The Audio Control Panel (ACP) is the main interface in a modern passenger airplane for managing communication in the cockpit. With a total of fifteen knobs, communication channels can be individually activated and adjusted in volume. These knobs are very reliable and rarely fail during operation.

To perform maintenance on the ACP these knobs must be extracted to be able to remove the front panel. During removal, which is currently carried out using simple technical aids, an average of 2 to 3 of the transparent plastic knobs break at the top, leading to an annual consumption of 1,000 to 1,500 knobs and consequently to significantly high spare part costs. Anecdotal evidence from maintenance workers suggests that most of these failures occur during maintenance and that no prior damage to the knobs can be recognized.

The objective of this thesis is to develop an extraction tool to minimize knob damage and associated costs. The hypothesis is that current extraction methods introduce excessive bending moments, causing breakage. This work will follow the structured development process outlined in VDI 2221. A proof-of-concept and subsequent prototype tool will be developed to enable perpendicular, uniform knob extraction. Additionally, an observational study in the maintenance workshop of an airline will support data collection, and material analysis will be performed on broken knobs to uncover underlying failure mechanisms.