Colm McKeown

Papers

Total Citations

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About

Colm McKeown is a specialist in aerospace manufacturing automation, with a particular focus on robotic assembly systems for aircraft structural components. His research, conducted in collaboration with industry partners including Bombardier Aerospace and The University of Nottingham, has centered on advancing flexible automated riveting technologies for aircraft fuselage skin panel assembly — a technically demanding domain requiring precision at scale. McKeown's most significant contributions involve the design and development of multi-robot riveting systems equipped with compact, innovative end-effectors capable of performing integrated drilling, countersinking, sealing, and riveting operations in a single automated workflow. His 2001 and 2003 papers, each garnering 7 citations, established foundational work in deploying Tricept robots for flexible fuselage assembly, demonstrating how conventional industrial robots could be adapted for high-tolerance aerospace manufacturing. His 2004 work further extended this research by incorporating vision-based in-process inspection systems, addressing quality assurance challenges inherent in automated riveting. While McKeown's citation footprint is modest, his research represents meaningful applied engineering contributions at the intersection of robotics, aerospace manufacturing, and industrial automation — areas of enduring relevance as the aerospace industry continues pursuing greater production efficiency and structural reliability.