the C-130J flies further, faster, and higher
than its predecessors.
mfg. The Brown & Sharpe Publication of Precision Manufacturing
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