Composite Laminate Production with Calender Roll Assembly
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
The existing methods for producing composite laminate sheets face limitations in controlling fiber distribution and width, leading to inconsistent angular orientations of fibers in different plies, which affects the quality and uniformity of composite laminates.
Innovation Solution
An apparatus and method that involves unwinding composite material, tacking additional layers with varying fiber orientations, heating, and passing through a calender roll assembly to produce a composite laminate with improved fiber alignment and bonding, allowing for wider sheets and consistent orientations.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Area of stationary object
If traditional processing machinery and methods are used, then the manufacturing process is simple, but the sheet width is limited and fiber distribution control is difficult
Solution Approach 1:
The processing system is divided into multiple independent stations (unwind station, tacking station, heating station, calender station, collection station) that work in sequence. Each station performs a specific function, allowing the system to handle wider sheets by processing them through dedicated modules rather than requiring a single complex machine of traditional design.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention transitions from traditional narrow-width processing to wide-sheet processing by extending the processing line in the horizontal dimension. Multiple rolls of composite material are positioned side-by-side and processed simultaneously through the various stations, effectively increasing the sheet width capability without proportionally increasing machine complexity.
2Manufacturing precision
If discrete stacking processes are used for composite laminates, then individual plies can be assembled, but fiber angular orientations become inconsistent across different plies
Solution Approach 1:
Multiple plies of composite material are merged into a single continuous laminate structure by processing them simultaneously through the calender rolls. The calender station applies heat and pressure to bond the plies together while maintaining consistent fiber orientation, eliminating the orientation inconsistencies that occur during discrete stacking processes.
Solution Approach 2:
The tacking station performs preliminary bonding of adjacent lengths of composite material before they enter the heating and calendering stages. This preliminary action ensures that the plies are properly aligned and positioned relative to each other, which maintains consistent fiber angular orientations throughout the subsequent processing and in the final laminate product.
3Manufacturing precision
If traditional lamination methods are used, then the process is straightforward, but fiber distribution control is difficult and quality is inconsistent
Solution Approach 1:
The calender station provides feedback control for fiber distribution through controlled application of heat and pressure. The calender rolls apply regulated thermal and mechanical energy to the composite material, which promotes uniform fiber distribution and consistent resin impregnation. This controlled energy application ensures predictable and consistent fiber distribution and bonding quality across the entire sheet width.
Solution Approach 2:
The heating station and calender rolls apply controlled thermal energy to the composite material, changing the temperature parameter to facilitate resin flow and fiber impregnation. This controlled parameter change ensures uniform fiber distribution and consistent material properties throughout the laminate, improving manufacturing precision while maintaining ease of manufacture through automated process control.
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
The solution enables the production of composite laminates with enhanced fiber alignment and bonding, overcoming the limitations of traditional methods by achieving wider sheets and consistent fiber orientations, thus improving the quality and uniformity of the composite material.
Implementation Method 1
A heating station is positioned downstream of the tacking station for heating the composite material fed from the roll in response to the composite material moving past the heater
Implementation Method 2
The heated lengths of composite material are passed through a calender roll assembly to yield a composite laminate
Data Source
AI summary
A product sheet of composite material can be made by disposing composite materials of composite material in adjacent (side-by-side) relation with each other. The composite materials comprise fibers in a thermoplastic matrix material. The adjacent composite materials are bonded together to provide a product sheet of composite material. Preferably, a cross ply of composite material is disposed on the composite materials. The cross ply may be a unidirectional sheet and the fibers in the cross ply may be disposed in transverse relation to the fibers in the composite materials.