Process and equipment for manufacture of advanced composite structures
AssigneeHypercar, Inc.
InventorDavid Taggart
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A process for continuous, tailored lamination of aligned composite materials in such a way that either pre-formed or pre-consolidated sheets are made available for subsequent infusion molding or stamping processes, the process comprising the steps of: material placement, consolidation/stabilization, cut and kit, fabrication, and final trim. A tailored blank machine is also described. The blank machine includes a series of material placement heads arranged in a linear or serial fashion along a single moving placement table, wherein each head lays down a single angle of the prescribed stacking sequence as the conveyer passes under the head at a constant speed wherein the angle is proportional to head traverse rate divided by conveyer speed.
Claims8
1 A method for making a composite part comprising the step of:
- dispensing and associating a first group of fibers with a conveyor belt at a first angle;
- dispensing and associating a second group of fibers with the conveyor belt at a second angle;
- wherein the first angle is different than the second angle.
2 The method according to step 1, wherein the conveyor belt moves in a 1st direction and is constantly in motion.
3 The method according to step 1, wherein the first group of fibers are dispensed intermittently.
4 The method according to step 1, wherein the second group of fibers are dispensed intermittently.
5 The method according to step 1, wherein the first group of fibers are dispensed intermittently within the composite part.
6 The method according to step 1, wherein the second group of fibers are dispensed intermittently within the composite part.
7 The method according to step 1, wherein the first group of fibers can be oriented to an angle different than the first angle.
8 The method according to step 2, wherein the first group of fibers is dispensed with a head that can move in a direction different than the first direction.