Flexible Composite Driveshaft Coupling With AFP-Formed Diaphragms
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current composite driveshaft manufacturing methods are limited by the geometry restrictions of automated fiber placement (AFP) technology, which cannot produce small radius or sharp corner transitions between flexible elements, essential for accommodating angular and axial misalignment and mass imbalance.
Innovation Solution
The method employs a combination of rigid and compressible mandrel elements to create a gradual variation in shaft diameter, allowing for fiber placement using AFP, with a two-step curing process that includes in-situ laser curing for uniform regions and subsequent deformation of compressible material to form large diameter flexible elements with sharp corner transitions.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Manufacturing precision
If automated fiber placement is used to manufacture composite driveshafts, then manufacturing precision and strength are improved, but the ability to produce complex geometries with sharp corner transitions is limited
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary action by first forming a preliminary composite driveshaft with a gradual diameter variation that is compatible with AFP technology constraints, then subsequently deforming it to achieve the desired sharp corner transitions. This two-step approach allows the fiber placement to occur on a manufacturable geometry first, then transforms it to the final complex shape after curing.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent utilizes parameter changes by transforming the physical state and geometry of the composite driveshaft through controlled deformation. The material parameters (such as temperature, stress state) are changed to enable the transition from the preliminary gradual-diameter shape to the final sharp-corner geometry, overcoming the AFP manufacturing limitations.
2Ease of manufacture
If gradual diameter variation is used to accommodate AFP technology constraints, then ease of manufacture is improved, but bending flexibility and performance are reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The patent creates a preliminary structure with gradual diameter variation that is easy to manufacture using AFP, then applies a subsequent deformation step to transform it into the final structure with sharp corner transitions that provide the required bending flexibility. This separates the manufacturing ease requirement from the performance requirement into two distinct stages.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces dynamics by implementing a two-stage manufacturing process where the driveshaft geometry dynamically changes from the preliminary gradual-diameter form to the final sharp-corner form. This dynamic transformation allows the system to satisfy both AFP manufacturing constraints and performance requirements that cannot coexist in a single static geometry.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This approach enables the production of driveshafts with increased bending flexibility and reduced fiber breakage, overcoming the limitations of AFP technology to achieve complex geometries and improved performance.
Implementation Method 1
A plurality of strips of fiber tape are applied to a first longitudinally extending region of the mandrel adjacent to the one or more first and second rigid members using automated fiber placement with in-situ laser curing.
Implementation Method 2
The plurality of strips of fiber tape and compressible material are compressed to conform to the one or more first and second rigid members.
Data Source
AI summary
A process for forming a flexible composite driveshaft includes providing a mandrel having a rigid region and a compressible region, applying fiber tape to the mandrel using automated fiber placement with in-situ laser curing in the rigid region and without in-situ laser curing the compressible region, and compressing the fiber tape and compressible material in the compressible region to form diaphragms that extend radially outward to a diameter that is at least twice the size of a diameter of the composite driveshaft in the rigid region.