Positioning variation modeling for aircraft panels assembly based on elastic deformation theory

Dimensional variation in aircraft panel assembly is one of the most critical issues that affect the aerodynamic performance of aircraft, due to elastic deformation of parts during the positioning and clamping process. This article proposes an assembly deformation prediction model and a variation propagation model to predict the assembly variation of aircraft panels, and it derives consecutive three-dimensional deformation expressions which explicitly describe the nonlinear behavior of physical interaction occurring in compliant components assembly. An assembly deformation prediction model is derived from equations of statics of elastic beam to calculate the elastic deformation of panel component resulted from positioning error and clamping force. A variation propagation model is used to describe the relationship between local variations and overall assembly variations. Assembly variations of aircraft panels due to positioning error are obtained by solving differential equations of statics and operating spatial transformations of the coordinate. The calculated results show a good prediction of variation in the experiment. The proposed method provides a better understanding of the panel assembly process and creates an analytical foundation for further work on variation control and tolerance optimization.