A fabric deformation methodology for the automation of fiber reinforced polymer composite manufacturing

Abstract

This thesis presents a new fabric deformation method, referred to as shifting, for the layup of noncrimp fabric (NCF) plies with the intent of creating an automated layup solution. The mathematical model for the new method has been presented to describe the method and provide the ground work for future path planning of an automation solution. Testing has been completed to show that shifting can produce layups with 2 dimensional geometry without generating out-of-plane distortion. Fatigue tensile testing was conducted in order to understand the effect of the shifting method on the

A methodology for the automation of dry fabric layup for fiber reinforced polymer composite manufacturing

“…To compare these results to previous results gathered from Experiment #1 of Magnussen [17], the methodology used in this experiment attempts to replicate the methodology used that paper. The The coupons in this experiment were developed to be directly compared to the coupons developed and tested by Magnussen.…”

Industrial looks at ways of manufacturing defects of fiber reinforced polymer composites.

“…In-plane waviness caused by the shifting machine was the key point in this study. The shifting machine is a set up for holding the fabric along one of the fiber directions and "sliding" the free end parallel to the hold in order to change the direction of the fiber [38]. This can be thought of as similar to deforming a rectangle into a parallelogram.…”

“…A better practical application for process control would be to change the shift angle distribution of the unidirectional fabric to the desired alignment prior to lay-up [44]. A guide for automatic deposition of fabric into a curved path using an incremental shift of a portion of fabric in the weft direction was developed by Magnussen [38]. Doing so will require minimal or no smoothing work on the laid fabric.…”

“…The process of shifting mechanism to the fabric can be better understood in the figure 01. The illustration of shifting mechanism on the fabric [38] Shifting of fabric causes in-plane waviness and in order to understand the effect of waviness of plies, characterization of waviness is essential.…”

“…Mode (c) is also undesirable because it is similar to crack propagation in brittle materials. The optimum strength is realized in Mode (a), as the fiber strengths are fully utilized [38].…”