Predicting and preventing in-plane shear induced fiber angle deviations during automated handling of non-crimp fabrics
C.M. de Zeeuw (TU Delft - Delft Aerospace Structures and Materials Laboratory)
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Abstract
Over the years the use of composites as an aircraft structural material has significantly increased. Currently, the industry still relies largely onmanually manufactured components. Automated manufacturing can however bring advantages such as reduced manufacturing costs and amore consistent and higher quality end product. An attractive automated option for the handling of reinforcements is the pick and place process, which involves the picking up, moving and placing down of objects. The pick and place process makes it possible to place layers of reinforcement as a whole and brings opportunities for the handling ofmultiple layers and/or large layers of reinforcement. Literature shows countless different strategies to execute a pick-and-place operation, with research typically focusing on developing more highly specialized concepts. This generally involves demonstrating the feasibility of the concept but does not include reporting on the accuracy. Not taking the accuracy of the pick-and-place process and the quality of the reinforcement during handling into account might result in inconsistent or substandard final products.