Deformable Cellular Reinforcing Structure Manufacturing
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Solution Overview
Problem
The existing methods for producing cellular reinforcing structures for composites are time-consuming and costly due to the difficulty in precisely incorporating material attenuations, such as cavities or other types of material attenuations, into the base material to achieve the required precision and efficiency for three-dimensionally deformable composites.
Innovation Solution
A method involving the incorporation of material attenuations into a sheet-like cellular base material by piercing, cutting, or sawing, followed by compacting the remaining bridges to create a three-dimensionally deformable, sheet-like reinforcing structure with regular distribution of hexagonal material cells and connecting bridges, allowing for efficient manufacturing of composites with improved bending and buckling resistance.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Manufacturing precision
If material attenuations are incorporated by milling, laser treatment or water jet treatment, then the required precision for reinforcing structures is achieved, but the manufacturing process becomes very time-consuming and cost-intensive
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces conventional mechanical machining methods (milling, laser treatment, water jet treatment) with a mechanical punching system that uses a punch tool to directly create material attenuations by displacing material. This substitution maintains precision while dramatically improving manufacturing speed and reducing costs, as the punching process can be performed in a single rapid operation rather than through time-consuming incremental removal processes.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent incorporates the creation of material attenuations as a preliminary step in the manufacturing process, performing the punching operation before final assembly. The punch tool creates the material displacements and cavities in advance, allowing subsequent steps to proceed more efficiently. This preliminary action ensures precision is built into the structure before final manufacturing stages.
2Reliability
If conventional methods are used to incorporate material attenuations, then the reinforcing structures can be manufactured, but the process is time-consuming and therefore cost-intensive
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces time-consuming conventional methods (milling, laser treatment, water jet treatment) with a rapid mechanical punching process. The punch tool directly creates material attenuations by displacing material, achieving the same quality results in a fraction of the time. This mechanical substitution maintains structural reliability while reducing manufacturing time significantly.
Solution Approach 2:
The punching process allows for continuous manufacturing of material attenuations across the entire base material surface. Multiple attenuations can be created in a single continuous punching operation, eliminating the need for repeated positioning and processing steps required by conventional methods. This continuity maintains quality consistency while dramatically reducing total manufacturing time.
Data Source
AI summary
A method for manufacturing a three-dimensionally deformable, sheet-like reinforcing structure, wherein material attenuations are incorporated into a sheet-like, cellular base material, distributed over an area of the base material, by means of cutting or sawing, said material attenuations sub-dividing the base material into a plurality of material cells which are delineated from each other by the material attenuations but are still connected to each other.