Honeycomb core with hierarchical cellular structure
AssigneeEconcore N.V.
InventorJochen Pflug
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A hierarchical sandwich core in the form of a honeycomb, i.e. having repetitive and periodic lattice materials. The sandwich core can be made up of a macroscopic honeycomb structure with sandwich cell walls having a mesoscopic cellular core. The longitudinal axis of cells of the mesoscopic honeycomb cell can be perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the cells of the macroscopic honeycomb structure. Alternatively, if a foam core is used having mesoscopic cells the shape of the mesoscopic cells can be made during the foaming process so that they are elongate in a direction perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the cells of the macroscopic honeycomb structure.
Claims18
An article comprising:
- a hierarchical honeycomb structure with macroscopic honeycomb cells with cell walls made of sandwich panel material which comprises a mesoscopic cellular core,
- the macroscopic honeycomb cells having a hexagonal or rectangular geometry,
- the mesoscopic cellular core being made of mesoscopic hexagonal honeycomb cells, a longitudinal axis of the mesoscopic honeycomb cells being perpendicular to a longitudinal axis of the macroscopic honeycomb cells,
- wherein cell walls of the mesoscopic cellular core are constructed from a foil or foils, and
- wherein the mesoscopic cellular core has two layers of a cover sheet along a top surface and a bottom surface of the mesoscopic cellular core to create the sandwich cell walls.
A hierarchical sandwich core with a macroscopic honeycomb cell structure with hexagonal or rectangular cells and cell walls made from sandwich panels comprising:
- strips of sandwich panel material with skins on both sides of a core having a mesoscopic cell structure with hexagonal cells, the strips having first slits which are folded open to form a polygonal chain of elements being convex polyhedra with five or six quadrilateral faces linked by remaining parts of the sandwich panel material at the first slits to form hinges, the strips having second slits so that only a part of the hinges are kept intact, hinges of a first strip being slotted into hinges of a second strip to form the hierarchical sandwich core,
- wherein cell walls of the mesoscopic cell structure are constructed from a foil or foils, and
- wherein a longitudinal axis of mesoscopic honeycomb cells forming the mesoscopic cell structure are perpendicular to a longitudinal axis of the macroscopic honeycomb cell structure.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.