DEFECT ASSESSMENT METHOD FOR AUTOMATED FIBRE PLACEMENT INDUCED DEVIATIONS

The Automated Fiber Placement (AFP) process provides remarkable benefits with respect to productivity and part quality as well as manufacturable part complexity (e.g. fiber steering). Although, using this technology evokes some new aspects to be considered in part design. Aforementioned part complexity and process limitations determine the occurrence of deviations from the designed “ideal” part to the manufactured “real” part. The effect of these manufacturing induced deviations (on the final part behaviour) is currently not fully understood. Hence, there is a substantial need for the development of concepts and methods, respectively, in order to assess the actual structural behaviour. According to experimental investigations [1] a significant influence of defects on the structural performance of composite parts was experienced (cf. Figure 1).