Machine for continuously fabricating by tridimensional knitting section elements of composite material

An automatic machine for continuously fabricating by a tridimensional knitting, section elements of a composite material which are to be impregnated with a hardenable resin, comprising rods defining the outer shape of the desired section element and extending in a longitudinal direction of the section element, and a group of at least two knitting heads for depositing threads around said rods in two planes which are orthogonal to each other and perpendicular to said rods, said rods being thin hollow rods, and the machine further comprising a die formed by a plate for maintaining said hollow rods in a fixed manner parallel to one another in a configuration corresponding to the cross-sectional shape of the desired section element, means for feeding continuous longitudinal threads of the section element taut through said hollow rods, means for holding said threads taut, stop means for retaining in the same configuration one end of said threads issuing from the rods, said group of knitting heads being arranged in such manner as to deposit layers of continuous threads in two directions transverse to the direction of said rods in the vicinity of the ends of said rods, means for guiding the threads issuing from said rods in a continuous manner as said layers of threads are deposited by said knitting heads, means for packing and advancing the knitted section element thus obtained, a station for impregnating the section element with a resin, means for hardening said resin impregnating the section element, and severing means disposed in a path of the section element at any point of the section element for cutting the element.