Automated Blade Repair System

High pressure compressor blades are subject to damage due to debris strikes and warping due to the elevated pressures and temperatures within the engine. Blade repair is currently performed manually using grinding to blend out the damaged regions. Reliance on manual grinding operations requires highly skilled operators, fails to reach the optimal blade shape, lacks repeatability, and is extremely time consuming and expensive. Creare proposes to develop an Automated Blade Repair System (ABRS) incorporating automated defect detection and repair of different types of defects with a high degree of repeatability. Our system integrates several novel technologies to provide a solution that is extremely well suited for use in the military and commercial depot environment.