Integrated Thermoplastic Welding System with In-Process Inspections and Closed-Loop Controls for Man
Abstract
ONR Program Manager: Dr. Anisur Rahman Airframe Structures and Materials (Code 35)Reinforced thermoplastic composites are an attract,ive material solution for many commercial and defense vehicle applications due to their ability to reduce manufacturing cycle time a,nd cost. Additionally, thermoplastic composites have superior toughness and environmental resistance compared to thermoset composite,s and offer the ability to eliminate or decrease the use of mechanical fasteners at joints by welding. When welding thermoplastic co,mposite assemblies, each substrate is heated in order to melt the polymer at the interface of the joint. While heating, the joint is, held under pressure until the polymer solidifies and the substrates are consolidated together. This forms a unitized structure, wit,h no identifiable interface after the welding is complete. Several of the most common techniques used in aerospace applications incl,ude resistance, induction, and ultrasonic welding. Substrates welded in labenvironments with highly controlled boundary conditions h,ave demonstrated the viability of these techniques. However, limited research and development work in the scaling process has slowed, the adoption of these strategies for joining structures. Of these techniques, induction and ultrasonic welding methods offer the mo,st robust solutions for scaling up the process to a large structure. In both approaches, end effectors that incorporate the inductio,n coil/work-head or ultrasonic welder stack assembly can be mounted to a robot for continuous welding of large thermoplastic structu,res. The unique design and equipment incorporated in this cell, allow for the optimization of the welding process by means of novel,heating and tooling strategies, in-situ process monitoring and control, and advanced non-destructive inspection techniques. The prim,ary goal of this research is to develop novel continuous welding strategies to minimize process cycle time and maximize the quality,and performance ofwelded joints performed on a large structure. This dynamic welding cell environment will provide a proving ground,for researchers and students to explore and validate all aspects of welding technologies at a scale that addresses the barriers asso,ciated with manufacturing large primary structures. Increasing the welding technology readiness level (TRL) will allow for future co,mmercial and DoD vehicles to adopt these strategies to increase manufacturing throughput at lower costs with minimal risk. The Low C,ost Attritable Aircraft Technology (LCAAT) program is a leading example of a technology that can leverage thermoplastic manufacturin,g strategies for enabling rapid production of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) at a low cost. In addition to aiding manufacturing pro,cess development, this technology will be used to aid in developing repair techniques to support maintenance practices associated wi,th thermoplastic composite structures.This abstract is publicly releasable.
Document Details
- Document Type
- DoD Grant Award
- Publication Date
- Sep 08, 2022
- Source ID
- N000142212717
Entities
People
- Waruna Seneviratne
Organizations
- Office of Naval Research
- United States Navy
- Wichita State University