Development of Temporary Blind Auto Fasteners

This paper traces the development of a temporary blind fastener in the aircraft industry. These are used with automated drilling machines as part of an integrated assembly process where one-way assembly is inappropriate. Traditional blind temporary fasteners have a high protrusion (stand-off) on the side they are installed from, effectively preventing automated drilling. No suitable fastener was available on the market and existing suppliers were uninterested in development at the time. A set of requirements were created out of the need to improve efficiency of A380 wing assembly. However focus changed as the A350XWB programme demanded such a fastener. Testing, development and Stress approval are described leading to full deployment. Finally the paper looks at the additional factors which are required to successfully introduce a new standard of temporary fastening process.