Reinforcing Woven Fabric for 3D Preform Shape Retention
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Current methods for producing fiber reinforced plastic molded components face challenges in achieving both high deformability to follow complex shapes and excellent shape retention, often resulting in wrinkles and compromised mechanical properties due to the rigidity introduced by resin impregnation processes.
Innovation Solution
A reinforcing woven fabric with a thermoplastic resin applied to at least one surface of a fabric substrate, allowing for controlled deformation and interlayer bonding without excessive rigidity, enabling the fabric to maintain shape retention and deformability by varying the relative position of reinforcing fiber bundles through shearing deformation.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Strength
If a thermosetting resin is impregnated in a fabric substrate to form a prepreg, then the mechanical properties and strength are improved, but the rigidity increases and deformability decreases, making it difficult to follow complex mold shapes
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the resin state from thermosetting (high viscosity, rigid) to thermoplastic (lower viscosity, flexible), fundamentally altering the material parameters to achieve both strength and deformability. The thermoplastic resin allows the fabric to be deformed at room temperature while maintaining mechanical integrity.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent creates a composite material system combining reinforcing fibers with thermoplastic resin, where the fiber provides strength and the resin provides flexibility and bonding. This composite structure achieves both high strength and good deformability that neither component could achieve alone.
2Ease of operation
If a dry reinforcing fiber substrate is used to improve deformability and shape-following property, then the ease of operation is improved, but the shape retention is poor and laying-up operations take excessive time
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies thermoplastic resin to the fabric substrate in advance, creating a pre-coated material that retains deformability during shaping. The resin is applied before the forming operation, allowing the fabric to be deformed while the resin remains flexible, then the resin solidifies to lock in the shape.
Solution Approach 2:
The thermoplastic resin undergoes a parameter change from a flexible state during deformation to a rigid state after cooling, enabling the fabric to transition from deformable to shape-retaining without requiring continuous external constraints.
3Stability of the object's composition
If a thermoplastic-like resin is applied to the surface of a reinforcing fiber substrate to bond interlayers and form a preform, then the shape retention is improved, but the rigidity becomes too strong and deformability is lowered, causing wrinkles and folding
Solution Approach 1:
The patent carefully controls the resin content and distribution to achieve an optimal parameter range where the resin provides enough bonding for shape retention but not so much as to prevent deformation. The resin content and viscosity are adjusted to maintain fabric flexibility during forming.
Solution Approach 2:
The resin is applied in a controlled manner to specific areas or at specific densities, creating local bonding zones that provide shape retention where needed while leaving other areas more flexible for deformation during the forming process.
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 allows for the production of fiber reinforced plastic molded components with improved design properties and mechanical performance, capable of complex three-dimensional shapes without wrinkles, enhancing productivity and handling properties.
Implementation Method 1
a resin material is stuck on at least one surface of a fabric substrate containing a plurality of reinforcing fiber bundles
Implementation Method 2
the resin is melt to thermally bond the interlayer of the reinforcing fiber substrate
Implementation Method 3
the resin is melt to thermally bond the interlayer of the reinforcing fiber substrate, cooled and solidified to form a preform retained in a given shape
Implementation Method 4
varying the relative position of reinforcing fiber bundles through shearing deformation
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2
Figure 3
AI summary
To provide a reinforcing woven fabric, which is excellent in deformability, capable of following a complicated shape and excellent in retention of the shape, and a preform using it, a fiber reinforced plastic molded component and a process for producing them. Provided is a reinforcing woven fabric where a resin material is stuck on at least one surface of a fabric substrate containing a plurality of reinforcing fiber bundles, then the resin material stuck over two or more reinforcing fiber bundles is peeled from a part of the two or more reinforcing fiber bundles by varying the relative position of a plurality of reinforcing fiber bundles constituting the fabric substrate, wherein the maximum value of load till a tensile strain in a non fiber axial tensile test reaches 1% is in a range of 0.01 to 0.75 N.