Fiber Placement Tension Buffer Using a Pneumatic Movable Roller
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing fiber placement devices face challenges in applying stable tension to reinforcing fiber bundles during high-speed placement, leading to inefficiencies and increased costs due to inertial forces and unstable tension control.
Innovation Solution
A fiber placement device with an accumulation portion that includes a movable roller, a cylinder, a piston, and a flexible coupling member, which uses adjustable air pressure to maintain stable tension by controlling the piston's movement, allowing for high-speed fiber bundle placement without significant changes in tension.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If the fiber bundle supply mechanism draws the reinforcing fiber bundle at high speed, then the placement speed increases, but the tension of the fiber bundle becomes unstable due to inertial forces
Solution Approach 1:
The movable roller is made movable rather than fixed, allowing it to dynamically adjust its position in response to tension variations. The roller moves along the guide rail to compensate for inertial forces during high-speed intermittent drawing, maintaining stable tension on the fiber bundle throughout the placement process
Solution Approach 2:
The movable roller acts as an intermediary mechanism between the fiber bundle supply and the placement process. It absorbs and compensates for tension fluctuations caused by intermittent drawing, serving as a buffer that decouples the high-speed supply from the placement operations
2Productivity
If the movable roller is allowed to move freely to accommodate high-speed placement, then productivity increases, but the tension control becomes difficult
Solution Approach 1:
A pneumatic cylinder is used to apply controlled air pressure to the movable roller. This pneumatic mechanism provides smooth, adjustable force to maintain the roller's movement within optimal tension ranges, enabling automatic tension control without complex mechanical systems
Solution Approach 2:
The system controls tension by changing the air pressure parameter applied to the movable roller. By adjusting the pneumatic pressure, the roller's position and the resulting fiber bundle tension are controlled, providing a simple yet effective means of tension management
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
Enables high-speed and stable tension application to reinforcing fiber bundles, reducing inertial forces and improving yield by maintaining consistent tension throughout the placement process.
Implementation Method 1
When the internal region of the cylinder is decompressed or pressurized, a force is applied to move the piston through the action of air pressure
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2
AI summary
A fiber placement device comprises an accumulation portion 10 capable of storing and discharging a reinforcing fiber bundle 1M, the accumulation portion 10 comprises: a movable roller 12 guided by a guide mechanism 11 to be able to be moved in a constant movable range; a cylinder 13; a piston 14 arranged within the cylinder 13; a coupling member 15 coupling the movable roller 12 and the piston 14; and an adjustment portion adjusting a force applied to the piston 14 within the cylinder 13 by discharging a fluid from a space with the cylinder 13 sealed on a side opposite to the coupling member 15 with respect to the piston 14 within the cylinder 13 or supplying the fluid into the space, the fluid is discharged from the space within the cylinder 13 to apply a force to the piston 14 so as to move the piston 14, a force is also applied to the movable roller 12 through the coupling member 15 to move the movable roller 12 and thus a tension is applied to the reinforcing fiber bundle 1M.