Fiber applying machine with special fiber conveying device

Abstract

The invention relates to a fiber application machine comprising a fiber application head, a fiber storage device and a conveying device for conveying at least one fiber from said storage device to the application head, said conveying device comprising at least one flexible conveying tube (41). Each delivery tube is capable of receiving fibers in its internal passage and is mounted through a downstream end to a downstream attachment system (53) mounted on the application head. The conveying device further comprises a guide device comprising a chain assembled to the downstream attachment system, the chain comprising a series of rigid segments (6) mounted to one another in an articulated manner via an articulation system. And one or more conveying pipes pass through guide devices (9) distributed along the chain.

Description

Field of the Invention

[0001] The present invention relates to a fiber application machine for manufacturing composite parts, and more particularly to a special fiber conveying device in the machine for conveying fibers between a fiber storage device and an application head. The present invention also relates to a method for manufacturing composite parts by means of a corresponding machine. Background Art

[0002] Fiber application machines, commonly known as fiber placement machines, are known for applying a wide band formed of a number of continuous flat fibers by contact onto a layup tool such as a male or female mold. These fibers are dry or ribbon fibers impregnated with a thermosetting or thermoplastic resin, in particular carbon fibers composed of a large number of carbon threads or filaments.

[0003] These machines include a system for moving the fiber application head, a fiber storage device, and a device for conveying the fibers from the storage device to the application head, the application head including application rollers designed to contact the mold for applying the band and a device for guiding the fibers onto the application rollers.

[0004] In patent document WO 2012 / 160270, a conveying device including a first flexible tube is proposed, each flexible tube being capable of receiving fibers in its internal channel. The ends of the first flexible tubes are attached to upstream and downstream attachment systems and have sufficient length and flexibility so as not to restrict the movement of the head displacement system. Each flexible tube is provided with at least one longitudinally flexible blade having a rectangular cross-section, the flexible blade being arranged substantially parallel to the conveying plane of the fibers received in the internal channel of the flexible tube. This type of flexible tube has a simple design, limited space occupation, reduced costs, enables high operating speeds, keeps the storage device away from the displacement system, avoids the electric slack recovery system of the fiber reel, isolates the fibers from the outside world, and simplifies the displacement system of the application head, especially a displacement system using a multi-joint arm such as a six-axis robot type. The flexible blade associated with each tube restricts or prevents the lateral bending of the tube in the plane of the blade, which makes it possible to eliminate or at least limit the risk of twisting of the fibers arranged in the internal channel of the flexible tube arranged parallel to the blade, especially the risk caused by excessive bending of the flexible tube and / or excessive friction of the fibers inside the flexible tube during certain movements of the robot. The flexible tube can perform bending and twisting movements in a direction perpendicular to the plane of the blade to allow the fiber placement head to move in all directions. The assembly of the first flexible tube and the independent blade is achieved through a second flexible tube, and this assembly system keeps the blade substantially in contact with the flexible tube while allowing the relative longitudinal movement of the flexible blade with respect to the first tube. The second flexible conveying tube provides a sliding-type connection between the first flexible conveying tube and the flexible blade. During the layup process of a complex-shaped part, the flexible tube equipped with its flexible blade may be subjected to significant bending and torsional forces, which may cause damage, especially at the assembly of the flexible blade and the attachment system.

[0005] To reduce the longitudinal bending of the flexible tube in a direction perpendicular to the plane of the blade at the outlet of the attachment system, it is proposed in the above document to equip the attachment system with reinforcing blades. These reinforcing blades are mounted on the attachment system on both sides of the conveying tube, one side abuts against the conveying tube and the other side abuts against the flexible blade. However, the installation of these reinforcing blades is difficult to implement. Summary of the Invention

[0006] The object of the present invention is to propose a machine provided with a conveying device that ensures good fiber conveyance and is easy to manufacture and durable.

[0007] To this end, the present invention proposes a fiber application machine, comprising:

[0008] - a fiber application head, preferably including an application roller and means for guiding fibers onto said roller;

[0009] - preferably, a displacement system for displacing the fiber application head;

[0010] - A fiber storage device; and

[0011] - A conveying device for conveying at least one fiber from the storage device to an application head, the conveying device including at least one flexible conveying tube (e.g., connecting the storage device to the application head), each conveying tube being capable of receiving a fiber in its internal channel, the conveying tube being mounted to a downstream attachment system mounted on the application head through a downstream end, and being mounted to an upstream attachment system (e.g., mounted at the storage device) through an upstream end,

[0012] Characterized in that the conveying device further includes a guiding device, the guiding device including:

[0013] - A chain, including a series of rigid segments, the rigid segments being hinged to each other via a hinging system, the chain extending from an upstream end to a downstream end, and the chain being connected to the downstream attachment system through the downstream end; and

[0014] - Guiding means distributed along the chain, through which one or more conveying tubes pass.

[0015] This guiding device according to the present invention enables the control of the radius of curvature of the conveying tube, particularly at the downstream attachment system. It avoids excessive stress at the ends of the conveying tube (such stress may cause deterioration of the conveying tube and / or its associated vanes), thereby enabling the provision of a more robust and durable conveying system.

[0016] In one embodiment, the chain can extend all the way to the upstream attachment system. In the case where the machine includes a displacement system formed by a multi-joint robot carrying an application head and a conveying device for conveying fibers from a storage device (e.g., formed by a creel of bobbins located beside the robot) to the application head, the chain can terminate before the storage device.

[0017] In one embodiment, the chain includes rigid segments mounted to be hinged to each other via a hinging system of the ball-and-socket joint type (e.g., with one or two ball-and-socket joints), each hinging system preferably including a stop device for limiting the inclination between two adjacent segments. Using such a ball-and-socket joint system (also known as a spherical joint) can easily move the conveying tube using a robot wrist while ensuring precise control of the curvature of the conveying tube. In one embodiment, segments of different lengths can be used along the chain, and the chain preferably allows for a smaller radius of curvature at the downstream attachment system.

[0018] In one embodiment, the chain is formed by a series of segments, each segment including at its ends a protruding portion with a spherical surface and a recessed portion with a spherical surface, the recessed portion of a segment receiving the protruding portion of an adjacent segment to form a ball-and-socket joint between the two segments. The articulation system then consists of the recessed and protruding portions of the segments. In this case, the guiding means (e.g., consisting of a guiding ring) is mounted on the segments. According to another solution, the chain includes two types of segments: the first type of segment is provided with two protruding portions, and the second type of segment is provided with two recessed portions, and the chain then consists of alternating first type segments and second type segments.

[0019] According to another embodiment, the articulation system includes a rigid intermediate member that is inserted between two adjacent rigid segments, and the intermediate member and the segments are articulated together by ball-and-socket joints. For each ball-and-socket joint, the first element of the intermediate member and the rigid segment is provided with a protruding portion having a spherical surface, and the other element is provided with a recessed portion having a spherical surface and capable of receiving the protruding portion; the intermediate member is preferably equipped with the guiding means. The guiding means installed at the articulation system between two segments ensures good guiding of the conveying pipe along the chain. In addition, integrating the guiding means into the intermediate member enables the guiding device to be assembled quickly and easily, since the guiding means and the intermediate member can be integrally formed, for example, made of a plastic material. Moreover, each intermediate member connected to two adjacent segments by ball-and-socket joints is mounted such that it can rotate freely relative to these two segments. In this way, the conveying pipe passing through the guiding means can pivot around the chain, making it easier to move the conveying pipe during the displacement of the robot. In another embodiment, the guiding means can be mounted on the segments.

[0020] In one embodiment, the ends of the segments include two protruding portions, each protruding portion having a convex surface, each intermediate member includes two opposing recessed portions, each recessed portion having a spherical surface, and each recessed portion is capable of receiving the protruding portion of the segment to form a ball-and-socket joint. In this way, the guiding device can include simple segments with two identical ends, for example, each segment is formed by a simple pipe (e.g., a cylindrical pipe), and two identical end pieces are assembled at the ends of the pipe, each end piece having a spherical surface. By changing the length of the segment pipe, a chain with different segment lengths according to the maximum curvature radius required along the chain can be easily obtained. In other embodiments, the segments include recessed portions at the ends, the intermediate members include protruding portions, or the segments and the intermediate members each include recessed portions and protruding portions.

[0021] In one embodiment, the chain includes a cable running throughout the chain, and the cable passes through the central channels of the segments and the central channels of the intermediate members to ensure that the protruding portions remain engaged in the recessed portions.

[0022] According to one embodiment, the cable is connected to a downstream attachment system through a first downstream end. The chain includes a terminal element at its downstream end, and the terminal element and the downstream attachment system are hinged together through a ball-and-socket joint. In one embodiment, the cable is connected to the last element at the upstream end of the chain through its second upstream end. For example, a nut is screwed onto the second threaded end of the cable and abuts against the last element of the chain. Preferably, at least one compression spring system is inserted and / or integrated into the chain. This compression spring system at least allows elimination of any gap between the segments and the intermediate members. In one embodiment, the compression spring system keeps the segments in a tensioned state, allowing the chain to elastically return to a substantially straight position. In one embodiment, several compression spring systems are arranged along the chain.

[0023] According to one embodiment, the guiding device includes rings arranged along the chain, and one or more conveying tubes pass through these rings. Each conveying tube is preferably capable of longitudinally moving in each guiding ring through which it passes.

[0024] In one embodiment, the conveying device includes multiple conveying tubes for separately conveying multiple fibers; the guiding device includes rings for guiding and distributing the conveying tubes around the chain from upstream to downstream, and then rings for gradually guiding the conveying tubes into a form of two parallel rows at the entrance of the downstream attachment system.

[0025] According to one embodiment, each conveying tube is provided with at least one longitudinally flexible blade, preferably with a rectangular cross-section. Each conveying tube and its associated flexible blade are placed in a second flexible holding tube, such that the holding tube presses the flexible blade against the conveying tube while allowing relative longitudinal displacement of the flexible blade with respect to the conveying tube. Each holding tube passes through the guiding device of the guiding equipment.

[0026] Another object of the present invention is to provide a method for manufacturing a composite component, including applying continuous fibers onto an application surface, characterized in that the application of the fibers is carried out by the above-mentioned fiber application machine, and is achieved by the relative displacement of the application head along the deposition trajectory with respect to the layup surface. Description of the Drawings

[0027] The present invention will be better understood through the following detailed explanatory description of the currently preferred specific embodiments of the present invention and with reference to the attached schematic diagrams. Other objects, details, features, and advantages will also become clearer. In the attached schematic diagrams:

[0028] - Figure 1 is a schematic side view of a laying machine according to the present invention;

[0029] - Figure 2 is a partial schematic cross-sectional view of the conveying device, showing the conveying tubes, the upstream and downstream attachment systems, and the guiding equipment for guiding the conveying tubes;

[0030] - Figure 3 is Figure 2 Partial perspective view of the conveying device at the downstream attachment system in

[0031] - Figure 4 Partial perspective view of the guiding device;

[0032] - Figure 5 is Figure 2 Enlarged view of detail D1 in

[0033] - Figure 6 Schematic cross-sectional view of the guiding device, showing the inclination of the chain section;

[0034] - Figure 7 is Figure 2 Enlarged view of detail D2 in

[0035] - Figure 8 is Figure 2 Enlarged view of detail D3 in DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0036] Referring to Figure 1 , the placement machine includes a displacement system 1 formed by a multi-joint arm 11 mounted to be movable on a linear axis 12, an application head 2, a fiber storage device 3, and a conveying device for conveying fibers from the storage device to the application head. The multi-joint arm is of the six-axis robot type known per se, and the application head 2 is mounted on the end wrist 11a of the multi-joint arm. The multi-joint arm 11 is attached to a carriage 13 slidably mounted on the linear axis 12 through its base 112. The linear axis consists of two parallel tracks 121 fixed to the floor. The carriage is equipped with a driving device, such as an electric roller, controlled by a control unit for moving the placement head along these tracks. The fiber application head 2 (also referred to as a fiber placement head) includes an application roller 21 that can contact a mold to apply a tape formed by multiple fibers (such as resin-impregnated fibers). The placement machine is designed to apply fibers packaged in a reel form, such as carbon fibers. The storage device consists of a creel, schematically shown as reference numeral 3, for receiving fiber reels. The creel is also mounted on a driven carriage 31 arranged on the tracks 121 and is mechanically connected to the carriage 13 carrying the robot.

[0037] The conveying device includes a first flexible tube (referred to as a conveying tube), equipped with flexible reinforcing vanes. Fibers are individually supplied from the creel 3 to the fiber placement head 2 through these feed tubes. These tubes are bundled together, as Figure 1 schematically shown in 4A inFigure 5 Each delivery tube 41 has a wall with a rectangular cross-section, having two short sides and two long sides. The wall has an inner surface and a substantially flat outer surface. Each delivery tube is equipped, on its outside, along substantially its entire length and along each of its long sides, with flexible metal blades 42a, 42b, also known as foils. The metal blades and the delivery tube are placed in a second flexible tube 43, called a holding tube, the cross-section of which is substantially rectangular, to keep the blades substantially parallel to the outer surface of the long side of the delivery tube, while allowing relative longitudinal movement of the blades with respect to the delivery tube. The holding tube 44 is, for example, a flexible bellows with a substantially rectangular cross-section, as described in the aforementioned patent document. The width of the blades is less than or equal to the width of the long side, preferably less. The delivery tube equipped with its blades and placed in the holding tube is denoted by the reference numeral 4. Each delivery tube is designed to receive flat fibers in its internal channel with a rectangular cross-section, substantially parallel to its long side and thus parallel to the metal blades. The metal blades prevent any lateral bending of the feed tube in the plane of the blades, but allow longitudinal bending of the feed tube in a direction perpendicular to the plane of the blades and torsion of the feed tube. When the robot moves for the fiber placement operation, the feed tube will deform by bending and / or torsion perpendicular to the plane of the blades, such that the fibers remain flat and parallel to the metal blades.

[0038] The ends of the delivery tubes are connected to the creel 3 and the head respectively by an upstream attachment system 52 and a downstream attachment system 53. Each delivery tube is connected to the upstream attachment system 52 in a fixed manner (i.e., fixed without degrees of freedom of movement) by its end, and is connected to the downstream attachment system 53 in a longitudinally movable manner (i.e., attached with degrees of freedom of longitudinal movement). One of the blades associated with the delivery tube is fixedly assembled to the downstream attachment system and the downstream attachment system by its upstream end. The other flexible blade is fixedly assembled to one of the attachment systems and is longitudinally translatable, i.e., attached to the other attachment system with degrees of freedom of longitudinal displacement, for example, fixedly attached to the downstream attachment system by its downstream end and longitudinally displaceably attached to the upstream attachment system by its upstream end. The upstream attachment system 52 is similar to the system described in the aforementioned patent document and includes, for each delivery tube, a longitudinal main channel in which the delivery tube 41 is mounted by its upstream end. In the present embodiment, the main channels are arranged in a row, and the delivery tubes are assembled in a row at the upstream attachment system. Secondary channels are provided for mounting the flexible blades associated with each delivery tube. On the side of the placement head, the delivery tubes are assembled in two rows at the upstream attachment system 53 so as to form two superimposed fiber bundles at the placement head inlet. The upstream attachment system includes a main channel 531 for each delivery tube, in which the delivery tube 41 is slidably mounted by its downstream end. The main channels are arranged in two superimposed rows. Secondary channels 532a, 532b are arranged on both sides of the main channel for mounting the flexible blades associated with the delivery tubes.

[0039] According to the invention, the conveying device further comprises a guiding device for guiding the conveying pipe to control its radius of curvature, particularly at the downstream attachment system. Refer to Figures 2 to 6 , the guiding device is formed by a chain, which includes a series of rigid segments 6 mounted to be articulated with each other through an articulation system 7 of the ball-and-socket joint type. The chain is connected to the downstream attachment system 53 through its downstream end and extends in the direction of the upstream attachment system 52. In this embodiment, the chain does not extend to the upstream guiding system; the upstream end of the chain is arranged between the downstream guiding system and the upstream guiding system, for example, midway between the two. The articulation system includes an intermediate member 7 inserted between two adjacent segments, and each segment is articulated to the intermediate member through a ball-and-socket joint. Thus, two adjacent segments are connected together by two ball-and-socket joints via the intermediate member.

[0040] In particular, refer to Figure 6 , each segment 6 is formed by a cylindrical pipe 61, for example, made of metal (especially aluminum). At each end of the pipe, an end piece 62 (made of plastic, for example) provided with a flange 63 is press-fitted into the central channel 61a of the pipe, and the end piece abuts against the circular edge 61b of the pipe through its flange. Each end piece has an external protruding portion 64 with a spherical surface and a central longitudinal channel 65. Each intermediate member 7 is annular, including two opposite circular edges 71, an outer wall 72 and an inner wall, and the inner wall defines the central channel 73 of the intermediate member. The inner wall includes two opposite recessed portions 74, and each recessed portion opens onto the circular edge 71. Each recessed portion has a spherical surface complementary to the spherical surface of the protruding portion 64. In this embodiment, the spherical surfaces of the recessed portion and the protruding portion are each composed of a spherical segment, which enables a compact articulation system.

[0041] The chain is thus formed by alternating segments 6 and intermediate members 7, and each protruding portion 64 of the segment is inserted into the recessed portion 74 of the intermediate member to form a ball-and-socket joint. The flange 63 of the segment serves as a stopper and limits the pivoting of the segment by abutting against the edge 71 of the intermediate member, as shown in Figure 6 . For example, the flange limits the inclination angle between the segment and the intermediate member to a maximum angle of about 7°.

[0042] The segment and the intermediate member are fixed together by a cable 8 (such as a metal cable), and the cable extends from one end of the chain to the other end, passing through the central channel 65 of the end piece, the central channel 61a of the pipe, and the central channel 73 of the intermediate member. The downstream end 81 of the cable is connected to the downstream attachment system 53. For example, refer to Figure 5, the downstream end 81 of the cable is threaded, and the assembly is achieved by screwing one or more nuts 82 onto the threaded downstream end of the cable and positioning it in the housing of the downstream attachment system. At the downstream end of the chain, the chain terminates with a specific end piece 66 which includes two opposing protruding portions. The end piece is fitted into the recessed portion 74 of the intermediate piece 7 on the upstream side and into the recessed portion 533 of the attachment system on the downstream side. The threaded downstream end 81 of the cable emerging from the central channel of this specific end passes through the central channel 534 of the downstream attachment system, which channel opens into the recessed portion 533. This assembly using the specific end piece enables a compact downstream attachment system to be provided. Alternatively, the downstream end of the chain ends with a section 6 which has two protruding portions 64, one fitted into the recessed portion 74 of the intermediate piece and the other fitted into the recessed portion 533 of the downstream attachment system. At the upstream end of the chain, referring to Figure 7 , the chain ends with a terminal end piece 62 which is the same as the end piece used to form the section 6. The terminal end piece is fitted into the recessed portion of the intermediate piece by its protruding portions. The upstream end 83 of the cable is threaded and projects from the central channel 65 of the terminal end piece. A nut 84 is screwed onto this threaded upstream end and abuts against the circular edge 62a of the terminal end piece.

[0043] Referring to Figure 8 , the chain includes a specific section 6c equipped with a compression spring system to eliminate the gaps between the sections. The specific section 6c arranged between two intermediate pieces 7 includes two tubes 68, one end of which is slidably mounted on a tubular sleeve 67 provided with a flange 67a. Each tube 68 is equipped with an end piece 62 at its other end, which end piece is received in the recessed portion 74 of one of the two intermediate pieces. The section is located between the two intermediate pieces. Two compression springs 69a, 69b are mounted on the sleeve 67 between the two tubes 68. Each spring abuts against the flange 67a on one side and against the circular edge 68b of the tube on the other side. A nut 84 is screwed onto the upstream end 83 of the cable until the springs are pre-tensioned.

[0044] The guiding device further includes guiding means distributed along the chain, through which a conveying pipe 41 is passed, which is equipped with flexible blades 42a, 42b and placed in a holding pipe 43. These guiding means are formed by rings 9, which are arranged on the outer wall 72 of certain intermediate members 7 along the chain. The ring and the intermediate member are preferably formed of a single piece, for example, made of plastic material. The intermediate member may include several rings, each ring for passing the holding pipe around the conveying pipe and its two associated blades, or more than one ring, each ring for passing several holding pipes. The main axis of the inner channel 91 of the ring of the intermediate member is arranged parallel to the main axis of the central channel 73 of the intermediate member. The ring is used to guide the holding pipe around the chain, and at the same time allows the holding pipe to move longitudinally in its inner channel when the conveying device moves due to the head displacement caused by the robot. In addition, the spherical joint between the two segments and the intermediate member allows the intermediate member to rotate relative to the segment during the head displacement.

[0045] In this embodiment, the chain includes two types of segments. On the side of the downstream attachment system, the chain includes a series of short segments 6a to allow the conveying pipe to have a significant curvature at the robot wrist, and then extends a series of long segments 6b.

[0046] Reference Figure 4 , the chain includes different types of intermediate members:

[0047] - Intermediate member 7a without a ring;

[0048] - Intermediate member 7b, including eight rings 91 distributed at regular angular intervals on its outer wall. Each ring is designed to receive a holding pipe in its inner channel with a substantially circular cross-section, and the conveying pipe and two blades are placed in the holding pipe;

[0049] - Intermediate member 7c, only including four rings 93 distributed at regular angular intervals on its outer wall, for separately receiving four of the eight holding pipes;

[0050] - Intermediate member 7d, including two radially opposed rings 94, each ring having an inner channel with a substantially fan-shaped cross-section for receiving four holding pipes; and

[0051] - Intermediate member 7e, including two radially opposed rings 95, each ring having an inner channel with a substantially rectangular cross-section for receiving four holding pipes.

[0052] The conveying tubes coming out of the upstream attachment system are arranged side by side in a single row and must be divided into two superimposed rows in the downstream attachment system. The holding tubes come out of the upstream attachment system in a single row and extend freely in the sheath 51 to the downstream end of the chain, each holding tube containing a conveying tube and its two associated blades. At this downstream end, the chain includes an intermediate piece 7b with eight rings 92, one of which is passed through each holding tube. The chain then alternately includes intermediate pieces 7a without rings and intermediate pieces 7c with four rings 93. For two consecutive intermediate pieces 7c with four rings in the chain, four of the eight holding tubes pass through the rings 93 of the first intermediate piece 7c, and then the other four holding tubes pass through the four rings of the next intermediate piece. Then, in the last section of the chain close to the robot wrist, the chain includes, from upstream to downstream, an intermediate piece 7b with eight rings for individually receiving eight holding tubes, then two intermediate pieces 7d with sector rings 94, and three intermediate pieces 7e with two rectangular section rings 95. The arrangement of the guide device at the last section of the chain allows the eight retaining tubes to be gradually guided into two rows of retaining tubes, one above the other.

[0053] Although the invention has been described in conjunction with specific embodiments, it is obvious that the invention is not limited thereto and comprises all technical equivalents of the means described and combinations thereof, as long as these combinations fall within the scope of the invention.

Claims

1. A fiber application machine, comprising a fiber application head (2), a fiber storage device (3), and a conveying device for conveying at least one fiber from the storage device to the application head, the conveying device comprising at least one flexible conveying tube (41) capable of receiving the fiber in its internal channel, each conveying tube being mounted at its downstream end to a downstream attachment system (53) mounted on the application head and at its upstream end to an upstream attachment system (52). Characterized in that, the conveying device further comprises a guiding device, the guiding device comprising: - a chain, comprising a series of rigid segments (6), the rigid segments being mounted to be articulated with each other via an articulation system, the chain extending from an upstream end to a downstream end, the chain being connected to the downstream attachment system through the downstream end; and - guiding means (9) distributed along the chain, one or more of the conveying tubes passing therethrough.

2. The machine according to claim 1, Characterized in that, the chain comprises rigid segments (6) mounted to be articulated with each other via an articulation system of the ball-and-socket joint type, each articulation system comprising stop means (63, 71) for limiting the inclination between two adjacent segments.

3. The machine according to claim 2, Characterized in that, the articulation system comprises a rigid intermediate member (7) inserted between two adjacent segments (6), the intermediate member and the segments being articulated together by ball-and-socket joints, for each ball-and-socket joint, the first element of the intermediate member and the segment is provided with a protruding portion having a spherical surface, and the other element is provided with a recessed portion having a spherical surface and capable of receiving the protruding portion, and the intermediate member (7b - 7e) is provided with the guiding means (9).

4. The machine according to claim 3, Characterized in that, the segments (6) comprise two protruding portions (64) at their ends, each protruding portion having a convex surface, each intermediate member (7) comprises two opposite recessed portions (74), each recessed portion having a spherical surface, and each recessed portion is capable of receiving the protruding portion of the segment to form a ball-and-socket joint.

5. The machine according to claim 3 or 4, Characterized in that, the chain comprises a cable (8) running through the entire chain, the cable passing through the central channels (61a, 65) of the segments and the central channel (73) of the intermediate member to ensure that the protruding portions (64) remain engaged in the recessed portions (74).

6. The machine according to claim 5, Characterized in that, the cable (8) is connected to the downstream attachment system (53) through a first downstream end (81), the chain comprises a terminal element (66) at its downstream end, and the terminal element and the downstream attachment system are articulated together by a ball-and-socket joint.

7. The machine according to any one of claims 1 to 6, Characterized in that, the guiding means comprises rings (8) arranged along the chain, one or more of the conveying tubes passing therethrough.

8. The machine according to any one of claims 1 to 7, Characterized in that, The conveying device includes a plurality of conveying tubes (41) for separately conveying a plurality of fibers. The guiding device includes, along the chain from upstream to downstream, loops (92, 93) for guiding and distributing the conveying tubes around the chain, and then loops (94, 95) for gradually guiding the conveying tubes into a form of two parallel rows at the entrance of the downstream attachment system.

9. The machine according to any one of claims 1 to 8, characterized in that each conveying tube (41) is provided with at least one longitudinally flexible blade (42a, 42b), and each conveying tube and its associated flexible blade are placed in a second flexible holding tube (43), and each holding tube passes through the guiding device (8) of the guiding equipment.

10. A method for manufacturing a composite component, including applying continuous fibers to an application surface, characterized in that the application of the fibers is carried out by a fiber application machine according to any one of claims 1 to 9, and is achieved by the relative displacement of the application head relative to the layup surface according to the deposition trajectory.

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