Avionic Latch Optimization and Production using Additive Manufacturing 2022-01-0048

Additive Manufacturing (AM) provides significant opportunities in aerospace applications, especially for low-volume, highly customizable parts. Besides the flexibility of part design, the approach offers significant potential of reducing product manufacturing complexity and improving in-service performance. This paper discusses an example which is in serial production at Howmet Fastening Systems. The part is a latch used in a hold-down assembly for avionics. The primary driver for the initiative was the need for increased torsional strength within the geometric constraints of the baseline design. Finite Element Analysis was used to redesign one load limiting component to improve overall torsional capability. Design for AM (DFAM) was used to successfully produce the parts without any defects with limited post-processing. Comprehensive testing included component tensile, fatigue, and microstructure characterization along with assembled part testing. The test results presented will show the feasibility of the AM technique, including 4X improvement in torsional strength and over 90% improvement in turn-around time.