Jeffrey D Back

US Patent:

6902360, Jun 7, 2005

Filed:

Feb 8, 2002

Appl. No.:

10/071596

Inventors:

Roy Dean Meece - New Trenton IN, US
Jeffrey Kevin Back - Loveland OH, US
Roger John Tuchfarber - Deer Park OH, US
Gerald Roger Geverdt - Cincinnati OH, US
Michael Jay Brunck - Cincinnati OH, US

Assignee:

General Electric Company - Schenectady NY

International Classification:

B23C001/00

US Classification:

409132, 409 65, 409191, 409143, 409200, 269 7

Abstract:

A hole of a hole size is cut in a composite material workpiece by selecting a milling cutter having an effective cutter size less than the hole size, mounting the composite material workpiece in operable relation to the milling cutter, rotating the milling cutter about an axis of rotation, and advancing the milling cutter longitudinally into the composite material workpiece parallel to the axis of rotation at a rate of longitudinal advance, while laterally moving the milling cutter perpendicular to the axis of rotation to interpolate the hole. The rate of longitudinal advance is controlled such that the hole remains substantially a flat-bottomed hole as it is cut. The composite material workpiece is desirably affixed to a backing fixture with an adhesive material during the cutting of the hole.