JP7413342B2 - Fiber placement equipment and method for laying up fiber materials - Google Patents

Description

The present invention is a fiber placement equipment for laying up fiber materials to produce fiber preforms, the fiber preforms being laid up by curing a matrix material in which the fiber materials of the fiber preforms are embedded. The present invention relates to a fiber arrangement facility from which a fiber composite member can be manufactured or is manufactured. The invention also relates to a method for this purpose.

Today, aviation and space flight are no longer conceivable without components made of fiber composites, so-called fiber composite components. However, the use of this type of material is gaining popularity in other fields as well. Particularly important structural elements are manufactured from fiber-reinforced plastics with a minimum weight due to their high weight-related strength and stiffness. The anisotropic properties of the fiber composite resulting from the fiber orientation allow the component to be precisely adapted to local loads, thereby allowing optimum material utilization in terms of lightweight construction.

In the manufacturing process, the fiber material is preimpregnated with the matrix material alongside a dry textile semi-finished product, such as a scrim, a woven fabric or a dry roving, which in most cases is also pre-applied with a binder. Also used are so-called prepregs. Due to the increasing number of parts during the production of fiber-reinforced components, especially in mass production, great efforts are being made to automate the manufacturing process to a large extent without adversely affecting the manufacturing process or the quality of the components to be produced. paid.

In order to be able to produce from the textile semi-finished product what will later become the shape of a part, the textile semi-finished product is usually laid up in or on a forming tool, e.g. by means of force, so that the tool surface has a geometry or a previous stage of geometry that corresponds to what will later become the member shape. Particularly in automated or partially automated manufacturing processes, this layup process (often referred to as preforming) is performed using a fiber placement device or facility where the end effector is a fiber placement head. be exposed. A fiber placement installation of this type can be, for example, a portal installation or a robot-assisted installation, in which the fiber placement head is arranged on an industrial articulated robot.

A textile semi-finished product, in particular a flat textile semi-finished product, such as a tape, a slit tape or a roving, is fed by a material providing device to a fiber placement head so that the fiber semi-finished product is deposited in the forming tool by a relative movement between the placement head and the tool surface. Products can be laid up.

From DE 10 2013 107 103 A1 a fiber placement head is known which can be arranged on a robot, for example to form a fiber placement installation. In this case, the fiber placement head is formed in such a way that the fiber placement head lays up on the forming tool surface a flat fiber semi-finished product fed to the fiber placement head using a fiber placement unit such as a pressure roll, for example; The fiber placement head has a plurality of electrodes and/or counter electrodes in order to be able to generate an electric current in the textile semi-finished product between the electrodes and the counter electrode by applying a voltage. This makes it possible, for example, to activate certain materials or materials within the textile semi-finished product, such as, for example, binder materials, in order to fix the textile semi-finished product to the surface. However, when using a pre-impregnated textile semi-finished product (prepreg), this is heated by passing an electric current through the textile semi-finished product to be laid up, thereby increasing the adhesion of the textile semi-finished product to the surface. It is also conceivable that good fixation is achieved.

From DE 10 2011 102 950 A1 a placement head and a method for producing fiber preforms from fiber assemblies comprising carbon fibers are known, the placement head comprising at least a fiber feed device and a lay-up roll; and a heating device for heating a thermally activatable binder material for fixing the fiber preform. The placement head includes two contact surfaces that are brought into contact by the fiber assembly fed by the fiber feeder and guided to the layup roll by the placement head, and the two contact surfaces are connected to the electrode pair. The conductive carbon fibers of the fiber assembly form a heating section of the placement head between the electrode pairs, the heating section providing a heating device for the placement head. In this case as well, the fiber material fed to the placement head is energized within the placement head and thereby heated.

Since the distance between the electrode and the counter electrode is usually fixed, the current-carrying section in the textile semi-finished product also has a predetermined fixed length. Therefore, the thermal energy input due to energization depends not only on the length of the energized section, but also on the lay-up speed at which the fiber material is laid up into a textile semi-finished product. This is because the lay-up speed also determines the amount of time a particular textile semi-finished product position is present in the current-carrying zone between the electrode and the counter-electrode.

In order to monitor equipment parameters, it is known from practice to determine the layup speed approximately by the actual TCP speed (TCP: Tool Center Point). However, in this case the accuracy depends on the sensor that detects the TCP velocity and the inertia and inaccuracy of the entire system based on mass and vibration behavior.

From DE 10 2009 017 217 A1 there is known a device and a method for operating the device for laying up semifinished ribbon fiber products, in which a fiber placement head is used to lay up semifinished ribbon fiber products to a predetermined length. It has a cutting device to cut into pieces. In this case, the drawn-out length is detected using a measuring device, so that the cutting device is controlled in a timely manner and the textile semi-finished product is cut. In this case, the measuring device is equipped with a laser-assisted sensor for detecting the edge of the cut textile semi-finished product, in which case the textile semi-finished product is determined based on the transport speed of the conveyor belt or transfer belt that generates the feed of the textile material. The drawer length can be detected.

German Patent Application No. 102013107103 German Patent Application No. 102011102950 German Patent Application No. 102009017217

It is an object of the present invention to provide an improved fiber placement facility that allows for precise and highly precise thermal energy input into the fiber material during its layup into a forming tool, and for producing fiber preforms. An object of the present invention is to provide an improved method of laying up fibrous materials. A particular object of the present invention is to provide an improved fiber placement facility and an improved method that allows the thermal energy input to be adjusted very precisely and with high precision based on the process framework conditions of the layup process at the time. That's true.

The object is solved according to the invention by a fiber placement installation according to claim 1 and a method for laying up fiber materials according to claim 12.

According to claim 1, a patent claim is made that corresponds in attribute to a fiber arrangement equipment for laying up fiber materials to produce a fiber preform, and a method for curing a matrix material in which the fiber materials of the fiber preform are embedded. A fiber composite component can be produced or is produced from a fiber preform. Accordingly, the fiber placement equipment manufactures a fiber preform consisting of at least the fiber material of the fiber composite material by laying up the fiber material from the fiber composite material comprising at least two main components, a fiber material and a matrix material. The fiber preform is then configured such that a fiber composite member can be manufactured from the fiber preform by curing the matrix material. In that case, the fiber preform is a component preform that can partially or completely have a geometry that later becomes the component geometry.

The fiber placement equipment has a fiber placement head that is correspondingly configured to lay up the fiber material onto the tool. Furthermore, the fiber placement installation has a fiber transfer device which is correspondingly configured to transfer the fiber material from the fiber material storage of the fiber placement installation to the fiber placement head. The fiber placement head is then arranged in an automatic movement device in order to be able to move the fiber placement head in the space and to carry out a relative movement between the fiber placement head and the immovable forming tool. be able to. An automatic movement device of this type can be, for example, a portal installation or a robot. However, it is also conceivable for the shaping tool surface to move relative to the fiber placement head (for example in a winding process), whereas the fiber placement head is stationary or can only move in one spatial direction.

In this case, a fiber material store is usually fixedly arranged relative to the fiber placement head, so that a relative movement between the fiber placement head and the fiber material store and a movement of the fiber placement head take place. A fiber transfer device may be used to transfer and feed the fiber material to the fiber placement head, thereby causing the fiber placement head to lay up the fiber material fed to the fiber placement head. I can do it.

Furthermore, the fiber placement equipment has a motion measurement device configured to detect motion information of the fiber material as it is successively laid up on the tool by the fiber placement head. By using a movement measuring device of this type, it is possible, for example, to continuously detect the amount of material movement and/or the material speed when laying up textile materials. In this case, the movement measuring device is designed to directly detect the movement of the fiber material and, based thereon, to detect movement information of the fiber material. In this case, the movement of the fiber material, but not the movement of the fiber placement head, is measured in order to detect movement information, and the movement of the fiber material through the fiber placement head or along the transport device is measured using a movement measurement device. is directly and directly detected. A movement measuring device of this kind can be, for example, a rotary encoder of a deflection roll or a transfer belt. However, the movement measuring device can also have an optical sensor that is configured to detect the movement of the textile material in a non-contact manner.

Furthermore, the fiber placement equipment has a heating device arranged in particular in the fiber placement head, which heating device is used in the heating area when the fiber material is successively laid up on the tool by the fiber placement head. is configured to heat the fibrous material at. According to the invention, in this case the fiber placement equipment is adapted to obtain motion information of the fiber material detected by the motion measuring device and during lay-up, depending on the detected motion information of the fiber material. It is envisaged to have a control device configured to control the heat supply of the heating device to the textile material.

In doing so, the inventor detects motion information by measuring the motion of the fiber material directly and independently of the motion of the fiber placement head with an accuracy suitable for controlling the heat supply to the fiber material. It has now been recognized that the fibrous material can be heated to a desired temperature, or the fibrous material can be heated within a predetermined temperature range just prior to laying up the fibrous material. Particularly in the case of high-speed lay-up operations, as well as in the case of high-speed starting and braking processes of the fiber placement head, direct detection of the movement of the fiber material and the movement information derived therefrom can be used to Sufficient control parameters may be provided to be able to control the heat supply.

In this case, the control device can be configured in such a way that the heating capacity (heat output versus time) can be adjusted as a function of the movement information of the fiber material in order to control the heat supply to the fiber material. However, alternatively or in addition to this, the control device may control the heat supply to the fiber material by adapting the exothermic time during which the heating device supplies heat to the fiber material (and thus outputs heat). can be adapted or varied, thereby controlling the heat input over time. Therefore, in particular the amount of heat output relative to the time and the heating time or exothermic time itself can be determined using possible open-loop or closed-loop control parameters for controlling the heat supply. Advantageously, it can be used as a regelungsparameter.

As already mentioned, it is advantageous if the movement measuring device is configured to detect the material velocity and/or the advanced material movement as movement information of the fiber material during lay-up, the control device is configured to control the heat supply of the heating device to the fibrous material in dependence on the detected material velocity and/or the detected advanced material movement of the fibrous material.

For example, the heating capacity (heat versus time) can be adapted as a function of the material speed, so that at relatively high material speeds the heating capacity is increased, whereas at relatively low material speeds the heating capacity is reduced. The control device is therefore designed in such a way that the heating capacity is a function of the material speed. It is also conceivable to switch the heating device on or off depending on the amount of material transferred, thereby indirectly controlling the amount of heat per time in a closed-loop and an open-loop manner. It is thereby conceivable for the control device to activate the heating device after a predetermined advanced material displacement amount s ₁ so that the heating device starts supplying heat. This heat supply by the heating device is maintained until the control device recognizes that a second advanced material movement amount _s2 has been advanced since the start of the heat supply by the heating device, after which the control device determines that the heat supply is stopped. Control the heating device so that

The heat supply by the heating device can then take place directly or indirectly. It is therefore conceivable that the heating device is configured to supply heat on the basis of classical heat convection, for example by supplying heat to the fiber material using a heat radiator. This is advantageous, for example, if the fiber material consists of a non-conductive fiber material.

If the fiber material has electrically conductive reinforcing fibers, it may be advantageous if the heat supply is carried out by passing an electric current through the fiber material in the form of resistive heating. For this purpose, a voltage is applied using electrodes, which generates an electric current in the fiber material, thereby heating it. However, it is also conceivable to carry out the heating inductively using an alternating magnetic field.

Furthermore, closed-loop control of the heat supply is dependent on the process framework conditions, based on the (length-specific) material volume or material mass, specific heat capacity, and/or electrical and thermal properties of the material to be heated. can do. In that case, process-dependent material parameters can be used to provide closed-loop control of the heat supply in conjunction with the detected material movements.

In a further advantageous embodiment, the fiber placement installation has at least one temperature sensor configured to detect the temperature of the fiber material outside or inside the heating area of the heating device. The control device is further configured such that the heat supply of the heating device to the fiber material is controlled as a function of the measured temperature of the fiber material. By analyzing material temperature, closed-loop control parameters can be automatically adapted to changing material properties or changing process framework conditions. In this case, the material temperature is detected using non-contact measuring methods, such as, for example, one or more pyrometers or a thermo-camera. However, non-contact measurement methods are also conceivable that allow rapid detection of material temperature.

In another advantageous embodiment, the fiber placement equipment lays up fiber material typically consisting of a plurality of single strands that are fed in parallel to a fiber placement head and then laid up in parallel by the fiber placement head. It is formed like this. In this case, the motion measuring device is used to detect motion information for each single strand or group of single strands in each strip, so that the motion information for each single strand is determined based on the motion information detected individually for each single strand. Alternatively, the heating device can be controlled such that the heat supply to each group of single strands is controlled for each single strand or group of single strands.

This makes it possible to control the heat supply individually for each fiber strip (single strand) to be laid up, depending on the kinematic information of the respective fiber strand, thereby further reducing the heat input by the fiber placement equipment. It becomes possible to be accurate.

When the radius of curvature is narrow or when a large number of wide fiber strips are to be laid up at the same time, the strips or single strands located on the outer side of the circular orbit and the strips or single strands located on the inner diameter of the circular orbit Due to the obvious difference in the material take-off, a single strand at the outer diameter can provide less heat than a single strand at the inner diameter with a joint heat input. By individually sensing the kinematic information of each single strand and individually controlling the heat supply to each individual single strand, this problem can be taken into account when laying up fibrous materials in narrow radii of curvature. In that case, the control device detects a greater material take-up in the case of the outer fiber strips, e.g. in the form of a higher material velocity or faster reaching of advanced material transfer points. As a result, the heat supply in the outer fiber strips is automatically increased by the control device, so that a heat input as uniform as possible in all fiber strips is achieved.

In another advantageous embodiment, the heating device is configured to provide a pulsed heat supply to the fiber material, and the control device of the fiber placement facility is configured to supply the pulsed heat supply in dependence on the detected motion information of the fiber material. is set to control. Pulsed heat supply is in particular understood to mean discontinuous heat supply at discrete time intervals, in which the heating duration is time-limited and a plurality of heat supply cycles are usually provided. In this case, it is particularly advantageous if the beginning and/or end of the heat supply pulse (heat supply cycle) is controlled as a function of the detected movement information of the fiber material. However, it is also conceivable that the pulse duration is controlled depending on the detected motion information.

Further, determining, calculating, and/or sensing the pulsed heat supply depending on process-dependent material parameters, the voltage provided by the energy source, the desired target temperature, or the desired number of pulses to reach the target temperature. You can also do that.

It is therefore possible to trigger individual heat supply pulses depending on the material movement distance (for example every 10 mm), such heat supply pulses having a heat supply duration of a predetermined period. Have time.

In this case, if several single strands or fiber strips are to be laid up in parallel by the fiber placement head, individual fiber supply pulses for heat supply to each fiber strip are adjusted individually to each fiber strip. It is conceivable that this can be done. Therefore, motion information is sensed individually for each fiber strip, and then heat supply pulses are controlled individually for each fiber strip accordingly, thereby achieving pulsed heat supply individually and independently from other fiber strips. can do.

In another advantageous embodiment, the heating device has at least one electrode connected to a source of electrical energy, the at least one electrode being brought into electrical contact with the electrically conductive textile material during the transport of the textile material. , and in conjunction with counter electrodes in electrical contact as well as the conductive fiber material, the at least one electrode and the at least one counter electrode are in electrical contact when a voltage is applied to the electrode and/or the counter electrode. a current for heating the textile material is generated in the current-carrying part formed by contacting the textile material, and the control device controls the application of the voltage in dependence on the detected movement information of the textile material. It is configured to control the heat supply to the textile material.

In this case, one or more electrodes and one or more counter electrodes can be provided so that different current-carrying parts can be formed. In particular, the electrode and the counterelectrode are provided in the fiber placement head, for example in the form of a deflection roll. However, it is also conceivable for the counterelectrode to be formed by the forming tool, for example if the forming tool has an electrically conductive tool surface.

At that time, of course, if there are a plurality of single strands to be laid up by the fiber placement head, it is conceivable to form individual current-carrying parts by the electrodes and counter electrodes in contact with each single strand, so that each The single strands each have at least one current-carrying part in which a current can be generated by applying a voltage, so that the fiber material or the single strand is heated in the current-carrying part in a resistive manner. Ru. The control device can then be configured such that the application of the voltage is controlled individually to each current-carrying part of the respective single strand, so that heating of the respective single strand is individually enabled.

A control device of the fiber placement facility controls the height of the voltage, the time at which the voltage is applied and/or the time interval between two energization phases and the duration of the applied voltage to control the heat supply. Advantageously, the arrangement is such that the application of the voltage is controlled in such a manner.

It is therefore conceivable that all electrodes of the installation (for example in the form of a positive pole) are connected to a large energy store (for example a capacitor). This has the purpose that voltage drops when connecting the electrodes should be avoided. Furthermore, this is a simple technical solution. In that case, the individual electrodes are connected to the energy store for the duration of the pulse by suitable electrical components (for example MOSFETs) and then disconnected again. This allows pulses to be switched in the microsecond range. If the energy storage device is charged with a high voltage (especially direct current) in the touch-safe range of ≦120 VDC or even ≦60 VDC, typical carbon fiber semi-finished products can charge the desired voltage within a few milliseconds or even microseconds. The target temperature can be reached.

It is therefore advantageous if the heating device is configured in such a way that it pulses the voltage for pulsed heat supply to the fiber material, and the control device of the fiber placement facility is capable of controlling the detected movements of the fiber material. It is configured to control the pulsed heat supply depending on the information. It is therefore advantageous if a heat supply pulse of this type has a duration of less than 1 second, in particular less than 0.1 second.

In this case, the duration of the heat supply pulse can be fixedly predetermined, whereas the trigger point at which the respective heat supply pulse should be triggered by applying a voltage is determined based on the distance traveled by the material. , or on the basis of material velocity, ie on the basis of motion information.

Particularly for rapid lay-up methods, it is advantageous for the heat supply pulse to be controlled relative to the sensed material travel distance, since it can be carried out quickly, process-reliably and efficiently. In addition to this, it is also conceivable for the pulse to be triggered temperature-controlled. For example, a heat supply pulse is triggered if the target temperature falls below a certain value. The energy content of the heat supply pulse can be very precisely controlled over a regulated duration, so that a single pulse can increase the material temperature as required. This can be done in addition to heat supply pulses controlled by motion information.

In another advantageous embodiment, the fiber placement equipment is configured to detect at least one parameter of the current-carrying part, and the control device of the fiber placement equipment is configured to detect at least one parameter of the current-carrying part, and the control device of the fiber placement equipment is configured to detect the electrical parameter of the fiber material. It is arranged to control the heat supply to the textile material by controlling the application of voltage to the textile material.

Thus, for example, electrical parameters (voltage drop and/or current in the measurement path) can be measured in a heat supply pulse, and further heat supply pulses can then be optimized on the basis of the measurement data (e.g. pulse duration or frequency of pulsed heat delivery). This can allow heating parameters to be adapted to natural process variations very quickly. The energy converted into heat in the material is then inferred from the total resistance in the heating section. If an increased resistance is sensed, this usually means that less energy has been converted to heat in the material. The pulse duration can therefore be lengthened or further heat supply pulses can be triggered (increase in frequency).

In a further advantageous embodiment, a preheating device is provided, which is arranged before the heating device in the transport direction of the fiber material and is designed to preheat the fiber material before the actual heating. ing. This makes it possible to preheat the fiber material below the actual target temperature (for example the melting temperature of the thermoplastic). In that case, the target temperature can be generated by a last heat supply pulse of low energy content at the lay-up head just before the lay-up.

Different energy stores can be connected to the contact surfaces through which energy pulses can be introduced into the material. For example, a first pulse can be delivered from an energy store at voltage level 1 (e.g. 60VDC), followed by a second pulse from an energy store at a lower voltage level 2 (e.g. 30VDC), and so on. be able to. In terms of hardware, "switches" (eg MOSFETs) can also be switched by two or more different pulse generators. This can lead to faster or simpler hardware solutions, for example for open-loop control/closed-loop control. In that case, pulse generator 1 always emits pulses with a length of, for example, 800 microseconds when activated, whereas pulse generator 2 emits pulses with a length of 300 microseconds.

The present invention makes it possible to infer temperature information, or temperature inversely, when the fiber material is successively laid up on a tool by a fiber placement head, instead of a kinematic measurement device for detecting kinematic information. Also included is an embodiment in which a temperature measuring device is provided that is configured to detect information about the temperature. In that case, the control device of the fiber placement facility is configured to obtain the temperature information of the fiber material detected by the temperature measuring device and, during layup, to the fiber material depending on the detected temperature information of the fiber material. is configured to control the heat supply of the heating device.

According to the invention, the fiber arrangement equipment has a motion measuring device and a temperature measuring device, in which case the control device is configured to collect temperature information of the fiber material detected by the temperature measuring device and the fiber material detected by the motion measuring device. and then during lay-up, depending on the detected temperature information of the textile material and depending on the detected kinematic information the heat supply of the heating device to the textile material. It also includes being configured to control. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION Accordingly, one aspect of the present invention is a fiber placement facility for laying up fiber materials to produce fiber preforms, which comprises: It is possible to manufacture fiber composite parts, and the fiber arrangement equipment is
a fiber placement head configured to lay up the fiber material on the tool;
a fiber transfer device configured to transfer fiber material from a fiber material reservoir of a fiber placement facility to a fiber placement head;
a temperature measuring device configured to detect temperature information or information allowing the temperature to be inferred when the fiber material is successively laid up on the tool by the fiber placement head; In fiber placement equipment,
The fiber placement equipment relies on the detected temperature information of the fiber material to obtain the temperature information of the fiber material detected by the temperature measuring device, and during the lay-up, the heating device heat supply to the fiber material. A fiber placement facility characterized in that it has a control device configured to control.

Yet another aspect of the invention is a method of laying up fibrous materials to produce a fibrous preform, the method comprising: forming a fibrous composite from a fibrous preform by curing a matrix material embedding the fibrous material of the fibrous preform. A component is manufactured, and the method includes:
transferring the fiber material from the fiber material storage to the fiber placement head by a fiber transfer device of the fiber placement facility;
laying up the transferred fibrous material onto the tool by a fiber placement head;
Detecting temperature information of the textile material by a temperature measuring device during continuous transport of the textile material;
heating the fibrous material in a heating zone with a heating device during continuous transport of the fibrous material;
A method, characterized in that the detected temperature information is transmitted to a control device, and the control device controls the heat supply of the heating device to the textile material in dependence on the detected temperature information of the textile material. .

Thus, for example, if a threshold temperature is exceeded or below, this is recognized by the temperature measuring device and an electrical energy impulse is triggered by the heating device, which is triggered accordingly by the control device, thereby causing an electric energy impulse to be applied to the material. Heat input is generated. Thus, when the temperature is recognized by the temperature measuring device, it can be detected how many electrical pulses need to be triggered to reach the desired target temperature. This assumes that the magnitude of the temperature rise per electrical pulse is known.

According to the invention, temperature information is also used in all embodiments of the invention instead of kinematic information in order to be able to control the heat input accordingly when laying up the fiber material in succession.

It is certainly advantageous if temperature and movement information are detected and the control is carried out on the basis of temperature and movement information.

The present invention will be explained in detail by way of example with reference to the accompanying drawings.

FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram of a fiber placement head. 1 is a schematic illustration of an embodiment using a fiber material of fiber strands; FIG. FIG. 2 is a schematic illustration of an embodiment using multiple fiber strands.

FIG. 1 shows a greatly simplified schematic diagram of the internal structure of a fiber placement head 1. As shown in FIG. In this case, the fiber material 2 is fed to the fiber placement head 1 and is then laid up onto the tool 100 using the pressure rolls 3 of the fiber placement head 1 . For this purpose, the fiber material 2 is guided towards the pressure roll in such a way that the fiber material finally reaches the pressure roll 3 and the pressure roll 3 can press the fiber material 2 onto the tool 100. guided by the fiber placement head 1 in such a manner. The fibrous material 2 therefore extends between the pressure roll 3 and the tool 100. For this purpose, the fiber placement head 1 has a plurality of guide elements 4, which in the embodiment of FIG. 1 are designed in the form of roller pairs or roll pairs.

The fiber placement head 1 furthermore has an optional cutting device 5 in the embodiment of FIG. 1, with which the fiber material 2 can be cut in front of the pressure roll 3. This allows the fiber material 2, which is supplied in the form of a substantially endless fiber strip, to be cut to the desired length or at the end of the tool 100.

The fiber placement head 1 furthermore has a heating device 6 to enable the fiber material 2 to be heated by the pressure roll 3 immediately before being laid up on the tool 100 . The structure of the heating device 6 will be explained in more detail later.

Furthermore, the fiber placement head 1 shown schematically in FIG. 1 has at least one optical sensor 7, which can be a component of a movement measuring device. The movement measuring device can furthermore have a further optional optical sensor 7a in front of the cutting device 5, in order to be able to detect movements also in front of the cutting device 5.

In this case, the optical sensor 7 is configured to be configured to detect movement information of the fiber material as it is successively laid up on the tool by the fiber placement head.

In this case, the optical sensor 7 can advantageously be designed to detect the material velocity or the amount of material displacement in a contactless manner. For this purpose, the optical sensor 7 has an imaging sensor chip, which can consist, for example, of a pixel array of a digital image sensor. As a result, the material surface of the fiber material 2 is detected continuously at a predetermined frequency of, for example, 1000 Hz, and then the images taken twice are sent to the calculation unit (DSP) provided in the optical sensor 7. :Digital Signal Processor). Then, based on this comparison, the amount of movement of the fibers on the fiber material or the surface of the fiber material between the first and second imaging times is recognized, and then the material velocity of the material is determined from this amount of fiber movement. Alternatively, the path taken can be detected.

The fiber placement installation which includes the fiber placement head 1 as a component further comprises a control device 10 which can be provided in the fiber placement head 1 or can be a component of the overall control equipment of the entire fiber placement installation. The control device 10 then receives the movement information detected by the optical sensor 7, for example the material speed or the path traveled, and accordingly adjusts the heat supply of the heating device 6 to the textile material 2 in a During the heating, the heating device is controlled in such a way that it is controlled in dependence on the movement information of the fiber material detected by the optical sensor 7. In this way, in particular, the heating capacity, the heating duration, the frequency of the pulsed heat supply, and the heating times can be predetermined by the control device 10 of the heating device 6, so that the overall heat supply is controlled accordingly. .

FIG. 2 shows a possible schematic diagram of the heat supply, how a movement-controlled heat supply can be realized directly in the fiber placement head 1. In this case, the control device 10 is connected in signal technology to a displacement detector 11, which, unlike the optical sensor of FIG. It is detected by (kontaktbehaftet). However, it is of course also conceivable to use an optical sensor 7 as known from FIG. 1 instead of the displacement detector 11.

Furthermore, the fiber material is brought into electrical contact with an electrode 12a and a counterelectrode 12b, which can be formed, for example, in the form of a guide roll. At this time, the electrode 12a and the counter electrode 12b form part of the heating device 6.

An energy source 20 connected to the heating device 6 charges an energy store 13, which can be formed, for example, in the form of a capacitor array. The energy source 20 is in particular of bidirectional construction, so that the energy store 13 can also be emptied again if necessary. Alternatively, since the energy store should store a large amount of energy and this energy should not be discharged uncontrolled, a separate device may be provided to enable the discharge of the energy store. can.

A current carrying part 14 is formed between the electrode 12a and the counter electrode 12b, and a current is generated in this current carrying part when a corresponding voltage is applied to the electrode 12a and the counter electrode 12b. For this purpose, the electrode 12a is connected via a switch 15 to an energy store 13 in the form of a positive pole and is correspondingly decoupled from the energy store in the absence of heat supply, whereas the counter-electrode 12b , connected to the ground wire of the energy store 13 or the energy source 20.

When the switch 15 is closed, a current is generated in the current-carrying part 14, which acts like a resistive heating and correspondingly heats the fiber material in the current-carrying part 14. By opening the switch, the electrical circuit is interrupted and no current flows through the current carrying part 14.

The length of time that the switch 15 is closed, the length of time that the switch remains closed, and the length of time that current is generated in the current-carrying section 14 are determined by the control device 10. The control device obtains information about how much material has been transported or moved from a specific point in time via the movement amount detector 11. Thus, for example, the switch 15 is closed every 10 mm and a heat supply impulse is triggered accordingly. If the textile semi-finished product 2 is moved, for example, a total of 24 mm, a total of two pulses are released. The duration of the pulse depends, for example, on what temperature is to be achieved by the pulse, how much and what kind of material is in the heating section, and to what voltage level the energy store is charged. Depends on.

Another input parameter can be the measured temperature of the textile semi-finished product, which can be detected using the temperature sensor 16. The pulse parameters can thus be adapted, for example automatically, by the control device 10 if the temperature of the semi-finished product is measured after one pulse and compared with a setpoint value.

Furthermore, an electrical measuring device 17 can be provided which can determine the total resistance of the heating section and which serves as an input for the control device 10 in this case. In this case, the electrical data (voltage/current/resistance) are evaluated for each pulse and compared with the target quantities. In that case, the parameters of the next current pulse are adapted accordingly as the equivalent of the heat supply pulse. For optimization purposes, a measuring pulse of this type can always occur immediately before the actual heating pulse.

FIG. 3 shows an arrangement of multi-tow equipment in which multiple single strands or fiber strips are laid up in parallel. For easier illustration, the individual fiber strips to be laid up in parallel are shown side by side.

In the embodiment of FIG. 3, the forming tool 100 is formed as a counterelectrode and thus forms a common earth or common ground terminal for all individual fiber strands.

At this time, movement amount detectors 11a to 11c are provided for each individual fiber strand 2a to 2c, respectively, and the movement amount detectors individually detect movement information for each individual single strand. Naturally, the displacement detectors 11a and 11c can be formed in the form of optical sensors.

Furthermore, each single strand 2a-2c is connected to a respective electrode 12aa-12ac so that a precisely individual current can be generated in the respective fiber strand 2a-2c for each individual fiber strand 2a-2c. are doing.

In this case, each of the electrodes 12aa to 12ac is connected to the energy storage 13 in such a way that precisely each electrode can be switched separately. For this purpose, as shown in FIG. 3, a control module 10a-10c is provided for each fiber strand 2a-2c, which is connected to a corresponding switch.

The path is then measured in the first fiber strand 2a using the displacement detector 11a and if it is ascertained by the control module 10a that a new current pulse for heating can be generated, the electrode 12aa and An electrical circuit is closed using a corresponding switch so that a current is generated in the fiber strand 2a with a common ground 100. This impulse then results in heating of the fiber material 2a in the respective current-carrying portion 14a.

Therefore, in multi-tow equipment, or other equipment where multiple fiber strands can be laid up in parallel, each fiber strand is formed with a dedicated current-carrying section 14a-14c that separates the fiber material and other fiber materials. An electric current can be generated in this current-carrying part in order to be able to heat it independently of the current-carrying part.

The arrangement of control modules 10a-10c shown in the embodiment of FIG. 3 is shown by way of example only. It is of course also conceivable that this could take place via only one higher-level controller.

Below, the invention described in the original claims of the present application will be added.
[1] Fiber arrangement equipment for laying up a fiber material (2) to produce a fiber preform, the fiber arrangement equipment comprising: curing a matrix material in which the fiber material (2) of the fiber preform is embedded; A fiber composite member can be manufactured from a preform, and the fiber arrangement equipment includes:
a fiber placement head (1) configured to lay up a fiber material (2) on a tool (100);
a fiber transfer device configured to transfer the fiber material (2) from a fiber material reservoir of the fiber placement facility to the fiber placement head (1);
configured to detect movement information of the fibrous material (2) when the fibrous material (2) is successively laid up on the tool (100) by the fiber placement head (1); a motion measuring device;
arranged to heat the fibrous material (2) in a heating region when the fibrous material (2) is successively laid up on the tool (100) by the fiber placement head (1); In a fiber arrangement equipment having a heating device (6),
The fiber placement equipment is configured to obtain the kinematic information of the fiber material (2) detected by the kinematic measuring device and to detect the detected kinematic information of the fiber material (2) during the lay-up. characterized in that it has a control device (10) configured to control the heat supply of the heating device (6) to the fiber material (2) depending on the
Fiber placement equipment.
[2] The motion measurement device is set to detect a material speed and/or an advanced material movement amount as motion information of the fiber material (2), and the control device (10) is configured to detect the motion information of the fiber material (2). ) is configured to control the heat supply of the heating device (6) to the fibrous material (2) depending on the detected material velocity and/or the detected advanced material movement of the fiber material (2). The fiber arrangement equipment according to [1], characterized in that:
[3] The fiber arrangement equipment has at least one temperature sensor (16) for detecting the temperature of the fiber material (2) outside or inside the heating area of the heating device (6), The control device (10) is further configured to control the heat supply of the heating device (6) to the fiber material (2) depending on the measured temperature of the fiber material (2). The fiber arrangement equipment according to [1] or [2], characterized by:
[4] The fiber arrangement equipment is formed to lay up a fiber material (2) consisting of a plurality of single strands,
The motion measurement device is configured to individually detect motion information for each single strand or group of single strands,
the heating device (6) is configured to heat the single strand or group of single strands individually and independently of each other;
The control device (10) of the fiber placement facility is configured to control the control device (10) for each single strand or group of single strands individually and with respect to each other depending on the detected movement information of the respective single strand or group of single strands. The fiber arrangement equipment according to any one of [1] to [3], characterized in that it is configured to independently control the heat supply of the heating device (6).
[5] The heating device (6) is formed to provide pulsed heat supply to the fiber material (2), and the control device (10) of the fiber arrangement equipment is configured to supply heat to the fiber material (2) in a pulse manner. The fiber placement equipment according to any one of [1] to [4], characterized in that the equipment is configured to control the pulsed heat supply depending on detected movement information.
[6] The heating device (6) is formed to individually supply pulsed heat to each single strand or a group of single strands, and the control device (10) is configured to individually supply pulsed heat to each single strand or a group of single strands, and the control device (10) characterized in that it is arranged to control the pulsed heat supply of each single strand or each group of single strands individually and independently of each other depending on the detected movement information of the group of strands. The fiber arrangement equipment according to [4] and [5].
[7] The heating device (6) has at least one electrode (12a) connected to a source of electrical energy (13), and the at least one electrode is configured to conduct the electrically conductive material during the transfer of the fiber material (2). said electrode (12a) and/or a current-carrying portion (14) formed by electrical contact between the at least one electrode (12a) and the at least one counter electrode (12b) when a voltage is applied to the counter electrode (12b); a current for heating the fiber material (2) is generated, the control device (10) controlling the application of the voltage depending on the detected movement information of the fiber material (2); The fiber arrangement equipment according to any one of [1] to [6], characterized in that the heat supply to the fiber material (2) is controlled by:
[8] In order to control the application of the voltage, the control device (10) of the fiber arrangement equipment controls the height of the voltage for controlling the heat supply, the time point at which the voltage is applied, and the time at which the voltage is applied. The fiber arrangement equipment according to [7], characterized in that the time length of the voltage and/or the time interval between two energization phases are set to be controlled.
[9] The heating device (6) is formed to apply the voltage in pulses for the pulsed heat supply to the fiber material (2), and the heating device (6) is configured to apply the voltage in pulses to the fiber arrangement equipment (10). ) is set to control the pulsed heat supply depending on the detected motion information of the fiber material (2), according to [7] or [8]. Fiber placement equipment.
[10] The fiber placement equipment is configured to detect at least one electrical parameter of the current-carrying section, and the control device (10) of the fiber placement equipment detects the detected electrical parameter of the fiber material (2). [7] to [9], characterized in that it is arranged to control the heat supply to the textile material (2) by controlling the application of the voltage depending on an electrical parameter The fiber arrangement equipment according to any one of the above.
[11] A preheating device is provided, and the preheating device is disposed in front of the heating device (6) in the conveying direction of the fiber material (2), and the preheating device is arranged before the heating device (6) and heats the fiber material (2) before the original heating. The fiber arrangement equipment according to any one of [1] to [10], characterized in that it is formed to preheat.
[12] A method of laying up a fiber material (2) to produce a fiber preform, the method comprising: curing a matrix material in which the fiber material (2) of the fiber preform is embedded; A fiber composite member is manufactured from
transferring the fiber material (2) from the fiber material storage to the fiber placement head (1) by a fiber transfer device of the fiber placement facility;
laying up the transferred fiber material (2) onto a tool (100) by the fiber placement head;
detecting motion information of the fiber material (2) by a motion measuring device during continuous transport of the fiber material (2);
heating the fibrous material (2) in a heating zone by means of a heating device during the continuous transport of the fibrous material (2);
The detected movement information is transmitted to a control device (10), which controls the movement of the fiber material (2) depending on the detected movement information of the fiber material (2). Method, characterized in that the heat supply of the heating device (6) is controlled.
[13] At least one temperature sensor (16) detects the temperature of the fiber material (2) outside or inside the heating area of the heating device (6), and the control device (10) detects the temperature of the fiber material (2). Method according to [12], characterized in that the heat supply of the heating device (6) to the fiber material (2) is controlled depending on the measured temperature of the material (2).
[14] The fiber arrangement equipment lays up a plurality of individual fiber strands in parallel, and the motion measurement device detects motion information for each single strand or group of single strands,
each single strand or group of single strands may be heated individually and independently of each other by said heating device (6);
Depending on the detected movement information of the respective single strand or group of single strands, the control device (10) causes the control device (10) to control the Method according to [12] or [13], characterized in that the heat supply of the heating device (6) is controlled.
[15] The heating device (6) provides pulsed heat supply to the fiber material (2), and the control device (10) provides a pulsed heat supply to the fiber material (2) depending on the detected movement information of the fiber material (2). The method according to any one of [12] to [14], wherein the pulsed heat supply is controlled by:
[16] The heating device (6) individually supplies pulsed heat to each single strand or group of single strands, and the control device (10) supplies each single strand or group of single strands with pulsed heat. [14] and [2], characterized in that the pulsed heat supply of each single strand or each group of single strands is controlled individually and independently of each other, depending on the detected motion information of the 15].
[17] The conductive fiber material (2) is brought into electrical contact with at least one electrode (12a) and at least one counter electrode (12b), and the at least one electrode (12a) and the at least one counter electrode (12b) A voltage is applied to the electrode (12a) and/or the counter electrode (12b) to a current-carrying portion formed by the electrical contact of the counter electrode (12b), thereby heating the fiber material (2). A current is generated and the control device (10) controls the application of the voltage in dependence on the detected movement information of the textile material (2) to increase the heat to the textile material (2). The method according to any one of [12] to [16], wherein the supply is controlled.
[18] The control device (10) controls the height of the voltage, the time point of application of the voltage, the time length of the applied voltage, and/or the difference between two energization phases in order to control the heat supply. The method according to [17], characterized in that the time interval is controlled.
[19] The heating device (6) applies the voltage in pulses for the pulsed heat supply to the fiber material (2), and the control device (10) applies the voltage in pulses to the fiber material (2). ) The method according to [17] or [18], characterized in that the pulsed heat supply is controlled depending on the detected motion information of ().
[20] by detecting at least one electrical parameter of the current-carrying part and controlling, by said control device (10), the application of a voltage in dependence on said detected electrical parameter of said textile material (2); The method according to any one of [12] to [19], characterized in that the heat supply to the fibrous material (2) is controlled.

1 Fiber placement head 2 Fiber material 3 Pressure roll 4 Guide element 5 Cutting device 6 Heating device 7 Optical sensor 10 of the motion measuring device Control device 11 Movement amount detector 12a of the motion measuring device Electrode 12b Counter electrode 13 Energy source 14 Energization Section 15 Switch 16 Temperature sensor 17 Electrical measuring device 20 Energy source 100 Forming tool

Claims (16)

Fiber placement equipment for laying up a fiber material (2) to produce a fiber preform, the fiber placement facility comprising: laying up a fiber material (2) of the fiber preform by curing a matrix material embedding the fiber material (2) of the fiber preform; A fiber composite member can be manufactured, and the fiber arrangement equipment includes:
a fiber placement head (1) configured to lay up a fiber material (2) on a tool (100);
a fiber transfer device configured to transfer the fiber material (2) from a fiber material reservoir of the fiber placement facility to the fiber placement head (1);
configured to detect movement information of the fibrous material (2) when the fibrous material (2) is successively laid up on the tool (100) by the fiber placement head (1); a motion measuring device;
arranged to heat the fibrous material (2) in a heating region when the fibrous material (2) is successively laid up on the tool (100) by the fiber placement head (1); In a fiber arrangement equipment having a heating device (6),
The fiber placement equipment is configured to obtain the kinematic information of the fiber material (2) detected by the kinematic measuring device and to detect the detected kinematic information of the fiber material (2) during the lay-up. a control device (10) configured to control the heat supply of the heating device (6) to the fibrous material (2) depending on the
The heating device (6) is configured to provide a pulsed heat supply to the fiber material (2), and the control device (10) of the fiber placement facility controls the detected temperature of the fiber material (2). configured to control the pulsed heat supply in dependence on motion information;
Said heating device (6) has at least one electrode (12a) connected to a source of electrical energy (13), said at least one electrode being connected to said electrically conductive textile material (2) during transport of said textile material (2). said electrode (12a) and/or said counter electrode (12b) When a voltage is applied to the fiber material (2), said control device (10) by controlling the application of said voltage in dependence on said detected movement information of said textile material (2). characterized in that the heat supply to the fiber material (2) is controlled ;
Fiber placement equipment. The motion measurement device is set to detect a material speed and/or an advanced material movement amount as motion information of the fiber material (2), and the control device (10) is configured to detect the motion information of the fiber material (2). being configured to control the heat supply of the heating device (6) to the fibrous material (2) depending on the detected material velocity and/or the detected advanced material movement; Fiber placement equipment according to claim 1, characterized in that: The fiber placement equipment has at least one temperature sensor (16) for detecting the temperature of the fiber material (2) outside or inside the heating area of the heating device (6), and the control device ( 10) is further characterized in that the heat supply of the heating device (6) to the fiber material (2) is controlled depending on the measured temperature of the fiber material (2). The fiber arrangement equipment according to claim 1 or claim 2. The fiber arrangement equipment is formed to lay up a fiber material (2) consisting of a plurality of single strands,
The motion measurement device is configured to individually detect motion information for each single strand or group of single strands,
the heating device (6) is configured to heat the single strand or group of single strands individually and independently of each other;
The control device (10) of the fiber placement facility is configured to control the control device (10) for each single strand or group of single strands individually and with respect to each other depending on the detected movement information of the respective single strand or group of single strands. Fiber placement installation according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that it is configured to independently control the heat supply of the heating device (6). The heating device (6) is configured to individually supply pulsed heat to each single strand or group of single strands, and the control device (10) is configured to individually supply pulsed heat to each single strand or group of single strands. being arranged to control the pulsed heat supply of each single strand or each group of single strands individually and independently of each other, depending on the detected movement information of the Fiber placement equipment according to claim 4 . The control device (10) of the fiber arrangement equipment controls the height of the voltage, the time of application of the voltage, and the time of the applied voltage for controlling the heat supply, in order to control the application of the voltage. Fiber placement equipment according to any one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that the length and/or the time interval between two energization phases are set to be controlled. The heating device (6) is configured to apply the voltage in pulses for the pulsed heat supply to the fiber material (2), and the control device (10) of the fiber placement facility comprises: 7. According to any one of claims 1 to 6, characterized in that it is arranged to control the pulsed heat supply in dependence on the detected movement information of the fibrous material (2). Fiber placement equipment as described. The fiber placement equipment is configured to detect at least one electrical parameter of the current carrying part, and the control device (10) of the fiber placement equipment detects the detected electrical parameter of the fiber material (2). Any of claims 1 to 7 , characterized in that it is arranged to control the heat supply to the textile material ( 2 ) by controlling the application of the voltage depending on a parameter. Fiber arrangement equipment according to item 1. A preheating device is provided, the preheating device being arranged before the heating device (6) in the transport direction of the fiber material (2) and preheating the fiber material (2) before the actual heating. The fiber arrangement equipment according to any one of claims 1 to 8 , characterized in that it is formed as follows. A method of laying up a fiber material (2) to produce a fiber preform, the method comprising: laying up a fiber composite from the fiber preform by curing a matrix material embedding the fiber material (2) of the fiber preform. a member is manufactured, the method comprising:
transferring the fiber material (2) from the fiber material storage to the fiber placement head (1) by a fiber transfer device of the fiber placement facility;
laying up the transferred fiber material (2) onto a tool (100) by the fiber placement head;
detecting motion information of the fiber material (2) by a motion measuring device during continuous transport of the fiber material (2);
heating the fibrous material (2) in a heating zone by means of a heating device during the continuous transport of the fibrous material (2);
The detected movement information is transmitted to a control device (10), which controls the movement of the fiber material (2) depending on the detected movement information of the fiber material (2). The heat supply of the heating device (6) is controlled ,
The heating device (6) provides a pulsed heat supply to the textile material (2), and the control device (10) controls the heating of the textile material (2) depending on the detected movement information. Pulsed heat supply is controlled,
Said conductive fiber material (2) is brought into electrical contact with at least one electrode (12a) and at least one counter electrode (12b), said at least one electrode (12a) and said at least one counter electrode ( A current for heating the fiber material (2) is generated by applying a voltage to the electrode (12a) and/or the counter electrode (12b) in the current-carrying part formed by the electrical contact of 12b). and the heat supply to the textile material (2) is controlled by the control device (10) by controlling the application of the voltage depending on the detected movement information of the textile material (2). A method characterized by: At least one temperature sensor (16) detects the temperature of the textile material (2) outside or inside the heating area of the heating device (6), and the control device (10) detects the temperature of the textile material (2). 11. Method according to claim 10, characterized in that the heat supply of the heating device (6) to the fiber material (2) is controlled as a function of the measured temperature of the fiber material (2). the fiber placement equipment lays up a plurality of individual fiber strands in parallel;
The movement measuring device detects movement information for each single strand or each group of single strands,
each single strand or group of single strands may be heated individually and independently of each other by said heating device (6);
Depending on the detected movement information of the respective single strand or group of single strands, the control device (10) causes the control device (10) to control the 12. Method according to claim 10 or 11 , characterized in that the heat supply of the heating device (6) is controlled. The heating device (6) individually applies pulsed heat to each single strand or group of single strands, and the control device (10) controls the detection of each single strand or group of single strands. 13. Method according to claim 12 , characterized in that, depending on the motion information determined, the pulsed heat supply of each single strand or each group of single strands is controlled individually and independently of each other. The height of the voltage, the time of application of the voltage, the time length of the applied voltage and/or the time interval between two energization phases are controlled by the control device (10) in order to control the heat supply. Method according to any one of claims 10 to 13 , characterized in that the method is controlled. The heating device (6) causes the pulsed application of the voltage for the pulsed heat supply to the fiber material (2), and the control device (10) causes the pulsed application of the voltage to the fiber material (2). Method according to any of claims 10 to 14 , characterized in that the pulsed heat supply is controlled in dependence on detected movement information. At least one electrical parameter of the current-carrying part is detected, and the control device (10) controls the application of a voltage in dependence on the detected electrical parameter of the textile material (2). Method according to any one of claims 10 to 15 , characterized in that the heat supply to (2) is controlled.

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