Airbus Electrical Vibration Drilling

Chips that occur during this process are extracted, but due to their length, they often become stuck in the drill bit flutes – causing an accumulation of debris. This results in high rates of wear and tear on tools, along with material damage and inconsistent hole diameters.

To prevent these problems and optimise the automated manufacturing process, airbus has introduced an electrical vibration spindle in an industrial robot for the first time. Using this new technology, holes are drilled automatically, with a superposed oscillation pattern moving the drill bit in and out of the material several times per tool rotation. The vibration causes the chip to fracture into short pieces, which can then be extracted without residue. Fully-automated articulated robot system with a magnetically-levitated drill spindle should be producing rivet holes in wing flaps at the Bremen site for A330s and A350 XWBs.