CompositesWorld
Issue link: https://cw.epubxp.com/i/517026
JUNE 2015 42 CompositesWorld FEATURE / REINFORCED THERMOPLASTICS COMBINED LOADING SHEAR FIXTURE NO. WTF-NR-(CLS) V-NOTCHED RAIL SHEAR FIXTURE NO. WTF-NR ASTM D 7078 DR. DANIEL ADAMS, VICE-PRESIDENT STANDS BEHIND THE FIXTURES HE DEVELOPED… AND EVERY FIXTURE WE SELL. Expert consultation with Dr. Don and Dr. Dan • Over 40 fixtures in stock, ready to be shipped. • Email or call today to discuss your fixture and custom design needs. 2960 E. Millcreek Canyon Road Salt Lake City, UT 84109 Phone (801) 484.5055 Fax (801) 484.6008 email: wtf@wyomingtestfixtures.com www.wyomingtestfixtures.com Dr. Donald F. Adams President 50 years of Composite Testing Experience W T F yoming est ixtures INC. ANOTHER DR. ADAMS HAS JOINED US. TWO EXPERTS ARE BETTER THAN ONE Te software that controls head and fber-placement functions was devel- oped by Coriolis engineers. CADFiber and CATFiber are machine-independent and available for any AFP or ATL machine through Coriolis' subsidiary software company. CADFiber can be used to design parts for fber placement, while CATFiber can program automated fber placement cells. Both software packages directly interface with CATIA/DELMIA from Dassault Systèmes (Velizy-Villacoublay, France) or with SiemensSNX. Customers can try out software and actual machines, and critique the feasibility of projects, at Coriolis' technical center, where two robots and a team of 12 engineers are available for R&D; collaboration. Many important aerospace programs are reportedly employing Coriolis equip- ment for automated production. Tese include several machines at Airbus, with four machines in Stade, Germany, and one at Nantes, France, all working on A350 XWB parts. Two are located at Stelia Aero- space (Mérignac, Cedex, France, created by the merger of Aerolia and Sogerma) producing A350 XWB doors. Dassault Aviation (Saint-Cloud Cedex, France) has a machine at its Biarritz, France, facility for Falcon 5X composite parts, while Bombar- dier Inc. (Montréal, QC, Canada) is using two machines for production of CSeries aft fuselage parts and rear pressure bulk- heads. Aeroengine maker Safran SA (Paris, France) is using a Coriolis machine for automated layup of the nacelle inner fxed structure on certain engine models. In addition to these signs of success, Hamlyn drives home the point of thermo- plastic part quality. A recent SAMPE Europe presentation, which Hamlyn co-authored with several Airbus engineers, compared thermoset carbon composite parts, consol- idated out of autoclave, with carbon/ PEEK parts produced robotically, using laser heating and partially consolidated on-the-fy. Te thermoplastic parts were then edge-bagged and oven-cured for an hour to achieve fnal consolidation. Test results from the thermoset parts and the robotically produced PEEK parts showed no diferences in part quality and perfor- mance. In addition, the study showed that thermoplastic composites can be readily controller within individual, shaped plastic conduits to the head, at very low tension. "We have found that the tubes, together with lower tension on each tow, is better, as it allows faster placement speeds and reduces the chance for bridging or fber deforma- tion, as well as breakage," he points out. At approximately 50 kg, a small Coriolis head is the most compact and lightest on the market, claims the company — small enough for female tool layup, and light enough to place fber on honeycomb core without crush. Yet, says Hamlyn, the head can still provide a compaction force of 10 N/mm per band width, an industry standard at Boeing and Airbus. Te company has developed a patented method for placing fbers on sharp corners or radii at 45°, an advantage for automating aircraft wing spar layup, for example. "We actually have 20 patents that cover various machine elements," he adds.