Cevotec to present Fibre Patch Placement design at Paris Airshow

CIMJune17News - cevotec
CIMJune17News - cevotec

Just in time for the Paris Airshow, the engineers of the Fibre Patch Placement specialist, Cevotec say they have achieved a milestone: the additive, automated production of an aircraft window funnel. The prototype will be shown at the Paris Air Lab site and in the ESA pavilion.

“With the fully automated preforming of such a complex shaped part as an aircraft window funnel, we really achieved a milestone in Fibre Patch Placement technology,” commented Thorsten Groene, CEO of Munich based Cevotec. The 16 x 20 x 6inch part was a challenge even for the Fibre Patch Placement specialists.

“Such a biaxially curved and annularly closed preform with a constant radial and circumferentially oriented fibre architecture cannot be produced integrally with any other production technology. Especially processing textile fabrics turns out quite impossible,” explained Felix Michl, CTO of Cevotec.

Fibre Patch Placement is basically the only technology able to continuously deposit fibres directly onto the final component contour without further remodelling or forming, thereby saving process steps and avoiding unwanted draping effects during the deposition process.

“Due to the patched structure of the funnel, the wall thickness is largely kept constant and the material exploitation is constantly high. The funnel is thus more than 50% lighter than a typical injection-moulded component, which saves material and also weight, which is especially valuable in aerospace applications.”

The Cevotec Fibre Patch Placement production system SAMBA performs the production of the complex component. With the help of two robots, the directional fibre patches are placed on a moulding tool.

“Core element for the automation is the form-adaptive Cevotec gripper, which can passively adapt itself to the complex shape of the preform and place the patches exactly at the calculated position, currently, with at a speed of 1 patch per second,” explains Michl. "Of crucial importance for efficient laminate planning and robot programming is the software,” added Dr Neven Majic, Cevotec's executive VP Software Technology. The powerful algorithms of Cevotec's CAD-CAM software ARTIST STUDIO calculate the optimal position and overlap of the patches, which are basic prerequisites for uniformly high laminate quality.

Visitors to the Airshow will have the chance to take a look at the prototype of the window funnel on Monday, June 19, at the Paris Air Lab in the Concorde Hall (booth S09) and on June 20 at the ESA Pavilion. Cevotec will also exhibit an aircraft pressure cap. Its concave and convex surface, with 90° angles and narrow radii, is another example for a part that can be manufactured additively and without additional forming steps only with Fibre Patch Placement technology.

“The production with flexible patches expands the range of suitable lightweight parts in aerospace,” concluded Groene.

www.cevotec.com

Company

Cevotec

Related Articles

Quick off the mark

Mike Richardson talks to Gardner Aerospace Basildon to discover how it uses Delcam's computer-aided manufacturing software products to help ensure a rapid turnaround of its customers' machined parts.
11 years ago Features

Taking it to the max!

Just over 10 years ago, Midland Aerospace invested in a 5-axis DMG machining centre and Open Mind’s hyperMILL CAM software. A decade on and more growth has seen the arrival of five 5-axis machines and an extra three seats of hyperMILL.
7 years ago Features

Tutoring titanium machining

At Kyocera SGS’ Lunch and Learn event machining demonstrations were conducted on a titanium workpiece using a Grob G350 5-axis machining centre and Edgecam CAD/CAM software.
7 years ago Videos
Most recent Articles

Carter enjoys success at HAI HELI-EXPO event

Acknowledged as the World’s largest vertical aviation conference and trade show, HAI HELI-EXPO 2024 provided precision bearing specialists Carter Manufacturing a perfect opportunity to exhibit its extensive range of aerospace bearing installation, removal and testing tools, along with PMA bearing options.
1 day ago News

Login / Sign up