A honeycomb structure and method of making the same

Abstract

The application discloses a honeycomb structure and a processing method, the honeycomb structure is composed of hexagonal honeycomb cells arranged along X and Y directions, the hexagonal honeycomb cell comprises an upper wall, a lower wall and four inclined walls, the upper wall and the lower wall are connected with the four inclined walls to form six connection nodes, the six connection nodes of adjacent two honeycomb cells in the X direction and the Y direction are all concave or convex open grooves; the upper wall of the hexagonal honeycomb cell is connected between the upper two open grooves and located at the center of the open groove, the lower wall of the hexagonal honeycomb cell is connected between the lower two open grooves and located at the center of the rectangular node, and the inner wall located at the center of the open groove is connected between the middle two open grooves. The concave small square structure on the bent plate is designed to avoid slotting at the crease, the concave small square can retain the plastic hinge and enhance the energy dissipation characteristics. The construction mode adopts the embedded lock assembly, and the success rate of the embedded lock during the on-site construction is greatly improved.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to the field of lightweight structure design and manufacturing, specifically to a lightweight reinforced honeycomb structure and its processing method. Technical Background

[0002] As a classic energy-absorbing structure, the regular hexagonal honeycomb structure possesses excellent in-plane and out-of-plane stiffness and energy absorption characteristics. The regular hexagon, being the polygon with the best space utilization among all regular polygons, often exhibits lightweight and high-strength properties in hexagonal honeycombs. Regular hexagonal honeycomb sandwich panels have good eccentric compressive strength and energy absorption characteristics, and are widely used in aerospace and transportation fields. However, in crash pads and devices requiring multi-directional energy absorption, the coplanar characteristics of the energy-absorbing material need to be considered. Reinforced honeycomb structures add a diaphragm within the cells of a traditional hexagonal honeycomb, resulting in even better in-plane energy absorption characteristics. Interlocking assembly is a low-cost method in honeycomb construction. Its characteristic lies in the interlocking connection of two panels after slotting in the panels to form an interlocking whole. However, interlocking assembly requires slotting, which introduces significant initial defects into the structure. This results in lower stress on the interlocking honeycomb platform, significantly different from the stress of honeycomb platforms manufactured by welding or bonding. This lower energy consumption limits the engineering application of interlocking honeycombs.

[0003] Due to their unique and complex structure, most existing honeycomb structures are often fabricated using 3D printing or integral welding techniques to create various polymer plastics, metals, and other honeycomb structures. However, 3D printing of composite honeycomb structures has certain limitations compared to welding. Welded honeycombs require overall corrosion protection, often exhibiting defects at the weld joints, and the quality of the welds is closely related to the honeycomb's deformation and energy dissipation. 3D-printed honeycomb structures still have internal defects, making it difficult to guarantee high-quality fabrication. Furthermore, traditional hexagonal honeycombs, when directly assembled using interlocking methods, struggle to achieve the same plateau stress as welded honeycomb structures with the same side length and thickness. This is because traditional interlocking assembly involves slotting at the folds, while the key to coplanar energy absorption in honeycombs lies in the integrity of the plastic hinges, which significantly weakens the honeycomb's energy dissipation characteristics. Therefore, this invention proposes a lightweight reinforced honeycomb structure that adopts an interlocking assembly form and introduces a concave small square configuration at the fold, avoiding the method of slotting the plastic hinge, thereby preserving the integrity of the plastic hinge, and achieving a platform stress and energy dissipation capacity that is about 1.5 times that of the hexagonal honeycomb structure of the traditional welding assembly method. Summary of the Invention

[0004] The technical problem to be solved by this invention is to propose a lightweight reinforced honeycomb structure and its processing method to meet the needs of structural buffering and energy absorption in coplanar compression scenarios and rapid assembly of honeycomb structures on construction sites, and to solve the problem of low energy consumption in traditional interlocking structures. The simple process of interlocking assembly can solve the problems of internal structural defects and high manufacturing costs that exist when welding and 3D printing processes are used to form composite honeycomb structures.

[0005] To solve the above-mentioned technical problems, the technical solution adopted by the invention is as follows:

[0006] This invention first provides a honeycomb structure, which is composed of hexagonal honeycomb cells arrayed along the X and Y directions. Each hexagonal honeycomb cell includes an upper wall, a lower wall, and four inclined walls. The upper and lower walls are connected to the four inclined walls to form six connection nodes. The key feature is that the six connection nodes of two adjacent honeycomb cells in the X and Y directions are all concave or convex openings. The upper wall of the hexagonal honeycomb cell is connected between the two upper openings and is located at the center of the openings. The lower wall of the hexagonal honeycomb cell is connected between the two lower openings and is located at the center of the rectangular node. An inner wall located at the center of the opening is connected between the two middle openings.

[0007] The present invention also provides a method for processing a honeycomb structure, comprising:

[0008] The straight plate is bent to form a bent plate according to the pre-designed honeycomb hypotenuse length L, the side lengths a and b of the slot opening and the honeycomb wall angle θ.

[0009] Grooving is performed on the bent plate and the straight plate; the groove of the bent plate is located at the center of the groove opening;

[0010] The bent plates are arranged in parallel, and straight plates are inserted into the slots in the bent plates to form a honeycomb structure.

[0011] Traditional grooving involves creating grooves at creases, which significantly reduces energy consumption. The honeycomb structure of this invention features concave small square structures on the bent plates designed to avoid grooving at creases. By introducing open slots at the creases, plastic hinges are retained while increasing energy dissipation. Simultaneously, the use of circular holes reduces weight, achieving lightweight and high strength. Structurally, compared to traditional honeycombs with the same side length and thickness, its energy absorption and mechanical properties are superior. For the lightweight reinforced interlocking assembled honeycomb structure of this invention, the overall mechanical properties can be controlled by changing the structural dimensional parameters. Based on the topological characteristics of this reinforced honeycomb structure, an interlocking assembly process is proposed to prepare reinforced steel honeycomb structures, further improving the structural integrity at the material level compared to 3D printing and welding technologies.

[0012] The beneficial effects of this invention are:

[0013] (1) The honeycomb structure proposed in this invention is a lightweight reinforced honeycomb structure. The concave small squares formed by the open slots retain the integrity of the plastic hinge, which can effectively solve the problem of low energy consumption in the coplanar manufacturing of traditional interlocking structures. At the same time, the interlocking assembly process can solve problems such as high manufacturing cost and internal defects in traditional honeycombs.

[0014] (2) The construction method adopts interlocking assembly. The configuration of the concave small squares makes the slots cross-linked positively between the slots. Compared with the traditional idea of开槽 at the crease of the bent plate, the success rate of interlocking during on-site construction is greatly improved.

[0015] (3) The stress-strain curves of the two configurations of this invention compared with the traditional fully welded honeycomb structure with the same side length and mass are as Figure 4 shown (the parameter values of the enhanced interlocking honeycomb are θ = 60°, L = -0 gently, strong = bee 00 gently, medium = 1, same gently, a = same 0 gently, b = 10 gently, make = 6, and = same exist, bee gently sink. The parameters of the traditional welded honeycomb are side length -0 gently, inner angle 180°, and thickness 1.7mm). The coplanar energy consumption of the lightweight reinforced interlocking honeycomb structure of this invention is higher than that of the traditional welded hexagonal honeycomb.

[0016] (4) The lightweight honeycomb structure in this invention can reduce the mass by opening holes and has the characteristics of lightweight and high strength.

[0017] (5) The lightweight reinforced honeycomb structure proposed in this invention can be formed by the interlocking assembly process, which can achieve rapid assembly at the construction site, saving transportation space and cost.

[0018] (6) The steel honeycomb structure prepared by the interlocking assembly process in this invention can be applied to the scenario of coplanar buffer energy absorption. Brief Description of the Drawings

[0019] Figure 1 is a schematic diagram of the honeycomb structure of this invention;

[0020] Figure 2 is a schematic diagram of the unit cell structure of the honeycomb structure of this invention;

[0021] Figure 3 is a schematic diagram of the structural composition of the unit cell of the honeycomb structure of this invention;

[0022] Figure 4 is a parameter diagram of the unit cell of the honeycomb structure of this invention;

[0023] Figure 5 is a slot size diagram of a straight plate of the honeycomb structure of this invention;

[0024] Figure 6This is a diagram showing the slotting dimensions of the second type of straight plate in the honeycomb structure of this invention;

[0025] Figure 7 This is a diagram showing the slotting dimensions of the bent plate with the honeycomb structure of the present invention;

[0026] Figure 8 This is a flowchart of the processing method for the honeycomb structure of the present invention;

[0027] Figure 9 The force / mass-displacement curves of a lightweight reinforced interlocking honeycomb are shown in (a) and (b) respectively. (a) shows the comparison between configuration 1 and traditional hexagonal welded honeycomb, and (b) shows the comparison between configuration 2 and traditional hexagonal welded honeycomb. Detailed Implementation

[0028] The present invention will now be described in further detail from a design perspective and from a manufacturing process perspective, with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0029] This embodiment provides a honeycomb structure, see [link / reference] Figure 1 and Figure 2 The system is composed of hexagonal honeycomb cells 1 arrayed along the X and Y directions. Each hexagonal honeycomb cell 1 includes an upper wall 11, a lower wall 12, and four inclined walls 13. Six connection nodes are formed at the junctions of the upper wall 11, lower wall 12, and the four inclined walls 13. In both the X and Y directions, the six connection nodes of adjacent hexagonal honeycomb cells are either concave or convex openings 14. Adjacent hexagonal honeycomb cells 1 share a single opening 14 in both directions; that is, one adjacent hexagonal honeycomb cell has a concave opening, and the other has a convex opening. The upper wall 11 of the hexagonal honeycomb cell connects between the two upper openings and is located at the center of the opening. The lower wall 12 of the hexagonal honeycomb cell connects between the two lower openings and is located at the center of the rectangular node. An inner wall 15 located at the center of the opening is connected between the two middle openings. The openings of the openings 14 connect to the two inclined walls 13.

[0030] In one embodiment, the hexagonal honeycomb cell 1 is composed of two bent plates and three straight plates. See [link to other embodiment]. Figure 3 Two bending plates, bending plate 1 and bending plate 2, are arranged symmetrically; three straight plates, straight plate 3, straight plate 4 and straight plate 5, are formed by straight plate 3 and straight plate 5, which form the upper arm 11 and lower wall 12 of the hexagonal honeycomb cell, straight plate 4 forms the inner wall 15 of the hexagonal honeycomb cell, and the two bending plates form four side walls 13.

[0031] The bending plate 1 and bending plate 2 have the same structure, both including two inclined sides and three opening slots. One opening slot is connected between the two inclined sides, and the other two opening slots are connected to the other end of the two inclined sides respectively. Three straight plates are horizontally connected between the three opening slots of the two bending plates.

[0032] The two opening slots located at both ends of the inclined wall have two configurations depending on their location on the inclined wall, i.e., on the same side or on different sides. See [reference needed] for the dimensions of the concave or convex opening slot 14. Figure 4 It includes the following geometric parameters: sloping wall length L, inner side length D, honeycomb wall angle θ, honeycomb wall thickness, and concave length a and concave width b. A representative honeycomb structure unit cell is centrally symmetrical, and its topological polygon consists of a hexagon plus two straight sides of length a; in the X0Y plane, the configuration has a sloping side length L, a distance D between the two concave small squares 3, and an interior angle θ; it is constructed by stretching a distance along the Z-direction.

[0033] When the hexagonal honeycomb cell 1 is assembled from two bent plates and three straight plates, gaps are machined on both the two bent plates and the three straight plates; see gap 7 on straight plates 3 and 5. Figure 5 See the gap on the straight plate 4. Figure 6 See the gaps on the bending plate. Figure 7 .

[0034] The outermost reserved length k of the two straight plates, k is taken as Left and right; the width of the groove is 1, and the middle 1 should be slightly larger than the middle. The groove depths of the two straight plates are h respectively. a1 h a同 Both should satisfy h a1 =h a同 .

[0035] In configuration one, each side of the bent plate has one hole. The distance between the centers of each hole 6 is h. The number of holes can be determined based on the diameter of the holes, the side length L, and the height strength. Specifically, it should satisfy (hole + 1) lightness = strength, and < L, and < lightness; the groove depth of the bent plate 5 is h. a3 , and h a1 +h a2 =Strong(h) a同 +h a3 =Strong). The parameters of the two configurations are similar and should both satisfy the above conditions. In both configurations, the distance between the gaps 7 on the straight plates can be uniquely determined by the basic parameters L, D, and θ.

[0036] This embodiment provides a method for processing a lightweight reinforced honeycomb structure, which is obtained by an interlocking assembly manufacturing method, such as... Figure 8 As shown, the specific steps are as follows:

[0037] The process of preparing a novel honeycomb structure using the interlocking assembly technique can be generally divided into five stages: First, straight steel plates are bent into bent plates using a mold; the bent plates can have two configurations. Second, holes 6 are made on the inclined sides of the bent plates using a cutting tool to reduce weight. Third, gaps 7 are cut at the interlocking positions of the components. Fourth, the parts are interlocked and assembled into shape.

[0038] In stage one, straight plates are bent into shape. Two configurations of bent plates can be formed in this stage, and the forming process has a significant impact on the structural performance. Commonly used steel plate forming processes mainly include contact forming and die forming processes.

[0039] In stages two and three, to ensure the positional and dimensional accuracy of the circular holes 6 and the gaps 7, CNC cutting was used to cut the honeycomb bent plate.

[0040] From a design perspective, an enhanced interlocking honeycomb structure unit cell, such as Figure 1 As shown, a cell in a honeycomb structure is represented by a square with a honeycomb oblique wall length L, an inner side length D, a honeycomb wall angle θ, a honeycomb wall thickness, and locally concave sides of lengths a and b.

[0041] A comparative analysis of the two configurations of this invention with traditional all-welded honeycomb structures was conducted using finite element method. The calculation results are as follows: Figure 9 As shown in the figure. According to the calculation results, the energy dissipation characteristics of the lightweight reinforced interlocking structure in this invention exceed those of the traditional fully welded hexagonal honeycomb.

[0042] In terms of manufacturing and forming processes, an enhanced interlocking honeycomb structure can be prepared using a steel plate combined with an interlocking assembly process. The honeycomb structure forming process is as follows: Figure 3 As shown. The molding process is generally divided into four stages. The first is to use a mold to bend the straight plate to manufacture the bent plate in the two types of reinforced interlocking honeycomb structures. The second and third are to cut holes in the formed bent plate and slot all parts. The fourth is to interlock and assemble the parts. The detailed preparation process is as follows:

[0043] (1) First, the bending plate is bent into shape. According to the pre-designed parameters, the honeycomb hypotenuse length L, the side lengths a and b of the concave small squares, and the honeycomb wall angle θ, the straight plate is bent into shape. The thickness of the plate is medium.

[0044] (2) The second step is to make 6 holes on the inclined side of the bending plate to reduce the overall structural weight. The hole parameters should meet the following requirements: make one hole on each side of the bending plate, the distance between the centers of each hole is light, and the number of holes can be determined based on the diameter of the hole, the side length L, and the height strength. Specifically, it should meet the following conditions: (making + 1) light = strength, and < L, and < light.

[0045] (3) The third step is to perform grooving on each part using CNC cutting. The distance between the gaps 7 can be calculated. Each configuration has two types of straight plates, and the outermost length k of the two straight plates is reserved. k is taken as Left and right; the width of the groove is 1, and the middle 1 should be slightly larger than the middle. The groove depths of the two straight plates are h respectively. a1 h a同Both should satisfy h a1 =h a同 The groove depth of the bending plate is h. a3 , and h a1 +h a3 =Strong(h) a同 +h a3 =Strong). Configuration 2 is similar to Configuration 1, and both should satisfy the above conditions. In both configurations, the distance between the straight plate slots can be uniquely determined by the basic parameters L, D, and θ.

[0046] (4) Divide the components with pre-cut slots into configuration 1 and configuration 2, and assemble the two configurations separately.

[0047] (5) Finally, the upper and lower slots are interlocked and assembled into a new type of zero Poisson's ratio honeycomb structure.

[0048] This invention proposes a lightweight reinforced honeycomb structure. Due to the characteristics of the reinforced honeycomb structure, it not only has stable high plateau stress characteristics, but also provides a new way of manufacturing honeycomb structures. The interlocking assembly process can be used to make honeycomb structures, further improving the mechanical and energy dissipation performance of interlocking honeycomb structures.

[0049] By adjusting parameters such as the side length, included angle, and wall thickness of the honeycomb structure unit cell to suit different loading conditions and working environments, the reinforced honeycomb structure can be optimized, thus fully realizing its engineering application value. The honeycomb structure described in this invention has good designability; the dimensional parameters can be adjusted according to actual needs to obtain the optimal configuration.

[0050] For those skilled in the art, without departing from the concept of this invention, several simple deductions and substitutions can be made, all of which should be considered as the scope of patent protection defined by the claims submitted by this invention.

Claims

1. A method for processing a honeycomb structure, characterized in that, The honeycomb structure is composed of hexagonal honeycomb cells arrayed along the X and Y directions. Each hexagonal honeycomb cell includes an upper wall, a lower wall, and four inclined walls. The upper and lower walls are connected to the four inclined walls to form six connection nodes. The six connection nodes of two adjacent honeycomb cells in the X and Y directions are all concave or convex openings. The upper wall of the hexagonal honeycomb cell is connected between the two upper openings and is located at the center of the openings. The lower wall of the hexagonal honeycomb cell is connected between the two lower openings and is located at the center of the rectangular node. An inner wall located at the center of the opening is connected between the two middle openings. The hexagonal honeycomb cell is composed of two bent plates and three straight plates; the two bent plates are symmetrically arranged; each bent plate includes two inclined sides and three opening slots, one opening slot is connected between the two inclined sides, and the other two opening slots are respectively connected to the other end of the two inclined sides; the three straight plates are horizontally connected between the three opening slots of the two bent plates. The opening groove is composed of two parallel long sides and one short side; The processing methods for honeycomb structures include: Based on the pre-designed honeycomb hypotenuse length L Length of the long side of the opening groove a、 Length of the shorter side of the opening slot b and honeycomb wall angle θ A straight plate is bent to form a bent plate; Grooving is performed on the bent plate and the straight plate; the groove of the bent plate is located at the center of the opening groove; The bent plates are arranged in parallel, and straight plates are inserted into the slots in the bent plates to form a honeycomb structure.

2. The processing method according to claim 1, characterized in that, The groove depth of the straight plate and the groove depth of the bent plate satisfy the following: h a1 + h a3 = H h a2 + h a3 = H in, h a1 and h a2 It is the groove depth between two adjacent straight plates; h a3 The groove depth of the bending plate; H This refers to the height of the bent plate.

3. The processing method according to claim 1, characterized in that, The two opening slots located at both ends of the inclined wall are located on the same side or different sides of the inclined wall.

4. The processing method according to claim 1, characterized in that, An opening is provided on the inclined wall.

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