Suction Roller for Filament Winding Position Control
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing filament winding apparatuses fail to effectively control the position of a fiber bundle on a roller during the manufacturing of high-pressure tanks, leading to potential misalignment and deviations from the designed configuration.
Innovation Solution
A filament winding apparatus equipped with a roller that uses suction and ejection holes to control the position and width of the fiber bundle, employing a suction unit that adjusts suction force based on misalignment and a porous material to prevent resin clogging, allowing for precise positioning and expansion/convergence of the fiber bundle.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Manufacturing precision
If a conventional roller guide assembly is used to guide the fiber bundle, then the structure is simple, but the position of the fiber bundle on the roller cannot be controlled, leading to misalignment
Solution Approach 1:
The roller incorporates suction holes connected to a suction unit that uses negative pressure (suction force) to attract and hold the fiber bundle against the roller surface. This pneumatic mechanism enables precise position control of the fiber bundle during guiding, resolving the contradiction by adding controlled positioning capability without significantly complicating the roller structure.
Solution Approach 2:
The roller is designed with porous material or porous structure containing multiple suction holes distributed across its surface. This porous configuration allows uniform distribution of suction force across the fiber bundle contact area, enabling stable position control while maintaining a relatively simple roller construction.
2Manufacturing precision
If the fiber bundle position on the roller is not controlled, then the device operation is simple, but the high pressure tank is not formed in the designed configuration
Solution Approach 1:
The suction unit is controlled based on detection of fiber bundle position, creating a feedback mechanism. The suction force is adjusted according to the detected position to maintain the fiber bundle at the correct location on the roller, ensuring accurate tank configuration while automating the control process to minimize operational complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
The suction mechanism automatically adjusts to maintain fiber bundle positioning without requiring manual intervention. The system self-regulates the suction force to keep the fiber bundle aligned, improving configuration accuracy while maintaining ease of operation through automation.
3Manufacturing precision
If suction force is increased to prevent fiber bundle misalignment, then positioning accuracy improves, but energy consumption increases
Solution Approach 1:
The suction holes are distributed across the roller surface, and suction force is applied only to the necessary areas where fiber bundle contact occurs. This partial action approach provides sufficient positioning stability without applying excessive suction force across the entire roller, thereby reducing energy consumption while maintaining position stability.
Data Source
AI summary
An object is to control the position of a fiber bundle on a roller of a guide assembly in a filament winding apparatus. There is provided a filament winding apparatus that winds a fiber bundle consisting of a plurality of fibers on an outer surface of a liner and comprises a fiber feeder configured to feed the fiber bundle; and a guide assembly including a roller configured to guide the fiber bundle fed by the fiber feeder to the outer surface of the liner while making the fiber bundle in contact with the roller. The roller comprises a suction hole configured to suck the outside air and is provided in at least a surface of the roller that is to be in contact with the fiber bundle; and a suction unit configured to suck the outside air from the suction hole with such a suction force that draws the fiber bundle in contact with the roller.